TTTTTramramramramram TTTTTractsractsractsractsractsNewsletter of the

Tramway Historical Society IncP. O. Box 1126

Christchurch.Website

www.ferrymeadtramway.org.nz

Editorial address: Joe Pickering, P. O. Box 17, Woodend, North Canterbury 7641. Phone 03 312 2578. Emailjpickering@clear.net.nz.

Ferrymead

Next work partyThe next work party is scheduled for Saturday 16 February 1013. Formal work parties are held everythird Saturday of the month and Alan Roi provides a cooked midday meal. There are also activities

every Saturday and on Monday evenings.

February 2013

Crowds descend on Ferrymead for free day

Thousands flocked to Ferrymead Historic Park to take advantage of the free-entry-day on Sunday 10 February 2013. The totalhead count had passed 8, 000 just before 4:00pm. W 192 arrives from Moorhouse at the Ferrymead Wharf end of the park with avery full train of enthusiastic visitors enjoying a superb summer’s day. Nearer the camera, Brisbane 236 loads passengers at theformer Square Shelter. In Tram Barn No 3 on the right can be seen the fronts of City Tramway earthquake refugees Brill 178 and

Melbourne W2-type tram 244. More photos page 6.Photo: DLA Turner

Warmest thanks are due tothe Lions Club of NewZealand for their huge

and generous donation to the Parkand supplementary grants tosocieties who made this day possible

Many activities were providedincluding steam train, diesel railcarand electric trams. To cater for thecrowds eight additional foodcontractors were engaged to set upcarts, trucks or stalls outside the

railway station and at CoronationPark. Other activities such as bouncycastles and a can-pan alley were alsoprovided. There were also a numberof competitions, races and scavengerhunts.

Ferrymead Tram Tracts, February 20132

Our bus outside St Kentigens church in Kaituna Valley which we visited on John Shanks’ mystery tour in January. About20 members enjoyed a pleasant evening starting off by pretending we were on a tram riding down Lincoln Road, then it was

out into the country to visit a patch of native bush in Kaituna Valley which is managed by DOC—there were somemagnificent large matais to be seen. The bus was driven by Graeme Belworthy and we returned back at Ferrymead about

10.15 where Phyllis had prepared a tasty supper.

Successful mystery tourJohn Shanks mystery tour was apparently successful as always. Your editor was out to town and

unfortunately missed it but KEN HENDERSON was there.

TRACK REPAIRS ARE due to get under waylater this month (Downers, who were buildingthe extension, have the contract.) At this stagethe existing line is being repaired plusinstalling the point work only for theextension. Access to the tram shed in townfor CTL is also expected very soon—checkingand repairs to services (power, water etc) beingattended to first.

THS, HTT and CTL were among thosewho put in submissions to CERA on theTransport Chapter (“An Accessible City”) of theChristchurch Central Plan in support of thetram (including the extension) being recognisedand supported for early resumption andcompletion. We are aware that there were alsosubmissions in support from businesses andowners in the Cathedral Junction and City Mall(“Restart”) areas. Submissions closed on 1February and a CERA/Ministerial decision isexpected in March.

City tramway ontrack

DAVE HINMAN brings us up to date

Former engineer diesIT WAS NOTED RECENTLY that Don Thompson who was ourinspecting engineer for about five years in the 1980s died back inOctober last year. Mr Thompson lived in Ashburton and had a longinvolvement with the Plains Railway.

Grant receivedTREASURER STEPHEN TAYLOR advises that the CanterburyCommunity Trust has awarded the Society a donation of $8,000towards the “Ongoing restoration of Christchurch Hills Car No 24.”

The focus of this donation will be for the work to separate thebody from the chassis as outlined in the December Ferrymead TramTracts, and will primarily be used to pay HTT staff to undertake thiswork. The concreting of the floor of Tram Barn 1 to allow this work toproceed is well in hand, with the final concrete pour expected to occurthis coming weekend—February Saturday work day.

Tram driving tip first of a monthly contribution from Driver Training

Officer DAVID JONES

CROSSING TRUSCOTTS ROAD—It is essential that a red taillight is not showing at the front of your tram when crossingthis public road. Always make sure that you reverse your lightswhen reversing the tram either at the Square Shelter or if shortworking from the Church.

Ferrymead Tram Tracts, February 2013 3

In early October 2012 theSociety was asked about apostcard from the John Bettle

col lect ion, to be made into awallpaper to go on the wall ofDux Dine (which has replaced theDux de Lux restaurant.) Having

Postcard becomes wallpaperDIANNE HOBBS tells how a restaurant has made a wall feature from an old postcard from the John Bettle collection.

found the postcard i t wascol lected and made intowallpaper. The Dux Dine at 28Riccarton Road is in a beautifulold villa which opened about themiddle of November.

Below are photos of the

postcard, the wallpaper going up,and a photo of it up. The tram—Hills car 167— is going between StAlbans and the Takahe. With thehelp of John Shanks we have datedthe postcard as being between 1929and 1931.

Ferrymead Tram Tracts, February 20134

FERRYMEAD PARK OFFICE madeavailable to us throughout February,the Military Room which is locatedon the grassy area between the ModelTrains and the Hallof Flame. Anindustrious AllenHarbrow and AlanRoi mapped outwhat we might beable to put togetherfor a bus displayusing existingmaterials. Amazingwhat you can find inour library, trambarns and trolleybus shed when yougo rummaging. Wehad a mural which Iu n d e r s t a n doriginated from the old TramwayOffice in the Square which wematched up with an On The Move setof books and models kindly suppliedby Colin Loach for the Beetle Bus, aBrill tramcar and an AEC Regal Mk4bus. These three vehicles are featuredon the mural. We accompanied theseitems with two dummies dressed as

old uniforms but we had to lower thehead and face on one to make him alittle unrecognisable. Reason beingbecause it was a wax mock up of

Prince Charles, so we have found anew role for our heir to the throne—bus driver!!!

Adjacent to that, we have adisplay of CTB items surrounding avery large picture of a Bristol Hessbus in Cathedral Square when it wasthe central focal point for buses. Ofcourse the Cathedral, BNZ Building,

Press Building and even the oldUnited Service Hotel are in thephoto—a little bit of nostalgia. In thatdisplay we have a collection of old

bus stops and othersigns including aSCHOOL sign thatwould have beenslotted in on a schoolbus trip, including theword SUX scrawledunderneath by somelong gone disgruntledstudent. RedBus havekindly given us a largemodel of a M.A.N.SL202 bus for thisdisplay and also amodel of the brandnew bus they use forthe city earthquake

tour.Along the centre of the building

we have several sets of photographs,mostly from the Dudley Kirker/THSCollection, featuring trolleybusesfrom Christchurch and Dunedin, theFerrymead double decker, CTB Mk4’s and Reliances, RedBus andLeopard. And, from the photographs

Bus display well worth seeingALLEN HARBROW and ALAN ROI have been hard at work producing a fine exhibition.

Buses on display: New Zealand’s first low-floor bus No 300, ex-Wellington Volvo trolleybus258, the Society’s Hess No 538.

Ex-CTB Ford V8 tower wagon

Ferrymead Tram Tracts, February 2013 5

scanned by Allen Harbrow, we have put together acontinuous slide show featuring about 700 photosof coaches from Mt Cook, Newmans, NZ RailwaysRoad Services, Midland Motorways, LeopardCoachlines, RedBus and our Ferrymead collection.Included in this show are a collection of photos ofthe 1950 CTB Leyland Tiger ‘Half Cab’ which iscurrently sitting in the Linwood Store at Ferrymeadand which could become our next restoration projectfor buses.

On the other side of the building, Alan Roihas gathered together a collection of old bustickets, ticket machines and timetables plus manyold bus posters. Further along we have a set ofbooks on buses from our library and a collectionof Colin’s London Bus models in support of the‘English Connection’ bus service that used tooperate in the City. Lastly, we have someinteresting paintings of early NZR buses and moremodels. Outside on display, we have our latestWellington Volvo trolley 258 alongside FerrymeadHess 538 and New Zealand’s first low floor bus300 (loaned by RedBus) plus our Ford V8 TowerWagon. From time to time, our London doubledecker bus driven by Nick Smither stops by whilstgiving rides to Park visitors and just down theroad, the trolley buses are also doing their bit withAlan Roi behind the wheel.,

The display is really worth seeing and will beopen on Sundays through to the end of February. Soget along and have a ‘looksee’ if you can. You won’tbe disappointed. It shows what we are capable ofachieving by way of a museum type display, and inthis case, at very little cost.

Above: Mural. Right top to bottom: Older models; NewZealand Railways Road Services “Yesteryear”; Bus

model: Below: English connection.All photos: Allen Harbrow

Ferrymead Tram Tracts, February 20136

Crowds converge on Ferrymead for free open day.These pictures from DAVE HINMAN

Ferrymead Tram Tracts, February 2013 7

Ferrymead Tram Tracts, February 20138

Kitson No7, aka Kitty, triangulating round her train.

Dunedin 22 and cage double decker 74. The railway vehicle inthe foreground is the ex-Otira overhead inspection vehicle

known affectionately as the pie cart.

Memories from 2012...From the camera of DAVID JONES.

Brisbane 236 and Dunedin 22 at the crossing loop.22 between Tram barns 2 and 3.

Hills car No 24 back on track if not quite ready for the road.

The shortest cable car line in the world? Mornington cablecar No 111 being magnificently restored by a highly

competent team of workers.