Photograph copyright Derek Billings.
Photo courtesy of David Bloor.
The steam roller is an 8 ton ‘C’ class roller built by Aveling & Porter Ltd of Rochester, Kent and supplied new to the Royal Borough of Leamington Spa in June 1924. I’m not sure when it was removed from Victoria Park, but the photograph depicts it in a reasonable condition, possibly not long after it was taken out of service. It was one of two steam rollers owned by the Borough with the other being manufactured by John Fowler & Co. of Leeds, which also survived.
Where is it now?
It has been preserved and currently is in Cheshire, attending traction engine rallies within the county.
Do you have any memories of the steam roller?
Comments
Following up from this entry regarding the Victoria Park Steam roller now preserved. My friend David Bloor took this photograph over the weekend 8th/9th August 2015 at Astle Park Traction Engine Rally, Chelford, Cheshire. It shows just how much has been achieved to preserve this engine from a very poor condition to one that is a credit to its owner.
I remember this, or a similar steamroller, being parked on the bridge at the bottom of the Parade, to steady the bridge during flooding in the 50s or 60s.
I remember the steam roller being installed in Victoria Park I was around 12 years old then. Happy memories of the park and that steam roller. Also the reference to the steam roller on the bridge? The force of the River Leam used to make the bridge tremble when it was in full flood – I remember a steam roller being there at the time! It was either walking over that bridge going home from Bath Street School or crossing Mill Gardens bridge and that used to tremble worse!
I was head of Parks for Warwick District Council and responsible among other things 56 play areas. Health and Safety being a major issue in children’s play in the 1990’s the council decided to remove this roller together with the train from Victoria Park.
It was advertised locally with no takers and eventually sold to a young man in Yorkshire for the sum of £4,000 . The gentleman always said he would be happy to bring it back to Leamington as a visit, and drive it round the park if we wished.
Lovely to know it went to a good home, totally restored and running.
The train was purchased by Gloucestershire and Warwickshire Steam Railway restored and operating.
The money received went into purchasing new exciting play equipment for Victoria Park which complied with all H&S regulations.
My grand father known as Jack Smith used to have to drive and park that steam roller on the bridge over the river Leam near jephson gardens when the water level was high to weigh it down and prevent it being washed away. I always understood this to be the suspension bridge near mill gardens.
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