The Signalman

The Signalman From 1865 signal boxes started to be built along UK railways and beside Eddystone Bridge in Crofton Park there was once a signal box. In the 1871 census Charles Adams was employed as the signalman here and he lived in a railway cottage on the site of the nature reserve with his wife Margaret and their 6 children. The signalman required good intellect and great patience. It was a lonely position where the signalman spent hours alone in the box with the responsibility of ensuring a safe gap between trains on the track. In 1868, when Charles Adams was likely already in post, Charles Dickens wrote his short ghost story ‘The Signalman’. On Sunday October 29th at 7pm we will be hosting a dramatic reading of the story on the Buckthorne Cutting ahead of Halloween.  There are only 20 tickets available at £15 a ticket so you need to be quick! Please e-mail fourth.reserve@yahoo.com Best wishes The Fourth Reserve

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