Bill Smith “The Signal Lampman”

Bill Smith retired in 1994 having spent his railway career in signalling or signalling related activities. His career is set out below.

In this video he recalls the activities of the signal lampman, a trade now all but forgotten even on heritage railways. However, it was a vital activity in the days before signals were lit by electricity.

The geographic locations of Embsay, Burley Junction and Ilkley can be seen on a current OS Map. The map will place this location at the centre of the map panel, roll the mouse over the icon(s) to reveal what they represent. Increase the scale using the scale selector on the left to separate closely positioned icons.

This video is intended for viewing at a maximum screen resolution of 1920 pixels wide by 1080 pixels high. Please be aware that viewing at a larger size may result in a loss of clarity and a 'grainy' appearance.

Copyright © of the FARSAP videos belongs to the Friends of the National Railway Museum.
The material may be freely used except for sale or advertising purposes.

---

Video Credits

---

Key Chronology

1958	Bill joined British Railways as a Porter-Signalman at Embsay Station.
1965	Appointed Signalman at Burley Junction.
1985	Appointed Signalman at Ilkley.
1994	Retired

 

---

Can you help?

The project would love to hear from you, especially if you worked or still work in a signal box, and you are willing to provide reminiscences and / or pictures. Please contact the webmaster in the first instance.

---