~ Cymdeithas Rheilffyrdd Y Cambrian Cyf. - Amgueddfa ~ To view the pictures on this page at a larger size - move your mouse over the pic and left-click.
...Welcome to the Cambrian Railway Museum - dedicated to charting the history of and displaying artefacts from the former Cambrian Railways Company area, the operating territory of which once stretched from Whitchurch in the east to Pwllheli in the west, and as far south as Brecon and Aberystwyth.
>>>...Background...<<<
The whole of our Oswestry town centre site is registered as a museum with the MLA West Midlands (Museum, Libraries & Archives), including Oswestry South Signalbox.
However, the museum building itself is housed in the sole-surviving Oswestry & Newtown Railway [which later became the Cambrian Railways Company] goods shed, which dates from the 1860s. The museum car park originally contained coal staithes, whilst the 2 platform faces in our yard were used for unloading fish and & coal respectively. Nowadays, the aforementioned platforms are used to give rides along our 'Oswestry Light Railway' to Middleton Road Bridge from time to time.
Above - An external view of the museum building on the evening of Tuesday 15th August 2006. The site is used for car parking during the day which helps to pay for the site rent, which the society has to pay each month. Photo - Copyright Gareth Evans 2006 -
>>>...Oswestry - A Railway Town...<<<
Oswestry prospered with the coming of the railways to the town, whilst still maintaining its role as an important Anglo-Welsh border agricultural trading post. The Cambrian Railways Company, despite nominally being a Welsh firm, sited its headquarters in England - here at Oswestry. Thus the town formed a hub for over 310 route miles of railway network, making it the largest Welsh independent pre-grouping railway in terms of mileage.
For further details of what remains of the town's railway heritage, click here [sorry still under construction ~ page not yet uploaded]
>>>...Displays...<<<
Displays include lamps, headboards, signs, photographs, memorobilia and model railways, both 'n' and '00' gauge. Artefacts include the original Prince of Wales headboard, which was lent to the Welshpool & Llanfair Railway in 200?! when Prince Charles travelled on the line, confirming our status as a true living museum. Quirky artefacts include the tea trolley which used to be pushed onto the platforms at Gobowen to meet the main line trains, and which was re-filled at Oswestry. Some of our exhibits are also what might be termed 'interactive' - including a ground frame lever that can pull off a signal arm inside the museum.
However, our museum also contains exhibits, which are not related to the 'main line' railways. These include a former Severn Trent [STW] Llanforda Water Works 2' (600 mm) gauge skip wagon, which was donated by STW.
Being located in a rail-accessible former goods shed allows us to display a small number of full-size exhibits, which can be exchanged periodically to give variety. At the time of writing [winter 2007], these include Hudswell 0-4-0DM no. D843, an ex War Department Southern Railway-designed box van and Parry People Mover tram 7.
>>>...Opening Soon...<<<
Opening soon to the general public will be Oswestry South Signalbox. The structure has been transformed from a vandalised eyesore to fully functioning Cambrian Railways Company signalbox. The building has been restored thanks to a a £22,000 grant [More...].
>>>...Society Heritage/ Museum Projects...<<<
An important aspect of the Cambrain Railways Society's work is that of preserving the area's railway heritage for the benefit of future generations, both physical hardware & memorobilia and oral history - the latter being often overlooked by some museum bodies. Thus, the Society has embarked on a number of projects to further this aim, as detailed below.
# Railwaymen's Re-Unions.
Having begun thanks to the efforts of the late Jack Wilkie, a former Oswestry railwayman and long-standing CRS volunteer, these now take place at the Cambrian Institue in Oswestry every 3 months. Contact the Institute on 01691 679499 for further details or write to CRS Chairman Mr Dave Smith, Cambrian Railways Society, Oswald Road, Oswestry, Shropshire, SY11 0RE.
# Railwaymen's Reminicences.
In a joint project with Shrewsbury Steam Trust, the Cambrian Railways Society is recording memories of those connected with the railways in the area. Upon completion, the resource will be kept at Shire Archives in Shrewsbury (near the bus station).
>>>....If you know of anyone formerly connected with the railways, contact Dave Smith via our office on 01691 671749 or write to him c/o The Cambrian Railways Society, Oswald Road, Oswestry, Shropshire, SY11 1RE.
>>>...Free Admission...<<<
Admission to our museum is free. ...However, we appreciate donations towards our ever increasing costs. Contrary to popular belief, we do not own our town centre site - we have to pay a considerable sum in rent each month.
>>>...Opening Times...<<<
The museum is normally open between 1300 - 1700, seven days a week. However, we rely on a small band of dedicated volunteers, with the result that owing to work committments or ill health, the museum may be closed at short notice. If you are making a dedicated trip, please contact us beforehand on 01691 671749 or by e-mail.
>>>...Accessibility...<<<
Unfortunately, the museum is not currently accessible to wheelchairs. A ramp is provided to the museum shop/ office, whilst two steps lead into the museum itself.
Media enquiries, including requests for full-res pictures on any of the above should be directed to Press & Publicity Officer Gareth Evans by e-mail.