Best font for station nameboards

[Maitland]

Has anyone compared True Type fonts to get a best match for post- Independence station signage? (like this: https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCIPfo4D22MgCFQnAFAodDFMEcA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.geograph.ie%2Fphoto%2F2432955&bvm=bv.105841590,d.cWw&psig=AFQjCNFNqCswYbCjdJwVZqFN_WzeWlA9Ew&ust=1445700975207221). Not being a typographer, I'm baffled by the choice available- they all look similar to me!

[jhb171achill]

That one at Sallins is interesting, Maitland. While it's the standard post-1925 GSR style, as the overwhelming majority (but not all) were converted to, believe it or not the font style on THIS one is not typical! Normally, letters were not as spaced out...

 

The concrete surround and posts are typical.

Edited October 23, 2015 by jhb171achill

[Glenderg]

Gills Sans MT for the English, and Clo Gaelach (Twomey) for the gaelige. Google will sort you for the second, but gills sans is pre installed.

 

Richie

[Maitland]

Thanks a lot. Belbought will get a bilingual GSR nameboard.

[Maitland]

A little more research, and I find a problem with Clo Gaelach (Twomey): it doesn't have dotted consonants, necessary for pre- 1948 signs. Did they do any new ones after? And how widespread was it anyway? I see Mitchelstown was bilingual, but Cashel barely 30 miles away wasn't, neither in a noticeable Gaeltachtish sort of area. Was this a nationalistic enthusiasm that hit a civil servant talking about funding?

 

Anyway, the solution seens to be Tuamach (I think that's Twomey?) which seems to be the same font extended.

[jhb171achill]

Replacement of signs with GSR standard enamel was simply a mater of money. They would allocate a budget for a line and all stations would get it, while there were none on another line, just originals. Then, another small budget would allow replacements on a piecemeal basis for a while; on yet another line, therefore, they'd only replace those they had to - e.g. ones which got damaged or rotted. The Clifden, Achill and Killala lines never got a single one between them, and while the Foynes line mostly did, I don't think there were any between Ballingrane and Tralee. Sligo - Limerick was a mixed bag, mostly pre-GSR! Narrow gauge lines were also a mixed bag.

[minister_for_hardship]

If you want to put the dots over the letters and you're using MS Word, go 'Insert' and 'Symbol' and it brings up a grid of symbols and accents and select the one you want.

 

Most nameboards had the dot over the letter (called a séimhiú), modern Irish uses the letter 'h' to create the same effect as typewriters couldn't manage the dots.

 

Nameboards also came in a few sizes, with smaller than usual ones for signal cabins or perhaps narrow gauge locations. Some like the Sallins one came with a frame around them, others were just screwed onto 2 timber laths and fixed to concrete uprights without a surrounding frame. In this case the enamelled white border would be visible, though CIE periodically painted over the enamel nameboards in black and picked out the letters again in white (bit of a pointless exercise) and might neglect to paint the border in again.

 

Small signs of the same style were often used for station facilities, either back-to-back in a frame hanging from the station canopy or fixed on the wall above the relevant door or fixed to the door itself.

 

Here is Askeaton, in the smaller size and (unusually) in modern Irish.

https://stationroadaskeatoncommunity.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/img_0123.jpg

Edited October 27, 2015 by minister_for_hardship

[popeye]

Can anyone tell me when you download the Clo Gaelach (Twomey) how do you transfer it to a word document for eg?

[Glenderg]

Extract it from the zip file and go to its extracted location. Right click and select install from the options. Alternatively cut or copy the file and paste it into c/windows/fonts folder. When you fire up word it should be available in the dropdown for fonts. R.

[Glenderg]

I have a few of them upstairs on the big rig and will post them up here. Despite my searches, I don't recall that there is a one size fits all font for Gaelic Railway signage. R

[popeye]

That seems to have went into the fonts list ok, Thanks.

[minister_for_hardship]

From O'Dea collection.

 

Cahirciveen, smaller size.

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000304860

 

Mallow, large size, suspect painted over in reversed colours.

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000307962

 

Ballaghaderreen.

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000303866

 

Foxrock.

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000303779

 

Arigna.

http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000304126

Edited October 28, 2015 by minister_for_hardship

[Glenderg]

I had a look, and apologies for duff info. It was another font I used called Celtic Gaelige available from http://www.dafont.com/celtic-gaelige.font (Click the small Download button on the far right, not any of the larger shoutier download buttons.)

 

When you get it installed you'll have to do a few tricks to get the most out of it.

 

Go to Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Character Map and in the drop down box scroll through the list to Celtic Gaelige. All the non standard letters are available. Select the one you want, highlight it and copy it from there and paste into your Word Document.

 

The English is simply Arial Bold.

 

Great Signage Awaits.....

 

Edited October 28, 2015 by Glenderg

[minister_for_hardship]

Might need to tweak it by erasing the dots over the letter 'I'. Oh and there's a 'B' missing!

 

But even the GSR mis-spelt placenames and left out accents over letters.

 

A few more...

 

 

 

(C. Creedon scrapbooks, Cork Library)

 

(last one is from NG railway museum site, Tywyn.)

Edited October 28, 2015 by minister_for_hardship