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Awards and Loans

The Trust offers financial assistance to individuals or groups to carry through restoration or improvement projects to completion. The Trust also invites enquiries about sponsoring one or more Awards.

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The Ron Wilsdon Award  given in memory of the Trust’s  founder, went to the Britten Norman Aircraft Preservation  Society Trust  for its restoration of Britten Norman Islander G-AVCN built at Bembridge and first flown in 1967. It became  the first aircraft to be operated by Aurigny Air Services of  Guernsey, the livery of which will be carried by the restored aircraft.  The Britten Norman Society was represented by Chairman Bob Wealthy and Peter Graham, who was commercial manager of Britten Norman in the 1970s.

 

The Sir Peter Allen Award commemorating the Transport Trust’s first president, was made to the

Daniel Adamson Preservation Society which is returning to operational condition the last surviving steam tug/tender in the UK. The vessel, which has recently been awarded a significant Heritage Lottery Fund Grant, was built at Birkenhead in 1903 for the Shropshire Union Canal Company to tow barges and carry people and livestock between the canal docks at Ellesmere Port and Liverpool. In 1921, the Manchester Ship Canal Company bought the vessel and, having added two Art Deco saloons and an elevated promenade deck, used Daniel Adamson as an inspection vessel and for transportation of VIPs in which capacity she operated until taken out of service in 1985.  Martin Heighton received the award on behalf of the vessel’s preservation society.

 

The Alan Moore Award which acknowledges Mr Moore’s generous financial support of these Awards, went to Paul Childs for his work on 1940 MTB 219She is the last survivor of the ultimate development of the wooden hulled fast patrol boat by Vospers. Her active service was spent predominantly as part of Royal Navy Coastal Forces at Dover taking part in a number of engagements in the Channel. After the war, she became a training vessel with Staines Sea Scouts before eventually becoming a Thames houseboat. On completion of Paul Childs’ project, it is intended that MTB 219 will join other vessels of the Military Boat Collection at Torquay where she will tie up alongside HMS Gay Archer, another of Paul’s successful restorations for which he received a Transport Trust Award in 2010.

 

Restoration Awards also went to:

 

1935 Dennis ‘Big Four’ Fire Appliance

Awarded to David McManus of East Lothian for his restoration. David, who was in the Fire Service for 26 years, also owns another Dennis engine, built in 1964 which he rallies. On completion of the Big Four, he will rally both appliances, continuing thereby to raise money in support of fire service and other charities.

 

Leyland Cub Fire Appliance owned by Tony Marriott. Tony’s is the only variant of the standard model, being a vehicle built at a time of acute wartime component shortages, resulting in Leyland cobbling together a wide variety of parts from other models making this machine a hybrid. It was new in 1940 to Aberdeen Borough Council, and saw service there until 1965.

 

Sailing Barge DawnThe restoration of the tiller-steered sailing barge Dawn evokes a forgotten aspect of Thames Estuary life at the commencement of the 20th Century. She was saved from dereliction in 1996 and her subsequent restoration funded by an HLF grant restored her seaworthiness but with wheeled steerage. The Dawn Sailing Barge Trust, which was represented by Keith & Glynis Yuill, is now returning the vessel to the original tiller steerage for which purpose the Transport Trust made an award.

 

1963 Yacht LynessaThe Rev. Linda & Gordon Bushell’s painstaking work on their yacht Lynessa has returned the vessel to operational excellence after five years of neglect by a previous owner. Lynessa was built by Camper & Nicholson in 1963, at a time when aluminium masts and fibre glass hulls were superseding timber. 

 

1950 Yacht Anone has been the subject of an excellent individual restoration effort by Justin Revell. She is a 36ft sloop built of mahogany on an oak frame at Rochford in 1950 and the Trust’s award will help towards a new mast and mainsail.

 

An award was made to Geoffrey Grayson for his painstaking restoration over a 30 year period of his Daimler 2.5 litre ‘Empress’Geoffrey is researching its past ownership history which has revealed that at one time the car was in the hands of the Bowes Lyon family.

 

Steven Cope’s efforts to bring back to operational condition his 1938 AEC Regent double-decker were acknowledged with an award. The bus was built for the Devon General Omnibus

Company who had it rebodied in 1953 by Saunders Roe with ultra lightweight coachwork based on aircraft construction techniques to reduce fuel consumption.

 

In the military vehicle sector, an award was made to Mark Cornwell for his restoration of a 1942 Lee Grant light tank built by The Baldwin Locomotive Company of Pennsylvania. The Grant’s design was in many ways based on 1930s technology and they were superseded by the Sherman for the war in Europe.

 

Another rather rare entry was that by Anthony Coulls of his roadmaker’s living van and water cart. In 2008, Anthony received an award for his restoration of his 1894 Aveling & Porter road roller and these will be attached to the roller thus creating a typical roadmender’s ensemble once relatively commonplace on country roads right up to the 1950s.

 

Finally a Highly Commended Award which, unusually, is the only railway award for the year. This went to the 1903 Autocar Trust for its restoration of its 1904 auto coach.

 

The National Transport Trust makes loans to groups, associations and individuals at advantageous rates for the restoration of artefacts - whether mobile or part of the infrastructure.  Applications must be supported by a simple business plan which demonstrates the financial viability of the project. A sample business plan is available on request from the Treasurer.

 

The Trust does occasionaly make Awards for schemes which further the preservation movement. Again if you wish further information please contact the Treasurer.

 

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