Steve Williams with Clitheroe Castle Museum Manager Claire Sutton, Community Rail Lancashire Community Rail Development Officer Caroline Holden and Tony Ford, chair of the South Fylde Line CRP.
It was standing room only at Clitheroe Castle Museum for a for a fun-packed and entertaining illustrated talk by Lancashire historian Steve Williams.
Organised in collaboration with Community Rail Lancashire, the talk was part of a series of events taking place across the county to mark Community Rail Week.
Steve took the audience on a magical rail tour along the Ribble Valley and Settle-Carlisle Lines, starting in Whalley and continuing through Clitheroe and Hellifield and onwards through the Dales to Ais Gill – the highest point on the line.
Steve outlined the history of the line and explained the origins of some of the major structures such as the Ribblehead Viaduct and the towns, villages and places along the way – including the Clitheroe Castle Cement works and Calderstones WW1 hospital.
After the talk, many of the guests took the opportunity to visit the railway exhibition currently being hosted at the museum: ‘On Track – A Glimpse into Lancashire’s Railways Past and Present’ until October.
Clitheroe Castle Museum Manager Claire Sutton said: “It was wonderful to see so many people enjoying Steve’s entertaining talk and wonderful pictures. He really got under the surface of the Ribble Valley and Yorkshire Dales’ rich railway history and brought back a few happy memories for people who remember some of the amazing days out they enjoyed by train in their younger years.”