Dementia Awareness

On a few occasions in the past, I have been contacted through this blog for information or images to be used to help organisations working with people with dementia.  Heritage Railways are potentially an ideal place to visit for those with this condition, as it not only recreates a relevant period of time but also provides an enjoyable sensory experience of…

Who Do You Think You Are?

One of the aims of the Canadian Pacific Project is to find new links to broaden the appeal of heritage railways and it is for this reason that we exhibited at Who Do You Think You Are? Live at the Birmingham NEC.  We arrived armed with a short guide to help those researching their family history with…

Early Women on the Railway

Today is International Womens Day and as part of the Heritage Lottery Funded Canadian Pacific Project we have a very special article that looks at some of the earliest women to work on railways.  It is fascinating to read the level of inequality in society at the time – women had to masquerade as men and…

Spitfire 80

Today, 5th March 2016 is the 80th anniversary of the first flight of the legendary Supermarine Spitfire.  The Spitfire is often described as being one of the most famous aircraft types in the world and its elliptical wings are still one of the most instantly recognisable of any aeroplane.  The first Spitfire was originally designed by RJ Mitchell…

The Children’s Orphanage

As part of the Heritage Lottery Funded Canadian Pacific Project, we are researching and exploring the social history of the railway covering a wide range of topics. The following link provides a fascinating insight into the Southern Railway Orphanage at Woking.  That’s right, there’s more to railways than trains! http://preservation.watercressline.co.uk/blog/entry/the-childrens-orphanage Photographs provided by Roy Smith and the Bishopstoke History Society…