June 1864 saw a tram run at Crich fir the last time for two decades when Sheffield horse car 15 was retired after a brief but auspicious period in museum service. This diminutive tram had been selected to inaugurate passenger services at Crich the previous year, thus earning itself the distinction of being the very first tram to be used in revenue earning service in a British museum. It operated alone throughout 1963 whilst work on preparing the site for the dawning of the electric age continued in earnest and, with these preparations almost completed, the importance of 15 as a passenger carrying vehicle was soon to end. Throughout the early season of 1964 number 15 continued to operate on the short length of track available whilst all around it overhead wires and poles began to appear. Finally, at the end of June, regular electric operation had become a reality and 15 was honourably retired, to become a static exhibit and emerging only occasionally for display and, even less frequently as a trailer for the steam tram. History had repeated itself and, just as horse trams had been supplanted by electrically operated ones in towns and cities around the country at the turn of the century, so this process occurred at Crich. It would be 1984 before 15 carried passenger again hauled by a horse. In between, no other horse trams operated on the mainland, with only Douglas flying the flag for this type of motive power. Now horse tram operation is a regular annual part of the Crich calendar with Sheffield 15 remain operational as the only serviceable horse tram in the collection. The photo shows Sheffield 15 at Town End during its initial and brief period of passenger service at Crich, when it became the first tram to operate at the museum. Photo courtesy of Richard Lomas collection.
Posted on: Wed, 19 Mar 2014 06:58:48 +0000
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