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Wilbert Awdry
Wilbert Vere Awdry (15 June 1911 – 21 March 1997), often credited as Rev. W. Awdry, was an English Anglican minister, railway enthusiast, and children's author. He is best remembered as the creator of Thomas the Tank Engine and several other characters who appeared in his ''The Railway Series, Railway Series''. Life and career Wilbert Awdry was born at Ampfield vicarage near Romsey, Hampshire, on 15 June 1911. His father was Vere Awdry (1854–1928), the Anglican vicar of Ampfield, and his mother was Lucy Awdry (née Bury; 1884–1965). When Wilbert was born his mother Lucy Awdry described her newborn son as a "short but (but perfectly formed) baby who had long fingers. and toes, a 'mouse-face' (with the Awdry chin and ears) and a loud and persistent voice.". Vere Awdry was the son of judge Sir John Wither Awdry and brother of bishop William Awdry. ''Wilbert'' was derived from William and Herbert, names of his father's two brothers. His younger brother, George, was born on 10 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Reverend
The Reverend (abbreviated as The Revd, The Rev'd or The Rev) is an honorific style (form of address), style given to certain (primarily Western Christian, Western) Christian clergy and Christian minister, ministers. There are sometimes differences in the way the style is used in different countries and church traditions. ''The Reverend'' is correctly called a ''style'', but is sometimes referred to as a title, form of address, or title of respect. Etymology The term is an anglicisation of the Latin , the style originally used in Latin documents in medieval Europe. It is the gerundive or future passive participle of the verb ("to respect; to revere"), meaning "[one who is] to be revered/must be respected". ''The Reverend'' is therefore equivalent to ''the Honourable'' or ''the Venerable''. Originating as a general term of respectful address in the 15th century, it became particularly associated with clergy by the 17th century, with variations associated with certain ranks in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Romsey
Romsey ( ) is a town in the Test Valley district of Hampshire, England. The town is situated northwest of Southampton, southwest of Winchester and southeast of Salisbury. It sits on the outskirts of the New Forest, just over northeast of its eastern edge. The population of Romsey was 14,768 at the 2011 census. Romsey is one of the principal towns in the Test Valley Borough and lies on the River Test, which is known for fly fishing, predominantly trout. In 2019, the town centre underwent substantial remodelling, removing the roundabout around the statue of Lord Palmerston, and creating a pedestrianised area. Romsey was home to the 17th-century philosopher and economist William Petty and the 19th-century British prime minister, Lord Palmerston, whose statue has stood in the town centre since 1857. The town was also home to the 20th-century naval officer and statesman Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, who lived at Broadlands. Romsey Abbey, the largest pari ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kent
Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Greater London to the north-west. The county town is Maidstone. The county has an area of and had population of 1,875,893 in 2022, making it the Ceremonial counties of England#Lieutenancy areas since 1997, fifth most populous county in England. The north of the county contains a conurbation which includes the towns of Chatham, Kent, Chatham, Gillingham, Kent, Gillingham, and Rochester, Kent, Rochester. Other large towns are Maidstone and Ashford, Kent, Ashford, and the City of Canterbury, borough of Canterbury holds City status in the United Kingdom, city status. For local government purposes Kent consists of a non-metropolitan county, with twelve districts, and the unitary authority area of Medway. The county historically included south-ea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawkhurst
Hawkhurst is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. The village is located close to the border with East Sussex, around south-east of Royal Tunbridge Wells and within the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Hawkhurst is virtually two villages: The Moor, to the south, consists mainly of cottages clustered around a large triangular green, while Highgate, to the north, features a colonnade of independent shops, two country pubs, hotels, a digital cinema in a converted lecture hall, and Waitrose and Tesco supermarkets. There are four designated conservation areas in Hawkhurst parish – one at Sawyers Green, two in Highgate (Highgate and All Saints' Church) and one at The Moor. There are also over 200 listed buildings across the parish. Since boundary changes in the 2010 general election, Hawkhurst is part of the parliamentary constituency of Tunbridge Wells, represented by Conservative Greg Clark. Prior to this it was in the Ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marlborough House School
Marlborough House School is a co-educational preparatory school situated in of countryside in Hawkhurst, Kent. The school currently has just over 260 pupils between the ages of 2.5 and 13 with a teaching staff of 60. Marlborough House is predominantly a day school, but operates a flexi-boarding policy for pupils over the age of eight. The school is a member of the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools (IAPS). Classes up to Year 4 have teaching assistants. The pupil teacher ratio in the school's Pre-Prep (Reception - Year 2) is 1:6 and in Years 3-4 it is 1:9. The school's sporting and cocurricular facilities include a full size sports hall, a swimming pool, an astroturf, tennis courts, an outdoor classroom, Forest School areas, a shooting range, an observatory and a pitch and putt golf course. The current Head is Eddy Newton. Prior to becoming Headmaster of Marlborough House School, Mr Newton was Chief Executive of The Cothill Trust and held the position of Chairman o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gordon The Big Engine
Started in 1945 and concluded in 2011, ''The Railway Series'' is a series of 42 British books written by Wilbert Awdry and his son Christopher Awdry. This is a list of all characters who appeared in the book series. Unless otherwise said on this page, the technical notes come from actual notes laid out by Awdry when he was developing the characters and setting for his stories; these notes are cited in his publication ''The Island of Sodor: Its People, History, and Railways''. North Western Railway The North Western Railway (NWR) is the main standard gauge rail network on the Island of Sodor. The railway's motto is "Nil Unquam Simile", which is Latin for "There's nothing quite like it". From nationalisation on 1 January 1948, until it was privatised, the railway was the North Western Region of British Railways (BR). From 1925 onwards, it has been managed by three Fat Controllers. Steam engines Diesel engines Rolling stock Skarloey Railway The Skarloey Railway (SR) is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Banking Engine
A bank engine (United Kingdom/Australia) (colloquially a banker), banking engine, helper engine or pusher engine (North America) is a railway locomotive that temporarily assists a train that requires additional power or traction to climb a gradient (or ''bank''). Helpers/bankers are most commonly found in mountain divisions (called "helper districts" in the United States), where the ruling grade may demand the use of substantially greater motive power than that required for other grades within the division. Historic practice Helpers/bankers were most widely used during the age of steam, especially in the American West, where significant grades are common and trains are long. The development of diesel-electric or electric locomotives has eliminated the everyday need for bankers/helpers in all but a few locations. With the advent of dynamic brakes on electric or diesel-electric locomotives, helpers/bankers can also be used to provide more braking force on long downhill grad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838 with the initial route completed between London and Bristol in 1841. It was engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, who chose a broad gauge of —later slightly widened to —but, from 1854, a series of Consolidation (business), amalgamations saw it also operate Standard gauge, standard-gauge trains; the last broad-gauge services were operated in 1892. The GWR was the only company to keep its identity through the Railways Act 1921, which amalgamated it with the remaining independent railways within its territory, and it was finally merged at the end of 1947 when it was Nationalization, nationalised and became the Western Region of British Railways. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Box Tunnel
Box Tunnel passes through Box Hill on the Great Western Main Line (GWML) between Bath and Chippenham. The tunnel was the world's longest railway tunnel when it was completed in 1841. Built between December 1838 and June 1841 for the Great Western Railway (GWR) under the direction of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the straight tunnel descends on a 1 in 100 gradient from its eastern end. At the time the tunnel's construction was considered dangerous due to its length and the composition of the underlying strata. The west portal is Grade II* listed and the east portal is Grade II listed. Ammunition was stored near the tunnel during World War II, reusing mine workings. During the 2010s, the tunnel was modified and the track lowered to prepare it for electrification, although in 2016, this plan has been suspended for the time being. History Background During the 1830s, Isambard Kingdom Brunel developed a plan for a railway running east–west between London and Bristol. The Great Weste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to the west. The largest settlement is Swindon, and Trowbridge is the county town. The county has an area of and a population of 720,060. The county is mostly rural, and the centre and south-west are sparsely populated. After Swindon (183,638), the largest settlements are the city of Salisbury (41,820) and the towns of Chippenham (37,548) and Trowbridge (37,169). For local government purposes, the county comprises two unitary authority areas: Swindon and Wiltshire. Undulating chalk downlands characterize much of the county. In the east are Marlborough Downs, which contain Savernake Forest. To the south is the Vale of Pewsey, which separates the downs from Salisbury Plain in the centre of the county. The south-west is also downland, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Box, Wiltshire
Box is a large village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wiltshire, England, about west of Corsham and northeast of Bath, Somerset, Bath. Box also falls in the easternmost part of the Avon Green Belt. Besides the village of Box, the parish includes the villages of Ashley, Wiltshire, Ashley and Box Hill, Wiltshire, Box Hill; Hazelbury Manor, Hazelbury manor; and the hamlets of Alcombe, Blue Vein, Chapel Plaister, Ditteridge, Henley, Kingsdown, Box, Kingsdown, Middlehill, and Wadswick. To the east the parish includes much of Rudloe, formerly a hamlet but now a housing estate, and the defence establishments and related businesses on the site of the former RAF Rudloe Manor. Occupation here dates back at least to Roman Britain, Roman times. The area is known for its fine stone, and for centuries Box quarries were famous for their product. Today Box is perhaps better known for its Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Brunel-des ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
