BGS New Site
New Site - An Intro.
Hello, and welcome to the revised BGS web presence; new for 2012.
I'm Rob Speare - and I have just taken over the reins as the 4th BGS web-master.
My thanks to those who have presented the BGS web presence to this point, and I hope to extend their tracks.
That said, I've rebuilt the site from entirely new and uptodate code, which has been technically quite challenging, but it should suit different screen sizes and magnifications. I've kept it in the flavour that everyone has got used to - so, if it doesn't look so different, I've actually done a good job ! And more to come. . .
I have spent an un-healthy amount of concentrated effort pulling this site together in a handful of weeks; and let's just say the learning curve has been quite a ride. There will likely be bits and pieces to get working and add on for a time, so please bear wth me. Being a quick assembly, there may well be errors or bugs; please let me know.
I'm completely re-indexing Broadsheet articles and Datasheets, which may take a while; but the Search facility should make it much faster to find something.
Your computer will need Javascript enabled to view this site - which is pretty much the norm these days. A quick word of thanks to my colleague David who has steered me through some finer points of javascript coding, that helps the site to function well.
You are welcome to make suggestions for improvements or new features, perhaps there's a particular Broadsheet article you think might be of appeal to our web audience; drop me a line. I hope you'll like and enjoy the reworked site; cheers for now - Rob
Welcome to the BGS
This site is our window to the web, so if your first visit here, or maybe you were unaware of the Britain's broad gauge railways, or the Society that actively researches, documents and models it today; we've already achieved something - and invite you to investigate more. . .
Please use the Menu structure above to navigate your way around the site. Whether it is history, research, modelling or a further reading, we hope you will find the site informative, maybe inspiring !
Broad Gauge Society
- Events Calendar
See more details on the Events page.
We hope you find the site interesting, if so, perhaps you may consider joining the Society, no special qualifications required.
The Membership subscription is very reasonable, and will entitle you to our Journal and mailouts, expanding on information about this facinating period of railway operation.
I am keen to hear from model engineers who may be constructing, or have completed a live steam broad gauge loco.
Brunel's Broad Gauge.
The Broad Gauge Railway - a major British railway system based on a track gauge of 7 feet 0¼ inches, with a unique style and infrastructure that spread across much of South West England. Formed from a number of railway companies adopting these standards, and dating from the earliest development of English railways, the new fast railway lines often traversed spectacular scenery. This most creative period was part of the huge industrial revolution that transformed everyday life in England.
Many lines were absorbed into the larger Great Western Railway; but its Broad Gauge routes remained the best way to travel; a definitively superior and elegant paasenger railway system, with creative transport solutions for goods, lasting over fifty years.
Locomotives were typically wide bodied with fairly large spindly driving wheels, most often sporting polished brasswork on the splashers and firebox cladding. But early train crews needed to be hardy - with often barely a small weatherboard as protection from the elements, as in this photograph of 0-6-0 Caesar class locomotive 'Nemesis', photographed at Trowbridge in Wiltshire.
Its supercession came in May 1892, with conversion of all G.W.R. lines to narrow gauge, and the withdrawal of most rolling stock.
The Broad Gauge Railway was part of a fascinating period of optimism, with new travel opportunities for ordinary people - fortunately just as photography was becoming available to record it. 120 years later, and those images capture the imagination of today's many researchers, period enthusiasts and modellers, who find this railway has a very unique and enduring magic.