The Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft facts for kids

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Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft
Two of the museum's foreign vehicles: from Porto (left) and Aachen (right)
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Established	1969 (1969)
Location	Sandtoft, Lincolnshire, England
Type	Transport museum

The Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft is a special transport museum. It focuses on keeping old trolleybuses safe and working. Trolleybuses are like buses that get their power from overhead electric wires. The museum is located near the village of Sandtoft in England.

Discovering the Museum
- A Huge Collection of Trolleybuses
Museum History
The Museum's Collection
Gallery
See also

Discovering the Museum

The museum is built on part of an old air base called RAF Sandtoft. This air base was used during the Second World War. The RAF stopped using it in 1958. The museum bought the land in November 1969.

Since then, many volunteers have worked hard. They turned an empty field into a museum. They built workshops, a place to store vehicles, and an exhibition hall. The first big event, called the Sandtoft Gathering, happened in 1971. This event is still held every year.

A Huge Collection of Trolleybuses

The museum has the largest collection of old trolleybuses in Europe. It might even be the biggest in the world! There are over 60 trolleybuses here. Most of them are from the UK. However, the museum is also collecting more trolleybuses from other countries.

Besides trolleybuses, the museum also shows items from the 1950s and 1960s. Many things from the trolleybus era have been given to the museum. There is a street scene from the 1950s and 1960s. It has shop windows with displays. There is also a special prefab house. It used to be the museum's gift shop. Now, it looks like a home from that time. It shows even more old artefacts.

In 2011, the museum was the biggest trolleybus museum in Britain. It had about 50 vehicles. Some of these were brought from other countries. About half of these vehicles could be used to give rides to visitors. They drove on a special oval track. By 2019, the number of vehicles grew to over 60. The museum is open on certain days. You can find these dates on its website.

Museum History

How the Idea Started

Reading trolleybus 113

The museum's story began in 1961. A group of 14 people wanted to save an old trolleybus from Reading. This trolleybus was going to be taken out of service soon. In April, they formed the Reading Transport Society. In September, they got Reading No.113. It was the first trolleybus in Britain to be saved by private people. This started the whole movement to save old trolleybuses.

At first, they thought it would be a small local group. But people from all over Britain joined. By 1964, they had saved three more trolleybuses from other cities. The places they used to store the vehicles were not good enough. So, they started looking for a better place. They wanted somewhere that could keep the vehicles inside. They also wanted a place where they could run the trolleybuses.

After not finding a good place in the south, one of the founders, Mike Dare, found a possible site. It was an old chapel in Belton. He thought it could hold three vehicles at first. With some changes, it could hold eight. There was also a classroom attached. This was good for small exhibits. They might also be able to buy a field next to it later. Mike Dare bought the chapel himself. He made changes so trolleybuses could drive inside. This place became known as the Westgate Trolleybus Museum.

The first vehicle, Derby No.172, arrived there on July 27, 1967. The second vehicle was Manchester No.1344. It was owned by the Northern Trolleybus Society. It was pulled from Oldham by an old coach on July 28–29, 1967. Two people from the crew noticed that part of Sandtoft airfield was for sale. The third vehicle to arrive was Glasgow No.TB78. It was pulled from Ibrox to Westgate on October 24–25, 1967, by the same old coach.

During 1968, Mike Dare visited the Sandtoft site many times. It was for sale for £6,000. It seemed likely that they would get permission to build a depot and overhead wires. The Reading Transport Society agreed to try and get this permission. After the Reading trolleybus system closed, the Society got Reading No.144. This was pulled to Westgate on November 23, 1968. Glasgow No.TB78 was moved to a nearby yard in Belton. The Society also got many parts for overhead wiring from the Reading system.

They then focused on how to get money for the Sandtoft site. Mike Dare offered £3,000 for it. By February 1969, they had permission for the wiring and buildings. Mike Dare suggested he buy the site and rent space to the Society. They hoped to build space for 20 vehicles. So, he would offer spaces to other groups that wanted to save trolleybuses. By March, his offer of £3,000 for the site was accepted. Building the new structures would cost around £5,800. Mike's mother, Dorothy Dare, offered to lend £4,500. This helped pay for most of the building work.

Making it Happen

Glasgow trolleybus TB78

Mike Dare officially owned the Sandtoft site on August 25, 1969. By this time, the planned depot was made smaller, to hold eight vehicles. Building the depot was delayed. But it started on October 6, 1969. To get ready, several trolleybuses were pulled to a yard in Belton. This yard was owned by Barry Dodd.

The West Riding Transport Society wanted to join the project. Space was set aside for two of their vehicles. The Doncaster Omnibus and Light Railway Society also joined. They owned Doncaster No.375. The first building work was finished in late October. On the afternoon of November 1, 1969, Reading No.193 arrived. It was owned by a member of the Reading Society. This was the first trolleybus to arrive at the new site.

Huddersfield Nos.619 and 631 arrived later that day. Both were owned by the West Riding Transport Society. Glasgow No.TB78, owned by the Reading Society, also arrived. Soon after, Bradford No.RT410, Bournemouth 212, Reading 181, and Doncaster 375 arrived. This filled the depot with its full number of vehicles. Huddersfield No.541, owned by the National Trolleybus Association, also arrived. It had to be stored outside.

In December 1969, four transport groups met. They became "participating societies." These were the Doncaster Omnibus and Light Railway Society, the Notts & Derby Transport Society, the Reading Transport Society, and the West Riding Transport Society. The Reading Society then asked the Transport Trust for a loan of £5,000. This money would help build a second depot for 14 more vehicles. It would also help buy parts for overhead wiring.

After getting legal advice, a Trust was set up to hold the museum's assets. It was called the Sandtoft Transport Centre Association. This group would rent the site to the participating societies. This made the museum's finances more stable. Graham Rhodes was chosen as the site Foreman. When the Walsall trolleybus system closed, the Reading Society bought two trolleybuses. They also bought about 1.6 kilometers of overhead wiring and forty poles. Since their main focus was now at Sandtoft, they changed their name. From April 29, 1971, they became the British Trolleybus Society. This was exactly ten years after the original society started.

Growing the Museum

The museum grew quite quickly. Trolleybuses and some diesel buses arrived from many places. A second building for 14 vehicles was built in 1972. Another building for 22 more vehicles was added in 1973. Later, covered space for ten more vehicles was added. Other buildings were also built. These included a workshop, toilets, a gift shop, storage areas, and a theatre.

The toilets were improved, and a new exhibition hall was built in 1995–1996. Grants helped pay for this. The new hall, called the Axholme Stores, now has a cafe.

To make the trolleybuses run, overhead wiring started to be put up in 1971. The first trolleybus ran under the wires on September 3, 1972. Power came from a diesel generator on the back of a lorry. Later, a diesel bus engine powered a trolleybus motor. This motor acted as a generator, also on a lorry. In the 1990s, the museum started getting power from the main electricity supply. The vehicles in the collection have changed over time. Some have moved to other collections. Some left for restoration and then returned. A few privately owned ones were scrapped.

The way the museum is run has also changed. The Doncaster Omnibus and Light Railway Society and the British Trolleybus Society are still active. The West Riding Transport Society closed down. Its assets were given to the British Trolleybus Society. The Notts & Derby Transport Society also stopped in the mid-1970s. But when trolleybuses stopped running in Bradford, the Bradford Trolleybus Association was formed. They have since become an active part of the museum.

The Sandtoft Transport Centre Association became Sandtoft Transport Centre Limited in 1982. This is a charity registered with the Charities Commission. Most of the museum's growth has been paid for by private donations. The quality of the work and organization was recognized in 2003. That's when the museum became a Registered Museum. More progress was made in 2010. It was given Accreditation status by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. This is now part of Arts Council England.

The Museum's Collection

The museum has many different kinds of trolleybuses. In 2019, its website listed 59 trolleybuses. The Sandtoft Trust owned 28 of them. The British Trolleybus Society owned 13. Other groups owned one each. These included the Bradford Trolleybus Association, the Doncaster Omnibus and Light Railway Society, the National Trolleybus Association, and the Rotherham Trolleybus Group. Fourteen trolleybuses were privately owned.

These trolleybuses originally ran on 31 different systems. Eight of these were in other countries. Twenty-one were in England, one in Scotland, and one in Wales. Ten of them were single-deck vehicles. Forty-seven were double-deck. Two were just chassis (the frame without the body). The oldest trolleybus was from Mexborough and Swinton, built in 1928. The newest was part of an experiment. It was built in 1985. One vehicle is very unique. It is a copy of a single-deck trolleybus from 1911. This copy was built for the museum in the Czech Republic and arrived in 2019.

Besides trolleybuses, the museum also has 14 diesel buses. Some of these are used to give tours around the local area on open days. The collection also includes service vehicles. These are vehicles used to help maintain the museum. There are four tower wagons. These were used to fix the overhead wiring. The oldest tower wagon is from 1903 and was pulled by horses! Other helper vehicles include a pole crane, a Smith Electric Vehicles parcel van, three tractors, and the lower parts of two trams.