54F. Off New Road, Crook, County Durham With thanks to Oliver Davison for informing me of this Survivor. Situated on some empty land adjacent the housing development on Weavers Croft is a long-abandoned 15 ft (5 m) Concrete Utilities' Avenue 2D column with a distinctive crescent-shaped top-entry bracket and the remains of an ELECO 'Welwyn Mk 3' HW-851 lantern. Although the Beechburn Colliery was situated close to this site, it closed in 1908, and so the column was nothing to do with that industry. Maps dating from later in the 20th Century do show large industrial buildings on part of the site, however, so the column was probably installed to serve these, and there may have been more prior to the land's redevelopment.
The column is positioned in front of another Weardale Motor Services depot; a satellite depot to the one seen on the previous page.
The bracket is of a slightly different design to the type seen in Beechwood Road, Easton-in-Gordano, Bristol. There are cracks in the concrete with this example too.
Although the HW-851 features a canopy that is of similar design to sister lantern the HW-852, this lantern is designed to be run with an exposed lamp (surrounded by a prismatic glass refractor ring), and no provision for a bowl support ring is included in the design.
More cracking is present to the front of the column.
The hooks that would have supported the refractor have corroded away to nothing.
No lampholder remains in the lantern either, though the (very rusted) support bracket for it does. Using my own HW-852's bracket as a guide, as the HW-851's bracket is positioned with the bridge part facing downwards, the lantern would have run an 80 Watt MBF (mercury vapour) or 100 - 150 Watt GLS (incandescent tungsten filament) lamp when in use. The live and neutral wires are still visible - as they have tinned copper strands, and appear to be PVC, the installation is likely to date from the 1960s (the HW-851 made its début in the late 1950s) - earlier cabling would have used Vulcanised India Rubber (VIR) insulation.
The road immediately beyond the column would have been the main road originally, but now serves as access to the depot only; the literal 'new' road being straighter. A 10 m tubular steel column supporting an Urbis Ampera Midi provides the modern illumination.
The top section of the column appears to have 'bellied' out, causing further cracks around the back.
Again, relying on the HW-852 as a guide, the HW-851 looks to be positioned to face the correct way around on the bracket.
The column (almost) appears to be compacting under the weight of its own bracket.
The more severe crack has considerable width and depth to it.
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