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Robert Lionel Gelling or Bobby as he was affectionately known to all was born in Douglas on the 15th January 1928. He lived in Stanley Place with his parents and sister Edith and upon leaving school at the age of 14 joined Caines Bakers on Broadway as an apprentice baker. National Service call up came in 1946-48 and a posting to Palestine. Upon return he felt the calling of the trams in 1952 and embarked on a love affair with Manx transportation that lasted for the rest of his life. First of all Bobby acquired seasonal work on the horse trams but times were hard in the recession of the 1950s and although there were plenty of people on the trams in summer, in winter work had to be found and Bobby did all sorts from labouring on Marine Drive for the Corporation to spending a few winters in Selby, Yorkshire, working in a sugar beet factory.
Whilst away he met the other love of his life in 1958, one Beth Holden, whom he married in 1959 and they went to live in Onchan at the top of Church Road, now a barbers shop. He had also by now become a seasonal bus conductor and in winter worked for Onchan Commissioners. Eventually he was offered a permanent position on the buses and after he passed his driving test became a bus driver.
On the home front, his eldest daughter, Christine arrived in 1960, followed 3 years later by Susan and finally in 1972, Tracy. After 5 years in Onchan the family moved to Clypse Road in Willaston where they remained for the rest of his life. The 1976 takeover of the buses by the Isle of Man Government gave Bobby the opportunity to stay on the buses with the newly formed Isle of Man National Transport or go back to the trams with the Corporation. He went back to his first love, based at York Road with Alec Corris then later they moved to Derby Castle with Willy Gibb and eventually Bobby became a Horse Tram Inspector when the trams were running and spent winters painting them for the next summer. Willy Gibb described Bobby as 'so loyal to the tramways'.
Back on the home front there were 4 more arrivals but this time in the form of grand children via Susan whose husband, Lawrence, works on the Electric Trams. In 1993 instead of going part-time due to ill health Bobby retired, but a year later he was well enough to accept the position of Port St Mary Station Master on the railways which he served with pride and distinction for 15 years until November 2008. 2003 saw the arrival of Bobby's youngest Grandson, Luke, to Tracy and I, and when he was old enough to take on the trains on a regular basis we spent many trips each year going to Port Erin and Port St Mary became known as Grandad Station to all of us, even to lucky passengers sharing our carriage.
Bobby's funeral the day after what would have been his 81st birthday was extremely well attended with moving tributes from his eldest Grandson, Paul Ennett, and only Granddaughter, Charlotte, warming the hearts of all those particularly his family, and of course there was only one way that he was ever going to the Borough Crematorium, yes, in splendid style in a horse drawn hearse. But all may not be lost for Manx vintage transportation as his legacy is that Luke seems to have inherited those vintage transport genes. Lets hope that the 2009 “summer” season passes a lot better and that there will be some engines for Luke to drive in years to come.
Iain Walker
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