63-471: The National Tramway Museum (trading as Crich Tramway Village ) is a tram museum located at Crich ( listen ), in the Peak District of Derbyshire , England. The museum contains over 80 (mainly British) trams built between 1873 and 1982 and is set within a recreated period village containing a working pub, café, old-style sweetshop and tram depots. The museum's collection of trams runs through
126-401: A block or Belgian block , is a broadly rectangular quarried stone used in paving roads and walkways. Formerly in widespread use, particularly on steeper streets because setts provided horses' hooves with better grip than a smooth surface, they are now encountered more usually as decorative stone paving in landscape architecture . Setts are often referred to as "cobblestones", although
189-471: A brakeman "spragging" the wheels of the wagons, which were returned to the summit by horses. However, in 1812 the incline was the scene of a remarkable experiment, when William Brunton, an engineer for the company, produced his Steam Horse locomotive . In 1840 George Stephenson , in building the North Midland Railway , discovered deposits of coal at Clay Cross and formed what later became
252-681: A campaign and blockades by villagers in the Crich and District Environment Action Group, dumping ceased in 2002. In 2004 the Government backed an Environment Agency document banning further dumping, and Rolls-Royce will be required to restore and landscape the site. The memorial tower ('Crich Stand') was completed in 1923 as a memorial to the 11,409 soldiers from the Sherwood Foresters Regiment who died in World War I ,
315-626: A company limited by guarantee in 1962, and recognised as an educational charity in 1963. After a sustained search across the country, in 1959 the society's attention was drawn to the then derelict limestone quarry at Crich in Derbyshire, from which members of the Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society were recovering track from Stephenson's mineral railway for their pioneering preservation project in Wales . After
378-407: A dedication that was later extended to include World War II . It was built on an limestone outcrop above the village, at an altitude of 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level. The location is symbolic because it is widely visible across, and gives views of, both of the two counties from which the regiment was raised ( Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire ). It is the destination of an annual pilgrimage on
441-534: A farewell tour of Southampton Tramways in August 1948 decided to purchase one of the open top trams on which they had ridden. For the sum of £10 they purchased number 45 – now included in collection at the museum. From this purchase grew the idea of a working museum devoted to operating tramcars. From the original group developed the Tramway Museum Society, established in 1955, incorporated as
504-516: A fate of life or death without the need of the authority of the King or his sheriff. Morcar was given further lands in Derbyshire. Weston (and Crich?) again come under the control of Æþelræd Unræd, when Morcar and his brother were murdered by Eadric in 1015. Parts of the Church of England parish church of Saint Mary are Norman , with later Decorated Gothic and Perpendicular Gothic alterations from
567-781: A large number of streets retain the original setts. Silloth on Solway , a seaside town in Cumbria , still has setts (originally laid in the 19th century) on Eden St and the seafront Criffel Street. Streets paved with setts feature in cycling competitions, including the "Tour of Britain", which visited Silloth on Solway in 2015. St. Anne, Alderney , the main town of Alderney in the Channel Islands, has many streets constructed of locally quarried granite setts. They continue to be maintained and replaced today. Streets in Belgian towns are historically layered with Belgian blocks, both in
630-661: A number of different areas, with the museum's tramway passing either through or adjacent to all of them. The museum's main entrance delivers visitors to the Victoria Park area, but the trams start their journey at Town End, a walk or short tram ride under the Bowes Lyon Bridge and down Period Street. The running line of the tramway starts from a stub terminus at Town End where outbound trams board passengers, having first disembarked inbound passengers at Stephenson Place . The first 500 metres (1,600 ft) of line
693-560: A sett is distinct from a cobblestone in that it is quarried or worked to a regular shape, whereas the latter is generally a small, naturally-rounded rock. Setts are usually made of granite . Places paved with setts include many streets in Rome and elsewhere in Italy (where blocks are called sampietrini or bolognini ), since the technique was first used by Romans . In Aberdeen (Scotland), and much of Edinburgh's Old Town and New Town ,
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#1732788025038756-510: A small inlier of Carboniferous limestone (an outcrop on the edge of the Peak District surrounded by younger Upper Carboniferous rocks). Quarrying for limestone probably began in Roman times. In 1791 Benjamin Outram and Samuel Beresford bought land for a quarry to supply limestone to their new ironworks at Butterley . This became known as Hilt's Quarry, and the stone was transported down
819-631: A steep wagonway , the Butterley Company Gangroad , to the Cromford Canal at Bullbridge . Near there they also built lime kilns for supplying farmers and for the increasing amount of building work. Apart from a period when it was leased to Albert Banks, the quarry and kilns were operated by the Butterley Company until 1933. The gangroad, descending some 300 feet in about a mile, was at first worked by gravity,
882-413: A tour of the quarry, members of the society agreed to lease – and later purchase – part of the site and buildings. Over the years, by the efforts of the society members, a representative collection of tramcars was brought together and restored, tramway equipment was acquired, a working tramway was constructed and depots and workshops were built. Recognising that tramcars did not operate in limestone quarries,
945-473: Is a stretch of horse-tram track, demonstrating the lightweight nature of such track when compared to that used by the electric trams on the lower level. Immediately to the north and west of the bridge is Victoria Park, a recreated Victorian era public park . This has, as its centrepiece, a bandstand that was erected here in 1978 but was previously at Longford Park in Stretford , Greater Manchester. From
1008-540: Is double track, laid in a setted street , and this is known as the Period Street. It has broad footpaths on both sides and is flanked by a number of old buildings and street furniture elements. The street scene is closed off by the Bowes-Lyon Bridge, which the tramway passes under. Amongst the buildings and furniture in the street are: One of the few buildings on the site that predate the creation of
1071-420: Is double track, laid in a setted street , flanked by the buildings of the recreated period village, and including the inbound-only Stephenson Place tram stop. The street scene is closed off by the Bowes-Lyon Bridge, which the line crosses under on interlaced track . Just before the bridge, a junction gives access to the depot and yard. On the far side of the bridge the line returns to double track and calls at
1134-666: Is held at the Cadbury Research Library of the University of Birmingham . The village was a location for the setting for the ITV drama series Peak Practice (along with Ashover for a time). Images of the village also appear in the 2007 film And When Did You Last See Your Father? starring Colin Firth . In the film Firth is seen riding a motorbike up Chapel Lane. Setted street A sett , also known as
1197-443: Is situated at the further end of the museum's Period Street, just before it passes under the Bowes-Lyon Bridge. The tram depot houses most of the museum's fleet of trams, including the running fleet when not in operation, other than those displayed in the exhibition hall, which faces the depot across the depot yard. The depot has 18 tracks, with each track able to accommodate several trams. The first 10 tracks are directly accessible from
1260-495: Is some 18 kilometres (11 mi) north of Derby , 32 kilometres (20 mi) south of Sheffield , 66 kilometres (41 mi) south-east of Manchester , and 200 kilometres (120 mi) north-west of London. There is a large on-site car park. The nearest railway station is Whatstandwell , on the Derwent Valley Line from Derby to Matlock , from which there is a steep uphill walk of about 1 mile (1.6 km) to
1323-470: Is supplied at 600 volts DC. Other forms of current collection were used by electric trams, especially in the early days of such tramways, and the museum has non-operational displays of several of them: The museum is open from early March to early November on every day of the week except Fridays, and also on Fridays during bank and school holidays. The museum opens at 10:00 and closes at 16:30 on weekdays or 17:30 on weekends and bank holidays. The museum
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#17327880250381386-659: The 23 trolley , though the modern tracks are encased in concrete slabs rather than blocks, and the trolley line itself is currently operated by buses. In Richmond, Virginia , Belgian block streets are particularly common, most notably in Shockoe Slip . Street cars travelled through the street on tracks that are still visible though the system has been replaced by buses. The Fells Point neighbourhood of Baltimore also has Belgian block streets. In many cities besides Richmond and Philadelphia setts have often been used for pavement around street-running trolley or tram lines in
1449-574: The Clay Cross Company . He realised that burning lime would provide a use for the coal slack that would otherwise go to waste. He leased Cliff Quarry and built limekilns at Bullbridge. In 1841, he built the Crich Mineral Railway to connect the quarry to the limekilns at Ambergate station . This included a 550 yards (500 m) long, self-acting incline known as "The Steep", with a maximum gradient of 1 in 5. The railway
1512-517: The Paris–Roubaix race. Streets in the old part of Danish towns are also often layered with sett, known as brosten or bridge-stones. To make it easier to bike on, the part of the road meant for bicycles are paved with special stones that are saw-cut on top for smoothness and jet-burned for friction. Vendersgade in Copenhagen is the latest CycleStreet to get jet-burned and saw-cut setts on
1575-526: The Victoria Park tram stop, which serves both the recreated Victorian-era public park of the same name, and the main entrance to the site from the car park. The double track continues for another 240 metres (790 ft) before converging into single track that continues as far as the Wakebridge tram stop and passing loop, which is located some 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) from Town End . Beyond
1638-446: The limestone and Stephenson recognised that he could use the local coal and limestone to produce burnt lime for agricultural purposes, and then use the new railway to distribute it. Cliff Quarry, where the museum is now located, was acquired by Stephenson's company and to link the quarry with limekilns he had built at Ambergate, Stephenson constructed a 1,000 mm ( 3 ft 3 + 3 ⁄ 8 in ) gauge line – apparently
1701-442: The mixed woodland that is native to the limestone geology of the Crich area. Tree cover is mostly ash , but also includes sycamore , alder and silver birch , with a shrub layer of hazel , wych elm , wild rose , elder and hawthorn . The combination of the ash canopy and limestone results in a range of ground-cover plants including primrose , early purple orchid , cowslip , marjoram , garlic and strawberries . Most of
1764-475: The modern factory system was introduced during the 18th century to take advantage of Richard Arkwright 's invention of the water frame for spinning cotton. At the end of the line is the Glory Mine tram stop and passing loop. A public footpath crosses the line, giving access to Crich Stand . The Woodland Walk and Sculpture trail connects the tram stops at Victoria Park and Wakebridge, passing through
1827-524: The 14th century. Crich has also a Wesleyan Chapel that was built in 1770. A workhouse was opened in 1734 on the edge of Nether Common. It could accommodate 40 inmates, and accepted paupers from other parishes, including Melbourne , Pentrich , Willington , Mercaston and Denby . Chase Cliffe is a Tudor Revival house on the road from Crich to Whatstandwell . It was designed by Benjamin Ferrey and built in 1859–61. Geologically, Crich lies on
1890-557: The 1960s and was then operated by RMC and Tarmac . In 2000 ownership of the active quarry site was transferred to Bardon Aggregates , who closed the quarry in 2010. It remains closed. In the period after the Second World War , when most of the remaining British tramways were in decline or actually closing, the first event in the history of the National Tramway Museum took place. A group of enthusiasts on
1953-715: The 2011 census. The village is home to the National Tramway Museum and, at the summit of Crich Hill above, a memorial tower for those of the Sherwood Foresters regiment who died in battle, particularly in World War I . In 1009 King Æthelred the Unready signed a charter at the Great Council which recognised the position and boundaries of Weston-on-Trent and several other manors including Crich. The charter shows that Weston controlled
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2016-561: The Woodland Walk is a stretch of the original narrow-gauge track as used in the old quarry, and a labyrinth made from old stones left in the quarry. There are views down into the valley of the River Derwent and up to Crich Stand . The museum has over 80 tramcars in its collection. The majority of these are electric double-decker trams built between 1900 and 1930 for use in a large selection of British towns and cities, but
2079-547: The blocks extensively and can still be seen in some spots including under pavement of service roads on the New Jersey side. Older sections of Brooklyn such as DUMBO and surrounding neighbourhoods also have streets bearing Belgian blocks. In the Dearing Street Historic District of Athens, Georgia , Finley Street, between Broad Street and The Tree That Owns Itself , retains Belgian blocks,
2142-458: The centre areas and the outer residential neighbourhoods. However, in recent years, many of them have been progressively replaced by asphalt in order to reduce car noise and improve conditions for commuter cycling. Many streets and roads in Belgium and remote country routes just over the border in northern France are still dominated by setts, with some gaining notoriety through bicycle races such as
2205-416: The collection also includes earlier horse and steam hauled trams, more modern trams, and trams built for a number of cities across the world. Many of the cars are in operable condition, and are used on the museum's running line, whilst others are restored in static condition and are displayed in the museum's display hall or elsewhere on the site. A few are stored in unrestored condition, some of these being at
2268-555: The depot yard, while tracks 11 to 18 are accessed via a traverser , which also provides rail access to the exhibition hall. The tram depot includes a workshop, on tracks 1 to 3, used for the maintenance of the tram fleet. This has a viewing gallery, accessed by a glass bridge from the upper floor of the Stephenson Discovery Centre, which allows visitors to watch the work going on below and displays small exhibits relating to this work. The exhibition hall presents
2331-433: The early history of the museum site, including the story of George Stephenson and his acquisition of Cliff Quarry and construction of the mineral railway. It also describes how overcrowding in expanding towns and cities paved the way for in the introductions of trams to Britain in the 19th century. A modern glass bridge from the upper floor provides access to the viewing gallery of the tram workshop (see below). The tram depot
2394-565: The first metre gauge railway in the world. Stephenson lived the last 10 years of his life in Chesterfield , often bringing visitors to Crich to see the mineral railway. He died in 1848 and is buried in Holy Trinity Church, Chesterfield. Cliff Quarry remained in use until it closed in 1957/8, and shortly afterwards part of it was acquired for use by the museum. Other parts of the quarry, now known as Crich Quarry, reopened in
2457-781: The first Sunday in July. Besides the main dedication, two further plaques dedicate the memorial to those who died serving in the Sherwood Foresters regiment from 1945 to 1970, and to those who died serving the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment from 1970 to 2007 and the Mercian Regiment since 2007. A nearby small plaque is dedicated to Brigadier J.H.M. Hackett, 'Last Colonel The Sherwood Foresters 1965 – 1970 and First Colonel The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment'. Beneath Crich Stand, at
2520-466: The great railway pioneer, had a close connection with Crich and the present (2008) tramway follows part of the mineral railway he built to link the quarry with Ambergate . While building the North Midland Railway from Derby to Rotherham and Leeds , Stephenson had found rich coal seams in the Clay Cross area and he saw a new business opportunity. Crich was already well known for the quality of
2583-400: The line, with the provision of a wheelchair lift and wider doors. Most of the museum's trams are electric trams which were designed to be powered by an overhead wire system using one of, or a combination of, trolley poles , bow collectors or pantographs . The museum's overhead wire system has been built so that trams with any of those types of current collection can be used. The current
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2646-546: The lyrics of the John Shuttleworth song "Dandelion and Burdock". Crich Crich / ˈ k r aɪ tʃ / is a village and civil parish in the English county of Derbyshire . Besides the village of Crich, the civil parish includes the nearby villages of Fritchley , Whatstandwell and Wheatcroft . The population of the civil parish at the 2001 census was 2,821, increasing to 2,898 at
2709-588: The mouth of a drift mine with a battery powered locomotive coming out of it, and a shop selling mineral samples, books and gemstones. Beyond Wakebridge, the line runs along an exposed hillside with vistas across the valley of the River Derwent , which is here part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site . While now largely rural, this valley was one of the cradles of the Industrial Revolution , where
2772-580: The museum and are in their original place, the Stephenson Workshop was built in the 19th century and was used as a smithy and wagon works for George Stephenson's metre gauge mineral railway. Originally known as the Stone Workshop, the building has been fully restored and is now home to a state of the art learning facility on the ground floor and the Stephenson Discovery Centre on the first floor. The Stephenson Discovery Centre explains
2835-526: The museum's collection of trams are operational, and carry passengers on journeys through the period street and out into the local countryside on a 1.6 kilometres (0.99 mi) long running track. Along the way are the preserved 1763 facade of the Derby Assembly Rooms , a recreated Victorian public park, a woodland sculpture trail and a display on the local lead mining industry. A collection of title deeds relating to land and property in Crich
2898-433: The museum's off-site store at Clay Cross . Among this fleet are: Approximate distance in kilometres from Town End. The running line of the tramway is approximately 1.6 kilometres (0.99 mi) long. The line starts from a stub terminus at Town End where outbound trams board passengers, having first disembarked inbound passengers at Stephenson Place . From Town End , about the first 500 metres (1,600 ft) of line
2961-540: The museum's period street, and provides both a vantage point and a visual closure to the recreated urban part of the museum. The bridge deck is constructed in cast iron and dates from 1844, when it was installed at the Bowes-Lyon Estate in St Paul's Walden , Hertfordshire. The bridge was donated to the museum in 1971, and subsequently re-erected at its present site. Embedded in the deck of the Bowes-Lyon Bridge
3024-459: The museum. The museum is also directly served by roughly hourly bus services from Matlock and Alfreton , and less frequent services from Belper and Ripley . There is no bus service on Sundays. The museum features in the opening of the 1969 film Women in Love , and as one of the locations in the 2012 film Sightseers . The museum, under its old name of Crich Tramway Museum , also features in
3087-522: The nearby crossings of the Trent. The land was listed as eight hides at Weston upon Trent, and a hide at Crich, Morley , Smalley , Ingleby and Kidsley. This land was then given to Morcar , the King's chief minister, and he was unusually given rights that were normally reserved for the King alone. He was given the responsibility for justice and exemption from the Trinoda necessitas , he alone could decide
3150-453: The northern end of Crich village, is the National Tramway Museum (also known as Crich Tramway Village) which is the UK's largest and most comprehensive museum of trams and tramways . The museum contains over 80 trams built between 1873 and 1982 and includes several exhibitions and a recreated period street containing a working pub, cafe, shop and various pieces of period street furniture. Many of
3213-469: The only street in the city to be so paved. Germantown Avenue in Philadelphia , in particular its upper reaches through Germantown , Mount Airy and Chestnut Hill , is notable for being paved with Belgian blocks; repaving projects on this thoroughfare have retained or reintroduced block paving to give additional historic character to these neighbourhoods. Part of this character includes the tracks of
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#17327880250383276-467: The park, a path leads to the museum's Woodland Walk and Sculpture Trail. Alongside the park is a tram stop, served by both inbound and outbound trams and named after the park. To the east of the park, on the opposite side of the tramway, is the museum entrance. Just past the Victoria Park tram stop, the museum's running track transitions from grooved tram track set in a road surface to sleeper track and becomes single track. The line passes between woodland to
3339-580: The part of the road between Israels Plads and Torvehallerne to create cohesion between the square and the market area, and make it safe for pedestrians to cross the cyclestreet. In addition to streets, large public squares also employed setts, as seen at Moscow 's Red Square . In New York City, the West Village (including the Meatpacking District ), SoHo , and TriBeCa neighbourhood retain such streets. The Holland Tunnel used
3402-480: The passing loop, the track returns to single track as far as the Glory Mine tram stop and terminus, where there is a further passing loop and a headshunt, together with a siding. The tramway is generally operated whenever the museum is open. Depending on the time of year and level of demand, a two or three car service is normally provided. If a two car service is operated, trams pass on the double-track section in
3465-506: The rails in some of TriMet 's MAX light rail lines to warn automobile drivers that they are driving on light rail right of way. The romantic claim that old Portland "cobbles" were imported as ship's ballast is incorrect; they are local basalt , quarried near St. Helens in Oregon. In older towns and cities setts may be used to outline buried archaeological features beneath the road surface such as city walls, gates and cathedrals, for example
3528-616: The same manner as brickwork . Portland, Oregon , used Belgian block paving extensively in the 19th century, starting near the Willamette River, to stop the streets from washing away in floods. Many streets in older parts of the city are underlain by these blocks, and a few streets in the Pearl District still feature this kind of pavement. The City of Portland stockpiles these blocks when they are dug up for street or utility repairs or renovation. They have been used between
3591-424: The sculptures along the trail were carved by the sculptor, Andrew Frost , using a chainsaw and carving a basic shape from a tree trunk before working on the detail. Such sculptures do not last forever, with wood splitting, fungi and the claws of badgers all contributing to their deterioration. The sculpture trail is therefore always evolving, as old sculptures are removed and new ones added. Also to be spotted in
3654-528: The society agreed in 1967 to create around the tramway the kind of streetscape through which the trams had run and thus the concept of the Crich Tramway Village was born. Members then turned their attention to collecting items of street furniture and even complete buildings, which were then adapted to house the Museum's collections of books, photographs and archives. The museum site is made up of
3717-456: The street. If three trams are in service, trams pass both in the loop at Wakebridge and in the street. On special occasions, up to 18 tramcars can be operated, with trams operating in convoys of two or three through the single track sections. The convoys pass each other on the in the street, at Wakebridge, and at Glory Mine terminus. The tramway has a 1969 tram from Berlin , which has been converted to allows visitors with disabilities to travel
3780-479: The village-setting with visitors transported out into the local countryside and back and is operated by the Tramway Museum Society , a registered charity. The Crich Tramway Village remains an independent charity, which receives no funding from the state or local government and relies on the voluntary contribution made by members of the Tramway Museum Society and its visitors. George Stephenson ,
3843-862: The west and the now disused Cliff Quarry to the east, before arriving at the Wakebridge passing loop and tram stop. The stop has a selection of shelters and simple buildings, including the Birmingham Tram Shelter, the Bradford Cabmans Shelter, and the Octogon, together with the line's electrical sub-station. A path leads to the museum's Woodland Walk and Sculpture Trail. Adjacent to the stop, the Peak District Mines Historical Society has created an exhibition of mining equipment, including
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#17327880250383906-400: The ‘Century of Trams’ exhibition, telling the story of a hundred years of tramway development, from 1860 – 1960, taking in horse trams, steam trams and electric trams. The story is told through the display of number of the museum's tram cars, together with interpretive panels, audio sounds to represent each decade of the timeline, and interactive displays. The Bowes-Lyon Bridge spans the end of
3969-479: Was probably the first metre gauge railway in the world. Cliff Quarry closed in 1957, though it restarted at the western end until 2010 when it was mothballed. The eastern end was bought by the Tramway Museum in 1959. Hilt's Quarry closed in 1933 and is derelict. For 38 years, Rolls-Royce used it for dumping low-level radioactive waste such as enriched uranium , cobalt-60 and carbon-14 . Following
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