Shrewsbury Railway Heritage Trust recreate Abbey Foregate station as air raid post like 75 years ago
Visitors to a former railway station in Shrewsbury were taken back to the days of the Second World War – complete with the dangers of an unexploded bomb.
Members of Shrewsbury Railway Heritage Trust transformed its headquarters in Abbey Station, Abbey Foregate, into an Air Raid Precautions (ARP) post as it would have been 75 years ago during hostilities.
It has been 75 years since the line was reopened for military use, and the open day on Saturday included an exhibition of Second World War memorabilia. The family day saw live music and also featured artefacts displayed by local collector Nick Holden, including a Shropshire & Montgomery Railway lamp, in original condition, an unrestored 1930s Hercules ARP military bicycle, a 1947 Mercury Army bicycle and an ARP rider mannequin on his Royal Enfield motorcycle.
David Morris, from the trust, said: "The trust wanted to host what turned out to be a splendid exhibition of Second World War memorabilia to commemorate what must have been the busiest time for our railway.
It certainly seemed to be received well and we hope it was a fun-filled trip down memory lane for those who came".
The historic Abbey station was built in 1866 and was once the terminus of the Shropshire and Montgomeryshire Railway. The railway came to be known as The Potts, after one of the line's early names, the Potteries, Shrewsbury & North Wales railway.
After a convoluted history, it closed for good in 1960.
