1995       Club History        2009

How We Got Here And From Where

The West Midlands Area Group was formed in September 1995 by Geoff Waters, and meetings were originally held at Langley Hall in Warley. It was decided that meetings would be held on the third Saturday of each month.  No annual membership was to be charged,  but it was felt that a £2 attendance fee (it has since risen to £3; inflation you know. We will all be paupers soon) should be levied to cover costs re the hall, tea etc., however, guests should not be charged for attending. It was decided that major investments in the model should be levied by separate invitation as and when needed. A Committee was appointed .......we were ready to go!

 

Planning of the Club model began and after considerable research and thought, and we began construction of a 20ft model based on a combination of Hatton and Yeovil Pen Mill. which, we christened Waterstock (a small village between Thame and Oxford) and which we hoped, would eventually join the exhibition circuit, .

 

Subsequently, Ken Jones took over the helm as Chairman after the unfortunate death of our founder, and we moved the club to larger (and cheaper) premises in The Church Hall at St.Michael and All Angels in Causeway Green Road, Langley, Warley. This remained our home-base until we were advised that the site was to be redeveloped.

A long search for a suitable Clubhouse has resulted in a further move to our present location at Tipton Green Methodist Hall, where we hope we will remain for the foreseeable future.

To contact us:

Ken Jones, Chairman

Phone: 0121 777 7062
Email: info@kenjonestrains.co.uk

Events & Updates

Once there we swiftly settled in and found the facilities provided to be most agreeable. We had our own large room in which a 20ft model could be erected with space to spare , and not only was the room its’ self secure from outside interference (securely lockable), which we found to be of great benefit in many ways, it also had its’ own storage facility, again fully lockable. We did not think things could be any better.

 

Waterstock swiftly moved forward until it reached the “decorating”  stage, at which point “driver” training began in earnest, which then began to show up any weaknesses or desirable changes needed in the electrical systems. These adjustments continued while the scenic experts began sowing grass etc. and members began producing trees, buildings, bridges, signals and all the other paraphernalia which goes on a railway site. These were then brought into the club and built into the landscape.

 

It was then noticed by Mike Turner just how many diesels club members had, most of which, strictly speaking, should not run on Waterstock at exhibitions, it being built in a form which would probably have existed between the years say 1910-1965, and may have ceased to exist after Dr. Beeching had finished swinging his axe. So he agreed to fund a second model based on diesel or “Modern Image” practices.

 

This second model was to be scale representation of Water Orton station; Water Orton being a small village in North Warwickshire, which is very busy in today's’ railway terms, having a junction at either end of the proposed site with bi-directional running on one of its mainlines, together with a wide variety of freight, passenger trains and liveries seen, it promises to give considerable scope for diesel operation.

 

Recently, Waterstock has made it on to the Exhibition circuit and has even been honored with an invitation to be shown at the N Gauge Societies 40th Anniversary Celebrations, while also appearing in the Railway Modeller in a 5 page spread, but there remains plenty to do on Water Orton and a number of refinements to be made to Waterstock.

Chairman: Ken Jones 

                        Treasurer: Edgar Mason