Time capsule showcased in railway exhibition

Bronwen and Bob, the grandchildren of former station master Cyril Feldwick, were present at the opening of the exhibition

A time capsule buried at a railway station nearly 90 years ago is one of several artefacts to go on display at an exhibition.

Kemble Through The Ages launched at Kemble Station on Tuesday and includes the capsule which was unearthed ten years ago.

Cyril Feldwick, the then station master, placed a postage stamp and a handwritten note in a tobacco tin in 1935, the capsule is now owned by his granddaughter, Bronwen Dale.

The exhibition also features tributes to village life in years gone by, Kemble's Women's Institute, and war heroes.

A vast collection of railway memorabilia also forms part of the exhibit, which was put together by Great Western Railway colleagues Al Watkins and Sarah Bennet.

Mr Feldwick hid the tin between a wall and a window overlooking the station garden.

Ms Dale inherited the time capsule from her mother when she died.

"My mum actually remembered her dad writing the note and placing it in the tin," she said.

The time capsule was hidden behind a wall at the station during the year of the Silver Jubilee of George V

"When it was found 10 years ago it was handed to mum, and when she passed away, I took possession of it.

"Donating it to this wonderful exhibition seemed the perfect thing to do."

Mr Feldwick wrote in the letter he placed inside the tin that he was including a 1935 jubilee stamp as he "couldn't afford to put a pound note in".

"His whole working life was working on Great Western Railway," Ms Dale added.

"It's lovely, it really is nice that this tin and the letter can be on display and not just hidden away in an attic."

'New stories'

Mr Watkins, a customer sales advisor at Kemble, said the response to the exhibition had been "quite overwhelming".

"To get this together, [it took] probably eight, nine months total, and that's from start to finish," he said.

"I've had people approaching me, giving me new memorabilia, new stories, new pictures.

"It's only going to grow and get bigger."