BEING born and brought up in Bastwell 85 years ago, I was familiar with the sight and sound of Blackburn's magnificent electric trams.

I have vivid memories of the end of the First World War and subsequent Armistice days, when every tram flew a flag of an allied nation from each corner of the upper deck and of the illuminated single-deck tram which ran after dark during the Chamber of Trade Shopping Week festivals.

I remember the extra trams which ran on Sundays to the cemetery only, to cope with the crowds of people making their weekly visit to their family graves.

I remember a glorious Whitsun holiday when there was a continual procession of trams on the Wilpshire route from morning until night, taking crowds of people to the terminus for walks in the Ribble Valley and bringing them all back in the evening.

On many occasions, I have seen passengers standing on the open top deck in inclement weather, with the lower deck full to bursting and the outside seats too wet to sit on.

They had no option if they wished to get to work on time.

There were strict rules for operating in fog. Trams ran in pairs and outward-bound trams had to await the arrival of inward bound ones at designated passing places. The warning bell was sounded continuously while the tram was in motion and was operated by the driver stamping on a pedal on the floor.

A lot must have finished their shifts with aching legs.

I remember being at the Bastwell stop in the 1930s when a tram was ready to leave for town. As the driver moved the control handle there was a flash and a bang from the control box.

Without further ado, he removed the control handle and walked through to the rear platform and set off for town driving from that end.

It must have given people a shock when they saw an apparently driverless tram approaching.

It was with a feeling of regret that I, along with our elder son, then aged five years, joined the crowds to watch the last tram leave the Boulevard in 1949.

We had earlier made a round trip to Intack and he plainly remembers both occasions still.

JOHN FOWLER, Nares Road, Blackburn.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.