Hull Fair family recreate 1900s rifle range stall

Billy Gallagher and Jim Dunn with the replica gun gallery

A rifle range that wowed the crowds at Hull Fair over nine decades has been recreated in miniature by the family who ran the attraction.

Jim Dunn, from Hessle, spent 18 months creating a replica of the Wild West game that boasted real guns and ran from 1904 until the late 1980s.

Mr Dunn is the son of Nellie Gallagher, a travelling fair worker who managed the range with her brother Billy.

The model was unveiled as the popular event got under way at Walton Street.

Nellie Gallagher and her family worked throughout Yorkshire and beyond with their mobile shooting gallery, but she eventually settled down in Hessle with Jim's father.

The model took 72-year-old Jim 18 months to build

She never lost the travelling bug and continued to spend summers touring, bringing Jim, now 72, along with her.

He told the BBC: "That's why I have such an affinity with travelling showmen."

Her brother Billy, 88, who also worked there, said: "The range was for enjoyment... there were no prizes. The thrill was handling a real gun."

Speaking about recreating the range, Mr Dunn said the most challenging part was making the tiny ammunition - so he had to enlist the help of a local steel-cutting company.

He said it was "a pleasure" recreating his family's business but as he had nowhere to put the model he was keen to find "interested parties", such as a private collector or museum.

The Gallagher family have been in the fairground business for five generations and still have attractions on show at Hull Fair.

Pictured around 1904, Mr Dunn's ancestors included Mary Gallagher, who gave her name to the rifle range

The event, the largest travelling funfair in Europe, begins on Friday evening after the official opening by the Lord Mayor of Hull, Councillor Kalvin Neal.

It will run until 13 October and as many as 800,000 people are expected to attend.

Humberside Police has issued some tips to stay safe, including leaving valuables at home and writing family contact details for children to carry in their pockets.

Ch Supt Christine Wilson said: "Our teams will be at the fair every day and night to make sure that both visitors and workers feel safe throughout the week."