The featured image above shows one of the last tram journeys in Belfast. This tram is travelling along Castle Place on 27th February 1954, heading for Ardoyne Depot. [7]

In ‘The Modern Tramway’ of August 1953, [1] there was a report of an expedition by members of the Light Railway Transport League in June 1953 which toured a number of Ireland’s Light Railways. [1: p150-155] The visits included:

• The Hill of Howth Tramway, Great Northern Railway, 5 ft. 3 in. Electric. (For further details and a survey of the old line, please follow this link: https://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/05/14/the-hill-of-howth-tramway/ [2])
• The Fintona branch, Great Northern Railway, 5 ft. 3 in. Horse.  (For further details and a survey of the old line, please follow this link: https://rogerfarnworth.com/2022/06/01/the-fintona-line/ [3])
• Belfast Corporation Tramways, 4ft. 8.5in. Electric.
• Belfast-Bangor section, Ulster Transport Authority 5 ft. 3 in. Diesel.
• Sligo, Leitrim and Northern Counties Railway, 5 ft. 3 in. Steam & diesel.
• The Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway, 3 ft. 0 in. Steam.
• The County Donegal Railways Joint Committee, 3 ft. 0 in. Steam & diesel. (For further details of the two railway networks in Donegal and a survey of the old railways, please follow this link: https://rogerfarnworth.com/category/railways-and-tramways-blog/ireland/co-donegal/ [5])
• CIE., Cavan and Leitrim section, 3 ft. 0 in. Steam. (For further details of the railway in and a survey of the old lines, please follow this link: https://rogerfarnworth.com/category/railways-and-tramways-blog/ireland/cavan-and-leitrim/ [6])
• CIE., West Clare section, 3 ft. 0 in. Steam & diesel. (For further details and a survey of the old railway, please follow this link: https://rogerfarnworth.com/category/railways-and-tramways-blog/ireland/west-clare/ [4])
• CIE., Tralee and Dingle section, 3 ft. 0 in. Steam.
• Irish Turf Board, Clonsast bog railway … 3 ft. 0 in. Steam & diesel.

In 1953, this represented all the remaining Irish narrow gauge railways and tramways, with the exception of the derelict Schull and Skibbereen and Ballycastle lines and certain industrial lines (Guinness Brewery, British Aluminium Company, several Irish Turf Board lines and a few others) The Lough Swilly and Tralee and Dingle railways were both to close in the summer of 1953.

The tour commenced in Belfast on Saturday, 6th June and the morning was spent on the Belfast Bangor section of UTA, which was served by 3-car diesel trains. In the afternoon, a tour of Belfast  Corporation Tramways ran from the Mountpottinger Depot in an old tram (No. 340). It was noted that tramcars and track on the Belfast network were in a very poor state. Belfast had just purchased 100 surplus London buses which would hasten the closure of the tramway network.

A visit to the Hill of Howth Tramway consumed much of the next day.

On the Cavan and Leitrim, the tour party travelled behind 2-4-2T No. 12L. The train consisted “two open platform coaches and a sting of vans, some of which were detached and shunted at Mohill.” [1: p152] The description of the time on the Cavan & Leitrim continued: “At Ballinamore our coach was transferred to another, smaller train behind 4-4-0 tank locomotive No. 31, complete with cowcatcher for the roadside journey, to Arigna. This line is the last roadside steam tramway with passenger service in the whole of the British Isles, and is kept open by reason of the fact that it serves the Arigna coal mines. The speed is quite brisk, despite some really abrupt curves and switchback gradients, but the journey was cut short by an encounter with a road vehicle at Mahanagh (Shannon Crossing), through no fault of the train crew.” [1: p152]

After a short hiatus while a policeman from Drumshambo took everyone’s particulars the tour continued to Manorhamilton and then to Enniskillen and Fintona Junction where they enjoyed a short return journey on the newly reconditioned Fintona horse tram (G.N.R. No. 381), continuing later to Omagh and then Derry (Londonderry).

From Derry, the tour party travelled to the border behind 4-6-2T No  15. This loco was replaced by 4-6-2T No. 10 for the remainder of the outward journey to Buncrana. The article continues: “The return journey from Buncrana was run as a mixed train. At Pennyburn sheds were locomotives Nos. 2, 4, 5, 6 and 8 – Nos. 5 and 6 are 4-8-4 tanks, the most powerful locomotives ever built for the Irish narrow gauge.” [1: p152]

The article reported that at the time of the visit, Derry had “four quite separate railway termini, each served by a different company and linked only by mixed gauge tracks laid along the quays and across the lower deck of the Craigavon Bridge. One railway, the 3 ft. gauge Londonderry and Lough Swilly, is to close down very shortly, and the special 3-coach passenger train provided on 9th June to take the L.R.T.L.-I.RR.S. party to Buncrana and back is likely to be the last; regular passenger service ceased in 1948.” [1: p152]

After a morning spent on the Lough Swilly, the party travelled to Strabane to explore parts of the  Co. Donegal Railways system. They were taken from Strabane to Stranorlar in Railcar No. 19 and toured the company’s workshop. They noted what at the time was “probably the oldest surviving railcar in the British Isles, a small 8-seater built as an inspection car in 1906 and fitted latterly with a Ford engine for use in pass- enger service; it [was] still in working order, and … stored at Stranorlar together with the Directors’ Saloon, which [was] still used once per year for an annual inspection by representatives of the Joint Committee. The locomotive shed housed two locomotives in startling brick-red livery as [were] the coaches and railcars.” [1: p153]

From Stranorlar, Railcar No. 19 took the party non-stop through Barnesmore Gap to Donegal town, where it coupled with Railcar No. 10 and ran on to Killybegs. Returning to Donegal town the party transferred to a train of “Railbus No. 14, observation saloon No. 30 and trailer No. 1 for the last section to Ballyshannon, which ran fast to Rossnowlagh Friary halt and there picked up about 70 churchgoers from the Tuesday evening service at the Fransiscan Friary, some of whom were subsequently set down at their cottages along the line.” [1: p153]

Wednesday, 10th June started with a long cross-country journey to Ennis for a visit to the West Clare section. In 1952, the section had received 4 new railcars and a demonstration run between Ennis and Kilkee was provided for the tour group.

The following day saw the group travelling on the Tralee and Dingle Railway. By this date only monthly trains timed for the Dingle Fair were timetabled. The visit was on a Thursday and a special train was provided. 2-6-0T No. 8 took charge of two bogie vans fitted with new wooden benches and a few from the station platforms. The journey to Dingle took more than three hours and was followed by a return journey which also lasted longer than three hours and included a marvellous view of the sun setting over Tralee Bay.

Other visits followed before the tour returned to Dublin. None of which quite measured up to their experiences on the Tralee and Dingle!

Associated news carried by The Modern Tramway in the same issue of the journal included:

The end of the Londonderry and Lough Swilly

“The Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway, a light railway, which together with the Burtonport Extension, was once Ireland’s largest narrow gauge railway (99 miles of route) closed finally on 1st August. At its fullest extent, the line once extended from Londonderry to Burtonport with a long branch to Cardonagh. The Company, unlike its railcar-minded neighbour, the County Donegal Railway, decided that its future lay on the roads, and in 1929 began to operate buses, closing the railway between Buncrana and Carndonagh six years later. The Gweedore Burtonport section was closed on 3rd June, 1940 and the Letterkenny-Gweedore section in 1949. Occasional passenger trains during the holiday season, to relieve double-deck buses, ran to Buncrana until August, 1951.” [1: p159]

Belfast

“The General Manager stated recently that in conformity with the policy of abandoning tramcar operation at the earliest possible date, tramway repairs and maintenance have been reduced to the minimum consistent with safety. The Queen’s Road tramway will not be replaced by trolleybuses but by motorbuses as the movement of large pieces of machinery to and from the shipyard is inconvenienced by overhead wires (in the past the tramway wires have occasionally been temporarily removed to allow “out-of-gauge” loads to pass along this way). During June and July the following tramcars were withdrawn and scrapped: [300, 301, 320, 337, 338, 340, 341, 369, 392, 394, 400, 413, 415, 419, 428].” [1: 159-160]

Late News from Ireland

“Two steam-worked light railways visited during the Irish Tour have just been finally closed. On the Tralee and Dingle Railway, the last train ran on Wednesday 22nd July, to collect wagons from Dingle station yard. On the Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway, the last goods train was due to run on 10th August.” [1: p160]

References

1. The Modern Tramway Volume 16 No. 188.
2. https://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/05/14/the-hill-of-howth-tramway/
3. https://rogerfarnworth.com/2022/06/01/the-fintona-line/
4. https://rogerfarnworth.com/category/railways-and-tramways-blog/ireland/west-clare/
5. https://rogerfarnworth.com/category/railways-and-tramways-blog/ireland/co-donegal/
6. https://rogerfarnworth.com/category/railways-and-tramways-blog/ireland/cavan-and-leitrim/
7. https://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/history/gallery/belfast-trams-origin-end-12044457, accessed on 12th June 2023.