BRIGG MEMORIES FLOOD BACK THANKS TO TRAIN VIDEO FROM THAT HOT SUMMER IN 1976

A video shot in North Lincolnshire during that long, hot summer in August 1976 has come to light and brought back happy memories for Brigg Blog of working at the Lincolnshire Times newspaper office in the town centre decades ago.
This weekly - originally known as the Hull Times - served local towns and villages well until its sad demise in summer 1985.
Staff and former staff met up at 57 Wrawby Street - beside the archway now leading through to the Exchange - on the very last day 34 years ago, to autograph copies of the final, souvenir edition.
Annual summer reunions were held for some years afterwards - in the Tiffin Room at the Exchange and then at the Brigg bungalow owned by long-serving photographer Coun Bryan Robins, president of Brigg Town Football Club and Brigg Town Cricket Club, and an official or member of many other clubs and societies within the town.
The Lincs Times belonged to the Hull Daily Mail and was printed on its presses in the city centre.
Type-written stories written in Brigg (no computers in those days) were put into a large envelope, together with Bryan's pictures, which were known in the office as Superb Illustrations.
These parcels then took several different routes to Hull.
Some were driven by car to New Holland, to be placed on the Humber Ferry and taken over the water, being collected at the other end by a junior member of staff sent out from HQ in Jameson Street.
You had to get your foot down if a passing train held you up at Elsham level crossing!
Others were delivered to Barnetby railway station and placed in a wooden box near the booking office. Helpful railway staff like Ron Vessey would then put the parcel on the next train to Habrough, where another British Rail employee took charge of the precious package and put it on a passenger service working from Cleethorpes to New Holland.
Earlier this week we chanced upon some interesting footage posted on YouTube, taken from a train as it made its way through Barnetby to Ulceby and then on to New Holland in 1976.
Those aboard this excursion took a trip on the Humber Ferry, also shown in this short video.
The boat involved was the Lincoln Castle - the last coal-fired ferry, which would be withdrawn from service two years later.
Well worth a look - view the video through this link...

Here's a view of the train passing Barnetby East signalbox, en route to New Holland via Ulceby, while below is the Lincoln Castle in August 1976.

By the time we went for an interview with the editor in Hull back in 1979, the diesel-powered Farringford was operating the ferry service on its own, and that's how we reached the city to secure a reporting post. We left the Times in January 1984 to join the Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph sports desk as a senior reporter/sub-editor.
After the ferry service ended with the opening of the Humber Bridge in 1981, the Lincs Times took advantage of a new hourly bus service to Hull. Parcels were driven by car to the new Barton Interchange next to the railway station terminus, to be taken over to the city.
Briefly, we took so-called copy parcels to Button's shop, on Bridge Street, Brigg, which was an agent for Lincolnshire Road Car, with the packages going by bus to Hull.
At Brigg Horse Fair 2019, on Monday this week, we were reminded of times at the Lincolnshire Times when we met a veteran photographer from Scunthorpe who used to cover for Bryan Robins, on a freelance basis, when the latter was on holiday.
As we chatted, Stennett's Market building was nearby. When Stennett's operated in a yard off Manley Gardens in the early 1980s, a reporter visited early on Thursday afternoon to collect a printed sheet of auction prices (chickens, pigeons, butter, eggs, etc) to be included in that week's edition just prior to printing.
Still in Brigg today are former Lincs Times staff members Coun Penny Smith and Mike Hills. They worked in the ground floor part of the office alongside photographer Bryan who had a darkroom at the back; editorial and advertising staff were upstairs; the top floor was only used for storage.
After the Times left No. 57, the 18th century building was sold. The ground floor became a shop and the upper floors were converted into flats.
The Exchange's rear courtyard extension was constructed on what had been the Times car park, which had a covered car port and a small lock-up where bundles of that week's edition were delivered by van after printing on Thursday evenings.
Around 10pm we often took a walk down Wrawby Street, from the Queens Arms pub, entered the lock-up, snipped open one of the bundles and got a sneak preview of the latest issue.
Right to the end, the Lincs Times displayed black and white pictures in its front window, many shoppers stopping to take a look as they made their way along Wrawby Street before it became pedestrianised.
From time to time, Brigg Blog is approached to give nostalgic talks to local groups and societies.
Memories from our time with the Times always seem to go down well.
When we went on a course at a college in Sheffield during the early 1980s, fellow young journalists and lecturers were amazed to learn that reporters on the Lincs Times were still required to visit local churches to take the names of funeral mourners paying their last respects to the dearly departed.
No other newspaper in the region, as far as they knew, still carried out this once-common personal service for bereaved families. All the others left it to the funeral directors.
Here was a golden opportunity to employ some local knowledge. As people approached the church door, you could impress them by saying: "Good Morning, Councillor XXXXX, or Mrs XXXX."
Then add: "You will be representing the XXXXX club, group or society."
The Times excelled with its obituaries, the best being written by veteran journalist Edward Dodd, of St Helen's Road, who, despite being retired by the early 1980s, supplemented the reporting staff whenever someone was on holiday or away on a college course.
'Doddy' seemed to know everyone in Brigg and was greatly admired by colleagues for his depth of knowledge on every aspect of local life.
He was still contributing occasional features to the Scunthorpe Telegraph when he was 90. We used to pick them up from his house and take them into the office - by then fully computerised.
Ted's pieces, though, were still compiled on his vintage typewriter. He'd been doing it that way since the late 1920s for The Star and then the Lincs Times.