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It is good to be able to report that the Loco Wheels in Old Station Park, Horwich, which were vandalised in July this year, have now been repaired, re-painted and re-instated.

It is fitting that their restoration should take place at this time as it is almost exactly 40 years since the wheels were put in place as part of the creation of Old Station Park which was officially opened by the Mayor of Horwich Council, Cllr Stanley Dawson, on 27th September 1980.

Thanks are due to the Daryl Derricott and Kelvin Holgate from Bolton Council's Highways Section for their fine craftsmanship.

Derek Cartwright, Secretary of Horwich Heritage, commented that:

"In the 40 years that the wheels have been in place, they have served as a reminder to everyone in the area of Horwich's rich railway heritage. This includes not only the town's first Railway Station, which closed in 1965, but the famous Horwich Locomotive Works which closed down in 1983 after almost one hundred years of continues operation."

"The wheels symbolise the contribution Horwich made to railway engineering worldwide and we should be proud of this heritage and the way it shaped the town we know today. It is great to see them back and hopefully they will be there as a fitting reminder for the next 40 years."

To commemorate the 75th Anniversary of VJ Day, we have put together a small exhibition covering all the notable announcements and events that took place in Horwich in 1945. This is now available to view in the Heritage Centre.

I attach a short summary of what took place in Horwich and a photo of the VE Day & VJ Day panels from the exhibition - the latter reminding us of the horrors of 'forgotten war' in the Far East. Unfortunately we don't have any photos of celebrations in Horwich or Bolton but in the exhibition we do have some quite extensive coverage of local activities that took place during 1945 courtesy of the Horwich & Westhoughton Journal.

• 1945 was a momentous year for Horwich and the rest of the country. The War ended resulting in wild celebrations for VE Day (8th May) and VJ Day (15th August).
• As the town struggled to get back to 'normal' peacetime activities, the war still cast a long shadow with the joy of the release of Japanese Prisoners of war being mixed with revulsion at their treatment in POW camps.
• The various Civil Defence organisations began to step down, the blackout was lifted, women were released from work on munitions at the Loco Works and local mills like W T Taylor's (the biggest towel manufacturer in Britain at the time) began to recruit workers for the post-war surge in demand.
• Both temporary & permanent houses were to be built with priority given to returning sevicemen & their families. However, rationing was still in place with shortages of coal and long waiting lists for most domestic appliances.
• There was a big rush to get way to the Lancashire coast in July for the first post-war Bank Holiday.
• Despite the regard the nation had for Churchill's wartime efforts, there was a 'landslide' victory for Labour in the General Election.
• 'Thanksgiving Week' at the end of September raised £96,740 (£4.2 million today).
• The public of Horwich voted for a 'war memorial' in the form of a swimming baths and 'leisure centre' (it would take until the 1970s for these to be built!)
• Christmas & New Year were still 'muted' affairs with festive food & drink in short supply. Nevertheless, the town looked forward to a lasting peace and greater prosperity.