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PostPosted: Sun Nov 11, 2018 12:21 am 
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SilverRay88 wrote:
Looking at the LED installations nearby I doubt these still survive but its a surprise they lasted this long.

My favourite

https://www.google.com/maps/@52.4422541 ... 312!8i6656


If you swing the GSV to the other side of this column, it is evident that
it seems to be supplied via the overheads alongside.
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I am assuming this is due to the failure of the column's underground feed, although it was not uncommon for streetlighting to be fed from the overhead "municipal" supply (and not just those on former tram or trolleybus routes either).

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PostPosted: Mon Nov 12, 2018 9:52 pm 
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Here's a gem that is very close by to me. In New Ash Green this AC802 lives on lighting some recycling bins, though it runs SON which I can confirm as I saw it on only the other evening. As lighting in New Ash Green is not maintained by Kent County there is a small chance that this gem could live on for quite a while, perhaps even converted to run LED which a couple existing lanterns have done (though much more likely replaced by a Vandalite Skye which quite a few P178s and Gamma 5s have fallen prey to). Hope you enjoy. https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.36685 ... authuser=0


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 03, 2019 4:00 pm 
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This rather quaint abandoned street light has been familiar to me from a very young age (early 2000s) and I have never seen it working. When it was new it probably burned incandescent lamps. In the last few months the bracket mount has given way and the bracket is now hanging loose off the column.

I wonder who's responsible for it?  :?


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PostPosted: Fri Jan 04, 2019 12:12 am 
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Paianni wrote:
This rather quaint abandoned street light...
In the last few months the bracket mount has given way and the bracket is now hanging loose off the column.

I wonder who's responsible for it?  :?


It is a shame this lamp has been allowed to decay almost unnoticed (except by yourself).

Looking at the GSV suggests this column is on private land, rather than some long forgotten council relic, however I can't decide if the lawned area is part of the property or is is a utilities strip (for cabling / gas / water etc).

I noticed the lamp's junction box is empty apart from the feed cable to the lantern. If it was an original installation (even long out of use), you would expect to have a evidence of a fuse or cutout inside.

As to why it was erected here in the first place, the most logical one would be it was put in by the property owner, many years ago. That said, it seems odd as to why the column has been left derelict, when the house itself is in a good state of repair (even the front lawn is nicely cut).

Another possibility, is that the column may in fact have nothing to do with the relatively modern housing which surrounds it. It could be the lamp was here long before these properties were built. There may have been previous buildings here along with the street lamp, until the site was cleared for redevelopment. A chat with the owner or landlord for these properties (assuming they are leasehold) might indicate who the column belongs to now.

What I have noticed with demolition sites, is that buildings are knocked down without a thought, however if a streetlamp happens to be on the same site, it is usually left standing. Perhaps the demolition crew mistakenly believe it is still live or even council property. It makes you wonder therefore, if your lamp avoided being pulled out for this very reason.

Anyway, so much for a quick answer!

In the first instance, I would suggest that your first port of call, would be a friendly chat with the owner of the house (closest to the column itself). If they own it, they may well know of its history and hopefully be aware of its increasingly perilous condition. If they do not own it, they may well know who does. It might be the council after all or even a utility company.

It might be that the person you speak to might simply be renting the place, therefore you would need to contact the property owner (perhaps liaising with the tenant or property management company).

Assuming this does the trick, I'm sure you will be able to decide between you the best course of action for the continued interest in the lamp. I myself would be quite happy to save just the swan neck and lantern if I could (even if it potentially means sourcing a repro' gas lantern to replace it with).

Hopefully the bowl hasn't been damaged following its collapse. I wish you luck in hopefully saving it.

Before I forget, I do recall there is some useful information regarding this sort of thing in the "guidance for collectors" tab at the bottom of the Ukastle pages. The section on "abandoned property" is particularly appropriate here.

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"I can't think what you want to go to London for, you won't find any better lampposts there..."
L.S. Lowry. 1887-1976.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 05, 2019 12:04 am 
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Whilst looking through some of my image files, I came across these taken during a short holiday near Kirkham in July 2018.

Making the most of our time in the area, we opted to travel to Southport (thankfully, we chose the week after the airshow).

Anyway, whilst travelling along a portion of the A565 / Southport New Road, I couldn't help noticing the following relics on what appears to be an agricultural storage yard. It looks quite derelict although still seems to be active otherwise.
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There appear to be four CU columns on site and two are in reasonable condition.
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The third column has suffered a broken arm, albeit still attached by its re-bar, whilst the forth is missing its bracket entirely.
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Interestingly, the two surviving lanterns look to be Phosco P127s.
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The bowls are cloudy with age and dirt, but generally intact. The bowl retaining screws are missing / failed, however at least someone had the sense to secure each of the bowls in place with a metal band.
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It is possible the other two lanterns may still be on site, but probably beyond saving.

Anyway, they are certainly an uncommon find these days, especially in what is a semi rural location.

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"I can't think what you want to go to London for, you won't find any better lampposts there..."
L.S. Lowry. 1887-1976.


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PostPosted: Sat Jan 05, 2019 11:39 pm 
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Further to my earlier report above, I thought I would include a couple of photos taken in Southport.

Over the last few years, there has been a drastic cull of the distinctive "gothic" gas columns, found on many of the side streets in the town. In fact, I struggled to find any at all on this visit. (they all seem to be listed on Ebay by various traders).

That said, it wasn't all in vain as I came across this little relic, lurking in one of the small ginnels off Lord Street.
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Of course, no visit to Southport is complete without catching up with its two venerable Stanton columns, erected by Southport Corporation in 1952. They have been the topic of discussion in the past, but I thought it was nice to include them.
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Having never really had a close up look at the Stanton nearest the Town Hall, it is remarkable that this column has survived in what is quite a precarious location, with respect to passing traffic. The column at the opposite end of Lord Street is safely isolated on its own turfed island.

Three things however make this column more interesting.
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First of all, it is surmounted by a concrete stepped podium, which was presumably supplied by Stanton. In addition, the podium retains four small,  recessed uplighter fittings, designed to illuminate the column from the base upwards. One has been damaged, but the other three look intact.

Secondly, the lantern looks to be in fine condition, considering its age. The column seems to be equally sound, save for some limited spalling near the top.

Third and finally, the Stanton column still retains a small commemorative plaque, affixed just above the access door. Interestingly the column door itself has "No 1" punched just above the lock, presumably for ID purposes.

The little plaque proudly reads:

                                                           ERECTED BY
                                       THE SOUTHPORT CORPORATION
                                                  LIGHTING COMMITTEE
                                                    TO COMMEMORATE
                                                  THE CORONATION OF
                                                           HER MAJESTY
                                                    QUEEN ELIZABETH II
                                                          JUNE 2ND 1953


With the replacement of the old cast iron side street lighting, it is to be hoped that the LA recognises the town's heritage and allow the "Stanton Saucers" to remain in situ for a good while yet.
Attachment:
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L.S. Lowry. 1887-1976.


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PostPosted: Tue Jan 15, 2019 7:54 pm 
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This private installation is still in regular use, the lantern originally being gas powered.


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PostPosted: Wed Jan 30, 2019 5:10 pm 
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Electricity substations often contain relics from long ago.

A few examples from north London...

This example on a 8m CU concrete column looks like a large GEC Z5580 but with a Wembley style bowl.

Checking with Simon Cornwell, he mentions " I agree that the substation lantern looks like a GEC fixture but have been unable to identify it. It could be a REVO – they used similar acorn style bowls for some of their lanterns but the profile of the lantern is more like a GEC."

In Tottenham, there are these deep bowled Alpha 9s on a sleeved concrete column. However if GSV is manipulated, these other views are seen - there are actually 2 columns with 4 lanterns

Image

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PostPosted: Fri Feb 01, 2019 6:49 pm 
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Phosco152 wrote:
Electricity substations often contain relics from long ago.

A few examples from north London...

This example on a 8m CU concrete column looks like a large GEC Z5580 but with a Wembley style bowl.


Interestingly, if you look across the road from the substation, you will come across "Buttles" (builder supply merchants?). If you trundle past the main building, you will come across the back entrance to their materials storage yard.
Attachment:
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Close to the main gate on the left, you will see this relic.
Attachment:
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Quite a nice Benjamin "shovel flood" - and perhaps not the only one!

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"I can't think what you want to go to London for, you won't find any better lampposts there..."
L.S. Lowry. 1887-1976.


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PostPosted: Sat Feb 09, 2019 7:28 pm 
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It is funny how a fairly innocuous image search, can sometimes produce something which may be of interest to those on Ukastle.

I was looking up a location in Bury, Lancs, however as my search criteria was quite broad, it also included Bury St Edmunds.

Anyway, I came across this photo which was uploaded by Rightmove.
Attachment:
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Amazed as to how close to the house, this council owned streetlighting column was, I went onto the listing itself.

However, what then caught my attention was the lantern itself.

As the photographer was more interested in the house itself, the lantern is only partially in shot.

As the location was included in the listing, I went on GSV and found the correct street - Heldhaw Road, Bury St Edmunds

If you look it up yourself, you will come across a 1980s residential estate, which appears to be lit by what might be classed as "survivors from the past"  viz Eleco SilverRay HW918s.
Attachment:
eleco2.jpg
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Actually, it looks like these were widely used in the area.

The GSV imagery is from 2009, however I wonder if they are still there - and still burning mercury?

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"I can't think what you want to go to London for, you won't find any better lampposts there..."
L.S. Lowry. 1887-1976.


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