Established in 1987 and renamed in 1992 as Crewe Railway Age by the owning registered charity, the museum returned to its original name of Crewe Heritage Centre in early 2008. The museum is located in the old London, Midland and Scottish Railway yard, which was once part of Crewe Works, between the junction to Chester and the West Coast Main Line. The site is operated by supporters of the Crewe Heritage Centre, and is open to the public every weekend between Easter and October. The museum is also open for selected days during December.
Exhibits
The centre has a series of exhibits, ranging from the only surviving APT-P train, miniature railways, three open signal boxes and a varied collection of standard gauge steam, diesel and electric locomotives, as well as occasional visiting locomotives. The Main Exhibition Hall features many artefacts and exhibits associated with Crewe, from its locomotive and carriage construction to its famous junction railway station. Brake Van rides are available to the public during special events.
Built by British Rail the 1970s and 1980s, this Class 370 Advanced Passenger Train is the only surviving APT set. Numbered 370 003/006, it is open at all times with an occasional cafe run from the original buffet car. The APT-P museum can be found inside one of the carriages, with photographs on display from the APT project. The set was tilted for the first time in preservation in 2013. In early 2018, an additional surviving APT powercar arrived at the museum. It is displayed separately alongside the main set.
Constructed in 1992, the Crewe Heritage Centre Miniature Railway is a 600 metre long 184mm gauge ride, the railway takes visitors on a trip from ‘Crewe Old Works’ station to ‘Spider Bridge’ station and the optional return journey. The railway includes a mixture of Steam, Petrol and Battery Electric locomotives; rides on this attraction are included in the museum admission price.
Exhibition Hall
The Heritage Centre is also home to a 1,000m2 Exhibition Hall, which doubles both as an event space and as the main museum building. It features displays and exhibits about the town of Crewe. During the 2018/19 closed season, the building underwent a light refurbishment; this included replacement of the original 1987 entrance doors and a full internal repaint.
Signal boxes
Crewe Station A: Open for display purposes, this box was moved onto the site after closure in 1985.
Crewe North Junction: Built in 1939 and designed to withstand the Luftwaffe bombs of World War II, the box is constructed out of concrete and has an 46 cm thick roof and 38 cm thick walls. Located between the West Coast Main Line and Crewe-Chester line, its location is perfect for viewing passing mainline trains. Demonstrations of how the box was used often take place and are linked to a simulator. In 1987, the building was extended to provide more room for the Heritage Centre, including a cafe and small shop, and to include a large U.S. model railway.
Exeter West: Used to control the split at Exeter between the Great Western Railway and the Southern Railway. With 131 levers, it was a Special Class A signal box, with only the best signalmen authorised to operate it. Since being rebuilt at Crewe, volunteers operate it on every weekend using a demonstration 1960s timetable; this includes the hectic Summer Saturday service, which saw famous expresses such as the Torbay Express, Atlantic Coast Express and the Cornishman.
Both mainline and miniature railways operate on most weekends. The standard gauge railway uses either the Class 03 03073 or Class 47 D1842. A cylinder and Caprotti valve gear from the locomotive, Duke of Gloucester, forms part of a permanent display. There may also be occasional visiting locomotives. The Centre has its own Depot Code, CQ, but only 87035 are classed as being locomotives of this depot. 87035 at Crewe Heritage Centre, after recently undergoing an exterior repaint.
86247 Cab
Acquired in early 2020 by a private owner and moved on site as a permanent exhibit. 86247's number 2 end cab resides in Europhoenix livery and will be restored to early 2000s condition externally with the refitting of marker, tail and head lights. Previously in its life it was a demonstrator loco for the Bulgarian/Hungary exports of the class, eventually it came into the hands of Freightliner for spares recovery after it was not exported. In 2015 it was cut up at Crewe Basford Hall with both cabs at the time going to the South Wales Loco Cab Preservation Group.
