A rare signal box had been reopened following extensive repairs.
Billingshurst Signal Box is once again able to welcome members of the public, following the rebuilding of the timber stairs up to the entrance into the building.
The box, now one of the exhibits at Amberley Museum, was officially reopened on Wednesday 30 August by Andy Savage, Chairman of the Railway Heritage Trust.
The repairs were funded by the Friends of Amberley Museum.
The signal box was built for the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) and used to stand by Billingshurst level crossing.
A Saxby and Farmer type 1b box, it is a very rare example of its kind, and dates from before 1876.
It is often paired with a ticket office at the museum which once stood at Hove, another LB&SCR station.
The box was saved for the museum after Network Rail underwood to widen the level crossing and updated the signalling system, thus rendering the signal box redundant.
A listed building when it was in place at Billingshurst, it has lost that status, something which happens if a building is moved.
However, the museum is committed to treat all its assets with care and attention, treating the signal box as if it was still listed.
The operating room, the top part of the signal box, was moved to the museum in one piece using a crane and transporting the whole on a flatbed lorry.
Other bits of equipment – the lever frame, signalling levers, block instruments and the track diagram, have sold been preserved and form part of the exhibit. When the box is open to the pubic, a team of volunteers help people understand how the box operated.
The Railway Heritage Trust curates the historic buildings which can be found around the national railway system. Redundant buildings of historical interest can be repurposed for educational or community use after they are placed into the care of organisations, trusts and museums.
Buildings can also be listed. If a significant building is located close to live railway tracks, they are relocated.
