Lincoln Road Level Crossing

[locojoe]

I went out for a drive yesteday and took this photo of Lincoln Road Level Crossing which is close to Enfield Town Station where I worked on steam many years ago.

It has not changed a great deal except for the overhead wires, the yobs burned the traditional line-side crossing keeper's hut down (replaced by a portacabin) around twelve years back,

The traditional cast iron lamp casings with red bulls-eyes, which housed paraffin oil lamps, and were mounted on top of each gate have been replaced with battery powered lights. Are there many of these manually operated level crossings left.

[Gandalf]

The last one near us on the ECML near the Holme crossing, actually about half a mile nearer Peterborough went about 7 years ago along with the crossing keeper house but there is at least one between Peterborough and Stamford where the keeper also operates signals so has a box rather than a hut. I have a feeling there is another on the same line where we had to wait some time before it was opened manually but seem to remember a house rather than hut nearby.
This has brought back my memories of old (or so he seemed to a 9 year old) Tom on the crossing where I used to watch the Fenman pass and in particular him removing a big wood splinter from my finger from a wooden sleeper.
He would be 'done' for child abuse these days and then be branded a paedophile for the rest of his life for simply helping.
Anyone else got memories of these railway employees and their kindnesses towards little boys who gathered at such vantage points each clutching pencil and their locospotter's number book.
John (G)

[paul miller]

That is a very nostalgic photo Loco. When I was a small boy my local station had gates like that, I never saw them opened by the way, I think they had been chained for years because a new road had opened. The gates at the side for pedestrians was where we used to sit and watch the trains go by, and the porters/ticket collectors used to tell us if anything special was coming through. People could be more friendly then because as Gandalf has said you did'nt run the risk of being branded for life by paranoid people who really should know the difference between being friendly and being a danger to children.
We went in signal boxes with men who we trusted implicitly. I learnt my first swear words from a signalman. Nothing wrong in that, we where going to learn them from someone sooner or later.
I have often said it, we had the best of times and though I am 61, I would'nt swap the times I have had for anything.
Paul.

[locojoe]

Same photo after I removed the gantry and the wires, not a good photo but I'm still learning.

[Deathbyteacup]

I hope you don't mind but I did a quick mess in photoshop with the origonal photo, I tried to clean it up a bit, removed the wires / gantry and also the overhead warning since it wasn't relevent

I'm pretty handy with Photoshop and have all sorts of software since I'm a web designer, so if anyone ever needs any graphics or photo work done let me know.

[locojoe]

Looks good Deathbyteacup thanks and if I need photoshop work doing I'll be in touch.
Alan