Originally known as ‘The Cranberry and Small Fry Line’, the Edaville Railroad is a 2ft-gauge narrow gauge line in Massachusetts. [1: p555]
It featured in a short article in the August 1952 issue of The Railway Magazine. This is the next article in a series looking at lines featured in early issues of The Railway Magazine.
Writing in 1952, Edwards comments: “Although never exceptionally numerous, lines of this type assisted materially in the development of many areas. As early as 1877, a 2-ft. gauge line, eight miles long, was inaugurated to link the Massachusetts towns of Bedford and Billerica, but the track and plant were removed to the State of Maine two years later, and used for the Sandy River Railroad. This line proved of great service to many previously isolated communities; its development was rapid, and extensions and branches soon brought its mileage up to 120. Other similar projects followed, mostly in Maine, and a sixty-year period of success resulted. In recent years, however, the usefulness of such small lines has declined. The present economic situation has proved an adverse factor … and nearly all of them have been closed.” [1: p555]
He continues: “Nevertheless, one small American line – the Edaville Railroad, of South Carver, Massachusetts seems to have a long and useful life ahead of it. Not only is it a commercially paying proposition, but it performs a special function each Christmas, bringing delight to thousands of children (and their parents).” [1: p555]
The truth is that the line’s history has proven to be much more chequered than Edwards seemed to envisage in the early 1950s. But that is getting ahead of ourselves. There is plenty of space in the rest of this article to look at the later history of the line.
Returning to Edwards article, he says that the line “owes its existence to a plan of … Ellis D. Atwood, who was developing an area of bog as a cranberry plantation. … [By 1952], the Atwood plantations form[ed] the largest privately-owned cranberry plant in the world. A railway enthusiast himself, Mr. Atwood saw in a small-gauge railroad, not only a fulfilment of a life-long ambition to possess his own system, but the very necessary provision of transport for his workpeople and the materials used in his organisation. For instance, 10,000 cu. yd. of sand are used to preserve the bogs during winter, and the narrow-gauge railway solved this problem in a way that probably no other transport could have met, in view of the soft nature of the terrain. Then, of course, the line is fully occupied at harvest time conveying both the fruit and the pickers at a very low cost to its owners. The coaches are also used by the pickers as shelters during the inclement weather often experienced at harvest time; for this they are sited at convenient spots along the line during working hours.” [1: p555]
Edwards says that “In 1939, the 2-ft. gauge Bridgton & Saco River Railroad in Maine almost the last of the [2-ft.] narrow-gauge systems in the United States decided to dispose of its track and rolling stock. This was Atwood’s great opportunity. He bought the plant and rolling stock, and with the purchase of other equipment acquired by collectors from similar small lines passing out of business, the Edaville Railroad (so named by taking its founders initials) was commenced. This search for equipment, and systematic planning and correct siting, took some six years, but in 1946, the railway, complete with facilities for overhauling and repair of rolling stock, stations, auxiliary tracks, and points systems, came into full operation. The stock was four locomotives, eight coaches, six observation cars of the typical American pattern, a parlour car, and numerous trucks for everyday haulage work.” [1: p555-556]
“Thus it was as a utility-hobby that the Edaville Railroad grew. Originally there was no thought of catering for the public, but quite without any prompting from the owners, public interest was aroused.” [1: p556]
Edaville is located South of Boston, Massachusetts. [Google Maps, January 2026]Magnifying the satellite imagery, Edaville can be seen to be South of the road between Taunton and Plymouth. [Google Maps, January 2026]The Edaville Railroad site is South of Atwood Reservoir, near South Carver. [Google Maps, January 2026]Openstreetmap she’s the location of Edaville. The lake to the North of the site is the Atwood Reservoir. [7]
Wikipedia provides additional detail: “Atwood purchased two locomotives and most of the passenger and freight cars when the Bridgton and Saco River Railroad was dismantled in 1941. After World War II, he acquired two former Monson Railroad locomotives and some surviving cars from the defunct Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad in Maine. This equipment ran on 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge tracks, as opposed to the more common 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge in the western United States. Atwood purchased the equipment for use on his 1,800-acre (730 ha) cranberry farm in South Carver. After the 1945 cranberry harvest, Atwood’s employees built 5.5 mi (8.9 km) of track atop the levees around the cranberry bogs. Sand and supplies were hauled in to the bogs, and cranberries were transported to a “screen house” where they were dried and then sent to market. Atwood’s neighbours were enchanted with the diminutive railroad. At first, Atwood offered rides for free. When the demand for rides soared, he charged a nickel a ride. Eventually the line became less of a working railroad and more of a tourist attraction.” [2]
Cranberry pickers at work during the harvest at Edaville with a tourist train beyond. [1: p556]
Edwards says that, “This interest became a clamour, and the Atwood Plantation Company built a station, and opened the line at weekends to passengers, from the spring of each year until harvest time. Throughout the summer, parties from schools, camps, church organisations, and youth groups arrive[d] at Edaville Station for a journey on the last 2-ft. gauge railway in America. While awaiting the trains they [could] visit a railway museum built by the company to house working models of American trains dating back to 1860, and many other interesting railroad relics.” [1: p556]
A schematic drawing of the route of the Edaville Railroad in the 21st century. [2]
At Christmas, the Edaville Railroad really came into its own. After harvest, the railway would close until the first week in December when it reopened for what were quite spectacular Christmas excursions. …
Apparently, “12,000 coloured fairy lights [were] used to illuminate the various buildings on the estate, the 300-acre reservoir, the pine forests, and the cranberry bogs on the 5.5-mile journey.” [1: p556] This is all akin to the Santa Specials and the Polar Express experiences offer by many preservation line in the UK in the run up to Christmas.
As of 1952, Edwards says that these sightseeing rides in winter and summer cost young passengers nothing, although as many as a thousand five-cent tickets were sold as souvenirs each day. [1: p556]
Atwood died in 1950 after an industrial accident. “His widow Elthea and nephew Dave Eldridge carried on operations at Edaville until the railroad was purchased in 1957 by F. Nelson Blount, a railroad enthusiast who had made a fortune in the seafood processing business. The Atwood Estate retained ownership of the land over which the railroad operated, a key point in later years. Blount operated Edaville for the next decade, hauling tourists behind his favorite engine, No 8, and displaying his ever-growing collection of locomotives. Among these was the Boston and Maine Railroad’s Flying Yankee. This helped form the basis for his Steamtown, USA collection, first operating at Keene, New Hampshire, before moving to Bellows Falls, Vermont. (It would later move and be reconstituted as the Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania.)” [2]
Blount was a distant relative of the Atwood family. [6]
Wikipedia continues: “Nelson Blount died in the crash of his light airplane over Labor Day weekend in 1967. Blount’s friend and right-hand man Fred Richardson continued on as general manager until the railroad was sold to George E. Bartholomew, a former Edaville employee, in 1970. … Edaville continued operations for another two decades with Bartholomew at the helm. The railroad operated tourist trains from Memorial Day [through to] Labor Day plus a brief, but spectacular, Festival of Lights in December. …. In the 1980s, Bartholomew’s attention was divided between the narrow gauge Edaville, and the 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Bay Colony Railroad he was then forming, running over disused Conrail branch lines. To some observers and former employees, Edaville began to stagnate around this time, although the annual Christmas Festival of Lights continued to draw huge crowds.” [2]
“In the late 1980s, after Mrs. Atwood died and the Atwood Estate evicted Edaville, Bartholomew was forced to cease operations. He eventually put the railroad up for sale in 1991.” [2]
Wikipedia continues: “Edaville ceased operations in January 1992 and much of the equipment was sold to a group in Portland, Maine, led by businessman Phineas T. Sprague. The equipment was to be the basis of the newly formed Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum along the shores of Casco Bay. The sale generated great rancor. Many of the railroad’s employees were not ready to give up on South Carver. Much of the contents of the museum, housed in the former screen house, had been auctioned off the previous fall. But the sale was closed (although the Portland museum took on a debt that would prove all but crushing in subsequent years) and locomotives 3,4 and 8 were trucked to Portland aboard antique trucks loaned for the occasion. Locomotive No. 7, which was owned by Louis Edmonds, left for Maine at a later date.” [2]
Two attempts to revive Edaville during the 1990s foundered. A third attempt in 1999 saw “the new Edaville Railroad opened for operation. Owned and operated by construction company owner Jack Flagg, developer John Delli Priscoli and cranberry grower Douglas Beaton, the railroad acquired a ‘new’ steam locomotive, No. 21 “Anne Elizabeth”, built by the English firm of Hudswell Clarke and a veteran of the Fiji sugar industry. Several of the original Edaville buildings, including the station and the engine house, were demolished with new buildings taking their place. Plans called for the construction of a roundhouse, served by the original turntable, with an enlarged collection of locomotives and rolling stock.” [2]
“By 2005, Edaville Railroad and the land upon which it ran was now owned by a single man, Jon Delli Priscoli. He bought up the Atwood property, bought out partner Jack Flagg, and became the sole owner. Although this removed the railroad/landlord conflict that had plagued Edaville for decades, it proved to be the end of the “old” Edaville. Delli Priscoli turned the land near the milepost known as “Mt. Urann” into a housing subdivision, and pulled up the tracks that ran through the new lots. Late 2005 saw the very last run over the “original line” (pulled by oil-burner No. 21, which had been cosmetically modified to more closely resemble a Maine prototype). When the rails were removed over Mt. Urann, the mainline became a 2-mile (3.2 km) loop, including about half of the line around the old reservoir.” [2]
Wikipedia continues: “In late 2010, the Edaville operators announced that they would not seek to renew their operating lease with Delli Priscoli. Delli Priscoli then put the railroad up for sale for $10 million, and eventually found a potential buyer. However, Priscolli found that the buyer did not intend to continue operating the park, and declined the offer, opting instead to rebuild the park. The restored railroad reopened in September 2011. The following year, the park began a three-year reconstruction project, which includes the installation of additional attractions, refurbishing and repainting existing rides, adding additional parking, and building a new main street entrance and guest services area.” [2]
In the years under Priscoli, Edaville Railroad reopened as Edaville Family Theme Park, an amusement park themed around cranberry harvesting and railroading.
Wikipedia continues: “As of 13th April 2022, Delli Priscoli put Edaville back on the market. The family amusement park [had] closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, and except for the return of the annual Christmas Festival of Lights … has remain closed.” [2]
As of 2025, various options were being explored for re-opening as a more traditional, historic railway attraction. [2] As of January 2026, details of the Christmas Festival of Lights in 2025 can be found here. [6] The then site owners said that “Classic traditions and trains will remain for Edaville’s Christmas Festival of Lights, while a reimagining of the space allows future generations to get to know the joy of Edaville. Long time fans, train enthusiasts, and newcomers can plan to see steam locomotives on trains as much as possible, giving a rare experience as the only operating steam locomotives in Massachusetts!” [7][8]
A significant number of photographs can be found on Tripadvisor. [8]
It remains to be seen whether this attraction survives the next few years and what form it will take. The site was taken over by King Richard ‘s Faire in 2025. [9]
References
Austin Edwards; The Cranberry and Small Fry Line; in The Railway Magazine Volume 98 No. 616; Tothill Press,h London, August 1952, p555-556.
The featured image for this article shows a Bagnall saddle-tank engine and train of two 100-seat workmen’s cars in L.N.W.R. livery on the Wolverton and Stony Stratford Tramway.
Wolverton Works
The LNWR works at Wolverton. The tramway crosses this plan on Stratford Road. [13: p19]
An enlarged key to the plan above which details the use of each building on the LNWR Site. [13: p19]
“Mainly by reason of the growth of the London North Western Railway works at Wolverton in the late 1870s, and the establishment of McCorquodale’s printing works alongside in 1878, a scheme to link the old market town of Stony Stratford, on Watling Street, with the London & North Western Western Railway station at Wolverton by means of a light railway began to take tangible form in 1882.” [1: p547]
Wolverton Railway Works was established in Wolverton, Buckinghamshire, by the London and Birmingham Railway Company in 1838 at the midpoint of the 112-mile-long (180-kilometre) route from London to Birmingham. The line was developed by Robert Stephenson following the great success of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway line. [2]
“The Victorian era new towns of Wolverton and New Bradwell were built to house the workers and service the works. The older towns of Stony Stratford and Newport Pagnell grew substantially too, being joined to it by the Wolverton and Stony Stratford Tramway and the Wolverton to Newport Pagnell Line (a branch line), respectively. The trams were … hauled by steam locomotives: the tram cars were certainly the largest ever in the UK and possibly the world.” [2]
After a survey of all possible sites for the London and Birmingham Railway works, “Wolverton was chosen due to its co-location alongside the wharfing facilities of the Grand Union Canal, thereby also enabling the railway company to gain an easy agreement to build a viaduct over the canal company’s land at this point.”
“In 1837, Edward Bury of Bury Curtis & Kennedy of Liverpool was appointed Locomotive Superintendent of the London to Birmingham railway with his headquarters at Wolverton. However, as Wolverton was simply considered to be a repair shop for the engines his Liverpool firm supplied to run on the line, he left the running of the Works to his Shop Foreman.” [3]
It became necessary for expansion to take place to accommodate, service and repair the increasing amount of rolling stock owned by the Company. “A large engine shed was built, said to be cathedral sized, together with all supporting facilities which also enabled the Works” [3] to produce, locomotives in house.
J E McConnell was appointed Superintendent in 1847. He built his first locomotive in 1849. This was “the prototype of the ‘Bloomer’ class (the wheels and works being more exposed the engines became know as Bloomers after Mrs Amelia Bloomer who was trying to reform ladies dress). During his time at Wolverton he made many innovations such as train heating, failsafe braking, hollow axles, boilers, fireboxes etc. Early in 1851, the first Bloomer engines were running.” [3]
Bloomer was a name used to refer to three similar classes of 2-2-2 express passenger locomotives designed by James McConnell. “A total of seventy-four were built between 1851 and 1862. The classes were similar in design and layout but differed in dimensions.” [4]
A LNWR engine No. 602, a Small Bloomer Class Locomotive. The photograph was taken circa. 1868 at Rugby’s coke sheds. The Class was introduced in 1854, they were inside-cylinder inside-frame single-wheelers with 6′-6″ driving wheels. [4]
“In 1859, thirty four engines were transferred from Crewe to Wolverton which involved further expansion of the Works. Under McConnell the Works flourished but unfortunately for him Mr Richard Moon was appointed Chairman of the Company and there was a clash of personalities resulting in McConnell retiring. A year or two after his retirement the engineering works were transferred to Crewe. Before the transfer to Crewe, 165 engines had been built at Wolverton.” [3]
“Expansion of the Works again took place during 1864 when Wolverton became the Carriage Works for the LNWR and the manufacturing shops were converted to enable carriages to be built, painted and repaired. In 1869 two Royal Saloons for Queen Victoria were built at Wolverton. Sadly in 1872 the locomotive shop finally closed and Wolverton became exclusively a carriage works until in 1877 it was the largest in Britain.” [3]
It seems that the original railway main line through Wolverton crossed land which was needed for the expansion of Wolverton Works. Two previous stations had been situated in the original route of the main line. “The first station was built for the opening of the London and Birmingham Railway on 17th September 1838, on the embankment just north of the canal above Wolverton Park. It proved to be temporary as the railway company purchased an additional 13.5 acres to the south, where they built a larger, more permanent station in 1840, at the east end of Church Street.” [8]
To avoid passing through the Wolverton Carriage Works, a railway main line deviation to the east was opened in August, 1881. The present Wolverton Station was built on the new line.
This rather fuzzy extract from the 25″ Ordnance Survey of 1898, published in 1900 shows the extent of the Railway Works at that time. To the West of the Railway Works was the site of McCorquodale’s Printing Works which can just be made out at the left edge of this map extract. The Grand Junction Canal sits between the Works and the Railway Station. [9]
McCorquodale’s Printing Works
McCorquodale’s Printing Works were one of a series of such establishments. McCorquodales built premises in Wolverton in 1878. The firm specialised in registered envelope manufacture, but undertook many other government and security printing contracts. The “history of the company commenced in 1841. George McCorquodale opened a stationers shop in Liverpool which became the Liverpool Printing and Stationery Company Ltd. The company prospered and five years later George opened the first McCorquodale printing works at Newton-le-Willows in Lancashire, specialising in providing a service to the ever expanding railway network.” [5]
Further factories were opened in Glasgow and London in the 1870s. In Wolverton, men were employed in the railway works but their daughters remained unemployed. “Sir Richard Moon, Chairman of the London & North Western Railway had an idea for solving the problem and contacted his friend George McCorquodale and suggested that he build a printing works in the town. George thought it an admirable suggestion and in 1878 he opened his registered envelope factory – success was immediate. The works rapidly increased in size and diversified into printing books, forms and commercial stationery.” [5]
“By 1886, McCorquodales of Wolverton was known as one of the finest printing factories in the country and employed 120 women and 20 men. Most of the girls started work at the age 13 or 14 and were normally employed until they married. Girls were encouraged to remain in the factory as long as possible and a £10 wedding grant was given to those who had completed 10 years service. Until 1909 staff worked a 54 hour week starting at 6am with a half day on Saturday. The company were also quick to provide the best welfare and working facilities in the area, and the staff were provided with dining, reading and recreation rooms. A Good Samaritan Society was started and pension funds paid for holidays and service bonuses.” [5]
Lee tells us that in 1882 a special meeting of Stony Stratford ratepayers considered a proposal to apply to the Board of Trade for an Order to sanction a tramway between Wolverton and Stony Stratford. “The ratepayers approved, subject to the track nowhere exceeding 6 ft. in width. A company was formed, apparently by these local interests, and was incorporated on 4th November 1882, as the Wolverton & Stony Stratford Tramways Co. Ltd. The Chairman was Abraham Culverhouse, and the Secretary John George Ventris Field Johnson. The company failed to get under way, and was placed in voluntary liquidation on 3rd September 1883. One of its few corporate acts seems to have been the granting of consent, two days after it went into liquidation, to the registration of a new company with a similar (but not the same) name.” [1: p547]
“Meanwhile, a Tramways Order had been promoted by Frederick Charles Winby, a civil engineer and contractor, and this was granted on 16th July 1883. It authorised [a tramway] 2 miles 54 chains [in length], mainly of single line, 4 ft. gauge, from the new Wolverton Station (opened in August, 1881) to the northern end of High Street, Stony Stratford.” [1: p547]
Wolverton to Stony Stratford and beyond
From the new station the tramway ran South along the road built to bridge the diversion line and the Canal at the South end of the site of Wolverton Railway Station. This road had once been a footpath.
The fullest extent of the tramway. [1: p549]
The company promoted by Winby took the name, ‘The Wolverton & Stony Stratford & District Tramways Co. Ltd‘. It acquired all the rights and interests of Winby in the Tramways Order of 1883. Lee tells us that “It had an authorised capital of £20,000 in £1 shares, which was increased to £30,000 on 27th October 1883. The latter fact seems to have been forgotten, although it was duly registered and the requisite stamp duty paid. Indeed, the company had very little regard for the niceties of the Companies Acts, and actually varied its corporate name on the Memorandum and Articles of Association respectively. Thereafter, it could never remember the precise title shown on the certificate of registration, which is the one used above. Winby contracted to build the line, and to take part of the price in shares, but the whole arrangement fell through. The company was dormant until 1886, and only 34 shares were issued.” [1: p548]
C.H. Wikinson, a local contractor that promoted a number of schemes in the area (such as a link between Newport Pagnell and Olney), “entered into a contract with the company on 18th August 1886, to build the line for £13,325, and on 8th September 1886. agreed under an indenture to accept £2,000 in shares. The name of the company was changed on 5th October 1886, to the Wolverton, Stony Stratford & District Light Railways Co. Ltd., and its shares were offered for sale. They were taken up by a large number of local [people], and the work proceeded rapidly.” [1: p548]
Lee continues: “The line as authorised in 1883 received Board of Trade sanction on 20th May 1887, in respect of 2 miles 15 chains single line and 40 chains double. It was built to the 3 ft. 6 in. gauge instead of the 4 ft. originally authorised. Public passenger traffic was begun on 27th May 1887, between the Barley Mow Inn, Stony Stratford, and Wolverton Station, with tramway-type steam locomotives hauling very large covered-top double-deck tramcars. The ordinary fare was 2d., with a special cheap rate for workmen, whereas the horse bus that had previously served the route charged 6d.” [1: p548]
Allan Edwards says: Wolverton “grew rapidly to an austere and symmetrical pattern, its housing owned by the railway company and leased to its employees; it seemed almost to be a northern industrial town misplaced in the agricultural heart of England. Stony Stratford meanwhile declined, becoming largely a dormitory town for its now larger neighbour. … By 1880, hundreds of workmen were walking daily to Wolverton from Stony Stratford and the surrounding villages. An alternative form of transport was a horse bus from Stony Stratford but the fare for this was 6d (22p) for a single journey, a price beyond the wage of the workmen of the now London & North Western Railway Co., or the new McCorquodale’s printing works whose average wage was only 30 shillings per week (£1.50).” [13: p15]
The old bus service did not run to a timetable, only travelling when there were sufficient passengers. “Average bus receipts were between £2 and £3 a week, but the tramway takings rapidly became £45 a week, largely by reason of the use of the line made by employees at the Wolverton carriage Works and at McCorquodale’s. Weekly tickets were issued to them at 1 shilling and entitled them to 4 journeys a day.” [1: p548]
Wolverton was a railway town built to accommodate the workers. It has since expanded significantly. Much of the old Works site and the railway ‘village’ of terraced housing form a Conservation Area in the 21st century.
Allan Edwards describes the route of the tramway through Wolverton like this: Outside Wolverton Station goods yard there was a turning triangle on a steeply descending section of road and a link into the station goods yard. From this location, trams “climbed steeply on a right-hand curve to the road bridge over the 4-track railway line where tramway passengers could board outside the overline buildings of the LNWR station. The tramway then continued up and over the lines leading into the railway works. … With its track in the centre of the highway the tramway passed the railway workshops, the town of Wolverton being entirely on the left-hand side. Virtually continuous brick walls to the right sealed off first the LNWR works and then McCorquodale’s printing factory. It was nearly three quarters of a mile before the tramway line abruptly left the town behind, moving to the lefthand side of the road.” [13: p17]
McCorquodale’s Printing Works were beyond the western extent of Wolverton’s railway town. [12]The tramway continued West along Stratford Road. [12]The area today is much more developed! [14]Continuing West along Stratford Road following the route of the old tramway. The Tesco Superstore is behind the brick built buildings on the right of this image. [Google Streetview, September 2023]The old tramway continued along Stratford Road. [Google Streetview, September 2023]And again, further West on Stratford Road. [Google Streetview, September 2023]
The next three images continue to show Stratford Road running along the South side of the site of Wolverton Works. …
[Google Streetview, September 2023][Google Streetview, September 2023][Google Streetview, September 2023]
We are now beyond the West end of the Works site. The next three images show Stratford Road heading West towards a modern roundabout at Old Wolverton Road. …
[Google Streetview, September 2023][Google Streetview, September 2023][Google Streetview, September 2023]
Edwards says that, “The route was almost straight but a fierce hill faced engines travelling towards Wolverton at almost the halfway point of the route where the old road to Wolverton (the remaining buildings of the original hamlet somewhat west of the new industrial town having by this time received the suffix ‘Old’) diverged from the newer, more direct course that the tramway traversed.” [13: p17]
Old Wolverton Road meets Stratford Road at an acute angle. The tramway continued West along Stratford Road. [12]In the 21st century, Old Wolverton Road has been realigned to meet Stratford Road at a roundabout as part of a western bypass around Wolverton. [14]
The next three Google Streetview images take the route of the tramway across the modern roundabout at the junction between Stratford Road and Old Wolverton Road to the original junction between the two roads. …
[Google Streetview, September 2024][Google Streetview, September 2024]Wolverton Park is to the North of the junction in this Streetview image. [Google Streetview, September 2024]
Lee provides just one paragraph which relates to the route travelled. He tells us that “In its maximum form, the undertaking began at the cattle sidings, Wolverton Station, and ran as a single line in the middle of the road through Wolverton. It then kept to its own track for about a mile, on the south side of the road to a point half a mile before the Wolverton Road joins the main Holyhead Road. The line there crossed over the Wolverton Road to its own track on the north side, but transferred once more to the middle of the public road through Stony Stratford. It thus traversed Wolverton Road to the junction, and turned sharply to the right (north west) along the Holyhead Road, here called High Street, and later Watling Street. At Old Stratford, the Deanshanger extension turned even more sharply to the left from Watling Street, and ran on its own track on the left-hand (south-east) side of the road.” [1: p549]
As we have already seen, Edwards description gives a little more detail: “Shortly before entering Stony Stratford the line abruptly cut across to the opposite side of the road. More than one pioneer motorist was apparently taken unawares by the sudden appearance of a steam tram engine and its trailers across his bows!” [13: p17]
This photograph was taken a few hundred yards from Stony Stratford. Allen Edwards says that the line crossed the road just ahead of the camera. A sign was provided as a warning, but apparently the sudden movement of the tram across the road surprised many pioneer motorists. [13: p17]After the junction with Old Wolverton Road Descent to Wolverton Park, the tramway continued West-southwest on Stratford Road. [12]The road and tramway ran to the South side of Wolverton House. [12]And continued West-southwest towards Stony Stratford. [12]This extract from railmaponline.com’s satellite imagery covers much the same length of the Stratford Road as shown in the three OS map extracts immediately above. The A5 dual carriageway is clearly an addition to the landscape. As is the road immediately to its West. [14]Stratford Road facing Southwest with the modern A5 spanning the route of the old tramway. [Google Streetview, September 2024]To the West of the A5 Stratford Road crosses Queen Eleanor Street. [Google Streetview, September 2024]
This next smaller map extract brings the line to the edge of the Ordnance Survey map sheet and shows the beginning of the housing at the eastern edge of Stony Stratford. [12]
Edwards continues his description of the line: “Entering the town the line again took up position in the centre of the road. It had traversed just one mile from Wolverton. After a few hundred yards the road came to a T-junction with Watling Street outside The Forester’s Arms public house.” [13: p17]
This next extract is from the 1923 Ordnance Survey, published in 1925. It shows the tramway heading towards the road junction in Stony Stratford. The tramway depot features in the top left of the extract. [15]The tramway depot as shown on the 1898 25″ ordnance survey. At this time, an additional access from the depot to Wolverton Road ran along what, in the 21st century, is known as St. Mary’s Avenue. There was a loop behind the depot which turned South-southeast running through the depot building and down to Wolverton Road along St. Mary’s Avenue. [21]The old tramway runs Southwest towards the road junction in Stony Stratford. Railmaponline.com shows a loop at the location of the tramway depot, but not the detailed track layout in the depot. [14]Facing towards Stoney Stratford just a couple of hundred yards beyond Queen Eleanor Street. [Google Streetview, September 2024]Continuing down Wolverton Road towards the centre of Stony Stratford. [Google Streetview, September 2024]St. Mary’s Avenue was one of the access points to the Tram Depot. [Google Streetview, September 2024]The main access to the Tramway Depot. [Google Streetview, September 2024]The LNWR track plan of the tram depot at Stony Stratford. It comprised a large shed for holding the tramcars, and a smaller one for the engines and the repair facilities. As far as is known all the repairs were undertaken in situ, but there were few machine tools available. Also in the depot were coaling and watering arrangements for the engines. [17]Looking into the Tramway Depot site from the access road. After the tramway closed the building (behind the garage in the foreground, so not visible) was used as a bus depot [Google Streetview, June 2023]The current building on the site of the tramway depot. [Google Maps, January 2026]Continuing Southwest down Wolverton Road. [Google Streetview, September 2024]Approaching the Junction with High Street, Stony Stratford. The Forresters Arms is on the right. [Google Streetview, September 2024]A passing loop occupied the highway with the tramway turning to the Northwest. On this 1898 survey, the tramway is shown terminating just after the 90° turn onto the High Street in Stony Stratford. [15]This extract from the railmaponline.com satellite imagery includes the length of line in the extract above and extends a little to the West. St. Mary & St.Giles Church, which is just beyond the West side of the OS map extract above can be made out towards the left of this image. [14]
The view Northeast along Wolverton Road in Stony Stratford. The depot is behind the housing in the middle distance. To the left of the camera the tramway ran away to the Northwest. The Forresters Arms is on the left side of the photograph. This image was shared on the Stony Stratford Photos Facebook Group by Edward Corney on 20th November 2018. [22]
Edwards says that at the junction adjacent to the Forresters Arms, “The tramway turned right … to continue northwards beyond The Cock and The Bull hotels for another half mile to terminate outside The Barley Mow public house, the last building in the town.” [13: p17]
Looking Northwest along High Street, Stony Stratford. [Google Streetview, September 2024]The 25″ 1898 Ordnance Survey, published in 1900 does not show the tramway running Northwest along High Street, Stony Stratford. Which suggests that it was removed by the publication date in 1900. We know that the line was active until at least 4th September 1899. [15][1: p549]The line ran Northwest along High Street, Stony Stratford passing the Rising Sun public house and originally terminating at the Barley Mow Public House opposite the town’s Gas Works. [15]This extract from the railmaponline.com satellite imagery shows the length of the route of the old tramway from St. Mary & St. Giles Church (bottom-right) to the River Great Ouse (top-left). [14]The Barley Mow Public House was the terminus of the first length of the line and the point at which the extension to Deanshanger started. The length of Watling Street shown on this OS map extract is within the length of the line shown on the last extract from the railmaponline.com satellite imagery above. [15]St. Mary’s & St. Giles Church, High Street, Stony Stratford [Google Streetview, September 2024]Looking Northwest along High Street from just outside the church. [Google Streetview, September 2024]Further Northwest on High Street, looking towards the River Great Ouse. [Google Streetview, September 2024]Heading towards the River Great Ouse along the line of the old tramway. The Stony Stratford by-pass (Queen Eleanor Street) joins the road ahead of the camera. [Google Streetview, September 2023]
An extension, which opened fully in 1898, continued Northwest from the Barley Mow towards the River Ouse and the County border.
Lee tells us that from the outset, it had been intended to cater also for goods traffic: “this was not begun until March, 1888. A contract was made with the LNWR. to deliver its goods, which was stated to save the main-line railway £500 per annum. With an eye to goods traffic principally, Wilkinson promoted an extension from High Street, Stony Stratford, to Deanshanger, which was sanctioned by Order of 19th July 1887, authorising 2 miles 3 chains of 3 ft. 6 in. gauge. Deanshanger was the location of the Britannia Ironworks, the agricultural implement works of E. & H. Roberts, established in 1820.” [1: p548]
Allan Edwards tells us that, “Leaving The Barley Mow and taking its normal position in the middle of the road the extension travelled straight for almost three quarters of a mile over the embankment that carried the highway across the floodplain of the River Ouse. The river was the county border. Climbing very steeply into the Northamptonshire village of Old Stratford, the line then swung sharp left onto the Buckingham road. A separate depot and workshop for this section of line was established at this corner. … The line then ran parallel to the Buckingham arm of the Grand Junction canal to Deanshanger where it terminated on the village green outside The Fox & Hounds public house. This extension was sanctioned by the Board of Trade on 24th May 1888 and immediately came into public use.” [13: p18]
It seems that a section of 14 chains from the bottom of High Street, across the Great Ouse, to Old Stratford, was built quite quickly and opened later in 1887. “The major portion of the extension was complete at the time a visit to the undertaking was paid by the Civil & Mechanical Engineers Society on Saturday, 12th May 1888, and the party was given a run over the new line. Sanction of the Board of Trade was given on 24th May 1888, to 1 mile 56 chains single and 13 chains double of the Deanshanger extension, and this appears to have been brought into use for public passenger and goods traffic forthwith, extending from Old Stratford to The Green, Deanshanger, near the Fox & Hounds Inn. The intended extension to the Dukes Head Inn was never buiit. From Wolverton to Deanshanger, the through fare was 4d. This section seems to have remained Wilkinson’s property, and to have been leased to the company.” [1: p548]
The road bridge over the River Great Ouse can be seen in the bottom right of this next extract from the 1898 25″ Ordnance Survey. [15]Only a short distance further Northwest at the junction adjacent to the Swan Inn and Smithy in Old Stratford, the tramway extension turned left and soon found itself following the Buckingham Branch of the Grand Junction Canal. [15]This extract from the railmaponline.com satellite imagery covers the same length of the old line as the two extracts from the OS mapping immediately above. [14]The Tramway route crossed the River Great Ouse on the road bridge. [Google Streetview, September 2024]The Tramway turned left at the junction in Old Stratford onto what in the 21st century is called Deanshanger Road. [Google Streetview, September 2024]Heading South-southwest along Deanshanger Road, along what was the route of the extension to the tramway to Deanshanger. [Google Streetview, September 2024]The tramway continued South-southwest alongside the canal. [15]And again the tramway route followed the Buckingham Branch of the Grand Junction Canal. [15]The tramway continued South-southwest as the canal turned away towards the West. [15]This extract from the railmaponline.com satellite imagery covers the majority of the length of the line as shown on the three OS map extracts immediately above. [14]Deanshanger Road facing South. [Google Streetview, September 2024]A relatively tight curve appears to have taken the tramway onto the road to Deanshanger. However, the research that was done to prepare the railmaponline.com representation of the line suggests that the line left the highway and ran on its own formation for a few hundred yards. [18]This extract from the railmaponline.com satellite imagery takes the line as far as the OS map extract above. The route of the old line is shown in this image following the Buckingham Branch of the Grand Junction Canal. A modern public footpath/cycleway is shown taking a tighter curve. Could the alignment of the footpath/cycleway be that of the old tramway? [14]The modern Deanshanger Road joins the A422 as it heads South. The route of the old tramway is probably followed by the tarmac footpath to the left of the no entry sign. It follows the line of the old road. [Google Streetview, September 2024]The footpath shown on the right of this image matches the line of the old tramway. [Google Streetview, September 2024]If the footpath/cycleway is on the line of the old tramway, then the bridge over roundabout is on the line of the old tramway. [Google Streetview, July 2018] Running parallel to the canal but a distance to the South, the tramway/road headed towards Deanshanger. [18] Continuing to the West on the South side of Northfield’s farm and the Buckingham Branch of the Grand Junction Canal the edge of the Ordnance Survey map sheet is reached before the road entered Deanshanger. [18]This final extract from the Ordnance Survey mapping of the turn of the 20th century shows the settlement of Deanshanger with its Iron Works. The tramway terminated adjacent to the Fox & Hounds Inn, the intended extension to the Dukes Head Inn in the bottom-left of this map extract. [19]The remaining length of the tramway as shown on the railmaponline.com satellite imagery. [14]Heading West along the line of the old tramway on Stratford Road. [Google Streetview, May 2023]Further West on Stratford Road. [Google Streetview, May 2023]Approaching The Green, Deanshanger where the tramway terminated. [Google Streetview, May 2023] The line beyond the Fox & Hounds was not built. It was also intended to link the Iron Works to the tramway as shown here. This short link was also never built. Britannia Iron Works was owned by E.H. Roberts. The Iron Works was always satisfied with using the canal for exporting its finished products and could not be persuaded to use the tramway. [20]Krauss Engine and 50-seater tramcar at the Green, Deanshanger, in 1888. [1: p550]
Operation
Edwards tells us that “On Friday 17th May 1887 prior to the Whitsuntide holiday horses pulled the first tram from Wolverton station goods yard to Stony Stratford tram depot. On board were Charles Aveline (the Managing Director) and other officials of the tram company. For the return journey the horses were replaced by one of the two Krauss tram engines. Local school children were given free tickets.” [13: p17]
By 1st September 1887, Lee tells us, “the issued capital was no less than £20,000, which must be regarded as a gross over-capitalisation. Nevertheless, the nominal capital was increased on 21st June 1889, by £5,000, stated to be beyond £20,000, as the nominal increase of 1883 had been forgotten, and additional stamp duty was paid. A further change of name was also made at this period, and became effective on 26th July 1889, whereby the legal title became the ‘Wolverton, Stony Stratford & District Tramroads Co. Ltd.’ Shortly afterwards, the company declared itself insolvent, and went into voluntary liquidation on 4th September 1889. This was not acceptable to the creditors, and by Court Order of 26th October the winding up was made compulsory, and subject to the Court. The undertaking was placed in the hands of the official liquidator on 17th December, and the line was closed. Much of it was never reopened.” [1: p549]
The original portion, between Wolverton and Stony Stratford, was purchased by a syndicate of Bedford businessmen who reopened the Wolverton to Stony Stratford section in November 1891 and it was known as the ‘Wolverton, Stony Stratford District New Tramway’ and this was formally incorporated on 15th September 1893 with a capital of £5000 in £100 shares. The nominal capital was increased by £3000 (30 shares) at the end of January 1907. It ran until liquidation in 1919. The Deanshanger extension never re-opened. [16][1: p551]
Lee continues: “For many years the Stony Stratford terminus was at the Cock Hotel, but by 1910 the line was curtailed to a few yards in High Street, and in 1919 the terminus was at the Foresters Arms. After the first world war, the line was rapidly approaching derelict condition, and the company’s financial difficulties compelled it to go into liquidation on 17th July 1919; George Henry Margrave (then Secretary and Manager) was appointed liquidator. The local authorities refused to take over the line, and it seemed that the service would be finally abandoned, despite the fact that it had been conveying some 700 workmen daily, principally employees of the Wolverton Carriage Works and of the printing works of McCorquodale & Co. Ltd.” [1: p551]
Grace’s Guide continues: “In the early 1920s the line was taken over by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) who purchased a new W. G. Bagnall tram locomotive. After the LNWR was merged into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) the line was soon closed, in 1926.” [16]
After purchase by the LNWR, the tramway was completely re-laid with concrete placed beneath the rails to strengthen them. Lee tells us that “under LNWR management the staff consisted of three drivers, three conductors, one fitter, one bricklayer and two labourers.” [1: p551]
Under LNWR management prior to the ‘grouping’, the surviving rolling stock “comprised three small four-wheel locomotives, five bogie double-deck cars, and two 10-ton coke trucks. The passengers continued to be principally Stony Stratford men employed at the Railway Works or at McCorquodale’s in Wolverton. They then numbered about 600 daily, of whom some 550 were weekly season-ticket holders. Although the number of men employed at the works increased as time went on, the working loss to the L.N.W.R. increased also, on account of the competition of motorbuses which gave a quicker service. In 1926, no fewer than 12 of these vehicles plied between Wolverton and Stony Stratford, and the trams, with their speed limit of 8 m.p.h. were almost deserted. Schemes of electrification were considered by the railway company (by now the L.M.S.R.), but they all proved too costly, and the climax came with the General Strike of that year, when on 4th May the service was suspended, never to be resumed. Latterly, the services (which, according to the railway company’s timetable, were run “subject to the condition of roads and other circumstances permitting”) had comprised about 14 trips each way, with one or two additional on Saturdays. There were three cars in each direction on Sundays. The journey time was 15 minutes. The official abandonment was announced on 19th May 1926, and it was stated that the company had been losing £2,000 a year on the service. Latterly the total takings were only about £30 a week. [1: p553]
The LMS negotiated with Buckinghamshire County Council (BCC) which took over the track in 1927 with the Ministry of Transport’s consent. BCC immediately began lifting the track and reconstructing the road surface. Work began in June 1927, by November 1927 the length between Watling Street and Clarence Road in Stony Stratford was completed. The section between Clarence Road and McCorquodale’s Printing Works was addressed between October 1933 and June 1934.
Rolling Stock– Locomotives
Lee tells us that, “the original locomotives consisted of two German engines supplied by Krauss & Company of Munich to a standard design then used in many continental cities for steam tramways. Some accounts of the line have stated that three, and even four, engines were provided at first, but the Board of Trade Returns to 30th June 1887, show only two, and others (if any) were presumably on loan. They had outside cylinders 8 in. in diameter by 12 in. stroke, wheels 2 ft. 6 in. in diameter, and a 5 ft. wheelbase. The working pressure was 175 lb. per sq. in. and they were non-condensing. Stephenson valve gear was used.” [1: p553]
Edwards tells us that these Krauss locomotives, “with their distinctively European canopies and massive oil lights, soon earned the tramway the nickname ‘the little German‘.” [13: p17]
These Krauss locomotives were similar to tram locomotives sent to the Chiemseebahn in the same year, but smaller. They were rated at 40 hp and were governed to run no faster than 10 mph (16 km/h). Board of Trade regulations also required that the running gear had to be shrouded, steam exhaust had to be directed into condensers to avoid visible steam, smoke as well had to be invisible and had to be almost noiseless. [24]
This is one of the Krauss 0-4-0 metre-gauge tram locomotives built for the Chiemseebahn in the same year as those built for the Wolverton & Stony Stratford Tramway – this is Works No. 1813 of 1887. It is in excellent condition in the 21st century, operable and in frequent service. It is unique – in that this is the only example still working in regular commercial service on the line for which it was supplied. A diesel-powered replica now helps out. [25]
Sadly, unlike the locomotives sent to the Chiemseebahn, the Krauss locomotives supplied to the Wolverton & Stony Stratford Tramway “were found to be unable to handle the heavy passenger rolling stock, and two, more powerful, engines were supplied in 1887 by Thomas Green & Son of Leeds, designed to haul two large passenger cars fully loaded. These had 9 in. cylinders by 14 in. stroke, 2 ft. 6 in. wheels, and a 5 ft. wheelbase; the working pressure was 175 lb. These engines were of the tramway type with atmospheric condensers on the roof. The total loaded weight was 9-9.5 tons. A further locomotive was secured in 1900 from the Brush Electrical Engineering Co. Ltd., Falcon Works, Loughborough, which was generally similar to the Green engines, and had inside cylinders 7.5 in. in diameter by 12 in. stroke. This also worked at 175 lb. pressure and had an atmospheric condenser.” [1: p553]
Thomas Green commenced building tramway locomotives in 1882. [27] These locomotives were initially of the Wilkinson’s patent, built under licence. This design used a vertical boiler and a vertically mounted engine which drove one set of wheels through gears. The second pair of wheels was driven through coupling rods. The exhaust passed through a chamber in the firebox to provide reheat, which in principle would make the steam invisible. The speed governor was an “Allen” paddle type which acted on the reversing gear. [26]
Thirty-nine Wilkinson type trams were delivered before Green’s developed their own design using a horizontal boiler, inclined cylinders and Joy valve gear. These tram engines first appeared in August 1885. The machine quickly evolved such that Green’s tram engines became one of the market leaders. [26][27] It was Green’s own design of tram engine that was supplied to the Wolverton & Stony Stratford Tramway.
Lee continues: “After the acquisition of the line by the LNWR., a four-coupled saddle-tank engine was secured, in 1921, from W. G. Bagnall Limited of Stafford. Excepting that the motion was boxed in, this locomotive was of conventional railway design, without the tramway type casing over the upper works. Outside cylinders were 10 in. in diameter by 15 in. stroke the coupled wheels 2 ft. 9.25 in. in diameter, and the wheelbase 5 ft. The working pressure was only 150 lb. The saddle tank carried 300 gal. of water and the side bunkers had a capacity of 18 cu. ft. The total weight in working order was 16 tons. This engine was finished in standard LNWR. livery. As the standard chimney was found to be too short for the comfort of upper deck passengers, an ugly stove-pipe extension was added.” [1: p553]
The passenger rolling stock consisted of large double-deck covered-top tramway cars which were mounted on bogies; “there were at first five in all, built by the Midland Carriage & Wagon Company, then of Shrewsbury, and these lasted throughout the life of the undertaking. The three of the largest type each seated 100 and were 44 ft. long and 5 ft. 9 in. wide; they were intended for the workmen and were said to be the largest tramway vehicles in the country. ” [1: p554]
Edwards comments that the 44ft long 100-seat tramcars were the largest “to run in this country until the Swansea and Mumbles Railway built their gigantic electric cars many years later. The coaches had two inward-facing benches on the lower deck and a single continuous slatted bench on the upper deck where passengers faced outwards. The upper sides were open to the elements apart from waist-high decency boards above which were fitted canvas blinds.” [13: p18]
Edwards continues: “Capstan-operated brakes were fitted on each end platform, the locomotives also being equipped to operate the trailer braking by pull-rods and chains. The couplings of these cars were attached to the bogie centres. Originally the illumination was provided by oil lamps but acetylene lighting was later installed to be replaced again by conventional Pinsch gas lighting after the takeover of the line by the LNWR.” [13: p18]
Lees says that “Another car, upholstered, accommodated 80 passengers and was 38 ft. long and 6 ft. wide; and one [which] seated only 50 passengers, was 24 ft. 6 in. long, and 5 ft. 9 in. wide.” [1: p554]
Edwards mentions that the 80-seat tramcar had “neither decency boards or blinds on the upper deck as first built and, most unusually and inconveniently, internal landings to the staircases from the platforms. Decency boards and blinds were added later.” [13: p18]
The 50-seat tramcar “was the only one to be fitted with upholstered seating. One presumes that it was intended for use at times when the workmen would not be travelling. None of the tramcars carried external numbers and all of those mentioned were to last the lifetime of the undertaking.” [13: p18]
“A sixth car is shown in the Board of Trade Returns for the year ended 30th June 1888, and continued to feature until 1911. This was a small single-deck open-sided vehicle with curtains, seating 20 passengers, which does not appear to have been used after the closure of the line in 1889. For many years it remained in the depot at Stony Stratford.” [1: p554]
Other Rolling Stock – Goods
In its early years the undertaking had a number of parcel vans and small goods wagons, as well as 10-ton coal and coke trucks, 24 ft. long, also built by the Midland Carriage & Wagon Company. Eight goods trucks were shown in the return to the Board of Trade for 30th June 1888, at the time goods traffic was begun. It seems that goods traffic declined quite early in the history of the undertaking and all the parcel vans and most of the wagons were sold for scrap. Two of the wagons were of interest in having wheels with adjustable flanges so as to be capable of operating either on rail or road. The flanges were in sections and so arranged that they could be withdrawn inside the tread surface. When the train reached the Cock Hotel, they were, hauled off the line by horses to effect delivery at the door of the consignee. Two horses are shown in the company’s stock in 1888 and 1889. In its later years, the traffic was wholly passenger, apart from the carriage of mails.” [1: p554]
And finally
Grace’s Guide says that, “The line was unusual for a British street tramway being entirely worked by steam locomotives; indeed it was the last steam worked street tramway in the United Kingdom.” [16]
References
Charles E. Lee; The Wolverton and Stony Stratford Tramway; in The Railway Magazine, Volume 98 No. 616; Tothill Press, London, August 1952, p547-554.
Another snapshot of advertising from the 1950s Railway Magazine. The featured image is the front cover photograph from the December 1952 issue. The adverts in this issue are an eclectic mix of modelling tools, books, railway equipment, chemical elements, British Railways jobs and miscellaneous items. …
J.F. Stringer & Co. Ltd – E.W. Model B Lathe
A Lathe for Model Makers. [1]
“Conceived, designed and manufactured by John Frederick Stringer, the 2.5″ x 8″ EW lathe was first built circa 1946/47, just after the formation of his first company, J. F. Stringer & Co. Ltd. … Due to the economic strictures that prevailed during the early 1950s, the EW was cleverly designed and marketed as the “Convertible”, being available as a basic plain-turning model less backgear and screwcutting that could then be upgraded, as the owner’s finances permitted, with parts that simply bolted on to effect the desired improvements. For the better healed, or those with the opportunities for extra overtime, it could also be had as a complete machine with countershaft and motor ready to tackle a wide range of model and experimental engineering jobs.” [2]
The December 1952 edition of The Railway Magazine carried the advert. We know that it was also carried in the June 1952 magazine with the lathe offered at the same price as in the December issue of the magazine. This was at a time when a skilled man could earn around £9 a week!
Lathes.co.uk tells us that this lathe was “constructed in an absolutely straightforward manner, the EW had a 19.5-inch long, 2.5-inch wide bed of hollow box section (an arrangement that required no corebox), ground on the top surface and feet – and with three bracing ribs up the back face. It was designed for ease of manufacture on a limited range of machine tools – for the original works had only two South Bend lathes, a mechanical hacksaw, an ordinary pillar drill and a small horizontal miller – it is surprising that so much could be done with so little. … [It was] of unusual design, the headstock carried a 0.75-inch diameter spindle, bored through 13/32″ with a No. 1 Morse taper running in plain bearings carried on two entirely separate, box-form, cast-iron posts that were jigged so as to be interchangeable between machines. The top of each post was split, bored and homed honed to form the headstock bearings (the spindle running directly in the cast iron) and the base clamped to the V-edged (dovetail) bed with a transverse through bolt. The spindle carried a narrow, 3-step Z-section V-belt pulley.” [2]
The Advert for the Ericsson Railway Telephone. [1]The Spec. Sheet for the Ericsson phones. [3]A Blueprint for one of the Ericsson phones. [3]
Ericsson Bulletin No 17 describes the phones which it supplied to British Railways.A copy of the article can be found on page 40 of that bulletin. [4]
Overseas Railways
A book produced annually by the Railway Gazette which reviewed the current position and development programmes of railways overseas. The Railway Gazette was, like The Railway Magazine published by the Tothill Press in London.
An Advert for ‘Overseas Railways’ is accompanied by a small advert for The Railway Magazine’s binding services and one advertising ‘Langloco’ books. [1]A whole series of classified adverts filled one page of the magazine.A series of smaller adverts filled another page. Ian Allen Ltd. advertised books for Christmas presents. A turning and screwcutting lathe (the ZYTO) from S. Tyzack & Son Ltd. An advert from H. Rollet & Co. Ltd. suppliers of various metal bars, angles, tubes, sheet and wire. An advert from Foyles Book Shop, from E.B. Length suppliers of magazines and secondhand railway models, and finally, an advert for membership of The Railway Club. [1]An advert from London Transport’s Private Hire Office for excursion buses and coaches sat alongside an advert for Roamer Waterproof Watches and an advert for a book by H.C. Casserley – Locomotive Cavalcade (1920-1951). [1]H.C. Casserley; Locomotive Cavalcade, 1920-1951. [5]An advert for employment opportunities with British Railways. Two opportunites for young men willing to work hard and prepared to make their career with British Railways. The openings were apprenticeships at Motive Power Depots and st British Railways Workshops. [1]
The final advert in the issue was on the back cover. It was placed by ICI advertising a particular ‘rare earth’ metal – Cerium. Rare-earth metals are of growing interest in the 21st century.
Cerium (Ce, atomic number 58) is the most abundant rare earth element, a soft, silvery-grey metal that tarnishes in air. It is used extensively in catalytic converters, glass polishing, alloys, and lighter flints due to its high reactivity and unique catalytic properties, though it’s rarely used in pure form because it oxidizes rapidly and reacts with water, finding applications in products from fuel cells to military optics. [6]
“Cerium was first identified by Jöns Berzelius and Wilhelm Hisinger in the winter of 1803/4. Martin Klaproth independently discovered it around the same time. Although Cerium is one of 14 rare earth elements it was discovered independently of them. There are some minerals that are almost exclusively cerium salts such as cerite, which is cerium silicate. A lump of this mineral had been found in 1751 by Axel Cronstedt at a mine in Vestmanland, Sweden. He sent some to Carl Scheele to analyse it but he failed to realise it was new element. In 1803, Berzelius and Hisinger examined it themselves and proved that it contained a new element.” [6]
“It was not until 1875 that William Hillebrand and Thomas Norton obtained a pure specimen of cerium itself, by passing an electric current through the molten cerium chloride.” [6]
In railways, Cerium is primarily used as an alloying additive in steel components to improve their material properties, such as corrosion resistance, strength, and toughness.
References
The Railway Magazine Volume 98, No. 620; Tothill Press, London, December 1952.
Just a snap shot of the things appearing in the March 1959 issue of The Railway Magazine. [1]
1. There were adverts on the inside of the front cover – 5 of them. …. [1: pii]
Page ii of the March 1959 Railway Magazine.
The 34th Model Railway Club Model Railway Exhibition was due to take place in Easter Week. It would run from Tuesday March 31st to Saturday April 4th at Central Hall Westminster. On Tuesday provision appears to have been made for the final setting up of layouts, with the exhibition not opening until 12 noon, but the show was to be open until 9.00 pm each evening with an opening time of 10.30am for the remainder of the week.
I wonder what today’s exhibitors and exhibition managers would feel about a show that was 5 days long and a total of 52 hours of operating time? Much of the work setting up for the exhibition must have taken place on the Bank Holiday Monday and dismantling may well have taken place on the Sunday. There must have been quite a few people who gave up a full week’s leave for the sake of the show! Think too of the logistics of providing refreshments for a week-long show!
Getty Images hold a picture of two young boys enjoying a close interaction with some large scale model trams. The image can be found here. [2]
Three of the five adverts on page ii of the magazine related to books. One was for Foyles Bookshop and their newly opened travel bureau in London. Another was for the 5th Edition of ‘World Railways’ – 1,500 railways in 100 countries, 33 underground systems, 291 major manufacturers – published by Sampson Low, London. [3]
Just published in 1959 was O. S. Nock’s, ‘Historical Steam Locomotives’ – An illustrated history of British Locomotives down to the time of the grouping. [4]
And the remaining advert was for the Railway Correspondence & Travel Society’s ‘The Railway Observer’. The advert also highlighted the activities of the RCTS – branches throughout the country, a rail tours library, visits to depots and installations, affiliations to societies overseas and photographic & technical sections!
2. Metrovick Diesel-Electric Traction
Metropolitan Vickers Electrical Co. Ltd took out a full page advert for their new Co-Bo Diesel Electric Locomotive under a banner headline of “Chosen for Midland Region Modernisation.”
The Metrovick Co-Bo Locomotives were assembled at the Company’s Trafford Park works. The motors, generators and auxiliaries were made at their Sheffield works, the control gear at Trafford Park and mechanical parts at the Metropolitan-Vickers-Beyer-Peacock-Ltd., Stockton-on-Tees. [1: piv]
3. Editorial Notes highlight some of the concerns over the readership at the time and changes in the railway world. These included:
Open-Type Coaches on BR – In the correspondence columns of the January issue of the magazine there was a letter critical of the British Transport Commission decision to build no more corridor-compartment stock. The March editorial reflects the magazine’s post bag which asks BR to think again! [1: p147] Wikipedia suggests that the corridor stock was still being built until the mid-1960s, so perhaps campaigners were successful. It is also interesting to note that the Mk 1 corridor-compartment stock were in use on BR lines well into the 1980s and are still in use on heritage lines. … “The British Railways Mark 1 SK was the most numerous carriage design ever built in the United Kingdom. The original number series carried was 24000–26217. From 1983, those carriages in the 25xxx and 26xxx series were renumbered 18xxx and 19xxx. … There were two variants, those built for the Midland, Scottish, and Eastern / North Eastern regions had six seats per compartment, with fold-up arm-rests which folded into the seat-back, while those built for the Southern and Western regions, with their heavy commuter loadings into London, had eight seats in each compartment, and no arm-rests. Seating was of the interior sprung bench type.” [5]
Reservation of Sleeping Berths – apparently, by 1959, it had become common practice for passengers to reserve berths on a number of different sleeper services on British Railways, before finally deciding which service to use. Br brought in revised arrangements on 1st February 1959 which were designed to eliminate disappointment for those who were definitely planning to use a specific service. From February 1959, “Reservations [were] made only on payment of the full fees for the berths required, and three-quarters of this amount [would] be refunded to those who cancel before 4 p.m. on the day before that for which the berths have been booked. No refund [was] be made if cancellations [were] received after that time, except to those whose names [had] been placed on the waiting list, and from whom fees [had] been accepted subject to accommodation being available. Full repayment [was] made to those travellers if berths [did] not become vacant. … The new arrangements [ended] the selfish practice of making alternative reservations on different trains or days.” [1: p147]
London Midland Region Freight Traffic – “At the end of 1958, two-thirds of the business of the London Midland Region of British Railways [was] derived from freight. To attract new – and regain lost – traffic, a comprehensive short-term plan [was] evolved to streamline the whole of its freight transport. [It was planned that, before the mid-1960s, freight handling would] be speeded by [a] reduction in the number of marshalling yards, … from the [then] 111 to 46, and of depots for traffic from 170 to 48; many of those remaining [would] be extensively modernised. The value of the growing door-to-door service, with railhead collection and delivery by road vehicles, [would] be enhanced by the implementation of the plan. There already [were] about 600 regular overnight express freight trains in the Region, and movement [would] be further accelerated as more wagons [were] fitted with vacuum brakes, and diesel locomotives introduced. [It was thought that] if traders and manufacturers [could] be assured of new standards of service and reliability, the plan should show an early and satisfying financial return.” [1: p147] At a similar time, containerised freight was being developed. Wikipedia tells us that “the marshalling yard building programme was a failure, being based on a belief in the continued viability of wagon-load traffic in the face of increasingly effective road competition, and lacking effective forward planning or realistic assessments of future freight.” [6][7]
Handling of Mail/Parcels at Euston – in March 1959 structural alterations were underway which would love facilities for handling outward parcels traffic at Euston Station. By the end of 1959, passengers would be able to approach the booking offices and departure platforms without being delayed/impeded by long trains of barrows. Post Office lettermail , under new arrangements would be brought direct to the parcels office on No. 11 platform for loading into vans. The Railway Magazine reported that “A new building [was] to be provided above the station for the sorting and despatch of railway parcels, which [would] be sent by overhead lifts to the platforms for loading. An overhead conveyor, spanning the main departure lines, [would] take parcel post to the platforms from a new G.P.O. sorting depot.” [1: p148] One wonders whether the proposed arrangements would be similar to the ‘telpher‘ which for a time served Manchester Victoria Station. [8]
Diesels for Scotland – the editor also heralded and welcomed Diesel motive power on the East Coast Main Line North of Newcastle. The welcome was based on the likely acceleration of many services in the Scottish Region. “Between Edinburgh and Aberdeen, for example, almost every start from the principal intermediate stops has to be made up a sharply rising gradient, on which the high starting tractive effort of diesel locomotives would be most welcome. The maximum mileage for diesel power could be obtained by basing the locomotives on Edinburgh, and using them at night for the heavy traffic to and from Newcastle. By day they could work on the Newcastle and Aberdeen services, and perhaps between Edinburgh, Perth and Inverness. The last-named, with its long and steep gradients, is yet another route on which the high tractive effort of diesel locomotives could be used to advantage.” [1: p148]
Improvements to the Hertford North Line – work that could well have taken two or three years had been condensed into the first half of 1959, with a likely completion date in June 1959. Off-peak services between Wood Green and Hertford North had been replaced by buses. Work was phased so that the 6.5 miles from Wood Green to Crews Hill was undertaken in March, the next 8 miles to Hertford being worked on in April, May and June. All services on the branch would then be DMU.s or diesel-hauled “and maximum speeds of 70 mph … permitted. Improvement of the track is an essential preliminary to electrification.” [1: p148]
London Underground – apparently delays to some services had been caused by passengers refusing to move from one train to another when equipment failure has occurred or because a train was running far behind schedule. Lack of information was cited as the cause. London Underground was, in March 1959, installing new train information systems, a move welcomed by The Railway Magazine. [1: p148]
1910 – Rail versus Air – the editor also looked back to 1910 and specifically to the fist flight between London and Manchester. Which was a competitive exercise with a large prize of £10,000 offered by The Daily Mail. The two competitors, Louis Paulhan and Claude Grahame-White, chose to follow the LNWR main line. The company assisted by painting distinctive marks on sleepers to show where branch lines diverged (presumably to ensure the aeroplanes continued on the main line). Apparently, The Railway Gazette at the time said: “The flying machine may possibly become a serious competitor of the railway before very many years. … Both the aviators have been aided and abetted by the Premier Line in such ways as the provision of inspection cars in which to travel over the route beforehand, whilst a special train followed Mr. Paulhan all the way.” [1: p148][1: p167-168, 200]
The route of the London to Manchester flight – along the LNWR main line. [1: p167]
4. Railbuses on Western Region Branches
A short note appeared at the bottom of the pages proceeding the central photographic pages of the magazine. That note marked the introduction of diesel railbuses on the Kemble to Cirencester and Kemble to Tetbury branches of the Western Region on 2nd February 1959. These were the first sections of the Western Region to be served in this way. The railbuses accommodated “48 passengers with a small area for luggage. The services over both branches [had] been intensified. In addition, new halt facilities [were] afforded at Chesterton Lane on the Cirencester branch, and at Church’s Hill, Culkerton and Trouble House on the Tetbury branch.” [1: p172]
The Railway Magazine of March 1959 also included substantial articles:
The Railways of Barrow by Dr M.J. Andrews, [1: p149-157, p200];
Farewell to the ‘Leicesters’ by R.S.McNaught, [1: p158-160, p192];
The first part of Reminiscences of a Locomotive Engineer by George W. Mcard, [1: p161-165]; With 4 ft 7.25 in Wheels by K. Hoole, [1: p168-172];
British Locomotive Practice and Performance part of a long series by O.S. Nock, [1: p185-192];
The second part of Railway Development in Liverpool by M.D. Grenville & G.O. Holt, [1: p193-200];
New Railways in Quebec, [1: p201-203, p206]; and
A full list of British Railways Motive Power Depots. [1: p204-206]
6. Notes and News
Notes & News fill eight pages [1: p210-217] after three pages of letters. [1: p207-209] The Railway Magazine reported that:
Cheaper first class fares on Saturdays would be extended, after an experimental period on services between London and Manchester, to journeys between London and Liverpool, London and Glasgow and London and Edinburgh until the end of April. Return journeys could only be made on the next day or the following Saturday with no breaks in journeys permitted. [1: p210]
Little still remained, in 1959, of the Saundersfoot Railway other than tunnels and a few ruined buildings. Reference was made to an article in The Railway Magazine’s November-December 1946 issue. More can be found about this narrow gauge line in two articles, here [10] & here. [11] There is also a note about the Cambrian Hotel at Saundersfoot. The hotel’s sign bore a shield which contained a gold 2-2-0 tender loco with a wagon on a red background. [1: p210]
Construction work had just commenced on the new Oxford Road Station in Manchester [1: p210-211] and on major alterations to Dover Marine Station in Kent. [1: p211]
Some Western Region Train Services had seen timetable alterations as of January 1959. [1: p211]
More Diesel Services on the North Eastern Region – January 1959 saw the introduction of many additional diesel-powered workings on local services. The early 1959 introductions meant that the switch from steam to diesel on local services was almost complete. [1: p211]
From 2nd February, the 8.15 am up and the 4.45 pm down services between St. Pancras and Nottingham Midland Station were named the ‘Robin Hood‘. [1: p211]
2nd February saw five station closures on the Eastern Region: Offord & Buckden, near Huntingdon; Sturton, and Blyton, between Retford and Barnetby; and Haxey & Epworth, and Walkeringham, between Doncaster and Gainsborough. Greenock Princes Pier and Greenock Lynedoch Stations on the Scottish Region also closed on 2nd February. As did the Upper Port Glasgow goods depot. In the North Eastern Region, from 16th February, Gristhorpe Station, on the Hull-Scarborough line, was closed. On 28th February, the service from Acton Town to South Action was withdrawn and the Station at South Acton was closed to passengers. [1: p211, p212]
The South Wales Transport Bill permitting the closure of the Swansea & Mumbles Railway had its second reading in the House of Lords in February. [1: p212]
The 3 ft gauge Cavan and Leitrim Railway would close on 1st April. More about this line can be found here, [12] here, [13] here, [14] here, [15] here, [16] here, [17] here, [18] here, [19] here, [20] and here. [21] [1: p212]
The Bluebell Line – efforts were being made to establish a preservation society to reopen the Lewes to East Grinstead branch. Volunteers were being sought and an inaugural meeting arranged on 15th March in Haywards Heath. [1: p212] The Bluebell Line became the UK’s first preserved standard-gauge line in 1960, starting with the Sheffield Park to Horsted Keynes section, and later extended to East Grinstead. The first public service ran on 7th August 1960. [22]
Other items included details of: an educational tour by the Scottish Region’s Television Train, [1: p212]; new Electrically-Operated Train Departure Indicators at Shenfield [1: p212-213]; the LNWR Royal Saloon which had been on display at the Furniture Exhibition (January 28th to February 7th) at Earls Court, [1: p213]; the Golden Jubilee of the Stephenson Locomotive Society, [1: p213]; the AGM of the Festiniog (STET) Railway Society and the special trains being organised across the country to get delegates to and from the meeting, [1: p213]; Railway Enthusiasts’ Club Tours, [1: p213-214] news associated with Locomotives. [1: p214-217]
7. The Why and the Wherefore [1: p218-219] includes a series of replies to readers’ letters, particularly:
The North Sunderland Railway – which opened in August 1898 for goods and December 1898 for passengers, and closed on 27th October 1951. [1: p218] The branch ran from Chathill to Seahouses, with an intermediate station at North Sunderland. Chathill was on the main line of the North Eastern Railway between Morpeth and Berwick. The branch was four miles in length and standard-gauge single track. [23]
Water Troughs on the Southern Region – the former Southern Railway had no water Troughs as none of its non-stop runs were long enough to warrant replenishment of water levels. [1: p218-219]
Chalvey Halt (GWR) – was on the G.W.R. branch from Slough to Windsor. It had only a short life: opened on 6th May 1929, and closed on 7th July 1930.
Proposed New Branch to Looe – “a new seven-mile branch from St. Germans to Looe was projected by the Great Western Railway under the £30 million Government scheme of November, 1935, for the construction and improvement of railways, to alleviate unemployment. The branch was to leave the main line to Penzance about 13 miles west of St. Germans Station, and terminate at a station on the high ground at East Looe. The engineering works were heavy, and included a tunnel 2,288 yd. long, west of Downderry, two shorter tunnels, and long viaducts at Keveral and Mildendreath. The construction of the four miles from Looe to Keveral (which included both viaducts and the long tunnel) had been begun by the autumn of 1937, but this section was far from complete, and the remainder of the line had not been begun when the outbreak of war, in September, 1939, caused the works to be suspended.” [1: p219] Early in 1959, construction had not been resumed, and there appeared to be little prospect that the scheme would be revived. The new line was intended to replace the existing line from Liskeard to Looe. [24]
TheStirling & Dunfermline Railway – “was authorised on 16th July 1846, and was opened from Dunfermline to Alloa on 28th August 1850, and from Alloa to Stirling on 1st July 1852. Powers for branches from Alloa to Tillicoultry and to Alloa Harbour were included in the Act of Incorporation, and these lines were brought into use on 3rd June 1851, the former to a temporary terminus at Glenfoot, about half a mile short of Tillicoultry. The line probably was completed in December 1851, but a record of the exact date of opening to Tillicoultry Station does not appear to have survived. The Alloa Harbour branch had passenger services (to Alloa Ferry) only from its opening until the main line was completed to Stirling, some twelve months later. Provision was made in the Act of 1846 for the Stirling & Dunfermline Railway to be leased by the Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway … the lease came into effect on 5th December 1850. The Stirling & Dunfermline Railway was vested in the Edinburgh & Glasgow as from 4th June 1858, under powers obtained on the 28th of that month.” [1: p219] The line was completed throughout in 1952. “A predecessor line, the Alloa Waggonway, had been developed as a horse-operated waggonway in the 18th century, bringing coal from the hinterland to Alloa and Clackmannan harbours; in its day th[at] line was technologically advanced, but it was eclipsed by the modern Stirling and Dunfermline line.” [25]
Closure was a drawn out affair – passenger trains on the Alva branch ceased to run from 1st November 1954. A limited service to Menstrie continued until complete closure on 2nd March 1964. The S&DR Tillicoultry branch, by then regarded as part of the Devon Valley line, closed to passengers on 15th June 1964 and to goods traffic on 25th June 1973.
NBR route passenger trains over the Alloa Viaduct were withdrawn from 29 January 1968, and through goods train operation ceased in May 1968. A limited goods service to supply coal to the stationary steam engine that operated the Forth Swing Bridge from Alloa continued until May 1970.
Passenger services on the Stirling to Dunfermline main line were closed on 7th October 1968; through goods services were closed on 10th October 1979. West of Dunfermline, the line through Dunfermline Upper station served Oakley Colliery until 1986 when the pit closed. The line remained in place as far as Oakley until 1993, but subsequently the majority of the route became Cycle paths in 1999 as National Route 764. Shortly afterwards, studies began for the reopening of the western end of the line from Stirling to Alloa, as part of the Stirling-Alloa-Kincardine rail link. [25]
Enginemen’s Wages and Duties – In March 1959, wages of a first class driver and fireman on British Railways were £11 9s and £9 10s respectively. These rates were the same inside London as outside the London area. “A good day’s work for an engine crew [was] considered to be 140 miles, and on stopping trains most men did] considerably less. If they [did] more than 140 miles, they receive[d] an hour’s pay for each additional 15 miles. They also receive[d] overtime at the usual rate of time-and-a-quarter for time worked over their normal hours of duty, and night pay at time-and-a-quarter, and Sunday pay at time-and-three-quarters, if applicable. The standard basic turn of duty [was] eight hours. At all main-line depots, the duties of drivers and firemen [were] arranged in links, progressing from junior work, such as shunting, to express passenger trains. On the West of England line of the Western Region … a typical example of a week’s roster for a driver [was]:- Monday: 9.30 a.m., spare; Tuesday: 3.30 p.m., Paddington to Plymouth; Wednesday: 8.30 a.m., Plymouth to Paddington; Thursday: 3.30 p.m., Paddington to Plymouth; Friday: 8.30 a.m., Plymouth to Paddington; Saturday: 9.30 a.m., spare. The driver therefore works between Paddington and Plymouth, 225 miles.” [1: p219] £11 9s had the same buying power as approximately £234.50/wk (£12,194/annum) in 2025. [26] (Train driver pay in the UK for 2025 varies significantly by operator, but generally falls between £30,000 and £80,000 annually, with averages around £50,000-£70,000, influenced by experience and location, with London roles and newer deals (like TfL’s £80k for Tube drivers) pushing higher! [27]
References
The Railway Magazine, Tothill Press Ltd, London, March 1959.
Looking back at past editorials in The Railway Magazine highlights the ongoing debate at the time over the best form of terrestrial travel – road -v- rail.
In the January 1959 issue of the magazine, which saw O.S. Nock assuming the authorship of the long running monthly article, ‘Locomotive Practice and Performance’, the editorial focussed on:
Road and Rail Fares and Services
“It was suggested recently in the editorial columns of a daily newspaper that the time was approaching when long journeys by motor-coach could be made at high speed, over the new trunk roads, ‘at a fraction of the cost of railway travel’. In a reply by letter, Sir Reginald Wilson, a member of the British Transport Commission, pointed out that, in terms of seat-miles of service offered, the train is cheaper than the coach. The reason why railway fares are higher than coach fares is the higher cost incurred by the railways in providing frequent services with enough rolling stock to cater, as far as possible, for peak traffics, and for fluctuations in the number of passengers travelling at all periods. The capital cost of providing rolling stock for morning and evening peak-hour residential traffic is very high. Moreover, much of this stock is not required, or is under-employed, during the greater part of the day.” [1: p1]
It seems as though those promoting road over rail were already perceiving actual costs in a way that would favour road, and in doing so not including at least the infrastructure costs. The argument for the freedom of the road and the travel cost to the consumer at the point of use, would become easier for the road lobby to make as the initial cost of owning a car reduced in relative terms.
Public Reliance on Railways
The editorial also argued that the railways are expected to provide a near universal passenger service when those who provided motor-coach services were free to pick and choose what services they offered. …
“The motor-coach operator can obtain maximum use of his vehicles restricting his services to what reasonably be expected to be booked up. On the other hand, British Railways maintain a long tradition of public service by providing passengers with the means of travelling when they please, without the necessity of reserving seats in advance. The difference between rail and motor-coach fares, which frequently is lessened by cheap travel facilities provided by the railways, does not appear to be a high price to pay for the ability to meet the needs of countless individuals and surges of traffic whose free movement is essential. The extent to which the community depends on the railways to provide reliable transport at short notice probably is not fully realised. The railways have been a part of our national life for so long that the services they render are apt to be taken for granted.” [1: p1]
First British AC Electric Locomotive
The Railway Magazine also reported on the first AC electric locomotive to carry passengers on the line between London and Manchester. The converted Metropolitan-Vickers gas-turbine engine, made its initial run with a passenger train on 26th November 1958 carrying representatives of the Press. This was close to ten years before the eventual demise of steam on the main line in August 1968. The editorial commented:
“On 26th November 1958, representatives of the Press visited the Styal line of the London Midland Region, which is included in the Crewe-Manchester electrification scheme. The special train was operated over the 9 miles between Wilmslow and Mauldeth Road and, although the load was only 100 tons, rapid acceleration to a speed of rather more than 70 m.p.h. was a marked feature of the journey. The locomotive is being used for the training of staff, and other locomotives for public services are being built. Multiple-unit trains will be used for local traffic. Regular electrified services between Crewe and Manchester will start in 1960. By 1963, they will be extended to Birmingham and Liverpool; and it is planned to run electric trains between Euston and Liverpool and Manchester by 1968.” [1: p1-2]
The Metropolitan-Vickers Gas-Turbine Locomotive, British Rail No. 18100, was a prototype main line gas turbine–electric locomotive built for British Railways in 1951 by Metropolitan-Vickers, Manchester. It had, however, been ordered by the Great Western Railway in the 1940s, but construction was delayed due to World War II. It spent its working life as a Gas-Turbine loco on the Western Region of British Railways, operating express passenger services from Paddington station, London. It was of Co-Co wheel arrangement and its gas turbine was rated at 3,000 horsepower (2,200 kW). It had a maximum speed of 90 mph (140 km/h) and weighed 129.5 long tons (131.6 t; 145.0 short tons). It was painted in BR black livery, with a silver stripe around the middle of the body and silver numbers. [2]
Early in 1958 it was withdrawn from service, after a short period of storage at Swindon, the locomotive was returned to Metropolitan Vickers for conversion as a prototype 25 kV AC electric locomotive. As an electric locomotive, it was numbered E1000 (E2001 from 1959) and was given the TOPS classification of Class 80. [2]
As was usual, the January issue of The Railway Magazine focussed on railways in Scotland. …
The Railway Magazine, January 1959. [1: piii]
Notes and News
Perhaps the most significant item of news in this section of the magazine was the demise of Midland and Great Northern line which was confirmed as taking place on Saturday 28th February 1959.
Midland & Great Northern Closure
“The Eastern Region of British Railways has announced that, with the exception of the 15-mile section from Cromer Beach to Melton Constable, the whole of the Midland & Great Northern line will be closed to passengers at midnight on Saturday, 28th February. The sections affected are Saxby to Sutton Bridge (43) miles); Peterborough to Sutton Bridge (27) miles); Sutton Bridge to Melton Constable (40) miles); Melton Constable to Yarmouth Beach (41½ miles); and Melton Constable to Norwich City (214 miles). Bus services throughout the area are to be increased. To improve facilities for seasonal travellers, new signalling will be installed at Vauxhall Station, Yarmouth, and its approaches, to deal with a greater number of holiday trains. Longer platforms, new carriage sidings, and additional amenities also are to be provided. It is hoped to complete much of this work by Whitsun.” [1: p65]
Goods traffic was, as a result, significantly curtailed: “Freight traffic in the area served by the Midland & Great Northern line will be catered for by extended rail cartage facilities from established railhead depots. Spurs affording connection with former Great Eastern lines will be retained. As a result of this planning, freight trains will be withdrawn from the following sections:- South Witham to Bourne; Wisbech North to Sutton Bridge; Sutton Bridge to South Lynn; Gayton Road to Melton Constable; and Melton Constable to Yarmouth Beach. About 77 route miles will thus remain open for freight traffic only, and some 97 route miles will be closed completely.” [1: p65]
The Eastern Region of British Railways estimated that the direct saving from the reorganisation would be £640,000 a year; and taking other factors into account, the total annual saving was likely to be about £1 million.
It is impossible to measure just how significant the negative social impact of the closures was for rural communities in Lincolnshire and Norfolk.
Monmouth
Also included in the Notes was notification of the final closure of routes into Monmouth. …
“The county town of Monmouth is to lose its passenger services, as the two remaining branches are being closed to traffic as from 5th January – the section between Monmouth May Hill and Lydbrook Junction completely. A special last train has been arranged by the Midland Area of the Stephenson Loco-motive Society for Sunday, 4th January. It will leave Chepstow at 11.20 a.m. for Monmouth and Ross-on-Wye, from which it will return by the same route at 1.55 p.m. Thence the train will traverse the Sudbrook branch, for a visit to the Severn Tunnel pumping station, and will complete its tour at Severn Tunnel Junction Station at about 5.30 p.m. Stops will be made en route and an exhibition on the platform of one of the Monmouth stations is planned. The 9 a.m. train from Birmingham to Swansea, via Gloucester, and the 9 a.m. from Swansea to Birmingham, will call specially at Chepstow to connect with the S.L.S. train. The fare for the tour only [was] 10s. 6d., and inclusive of cheap return ticket from Birmingham 22s. 6d., and from Bristol 15s. 6d.” [1: p65-66]
The Why and the Wherefore
Potteries, Shrewsbury & North Wales Railway
In answer to a question from Mr J.M. Duckett, a paragraph about what was to become the Shropshire & Montgomeryshire Railway appeared in the Magazine:
“A railway to connect the Midlands of England with Ireland via a new port at Porthdynllyn, on the Caernarvonshire coast, was projected in 1846, but the scheme came to nothing. An unsuccessful attempt was made to revive it in 1861. In the next year, the West Shropshire Mineral Railway was authorised from Llanymynech to Westbury, on the then recently-authorised Shrewsbury & Welshpool Railway. Eventually this line was modified to extend from Shrewsbury to Llanyblodwell, and the company was amalgamated with the Shrewsbury & Potteries Company, which planned to connect Shrewsbury with Market Drayton and Stoke-on-Trent. The title of the combined undertaking became the Potteries, Shrewsbury & North Wales Railway. It was proposed to extend the line westwards on a mountainous cross-country route from Llanyblodwell to Portmadoc and Porthdynllyn. The company succeeded in building only the section between Shrewsbury and Llanyblodwell, of which the 17 miles from Shrewsbury to Llanymynech eventually became the Shropshire & Montgomeryshire Railway. The remaining 2 miles from Llanymynech to Llanyblodwell passed into the hands of the Cambrian Railways. It frequently has been suggested that, if the complete scheme, including the long and expensive extension to Porthdynllyn, had come to fruition, the Great Northern Railway would have sought running powers over the North Staffordshire Railway to Stoke-on-Trent, or over the London & North Western Railway from Stafford to Shrewsbury, to participate in the traffic passing between the Midlands and Porthdynllyn. Such a step would not have been beyond the bounds of possibility.” [1: p71]
More information can be found here, [5] and here. [6]
References
The Railway Magazine Volume 105 No. 693, Tothill Press, London, January 1959.
A significant proportion of the August 1925 edition of The Railway Magazine [1] was dedicated to coverage of the Centenary celebrations at Darlington. Given the short timescale between the event and the publication date of the August issue of the magazine (?late July?), and given that modern digital techniques were in no way available, the achievement of publication in such a short time is to be admired.
Writing at the end of 2024, in just a few months the 200th anniversary will occur, it will be interesting to see what celebrations will be taking place in the Summer of 2025. See, for example, the National Railway Museum‘s plans for 2025. [42]
G.A. Sekon offered The Railway Magazine’s congratulations to the organisers of the 1925 exhibition on their organisational achievements and on the “comprehensiveness and interest of the exhibits brought together.” [1: p101] He also notes that the opportunity was taken by the King to appoint many different leading railway officers to the Order of the British Empire these included: four CBEs (Mr. R. C. Irwin, Secretary, L.M.S.R., Mr. E. A. Bolter, Secretary, G.W.R., Mr. G. Davidson, Divisional General Manager, North Eastern Area, L.N.E.R., and Mr. G. S. Szlumper, Assistant General Manager, Southern Railway), eight OBEs and fourteen MBEs.
The ‘main event’ was the procession which was “witnessed at ease and in comfort by many hundreds of thousands in view of the accessibility of the route practically from end to end and the arrangements whereby landowners generously allowed access to fields adjoining the line.” [1: p103]
The event was opened by HRH. the Duke of York, accompanied by the Duchess of York. (The Duke of York being the future George VI who became King unexpectedly following the abdication of his brother, King Edward VIII, in December 1936.)
In his opening address Mr. W. Whitelaw made it clear that, “The Exhibition was the result of the co-operation of five great railway companies, assisted by many friends from all parts of the country, who possessed interesting relics of the first passenger railway in the kingdom. It seemed very fitting that the commencement of the celebration of what took place on 27th September 1825, should be in that great railway town of Darlington. If Darlington did not own all the credit for the science of railways, at any rate no one could deny or challenge the statement that Darlington was the home of the first great railway statesman, Edward Pease.”
The Procession
A short (20 minute) film of the procession/cavalcade can be viewed here. [35]
“The centenary celebrations were held in July to allow guests from foreign countries visiting the International Railway Congress to take part. An exhibition of rolling stock at the new Faverdale Wagon Works in Darlington was opened by the Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and the Queen Mother). The following day the royal couple watched as procession of locomotives passed between Stockton and Oak Tree Junction, starting with a Hetton Colliery locomotive that had been built in 1822 and finishing with a replica train of ten chaldron waggons and ‘the company’s coach’ hauled by Locomotive No.1 propelled by a petrol engine in a specially built tender.” [45] A copy of the original programme for the procession can be found here. [46]
The procession was due to have 54 items, one of which had to be withdrawn (the North British Locomotive Company’s geared turbine condensing locomotive). [1: p123] The final list was: [8]
1. Hetton Colliery locomotive – 1822.
2. S. & D.R. “Derwent” – 1845.
3. NBR 0-6-0 No. 381 (LNER J31 10114) – 1867.
4. NER 0-6-0 No. 1275 – 1874.
5. LNER J26 0-6-0 No. 517 (ex NER) – 1905.
6. LNER B16 4-6-0 No. 934 (ex NER) – 1921.
7. LNER K3 2-6-0 No. 203 – 1925.
8. LNWR 0-8-0 No. 1881 (LMS 8900) – 1901.
9. LMS 0-8-0 No. 9446 (ex LNWR) – 1922.
10. LNER 02 2-8-0 No. 3501 – 1924.
11. GWR 2-8-0 No. 4700 – 1919
12. LNER P1 2-8-2 No. 2393 – 1925.
13. LNER electric loco No. 9 (hauled by J71 0-6-0T 317) (ex NER) – 1914.
14. GWR 2-2-2 “North Star”(replica), (on wagon, hauled by J71 0-6-0T No. 181) – 1837.
Of these items, The Railway Magazine chose to highlight a number of these including:
1. The Hetton Colliery Locomotive
“The procession was headed by the old Hetton Colliery engine, built in 1822 by George Stephenson and Nicholas Wood, previous to the establishment of Stephenson’s works at Newcastle-on-Tyne. The engine, by the way, was rebuilt in 1857, and again in 1882, when the link motion, at present fitted, was added.” [1: p109]
“Next in order came the old ‘Derwent’, a mineral engine of Timothy Hackworth’s design, which was built in 1845 by William and Alf Kitching, of the Hopetown Foundry, Darlington, for the Stockton and Darlington Railway. The ‘Derwent’ also ran under its own steam.” [1: p109]
“Then followed a number of engines more or less familiar to the present generation [1925], although two of them were built over 50 years ago. A 1925 modern goods express 2-6-0, with special valve gear, and a mineral engine 2-8-0 with three cylinders, were a great contrast to the veterans that had passed earlier. Then followed a “Mikado” type of locomotive built at the Doncaster works of the L.N.E.R., for fast mineral work, but even greater interest was shown in a model of the old North Star, built in 1837 by Robert Stephenson and Co., which was mounted on a Great Western ‘crocodile’, drawn by a locomotive. Several specimens of the single-driver expresses popular in the latter half of the [19th century] were in the procession, including the Cornwall, which has a driving wheel of 8 ft. 6 in. in diameter the largest locomotive driving wheel still in service in the world.” [1: p109]
4.0-6-0 Stockton & Darlington Goods
Fourth in the procession was a typical 0-6-0 locomotive from the Stockton and Darlington (S&D) Railway. This was probably NER No. 1275 which was the only NER 1001 Class locomotive to survive into LNER ownership. It was built by Dübs & Co., Glasgow, and was delivered to the S&D in May 1874. 1275 entered into LNER ownership with an official mileage of 908,984 miles. Still in its NER livery, it was quickly withdrawn on 16th February 1923. [6]
This locomotive is preserved as part of the National Collection and is on static display at the National Railway Museum at York. [6]
NER No. 1275 is preserved in the National Railway Museum in York: Science Museum Group. NER 0-6-0 ‘1001’ class steam locomotive and tender, No 1275, 1874. 1975-7009 Science Museum Group Collection Online. [7]
The LNWR Class B was a class of 0-8-0 steam locomotives introduced in 1901. These locomotives were a development of the three-cylinder compound Class A (though this letter classification was not introduced until 1911), they had a 4-cylinder compound arrangement. 170 were built between 1901 and 1904. [9]
“The London and North Eastern Railway Class P1 Mineral 2-8-2 Mikado was a class of two steam locomotives designed by Nigel Gresley. They were two of the most powerful freight locomotives ever designed for a British railway. It was initially intended they be a more powerful 2-10-0 version of the earlier Class O2 2-8-0s. The design was submitted in August 1923, for use between Peterborough and London, and also between Immingham and Wath marshalling yard. The power was quoted as being 25% more than the O2.” [21]
“No. 2393 was completed in June 1925, just in time for the Stockton & Darlington Centenary celebrations in July. It was fitted with a Robinson superheater, whilst No. 2394 (completed in November) had the “E Double” superheater recommended by The Superheater Co.” [22]
14. GWR 2-2-2 ‘North Star’ (replica)
North Star was the first GWR locomotive, it on 31st May 1838 it worked the inaugural train for the company’s directors. More details can be found on the Preserved British Steam Locomotives website. [10]
Built in 1847, ‘Cornwall’ is a preserved steam locomotive. She was built as a 4-2-2 at Crewe Works in 1847, but was extensively rebuilt and converted into her current form in 1858. [12]
Wikipedia tells us that, “In 1858, Ramsbottom redesigned Cornwall almost completely. Little survived unchanged, other than the outside frames and the centres of the drivers. The boiler was … moved entirely above the driving axle, without any notches, channels or tubes. … New cylinders and valve gear were provided. … The wheel arrangement was [changed to] 2-2-2. … Ramsbottom also included his newly designed tamper-proof safety valves.” [12]
There was another minor rebuild in the 1870s providing a typical LNWR style of cab, with a short roof and semi-open sides. It was renumbered 3020 in June 1886. [12]
The Great Northern Railway (GNR) No. 1 Class Stirling Single was a class of steam locomotive designed for express passenger work. Designed by Patrick Stirling, they were characterised by a single pair of large (8 ft 1 in) driving wheels which led to the nickname ‘eight-footer’. Originally the locomotive was designed to haul up to 26 passenger carriages at an average speed of 47 miles per hour (76 km/h). It could reach speeds of up to 85 mph (137 km/h). [14]
“The first of the class, No. 1 is the only engine to be preserved. It is exhibited at the National Railway Museum, York. It was restored to running order during the 1930s for the fiftieth anniversary of the Race to the North and steamed again during the 1980s.” [14]
The three locomotives shown in the image above are:
19. 1875 built NER Class 901 2-4-0 No. 910;
20. 1885 built LNER E5 2-4-0 No. 1463 (ex NER);
21. 1892 built LNER D17/1 4-4-0 No. 1620 (ex NER)
The LNER Encyclopedia says that “Fletcher’s ‘901’ class was his final express passenger design for the … NER. The ‘901’ Class was created in 1872 to provide new more powerful express locomotives to replace the 16in cylinder locomotives still being used by the NER for express work. The first two locomotives, Nos. 901/2, were built at Gateshead in 1872. Whilst these were being built, two batches of ten each were ordered from Beyer, Peacock & Co and Neilson & Co. These twenty engines were built and delivered in 1873. A further 33 were built at Gateshead between 1873 and 1882 in four batches.” [17]
The LNER Encyclopedia says that the “new E5 locomotives were direct descendents of Fletcher’s ‘901’s. The cab design was changed, and a completely new tender design was used. A total of twenty E5s were built in 1885, with Darlington and Gateshead building ten each.” [18]
E5 No. 1463 is owned by the National Collection, but is on loan to the Darlington ‘Head of Steam’ Museum, now known as ‘Hopetown Darlington’s. [18]
The LNER Encyclopedia also notes that the NER Class M1 (later Class M) locomotives were Wilson Worsdell’s first express passenger locomotives for the North Eastern Railway (NER). … Twenty Class M1 locomotives were built at Gateshead between 1892 and 1894. More information can be found on the LNER Encyclopedia website. [19] These NER M1 locomotives became the LNER D17/1 Class at the grouping. [20]
The LNER operated a surprising variety of electric locomotives and multiple units. Although its electric operations were eclipsed by the Southern, the LNER had the largest electric locomotive stud of the Big Four companies. More about the various electric locks and multiple units can be found on the LNER Encyclopedia website. [27]
“Sir Vincent Raven was a great believer in the electrification of main lines. After the success of the Shildon-Newport electrification, he planned to electrify the North Eastern Railway’s (NER) stretch of the East Coast main line from York to Newcastle. As a part of this plan, authorisation was granted in March 1920 to build the prototype electric passenger locomotive No. 13. This had a 2-Co-2 (4-6-4) wheel arrangement, and was built at Darlington with electrical equipment provided by Metropolitan-Vickers.” [28] The loco was completed in 1922 just before the NER became part of the LNER in 1923.
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) Hughes 4-6-4T class of steam locomotives were a 4-6-4T version of the L&YR Class 8 (‘Dreadnought’ Class 4-6-0), hence they were known as ‘Dreadnought tanks’. All were actually built by the LMS in 1924 after the grouping, albeit at the L&YR’s Horwich Works. Withdrawals started in 1938, with three engines (11112, 11115, 11116), one each in 1939 and 1940 (11113 and 11111 respectively), four in 1941 (11114, 11117–11119) and the last (11110) in January 1942. No examples were preserved. [23]
Another example of the same class, No. 11114. [23]
41. GWR 2-8-0T Locomotive No. 5225
The 4200 class of 2-8-0T engines was designed to work the heavy short-haul coal and mineral trains in South Wales. They were designed using standard GWR parts as used in the 2800 class. A total of 205 locomotives were built (including the 5205 class) between 1910 and 1940. They were the only 2-8-0T to run in Britain. [24]
“The first engine to be built was 4201 in 1910 (4200 was a later engine built in 1923). Between 1910 and 1930 195 were built numbered 4200-4299 and 5200-5294. 5205 onwards had larger cylinders and other minor alterations and were known as the 5205 class.” [24]
“Five examples of the 4200 class and three members of the 5205 class have been preserved (4247, 4248, 4253, 4270, 4277, 5224, 5229 and 5239). There are also three locomotives preserved from the 7200 class which were rebuilds of the 5205 series 5264 rebuilt as 7229, 5275 rebuilt as 7202 and 5277 rebuilt as 7200).” [24]
42. LNER ‘Garratt’ Locomotive No. 2395
“The London and North Eastern Railway Class U1 was a solitary 2-8-0+0-8-2 Garratt locomotive designed for banking coal trains over the Worsborough Bank,[i] a steeply graded line in South Yorkshire and part of the Woodhead Route. It was both the longest and the most powerful steam locomotive ever to run in Britain. It was built in 1925 with the motion at each end being based on an existing 2-8-0 design. The original number was 2395, and it was renumbered 9999 in March 1946, and then 69999 after nationalisation in 1948, although it retained its cab-side plate bearing its original number throughout its life. The locomotive ran for some time as an oil burner, and was tried out on the Lickey Incline in 1949–1950 and again, after the electrification of its home line, in 1955. These trials were unsuccessful, and so the locomotive was withdrawn in 1955 and scrapped.” [26]
The locomotive was constructed in just 3 weeks in 1925, perhaps with the Stockton & Darlington centenary celebrations in mind. It was ready just in time and sent in the standard outshopped grey livery before being painted black. [26]
43. LNER Petrol Railcar/Railmotor No. 130Y, later 2105Y
The 1920s were quite an era for experimentation on the railways of the UK. This Railcar/Railmotor is included in a number looked at elsewhere on this blog. The relevant article can be found here. [30]
The North Eastern Railway (NER) “authorised the construction of the experimental Petrol Autocar No. 2105 on 21st September 1922. On 19th October, Raven reported the purchase of a 6-cylinder 105hp Daimler engine from the Slough Trading Estate Co. Ltd. The remainder of the vehicle was built at York Carriage Works and was completed in July 1923. By this time, Grouping had occurred, and the autocar was given the LNER number 2105Y. It was later renumbered as No. 22105 in August 1926.” [31]
Sentinel produced a significant number of steam railcars/railmotors. They are covered elsewhere on this blog. Please click here. [33]
The LNER arranged for trials of two Sentinel railmotors in 1924. After those trials, adaptations were made including providing larger boilers. The result was ideal for LNER uses and a series of 80 units were purchased. The first two large boiler railcars were ordered on 11th December 1924. These railcars used the bodies from the trial railcars and the cost was discounted accordingly. Numbered Nos. 12E & 13E, the railcars entered service with the LNER in May 1925 and were classified as Diagram 14600-614E. [34] They were ‘state of art’ units available just in time for the Stockton & Darlington celebrations.
46. LNER 0-8-0 Q7 (formerly NER T3) with mineral wagons.
The North Eastern Railway Class T3, classified as Class Q7 by the LNER, was a class of 0-8-0 steam locomotive designed for heavy freight. Five were built by the NER in 1919 and a further 10 by the LNER in 1924. No. 904 was put in charge of a rake of mineral wagons for the procession. [32]
This train consisted of a series of tableaux depicting the history of the wheel. It was described in the publication ‘Railway Wonders of the World’ like this: “The tableaux consisted of six wagons each carrying a separate ‘picture’. The first was allegorical and depicted a number of astrologers grouped at one side of a symbolic wheel, with a scene showing modern engineering practice on the other. The two scenes were joined through the spokes of the wheel by a huge chain, representing the links of time. The second tableau showed a tribe of prehistoric men, who, having felled a tree with their flint axes, were shown transporting the trunk on logs used as rollers – the earliest form of the wheel. Then came an Egyptian scene in which one of the royal Pharaohs was being drawn on a wheeled platform by slaves, showing how the Egyptians started the wheel in its manifold forms so that, through the ages that followed, progress successively moved on the wheels of chariot, wain, and coach. This was followed by the fourth tableaux showing how the wheel was discarded for a time when Sedan chairs were used, and the fifth depicting the story of the wheel in transport opening its most famous chapter when Stephenson mounted an engine on wheels and steam locomotion began. On one side of this wagon Stephenson was explaining the working of a model of “Locomotion No. 1” to a group of friends and workmen, whilst on the other side modem mechanics were working with present-day materials and tools. The final tableau showed how the railways of the world have grown from the few miles of permanent way uniting Stockton and Darlington.” [37]
48. GNSR 4-4-0 No. 45A and train of old 4-wheel coaches
The locomotive was one of a Class which transferred to the LNER. More details can be found here. [38]
No. 45A was repainted in GNSR green to take part in the Stockton & Darlington Centenary celebrations. It was withdrawn on 31st July 1925 shortly after its return. There was some talk of preservation, and it was temporarily employed as a shunter at the Inverurie Works. However, preservation was not to be, and No. 45A was scrapped soon afterwards. [38]
LMS 4-6-0 No. 10474 was a Class 8 4-6-0 steam locomotive to a Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway design that was built for the LMS by Horwich Works in 1925. 10474 and its siblings were used on express passenger trains for the LMS. [36]
Its train is made up of nine vestibule carriages built at Derby and used on the West Coast route to Scotland. [1: p124]
No. 4082 ‘Windsor Castle’, “was chosen as the Royal engine from the time that it was driven from Swindon works to Swindon station by King George V accompanied by Queen Mary on 28th April 1924. Plaques were mounted on the side of the cab to commemorate the occasion.” [39]
No 111 ‘Viscount Churchill’ (converted into a Castle class 4-6-0 from ‘The Great Bear’) took charge of a train of express passenger articulated coaches. Didcot Railway Centre says that the new GWR articulated coaches “came as a surprise to many as the railway press was unaware they had been developed. The train had one two-coach unit and two three-coach units. The formation was one brake first, one first, one first restaurant car, one kitchen car, one third restaurant car, two third-class coaches and a brake third. The first-class coach interiors were finished in walnut and the third-class in mahogany.” [40]
The LSWR N15 class was a British 2–cylinder 4-6-0 express passenger steam locomotive designed by Robert Urie. The class had “a complex build history spanning three sub-classes and ten years of construction from 1918 to 1927. The first batch of the class was constructed for the London and South Western Railway (LSWR), where they hauled heavy express passenger trains to the south coast ports and further west to Exeter. After the Lord Nelsons, they were the second biggest 4-6-0 passenger locomotives on the Southern Railway. They could reach speeds of up to 90 mph (145 km/h).” [41] The Southern Railway (SR) publicity department gave the N15 locomotives names associated with Arthurian legend; the class hence becoming known as King Arthurs.
53. LNER Train of Articulated Stock behind LNER A2 4-6-2 No. 2400 ‘City of Newcastle’
The LNER Class A2 4-6-2 steam locomotive was designed by Vincent Raven for the North Eastern Railway (as NER class 4.6.2). Two were built by the NER in 1922 before the grouping and another three by the LNER in 1924. Their LNER numbers were 2400–2404. All five locomotives were named by the LNER. ‘City of Newcastle’ was the first of the class. [43]
The replica train pulled by a modern incarnation of ‘Locomotion No.1’ was the last element of the procession/cavalcade. It was somewhat shorter than the original train of September 1825. ..
On 27th September 1825, Locomotion No. 1 hauled the first train on the Stockton and Darlington Railway, driven by George Stephenson. The train consisted of Locomotion No.1, eleven wagons of coal, the carriage ‘Experiment’, and a further 20 wagons of passengers, guests, and workmen. Around 300 tickets had been sold, but about twice as many people were believed to have been aboard. The train, which had an estimated weight of 80 metric tons and was 400 feet long, reached a maximum speed of 12 mph, and took two hours to complete the first 8.7 miles of the journey to Darlington, slowed by a derailed wagon and a blocked feed pump valve for an average speed of 8 mph. [44]
“Locomotion No. 1 (originally named Active) … was built in 1825 by … George and Robert Stephenson at their manufacturing firm, Robert Stephenson and Company. It became the first steam locomotive to haul a passenger-carrying train on a public railway … [It] was ordered by the Stockton and Darlington Railway Company in September 1824; its design benefitted from George Stephenson’s experience building his series of Killingworth locomotives. It is believed that Locomotion No. 1 was the first locomotive to make use of coupling rods to link together its driving wheels, reducing the chance of the wheels slipping on the iron rails. However, the centre-flue boiler proved to be a weakness, providing a poorer heating surface than later multi-flue boilers. … Locomotion hauled the first train on the Stockton and Darlington Railway, the first locomotive to run on a public railway. On 1st July 1828, it was heavily damaged when its boiler exploded at Aycliffe Lane station, killing its driver, John Cree. It was rebuilt, but as a consequence of the rapid advances in locomotive design, [it] became obsolete within a decade. It was used on the railway until 1850, after which it was converted into a stationary engine. In 1857, as a consequence of its historical importance, Locomotion was preserved and put on display. Between 1892 and 1975, it was on static display at one of the platforms at Darlington Bank Top railway station, and was then on display at the Head of Steam museum based at Darlington North Road railway station between 1975 and 2021. It was then moved to the Locomotion museum in Shildon. A working replica of Locomotion was built, and following years of operation at Beamish Museum was put on display at the Head of Steam museum.” [44]
The Exhibition
At the Railway Centenary Exhibition held in the LΝΕR’s Faverdale Wagon Works and Sidings at Darlington “was gathered together the biggest and most interesting collection of railway appliances, locomotives, rolling stock and other material ever exhibited in this country. The locomotives and rolling stock on rails at the exhibition sidings numbered 99, whilst in the building were three locomotives and about 650 other items. … The railways were naturally the chief exhibitors, but many extremely interesting items were loaned from private collections.” [1: p127]
The Railway Magazine went on to list all the major exhibits, some of which were in the cavalcade/procession covered above.
The details given in The Railway Magazine are reproduced in the Appendix below.
The exhibition was comprehensive, giving an outstanding insight into the world of railways in Great Britain.
Appendix – Exhibition Items
The Railway Magazine … [1: p127-130]
In the outdoor catalogue were: the model of North Star, constructed for the exhibition, utilising the original driving wheels. Nearby was the Invicta, Canterbury and Whitstable Railway, built by R. Stephenson & Co., in 1830, and a 2-2-2 engine constructed by Bury, Curtis & Kennedy in 1846 for the Great Southern Railway. Two locomotives came from Belgium, one a 2-2-2 saddle tank, with tender built for the 3-ft. 7-in. gauge Anvers-Gand Railway in 1844, the other a full-size model of a 2-2-2 engine built in 1835 for the Belgian State Railways. Other old locomotives included the Derwent, Cornwall and the Hetton Colliery locomotive, which led the van in the Centenary procession. There was also the historic Locomotion, and a full size model of the Rocket. The remaining locomotives are tabulated according to groups, subdivided on the basis of original ownership.
Of these, the sections of the LNER were responsible for 33 locomotives.
The NER‘s total was 14:
No. 949 0-4-4 5-ft. passenger tank built by Neilson & Co. in 1874, designed by E. Fletcher;
No. 1334, 0-4-4 5-ft. 11-in. passenger tank built at Darlington in 1901, designed by Wilson Worsdell;
No. 2151, 4-4-4 5-ft. 9-in. passenger tank, 3 cylinders, built at Darlington in 1913, designed by Sir Vincent Raven;
No. 1275, 0-6-0 5-ft. mineral engine, built in 1874 by Dubs & Co., designed by W. Bouch;
No. 517, 0-6-0 4-ft. 74-in. mineral engine built at Gateshead in 1905, designed by W. Worsdell;
No. 934, 4-6-0 5-ft. 8-in. express goods engine, 3 cylinders, built at Gateshead in 1921, designed by Sir Vincent Raven;
No. 902, 0-8-0, 4-ft. 71-in. 3-cylinder mineral engine, built at Darlington in 1919, designed by Sir Vincent Raven;
No. 910, 2-4-0, 7-ft. express passenger engine, built at Gateshead in 1875, designed by E. Fletcher;
No. 1463, 2-4-0 7-ft. express passenger engine, built at Darlington in 1885, “Tennant” type;
No. 1620 4-4-0 7-ft. 1.25-in. express passenger engine, built at Gateshead, 1892, by W. Worsdell;
No. 2207, 4-4-2, 6-ft. 10-in. express passenger engine, 3 cylinders, built at Darlington, 1911, designed by Sir Vincent Raven;
No. 2006, 4-6-0 6-ft. 11-in. express passenger engine, built at Gateshead, 1900, designed by W. Worsdell, Gold Medal, Paris, 1900;
No. 9, 0-4-4-0 4-ft. electric freight engine, built at Darlington, 1914, designed by Sir Vincent Raven;
No. 13, 4-6-4, 6-ft. 8-in. electric express engine, built at Darlington, 1922, designed by Sir Vincent Raven.
The Great Central section was represented by four engines:
No. 6499, 0-6-0, 3-ft. 9-in, saddle tank shunting engine, built by Manning Wardle & Co., 1876, for the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway;
No. 5088, 4-6-2 5-ft. 7-in. passenger side tank engine, built at Gorton, 1923, designed by J. G. Robinson;
No. 5972, 4-2-2 7-ft. 9-in. inside cylinder express passenger engine, built at Gorton, 1900, designed by H. Pollitt;
No. 6169, Lord Faringdon, 4-6-0 6-ft. 9-in. 4-cylinder express passenger engine, built at Gorton, designed by J. G. Robinson.
Two locomotives represented the GE section
No. 7133 was a 0-4-0 3-ft. 1-in. enclosed tramway engine built at Stratford in 1897;
No. 8900 (1900), Claud Hamilton, 4-4-0 7-ft. express passenger engine, built at Stratford, 1900, designed by J. Holden. Gold Medal Paris Exhibi- tion, 1900.
The GN section showed three engines:
The celebrated No. 1, 4-2-2 8-ft. 2-in. express engine, with outside cylinders, built at Doncaster, 1872, designed by P. Stirling:
No. 3990 (No. 990), 4-4-2 6-ft. 8-in. express engine, built at Doncaster, 1898, designed by H. A. Ivatt, the first “Atlantic” engine constructed in Great Britain;
No. 3251 (No. 251), 4-4-2 6-ft. 8-in. express engine, built at Doncaster, 1902, designed by H. A. Ivatt, the first engine on a British railway with a wide firebox.
The NBR section was represented by two engines:
No. 10114, 0-6-0 5-ft. 13-in. goods engine, built by Neilson & Co. in 1868, designed by T. Wheatley;
No. 9902, Highland Chief, 4-4-2 6-ft. 9-in, express engine, built by R. Stephenson & Co., 1911, designed by W. P. Reid.
The GNSR section was represented by No. 45A, 4-4-0 5-ft. 61-in. mixed traffic engine, built in 1866 by Neilson & Co., designed by W. Cowan.
The remaining seven locomotives exhibited by the LNER. were built since the grouping of the railways:
“Garratt” type 2-8-0+0-8-2, built by Beyer Peacock & Co., 1825, fitted with H. N. Gresley’s valve gear, driving wheels, 4-ft. 8-in. diameter, 6 cylinders (three to each truck), the first 6-cylinder “Garratt” locomotive, weight in working order, 176tons;
No. 203, 2-6-0 3-cylinder 5-ft. 8-in. express goods engine, built an Darlington, 1925, designed by H. N. Gresley (No. 202, a similar engine, was shown in the Exhibition building);
No 3499, 2-8-0 3-cylinder 4-ft. 8-in. mineral engine, built at Doncaster, 1924, designed by H. N. Gresley;
No. 2393, “Mikado” type (2-8-2) 3-cylinder 5-ft. 2-in. mineral engine, fitted with “booster” to drive trailing wheels, built at Doncaster, 1925, designed by H. N. Gresley;
No. 2563, William Whitelaw, 4-6-2 3-cylinder 6-ft. 8-in. express engine, designed by H. N. Gresley;
No. 2400, City of Newcastle, 4-6-2 3-cylinder 6-ft. 8-in. express engine, built at Darlington, 1922, designed by Sir Vincent Raven.
The LMS exhibit of modern locomotives comprised six engines: …
Three LNWR engines: …
No. 1881, 4-cylinder compound 4-ft. 3-in. mineral engine, built at Crewe, 1901, designed by F. W. Webb;
No. 9446, 0-8-0 4-ft. 2-in. goods engine, built at Crewe, 1922, designed by C. J. B. Cooke;
No. 5900, Sir Gilbert Claughton, 4-cylinder, 6-ft. 3-in. express engine, built at Crewe, 1913, designed by C. J. B. Cooke.
The Midland section exhibit was No. 679, 4-2-2 7-ft. 91-in. express engine, built at Derby, 1899, designed by S. W. Johnson.
The L&YR section showed No. 10474, 4-6-0 4-cylinder 6-ft. 3-in. express, built at Horwich, designed by G. Hughes.
The LMS specimen was No. 11112, 4-cylinder 6-ft. 3-in. passenger tank, built at Horwich, 1924, designed by G. Hughes.
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway No. 86 2-8-0 4-ft. 71-in. mineral engine, built by R. Stephenson & Co., 1825, designed by Sir H. Fowler (LMS)
The GWR was represented by three modern locomotives:
No. 5225, 2-8-0 4-ft. 7-in. mineral tank engine, built at Swindon, designed by G. J. Churchward;
No. 4700, 2-8-0 5-ft. 8-in. express goods engine, built at Swindon in 1919, designed by G. J. Churchward;
No. 4082, Windsor Castle, 4-6-0 4-cylinder 6-ft. 8-in. express, built at Swindon, designed by C. B. Collett. This is the locomotive the King and Queen drove at Swindon.
The SR was represented by No 449, Sir Torre, at the head of the train of modern coaches.
In addition there were: the City and South London Railway‘s old electric engine supplied for the opening of the railway in 1890. The LNER showed a petrol bus for rail service, a petrol autocar, and a Sentinel-Cammell steam coach.
Modern rolling-stock-passenger and freight was represented in profusion: …
A complete train by each of the four groups: …
GWR – showed an articulated rake of coaches and a 10-compartment third-class corridor coach, 70ft long;
LNER – showed a similar articulated rake and an electric coach, a Post Office van, a sleeper with first-class berths and third-class compartments, a twin (articulated) sleeper, a ‘triplet’ dining set, corridor third etc.;
SR – sent Pullman Car ‘Lydia’, whilst the Pullman Car Company exhibited ‘Niobe’;
London Electric Railways by one of the latest tube coaches.
Also in view were:
The “Dandy” coach from the Port Carlisle Railway;
A Stockton & Darlington carriage built circa 1850;
A GNSR coach from circa 1865.
The wide range of modern freight vehicles was well shown by the 18 wagons, etc, of different types exhibited by the LNER, varying from a four-wheeled horse-box to a set of three 60-ton flat wagons tight coupled for conveying 160-ton guns. The GWR showed a 20-ton mineral wagon, a 35-ton well trolley, a 30-ton articulated gun wagon, and a 70-ft. rail or timber truck. There were a few items of old goods rolling-stock, including a ‘Chaldron’ coal wagon built in 1826.
Within the building the fine display of signalling appliances from the earliest days, through the crude interlocking of some sixty years ago to the present perfect locking apparatus, electrical and mechanical, attracted much attention. So did the many specimens representing all periods during the past 100 years of the rails, chairs, and sleepers that go to make up the permanent way. Chief interest was taken in the numerous models, many on a large scale, and as regards locomotives chiefly working models, actuated by compressed air. Of the 46 locomotive models there were two of the Locomotion, while several GWR. broad-gauge engines made a fine display. The Metropolitan Railway was a big exhibitor in this section, showing seven or eight models of locomotives of various railways. A quarter-size model of the GNR’s 8-ft. 1-in. single (Stirling’s famous 4-2-2 type) was prominent, as, too, was the Dandy Cart, with horse aboard, as attached to the rear of horse-hauled mineral trains. Here also were models in plenty of railway bridges and viaducts, railway coaches, steamers, &c. Early railway tickets, bills, time-tables, passes, medals, &c., were to be seen in profusion, with specimens of Edmondson’s ticket-dating presses and ticket-printing machines invented in 1840, and taken from actual work to be shown at Faverdale. Railway-station bells, besides early signal and hand lamps of various types, were represented, whilst the many loan collections of literature and maps relative to early railways provided information of rare value to those interested in the development of the railway system.
References
G.A. Sekon, ed.; 1825-1925: The Railway Centenary Celebrations at Darlington, 1st to 3rd July 1925; in The Railway Magazine, London, No. 338, August 1925, p101-142.
C.R. Henry of the South-Eastern & Chatham Railway wrote about this line being the second public railway opened in England in an article in the October 1907 edition of The Railway Magazine. [1] Reading that article prompted this look at the line which was referred to locally as the ‘Crab and Winkle Line‘.
There are a number of claimants to the title ‘first railway in Britain’, including the Middleton Railway, the Swansea and Mumbles Railway and the Surrey Iron Railway amongst others. Samuel Lewis in his ‘A Topographical Dictionary of England’ in 1848, called the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway the first railway in the South of England. [2][3]
The Crab and Winkle Line Trust says that in 1830, the “Canterbury and Whitstable Railway was at the cutting edge of technology. Known affectionately as the ‘Crab and Winkle Line’ from the seafood for which Whitstable was famous, it was the third railway line ever to be built. However, it was the first in the world to take passengers regularly and the first railway to issue season tickets. The first railway season tickets were issued at Canterbury in 1834 to take people to the beach at Whitstable over the summer season. This fact is now recorded on a plaque at Canterbury West railway station. Whitstable was also home to the world’s oldest passenger railway bridge.” [17]
Henry explains that in 1822, “the possibility of making Canterbury a virtual seaport was engaging much thought and attention on the part of the inhabitants of that ancient city. Canterbury is situated on the banks of a small river called the Stour, having an outlet into the sea near Sandwich, and this river was a very important waterway in Roman and Saxon times, but by the date above-mentioned, it had fallen into a state almost approaching complete dereliction, being quite unnavigable for ships of any appreciable size. The resuscitation and improvement of this waterway was considered to be the only solution of the problem of making Canterbury a seaport, and as a result of a very strong and influential agitation by the citizens a scheme of revival was announced by a number of commercial men who had formed themselves into a company for the purpose. The scheme comprised many improvements to the river, such as widenings, new cuts, etc., with the provision of a suitable harbour at Sandwich, the estimated cost of the whole being about £45,700. It was submitted to Parliament in the session of 1824, but the Bill was rejected by a motion brought forward by the Commissioners of Sewers, who complained that the works had been hurriedly surveyed and greatly under-estimated. Nothing daunted, however, fresh surveys and estimates were prepared and presented to Parliament in the following year. This second Bill was successful, and when the news that it had passed the third reading in the Upper Chamber was made known in Canterbury, the event occasioned much jubilation amongst the inhabitants, who, according to local records, turned out with bands of music and paraded the streets exhibiting banners displaying such words as ‘Success to the Stour Navigation’.” [1: p305-306]
It is worth noting that it was as early as 1514 that an Act of Parliament promoted navigation on the River Stour. There remains “a Right of Navigation on the river from Canterbury to the sea. After two weirs above Fordwich, the river becomes tidal.” [4]
C.R. Henry continues:
“While the city was so enraptured with its waterway scheme, influences of a quieter nature were steadily at work with a view to making Canterbury a virtual seaport by constructing a railway from thence to Whitstable. One day in April 1823, a gentleman – the late Mr. William James – called on an inhabitant of Canterbury to whom he had been recommended, to consult with him on the subject of a railway. It was arranged between these two gentlemen that a few persons who it was thought might be favourable to the project should be requested to meet the next day: several were applied to, but the scheme appeared so chimerical that few attended. At the meeting the gentleman stated he had professionally taken a cursory view of the country, and he thought a railway might be constructed from the copperas houses at Whitstable (these houses used to exist on the eastern side of the present harbour) to St. Dunstan’s, Canterbury. This line, he observed, was not so direct as might be the most desirable, but there would not be any deep cutting, and the railway would be formed on a regular ascending and descend. ing inclined plane. He also urged that by the construction of a harbour at Whitstable in conjunction with the projected railway, the problem of making Canterbury an inland seaport would be effectually solved, and that the railway offered undoubted advantages over any waterway scheme in point of reliability and rapidity of conveyance, as well as being only half the length of the proposed navigation.
The railway scheme met with scant support at first, but by 1824 a few private and commercial gentlemen had been found who were willing to form themselves into a company for the prosecution of the project, and they elected to consult Mr. George Stephenson as to the feasibility of their idea. The projector of the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway, as already said, was the late William James, well-known for the part he took in the Liverpool and Manchester Railway and other lines, and it was no doubt through his influence that it was decided to consult Stephenson, with whom he was very friendly at the time. George Stephenson, however, was too occupied with larger undertakings in the North to give the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway much of his personal attention, so he deputed his assistant, Mr. John Dixon to survey the line.
George Stephenson advised that the railway be made to pass over the ground situate between the [present] tunnel through Tyler Hill and St. Thomas’s Hill onwards through the village of Blean, then to Whitstable, terminating at precisely the same spot as it now does [in 1907], this route being an almost level one, and not necessitating many heavy earthworks. But the proprietors did not behold this route with favour: they wished for the novelty of a tunnel, so a tunnel Stephenson made for them, thereby altering the whole line of railway he first proposed, and causing it to traverse some very undulating and steep country. A survey of the new route was made, which was to the right of the original one, and plans, sections and estimates were duly deposited with Parliament for the Session of 1825.
The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway Bill was not assailed with great opposition, the only body really opposing it being the Whitstable Road Turnpike Trust, who, however, were compromised by the insertion of a clause in the Bill to the effect that ‘should the project be carried into execution, the Company, when formed, will indemnify the Trust to the full amount which they may suffer by traffic being diverted, and that for 20 years’. The Act received Royal Assent on 10th June 1825.” [1: p306-307]
So it was, that work on the railway and harbour went ahead and the improvements to the Stour Navigation were left in abeyance, and the then insignificant village of Whitstable became one of the first places to have a railway.
The Company was formed with a nominal capital of £31,000 divided into £50 shares. Joseph Locke was appointed ‘resident engineer’ and a host of experienced workers (navvies) were brought down from the North of England to work on the line.
North of the railway corridor the route of the old railway, shown in pale orange, runs North-northwest. It crosses Hanover Place twice and runs ups the West side of Beverly Meadow. The route is tree-lined as far as Beaconsfield Road. A footpath runs immediately alongside to the route. That footpath appears as a grey line on the satellite imagery adjacent to this text.
North of Beaconsfield Road the line of the old railway has been built over – private dwellings face out onto the road. North of the rear fences of these properties a tree-line path follows fairly closely the line of the old railway between two modern housing estates as far as the playing fields associated with The Archbishop’s School. [15]
C.R. Henry continues:
“The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway was laid out with gradients almost unique in their steepness, necessitating the major portion of the line being worked by stationary engines. At Canterbury the terminus was situated in North Lane, whence the railway rises in a perfectly straight line on gradients ranging between 1 in 41 and 1 in 56, to the summit of Tyler Hill, a distance of 3,300 yards.
On this section is the Tyler Hill tunnel which the proprietors were so anxious to have. This peculiar little tunnel may be termed the principal engineering feature of the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway: it is half a mile long, and was constructed in four different sections, each of varying gauge. The working face evidently started at the Whitstable side of Tyler Hill, since as it advances towards Canterbury each section becomes larger than the preceding one. The first three sections are the usual egg shape, but the final section, i.e., at the Canterbury or south end, has perpendicular instead of bow walls, and is the largest of the four. In the very early days the Canterbury end of the tunnel was closed at nighttime by wicket gates, and the rides upon which the gates hung are still to be seen in the brickwork. The bore of the tunnel is unusually small specially constructed rolling stock having to be used for the present day passenger service over the line.” [1: p309]
Tyler Hill Tunnel runs underneath the Canterbury Campus of the University of Kent. Its South Portal was adjacent to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s School at the bottom-right of the adjacent satellite image. [15]
Giles Lane appears on both the early OS map extract and this satellite imagery. [8][15]
The North portal of the tunnel is highlighted by a lilac flag on the adjacent satellite image. [15]
Two photographs below show North Portal as it is in the 21st century. It is fenced and gated for safety and security purposes. The first shows the spalling brickwork of the tunnel ring, and the boarding-off of the entrance provided with an access gate. for maintenance purposes. Both were shared on Google Maps.
Tyler Hill Tunnel North Portal, (c) Enigma “Enigma” Hyena. (August 2021)Tyler Hill Tunnel North Portal, (c) Enigma “Enigma” Hyena. (August 2021)The route of the old railway is clearly visible as a straight line in the middle of a wooded strip of land running North-northwest from the North Portal of Tyler Hill Tunnel. [Google Maps, December 2024]Looking North toward the site of the stationary engines from Tyler Wood Road. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
Henry continues his description of the line:
“At the top of the steep bank from Canterbury there stood two 25 h.p. stationary engines for winding the trains up the incline. From where the first engine house stood the line is straight and practically level for the next mile to Clowes Wood summit, where there were two fixed engines of the same type and h.p. as those at the previous stage. The line then descends at 1 in 28 and 1 in 31 for the next mile to a place called Bogshole, so named owing to the once spongy condition of the ground in the vicinity, which was a constant source of trouble during the early days of the railway, as whenever wet weather set in the track invariably subsided with sometimes consequent cessations of traffic for a whole day, and even longer. At Bogshole commences the South Street level, which continues for a mile to the top of Church Street bank, whence the line again falls for half a mile at 1 in 57, the remaining half mile to Whitstable being almost at level.” [1: p310]
The two extracts from railmaponline.com’s satellite imagery above show the route of the old line as it runs down across the line of the modern A299 (at the top of the first image and at the bottom of the second image). In each case, if you cannot see the full image, double-click on it to enlarge it. For the majority of this length the old railway line followed a straight course. [15]
Looking South from the A299 along the route of the old railway, nothing remains to show that this was once the location of the old railway. [Google Streetview, August 2024]Looking North from the A299 along the line of the old railway – there is nothing to see. [Google Streetview, August 2024]At the bottom of the incline the old railway curved a little to the Northwest and met South Street tangentially. A level-crossing took the line across what is now Millstrood Road. [11]The length of the line shown on the OS Map extract above is the bottom half of the old line as it appears on this modern satellite image from railmaponline.com. [15]
The old railway route continues North and after passing through the rear gardens of houses on South Street runs, for a short distance immediately adjacent to South Street.
“Just below the top of Church Street bank is situated the only public road bridge on the railway. This is a narrow brick arch spanning Church Street, and stands today in its original form, notwithstanding the several but fruitless efforts of the local traction engine drivers to affect its displacement with their ponderous machines.” [1: p310]
The bridge to which Henry refers is long-gone in the 21st century. We can still, however, follow much of the route of the old railway.
“Before the completion of these works, … the company had twice to recourse to Parliament for additional capital powers, having exceeded those already granted with the railway in a half-finished state. The first was in 1827, when it was stated that the works authorised in 1825 had made good progress, but for their successful completion a further sum of money to the tune of £19,000 would be required, and for which they now asked. This Act also empowered the company to become carriers of passengers and goods, their original intention being to only levy tolls on all wagons and carriages passing over their line, the railway company providing the tractive power. The Act received royal assent on 2nd April 1827, but the larger portion of it was repealed by another in following year, the directors having found that the £19,000 previously authorised would prove inadequate for their purpose; so in 1828 they again went to Parliament for powers to raise £40,000 in lien thereof, and also petitioned for powers to lease the undertaking should they so desire, for a term not exceeding 14 years. These powers were conceded, and the Act received Royal Assent in May 1828. … The capital of the company aggregated £71,000 before the opening of the railway took place, which sum was further increased by a subsequent Act. … By May 1829, the works were nearing completion [and] … the question of permanent way and the gauge to which it was to be laid, had to be [considered.] … The Stephenson gauge of 4 ft. 8 1/2 in, was adopted. The permanent way … was laid with Birkenshaw’s patent wrought-iron fish-bellied rails and castings, of which George Stephenson highly approved. These rails were rolled in lengths of 15 ft.and weighed 28lb to the yard. The castings were spiked to oak sleepers placed at intervals of 3 ft., and the sheeves upon which the winding ropes of the stationary engines ran were situated in the centre of the track fixed to the sleepers at intervals of 6 ft.” [1: p310-311]
Henry continues:
With “all earthworks completed, engine houses, engines and stationary engines erected, permanent way laid, and everything generally ready to be brought into use, excepting the harbour, which was not completed for a year or two later, the Company announced the formal opening of the railway for 3rd May 1830.” [1: p311]
Of that day in 1830, the Kent Herald wrote:
“The day being remarkably fine, the whole City seemed to have poured forth its population, and company from the surrounding country continuing to augment the throng. By eleven o’clock, the time appointed for the procession to start, the assemblage of spectators was immense. The fields on each side of the line of road being crowded by well-dressed people of all ages, presented one of the most lively scenes we have witnessed for some time. The arrangements were so judiciously made, that by a quarter past eleven the procession was set in motion, the signal for starting having been given by telegraph. The bells of the Cathedral rang merrily at intervals during the day, and flags were displayed on the public buildings and railway. The following is the order of the procession:
1. Carriage with the directors of the Railway Company wearing white rosettes.
2. A coach with the Aldermen and other Members of the Canterbury Corporation.
3. A carriage with ladies.
4. A carriage with a band of music.
5. Carriages with ladies.
6 to 20. Carriages containing the Proprietors of the Railway, their friends, etc., in all amounting to near three hundred.
The procession was drawn forward in two divisions until it arrived at the first engine station, in which manner also it entered Whitstable, preceded by the locomotive engine. The various carriages contained nearly 300 persons, consisting of the principal gentry, citizens, and inhabitants of Canterbury and its neighbourhood. At Whitstable an excellent lunch was provided for the company by the Directors at the Cumberland Arms.” [14]
The inaugural train sets off from Canterbury and approaches Tyler Hill Tunnel South Portal. [1: p305]The return journey with the inaugural train leaving Whitstable and heading South for Canterbury. [1: p312]‘Invicta’ – the first engine used on the Canterbury’s and Whitstable Railway standing in 1950 on a plinth in Dane Jon Park, Canterbury. [19: p107]
The Kent Herald continues:
“On returning, the procession was joined at the Engine Station, and the whole went forward into Canterbury together.
The motion of the carriages is particularly easy and agreeable, and at first starting the quiet power with which the vast mass was set in motion dispelled every fear in the passengers. The entrance into the Tunnel was very impressive – the total darkness, the accelerated speed, the rumbling of the car, the loud cheering of the whole party echoing through the vault, combined to form a situation almost terrific – certainly novel and striking. Perfect confidence in the safety of the whole apparatus
The Crab and Winkle Line Trust tells us that the locomotive that pulled that first passenger train on the line was ‘Invicta’. They go on to say that the ‘Crab and Winkle Line’ became:
“the ‘first regular steam passenger railway in the world’ as stated in the Guinness Book of Records. … The ‘Invicta’ was based on Stephenson’s more famous ‘Rocket’ which came into service four months later on the Liverpool to Manchester line. Unfortunately with just 12 horse power the ‘Invicta’ could not cope with the gradients and was only used [regularly] on the section of line between Bogshole and South Street. The rest of the line was hauled by cables using steam driven static winding engines at the Winding Pond in Clowes Wood and the Halt on Tyler Hill Road. The Winding Pond also supplied water to the engines. … By 1836 the ‘Invicta’ was replaced and a third winding engine was built at South Street. The line was a pioneer in railway engineering using embankments, cuttings, level crossings, bridges and an 836 yard (764 metre) tunnel through the high ground at Tyler Hill. The railway was worked with old engines and ancient carriages always blackened by soot from the journey through the tunnel. It was said that goods trains tended to slow down for their crews to check pheasant traps in the woods and to pick mushrooms in the fields.”
“Journey times in the 1830s were approximately 40 minutes, but by 1846 with improvements to both the line and the locomotive, the trip took just 20 minutes. This is a very respectable time especially when compared with today’s often congested roads. … In 1839, the ‘Invicta’ was offered for sale as the three stationary engines were found to be adequate for working the whole line. The one enquiry came to nothing and the locomotive was put under cover. In 1846, The South Eastern Railway reached Canterbury and acquired the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway in 1845. The branch was relaid with heavier rail and locomotives replaced the stationary engines. For many years the ‘Invicta’ was displayed by the city wall and Riding Gate in Canterbury. The ‘Invicta’ is now displayed in the Canterbury museum.” [17]
A later article about the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway, written by D. Crook, was carried by The Railway Magazine in February 1951. [19]
Crook says that the Canterbury & Whitstable was “the first railway in England to convey ordinary passengers in steam-hauled trains. … In 1832, Whitstable Harbour was opened and … a steamer later ran … between Whitstable and London. During the 1840s, the South Eastern Railway took an interest in the Canterbury & Whitstable line. The S.E.R. leased it in 1844, commenced working it in 1846, and eventually bought it outright in 1853. From 6th April 1846, it was worked throughout its length by locomotive traction, when a junction was made at Canterbury with the South Eastern line from Ashford to Margate.” [19: p125] It was at this time that the stationary engines became surplus to requirements.
“The financial receipts improved steadily and throughout the remainder of the nineteenth century the line was prosperous. In 1860, the London, Chatham & Dover Railway reached Whitstable, and shortly afterwards was extended to Margate. The South Eastern Railway opposed the construction of this line and, of course, there was no connection between the two railways at Whitstable. Early in the [20th] century intermediate halts were built at South Street, and Tyler Hill, both serving scattered communities between Whitstable and Canterbury, and a new station was provided at Whitstable Harbour, on a site just outside the harbour. In 1913, the South Eastern & Chatham Railway, into which the L.C.D.R. and S.E.R. had merged, built the present Whitstable & Tankerton Station on the main line. The Canterbury & Whitstable Railway crossed over this line just beyond the end of the platforms, and a halt was built on the bridge at the point of crossing. Steps connected the two stations and special facilities, such as cheap day tickets between Herne Bay and Canterbury via Whitstable, were commenced. After the first world war, local bus competition became intensive and the inevitable decline followed. In 1930, it was decided to close the line to passengers and the last passenger train ran on 31st December of that year. This decision must have brought the Southern Railway more relief than regret, for, in consequence of the one tunnel (Tyler Hill) on the route, clearances are very limited, and only selected engines and special coaching stock can work over it. From 1931 onwards the line has been used regularly for goods traffic, and today [in 1950], with total closure a possibility in the near future, it provides a wealth of interest.” [19: p125-126]
In 1950, Crook took his own journey along the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway which began at “Canterbury West Station, the bay platform from which the Whitstable trains ran [was] now disused. The railway [curved] sharply towards Whitstable, and immediately [left the main] line. The single track [climbed] up through the outskirts of Canterbury, and [entered] the first railway tunnel to be built in the world.” [19: p126]
We need to pause for a moment to note that Tyler Hill’s claim was actually to being the first tunnel which passenger services passed through. (Haie Hill Tunnel in the Forest of Dean was an earlier structure but was only used for goods services.)
Tyler Hill Tunnel restricted the dimensions of locomotives and rolling-stock on the line. Nothing wider than 9ft. 3in. or higher than 11ft. could work through the tunnel which was nearly half a mile in length. The gradient through the tunnel (1 in 50) continued North of the tunnel for a total length of two miles.
Crook mentions passing Tyler Hill level crossing but noted that there was no sign of the passenger halt which once stood there. He continues: “Entering woodland country, the line … begins to drop sharply towards Whitstable. The gradients on the descent have been widely quoted as 1 in 31 and 1 in 28, but [Crook notes] the gradient boards [he saw] show them as 1 in 32 and 1 in 30. In any case, they are among the steepest to be found on a British railway. At the foot of this bank, the woods are left behind and another level stretch follows: it was at this point that Invicta used to be coupled on to the trains. The line then approaches South Street Halt, of which the platform has been removed and the waiting room only remains. The level crossing gates there, and similarly at Tyler Hill, are operated by the resident of a nearby house, the train indicating its approach by prolonged whistling. Nearing the outskirts of Whitstable, the line passes under an imposing road bridge built in 1935 by the Kent Kent County Council and carrying the A299 road which takes the bulk of the road traffic to the Kent coast. … The final steep drop into Whitstable is at 1 in 57 and 1 in 50. A road is crossed on a picturesque brick arch, which is still in its original condition, although it is undoubtedly awkward for road traffic because of its narrowness and oblique position. Immediately beyond this bridge is a much more modern one carrying the railway over the main Victoria-Ramsgate line at a point (as mentioned earlier) just clear of the main line Whitstable Station. Not a trace remains of Tankerton Halt.” [19: p126-127]
“By 1914, the railway was running regular services for day-trippers and Tankerton was becoming a thriving tourist destination, with tea shacks and beach huts springing up along the coast. 1914 also saw the outbreak of WW1 and the Crab and Winkle Railway was passed into the hands of the Government for the next 5 years. Passenger services were halted and the railway and harbour were used to transport much needed resources to the Western Front. These included livestock, horses, ammunition and trench building equipment.” [18] After the war, the return of passenger services did not result in the same level of patronage as before the war.
Crook continues his 1950s commentary: “Half a mile on lies the harbour, from the railway viewpoint, a pathetic sight. Both stations are still standing, the original inside the harbour gates, and the later one just outside and separated from the harbour by the main road through Whitstable. Level-crossing gates are provided there. The original station is completely derelict, and the later station, now closed for over 20 years, from the outside at least, is little better. This building has been leased for various purposes, and at present is the headquarters of the local sea cadets. Devoid of paint, and with the platform surface overgrown with weeds, it makes a very sad commentary on the march of time. The small signal box which stood there has been completely removed. A loop is provided for the engine to work round its train and this is the only section of double track along the whole six miles. The harbour itself is as pathetic as the derelict stations, with a profusion of sidings which could hold without difficulty 70 to 80 trucks. Thus the handful of trucks, rarely more than 15, lying in one or two of the sidings, serve only to remind of a past prosperity now not enjoyed. Small coastal steamers and barges carrying mostly grain and stone use the harbour, which suffers badly from the disadvantage of being tidal.” [19: p127]
It is worth commenting that Whitstable has seen a renaissance in the late 20th- and early 21st- centuries. It is a pleasant place to wander and has seen a real recovery in its economy.
Crook continues his 1950s commentary: “There are now no signals along the track but the telegraph wires appear intact, though off their poles in some places. A modern touch is provided by standard Southern Railway cast-concrete gradient signs and mile posts. The latter give the route miles to London via Canterbury East and Ashford, and, as a point of interest, by this route London is [76.25] miles from Whitstable compared with 59 miles by the Victoria-Ramsgate main line. … Originally two goods trains each day were needed to keep abreast of the traffic, but now one is ample. It takes half-an-hour to arrive from Canterbury, there is an hour’s leisurely shunting in the harbour, and the return to Canterbury is made at about 1 p.m. There is no train on Sundays. Goods carried mostly are confined to coal into Whitstable and grain into Ashford. At one time coal from the Kent mines was exported from Whitstable, but now the coal which comes this way is entirely for local use and is not a product off the local coalfields alone, but mostly from the Midlands. In the other direction, grain is unloaded at Whitstable from class “R1” six-coupled freight tanks which are in accord with the historical traditions of the line, for no fewer than three Chief Mechanical Engineers have shared in producing the version seen today. Originally known as Class ‘R’, they were built between 1888 and 1898 by the South Eastern Railway and were among the last engines to appear from Ashford under the Stirling regime, 25 being built in all. On the formation of the S.E.C.R.. some of the class were modified by Wainwright and classified R1, a total of 23 ‘Rs’ and ‘R1s’ survived to be included in the Southern Railway stock list. Nine of these subsequently were further modified to enable them to work over the Canterbury & Whitstable line and succeeded some of Cudworth’s engines. At the end of 1950, all the ‘Rs’ and all but 10 of the ‘R1s’ had been scrapped. The surviving ‘R1s’ which can work this route are Nos. 31010, (now 61 years old). 31069, 31147, 31339, and these engines all make regular appearances.” [19: p127-128]
Because of the gradients on the line, working rules stipulated that trains had to be limited to 300 tons (18 loaded trucks) from Canterbury to Whitstable, and 200 tons in the other direction, but by the early 1950s loads rarely approached these figures. “Modifications were necessary to reduce the height of the ‘Rs’ and ‘Ris’ so that they could negotiate the tunnel on the branch, these alterations included the fitting of a short stove pipe chimney, a smaller dome, and pop safety valves. The ‘R1’ rostered for duty on the Canterbury and Whitstable line spends the rest of its day as yard pilot in the sidings at Canterbury West. It is coaled and watered there, and returns to Ashford only at weekends.” [19: p128]
The reduced headroom in the tunnel also meant that while most open type wooden and steel trucks were permitted over the route, no closed wagons were. “For the grain traffic, special 12-ton tarpaulin hopper wagons were used. These [had] fixed side flaps and [were] all inscribed with the legend ‘When empty return to Whitstable Harbour’. Special brake vans [were] used also. Because of weight restrictions, the ‘R1s'[were] not allowed over all the harbour sidings, and trucks there [were] horse drawn or man-handled.” [19: p128]
Crook concludes his article with some comments which were topical at the time of writing: “In recent years there has been strong agitation for the railway to be re-opened for passengers, but these efforts have been unsuccessful. It had been suggested that, as Canterbury is to be a local centre for the Festival of Britain, and the line has such an historical background, a passenger service should be reinstated for a trial period during the coming summer, but this was considered impracticable. … Perhaps specially-built diesel railcars would provide a satisfactory solution. On the other hand however strong the case for re-opening, it must be admitted that the need for special rolling stock constitutes a serious difficulty.” [19: p128]
“The line was in use for over 120 years. Passengers were carried until 1931 after which the line was used for goods only. The line finally closed on the 1st of December 1952, but was re-opened for several weeks in 1953 after the great floods cut the main coastal line on the 31st of January. The line was offered for sale in the late 1950s and large sections of the line were sold to private landowners. … The world’s oldest railway bridge in Whitstable was knocked down in 1971 to make way for cars. Thirty metres of the tunnel collapsed in 1974 and by 1997 the whole route was disused built on, or overgrown, almost entirely forgotten…” [17]
Two short notes about the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway:
A. A Canterbury and Whitstable Echo (The Railway Magazine, June 1959)
“Indignation has been expressed by residents in Whitstable at a recent substantial increase in the local rates, and the Urban District Council has been criticised for purchasing the harbour last year from the British Transport Com-mission for £12,500. This purchase accounts for 5d. of the 4s. 4d. increase in the rates. Whitstable Harbour was the first in the world to be owned by a railway company; it was among the works authorised by the Canterbury & Whitstable Act of incorporation of June 10, 1825. The railway was closed completely in December, 1952, and has been dismantled. In present circumstances, it probably is but cold comfort for the disgruntled residents to stress the historical interest of the harbour, quite apart from its commercial value. For them the fact remains that the purchase by the local authority of this adjunct to the pioneer railway in Kent has resulted in an increase in their rates.” [22]
B. Whitstable Harbour (The Railway Magazine, September 1959)
“Sir, Your editorial note in the June issue is of considerable interest to railway historians, for in addition to the fact that Whitstable Harbour was the first in the world to be owned by a railway company, it was also via this harbour that one of the earliest combined railway and steamboat bookings was introduced … In 1836, a local steam packet company agreed with the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway for the issue of tickets between Canterbury and London, and advertised that the ship William the Fourth, with Captain Thomas Minter, would leave Whitstable at 12 o’clock every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and that the connecting train from Canterbury would leave that station at 11 o’clock. The journey from London would be made on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The advertised single fares (including the railway journey) from Canterbury to London were in chief cabin 6s., children 4s.; and in fore cabin 5s., children 3s. 6d. The advertisement was headed with a small picture of the steam packet and the words, ‘Steam to London from Whitstable and Canterbury to Dyers Hall Steam Packet Wharf near London Bridge‘.” [23]
NB: There is at least a question mark to the assertion that Whitstable Harbour was the first in the world to be owned by a railway company. We know that Port Darlington was opened in December 1830. Whitstable harbour was built in 1832 to serve the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway which opened earlier. [24]
References
C.R. Henry; The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway: The Second Public Railway Opened in England; in The Railway Magazine, London, October 1907, p305-313.
In April 1920, a couple of paragraphs in The Railway Magazine focussed on a new experimental Railmotor constructed by New South Wales Railways. [1]
Railmotor No. 1
In April 1920, The Railway Magazine reported that New South Wales’ Railway Commissioners introduced a railmotor service on the Lismore line, an isolated section on the North Coast. The railmotor car was provided by converting and lengthening to 8 ft. 6 in. the chassis of a five-ton Moreland motor lorry. The front pair of wheels were also replaced by a four-wheeled bogie. The railmotor provided seating accommodation for 33 passengers, and was designed and constructed at the carriage and wagon shops of the system at Eveleigh, Sydney. [1]
Before being placed in service, a severe trial run was made, and proved in every way to be most successful; a I in 40 grade being taken at a speed of 18 m.p.h. The time-table was arranged for speeds up to 25 mph. The Railway Magazine noted that if found satisfactory in continued service similar rail-motor services would be introduced on other branch lines. [1]
NSW Railmotor No. 1 was powered by a 42 hp 4-cylinder American Waukesha petrol engine. This engine was later replaced by a 40 hp British Thornycroft 4-cylinder petrol engine. This vehicle proved a success on the line between Lismore and Grafton. [3]
“The wooden body … was finished in narrow tongue and groove boards. It was divided into three separate sections, accommodating 33 passengers and 2 crew. The first section was the cab, which accommodated the train crew (the driver and the guard). The second section (the forward compartment) accommodated 23 passengers and the third section (the rear compartment) was a smoking area and accommodated 10 passengers. The two passenger compartments were fitted with transverse seats and drop type windows, and each compartment had two doors, which opened outwards. There was no interconnection between the three compartments. Steps were fitted under each of the doors to allow passengers to alight from the vehicle to ground level.” [3]
“The Railmotor was designed to run in one direction only and draw-gear was fitted to the trailing end so that a trailer could be attached for hauling light goods and parcels. A collapsible tricycle (trike) was also carried for the train crew’s use in case of an emergency or breakdown in the section. This was carried on the back of the Railmotor.” [3]
“In November 1925, after six years of reliable service, [this vehicle] was withdrawn from passenger traffic and it took on a new role as the Signal Engineer’s inspection car. It subsequently lost its title of Railmotor No.1 as this was re-allocated to one the newly designed 42-foot Railmotors in November 1926.” [3]
“No. 1 was finally withdrawn from railway service in 1930. The body was sold and it began a new life as a house in the Coffs Harbour region, while the chassis was scrapped.” [3]
As we have already noted, one drawback with Railmotor No.1 was that it was only single ended and needed to be turned at the terminus for the return journey. Therefore double-ended operation was to be provided in the next prototype vehicle, Railmotor No.2, built in 1921. [3] Both trial vehicles were sufficiently successful to mean that the railway company went on to use a number of Railmotors.
Railmotor No. 2
Railmotor No. 2 (Kathleen)! “An end-platform suburban type carriage, FA 1864, was chosen for this experimental vehicle. Eveleigh Carriage Works converted this carriage to a Railmotor while its mechanical parts and the petrol engine were designed and built in Eveleigh Locomotive Works.” [3]
Configured as a railmotor, Kathleen (never its official name) “was divided into 4 sections, accommodating 53 passengers and 2 crew. [A] driving [cab was] positioned at each end. The First Class section accommodated 16 passengers, while the Second Class section accommodated 37 passengers. … Driving cabs were mounted in the centre of the end platforms at each end of the vehicle. Entry to the cab was gained through a back door that opened into the passenger compartment. The driving controls were arranged to allow the vehicle to be driven from either end and this meant the vehicle did not have to be turned for the return journey.” [3]
The first class section of the Railmotor “occupied one third of the vehicle’s length and the second class area occupied the remaining two thirds. Access to either area was gained through a door contained in a wall separating the two compartments. The engine protruded through the floor of the second class area and was covered by a padded fixture providing seating for an additional 5 passengers. This fixture measured 10′ 6″ x 3′ 6″. Battery boxes were also located in this central area and these to were covered with padded seats providing seating for 12 passengers.” [3]
“Railmotor No. 2 was powered by a 6-cylinder 100 hp (@1,000 rpm) petrol engine manufactured in the Eveleigh Railway Workshops. This engine was regarded as a fine piece of engineering, as it was reversible. That is, it could be turned in either direction and it contained features such as coil ignition, seven bearing crankshaft, together with overhead valves and camshaft. To make the engine turn in the opposite direction a camshaft containing two sets of cams was slid into position by means of compressed air. This engine weighed 22 cwt. A three-speed gearbox was coupled by cardan-shaft to both axles on one bogie. The vehicle was geared to give a road speed of 40 mph (@1,425 rpm) in top gear. Total weight of the vehicle of 26 tons 7 cwt 2 qtr.” [4]
“As the Railmotor could run in either direction, buffers, cowcatchers and standard screw drawgear were mounted on headstocks at either end and electric headlights were mounted above each of the driver’s windscreens. Electric lighting was used for the cab and compartment areas.” [4]
“Railmotor No.2 ran trials between Tamworth and Barraba on the 29th April, 1921. On the 15th October, 1922, the public timetable officially showed the railmotor, which provided a faster daily service (except Sundays) in place of the three times weekly mixed train service.” [4]
“No.2 failed to complete about two thirds of its allotted mileage during the first twelve months of operation and this poor performance was put down to undulating grades on the Barraba branch. The unit was eventually withdrawn from this working in November 1924. The unit proved a little more successful when it was trialled on the easier graded Burren Junction to Pokataroo branch during 1925.” [4]
It was withdrawn from service “in November 1925 and reverted to its original role as a suburban carriage number FA 1864. The engine that powered No.2 found a new life driving a water pump at Armidale and later at Valley Heights. … A proposal to construct another five cars similar to Kathleen but with an increased seating capacity lapsed. New designs proceeded and the standard 42-foot railmotor emerged.” [4]
References
Petrol Railmotor Car: New South Wales Government Railways; in The Railway Magazine, April 1920, p230.
Both the Rimutaka Incline and the Raurimu Sprial were highlighted by Will Lawson in an article in The Railway Magazine in 1909. [1]
The Rimutaka Incline
Will Lawson wrote about the mountain railways of New Zealand in the August 1909 issue of The Railway Magazine. [1] The two principal lines on the South Island were under construction at the time of his article. Those on the North Island were already in use.We look first at the Rimutaka Incline. …
“It is raining at Cross Creek, that lonely railway outpost at the foot of the Rimutaka Incline. Heavy vapours cling to the mountain, and out across the valley only a cloak of mist is to be seen. In the winter twilight, the mail train from Napier arrives. The engine which has hauled it over the plains is uncoupled. With her big driving – wheels, she could hardly propel herself up the 1 in 15 grade which now confronts her, and she gives way to two black, squat-funnelled Fell engines, which already are moving out from the running-shed to be attached to the train. They are followed by No. 66, a huge freight engine, which rolls along with an air of supreme disgust, as though this business of climbing mountains was beneath her contempt. These grimy black monsters, with never a gleam of brass about them, take the mail to the summit-No. 66 in the lead, and the two Fell engines at convenient distances, sandwiched among the carriages, while three brake-vans bring up the rear. These have powerful brakes, which operate on a centre rail laid between the usual rails carrying the wheels. On this rail the Fell engines also grip with their bevel grip-wheels. The carriage lamps are lighted, and the Cyclopean eye of each steel Goliath gleams through the rain. It is 21 miles to the summit, on a greasy rail, up the side of a black, wet mountain. Yet a glance at the hissing, steaming engines now attached to the train gives reassurance. They have an air of irresistibility that is most convincing, and they apparently scorn the grade which rises abruptly outside the level station yard. The leading engine blows her whistle; the sound is echoed by the other two; white steam shoots skyward; and the train glides away from the lonely settlement.
Standing on the level, the water-gauges appear to be empty, but as the engine meets the hill and her bevel-wheels slide on to the centre rail to be firmly clutched thereon by a powerful lever, the water, owing to the tilt of the engine, rises in the glass to a normal level. One reason for not filling the boiler up when on the level is that if there is too much water in the boiler, the heavy blast of the exhaust steam causes ‘priming’. This, of course, is fatal to effective driving.
The bevel wheels on the Fell are driven by an engine distinct from that which drives the ordinary driving-wheels, and as both sets of wheels slip occasionally, the exhaust from the Fell engines occurs with some irregularity. The effect is peculiar, suggestive of an asthmatic Samson climbing a greasy pole. In contrast, the steady thrash! thrash! of No. 66 has dignity. The pace is the merest crawl, scarcely exceeding a walking pace, and the din from the three engines is deafening. This is due to the extremely high pressure at which the boilers are worked. The exhaust steam, mingled with smoke, shoots up for a distance of some 30 ft., and there swirls and hangs in a heavy cloud, which, dimly seen in the coming darkness, marks the progress of the train along the mountain side. The glare from the open fire-doors transforms the cloud of steam into a mass of wicked red vapours, which, with the black, foggy mountains and yawning ravines, makes the scene almost Mephistophelean in its luridness. The train of carriages appears as a procession of glow-worms crawling through a night of foggy density.
On the Incline the shovel is never idle, and in the half-hour occupied in making the ascent the fireman exerts enough energy to run her 20 miles or so on the level. Even on the ends of the hair of his head drops of perspiration cling. In the cab there is only that shielded lamp, so designed that it throws its light on the water-gauge and steam-gauge. The driver’s eyes are shielded from it, as they also are from the furnace glare. Drivers and firemen may elect to work on this section of line or not, as they choose. Extra pay is given them, and in the busy season a great deal of overtime is to be earned. There is one driver who has continued on this run for 20 years, and there are others who are content to stay, despite the, to the lay mind, severity of the ordeal to be gone through in each up-run, especially on thick, wet nights. On such occasions the engine eats coal – one may almost hear her chewing it, and the resulting smoke is suffocating in the tunnels of which there are three – two short ones on the way up and a long curving one at the summit. Best Coalbrookdale is burned – the hottest, cleanest coal obtainable.
Now, some distance up the track looms the first tunnel, piercing an outstanding spur. The engine whistles, there is a sound of slamming windows, with which the engines are fitted, and then such a pandemonium of sound as cannot be imagined. It is an inferno. The 30-foot column of expanding steam and smoke is confined by the tunnel’s arch about 2 ft. above the funnel, and there follows a terrific compression which forces the hot vapours into the engine-cab in spite of windows. Each thrash of the spouting funnel stuns like a blow, the sulphur suffocates, the heat scorches. And on top of all these the fireman opens the fire-door and tosses coal in. Then it seems that there is no air to breathe at all. The wet rail is making the pace slower than usual, though the leading engine, having a dry rail in the tunnel, is exerting herself to get out as quickly. as possible. Still the stuttering, thrashing exhaust thuds on the tunnel’s arch: the tiny lamp in the cab gleams faintly through the smoke; the wicked red shafts from the air-holes in the fire-door radiate their redness in the suffocating atmosphere. Then the clamour of the funnel quietens; the windows are shot open; driver and fireman lean out to breathe God’s air once more. The men in the second and third engines have a worse time than those in the leader, as the tunnel becomes hotter and more foul with the passage of each engine. Onward, upward, she goes – slipping and racing – sanding and swearing. When the wheels slip, sand is thrown upon the rail, but before this is done, steam is shut off. If the sand were thrown under the spinning wheels while steam is on, possibly every rod and crank would be broken owing to the sudden check to the revolving wheel jarring these parts and throwing undue strain upon them.
Another tunnel is passed through, after which the pace quickens. The ‘long straight’ is reached. Here the grade is easier, and the line is straight. So the engines quicken their stroke, and when the last tunnel appears, they are making better time. Into this horseshoe shaped hole in the mountain crest the one-eyed, black giant of steel thunders. She crashes and rumbles along, her crew coughing in the smoky atmosphere. Then clang-clang! clang-clang! A bell, swung at the side of the tunnel and rung by the wheels of each passing vehicle, cries weirdly, telling that the uphill fight is over, the level road is here at last. The engine’s beat becomes more rapid as each carriage tops the grade to the ringing of the bell. As the other engines reach level ground the pace becomes the normal pace of a train running into a station. Ding-dong! ding-dong! A deep-toned bell moans its message through the vaulted place. The grade is a down one now, into the Summit station. The centre grip-rail ends abruptly, and the train rolls into the Summit yard, where an engine of the usual tank type takes it over from the monsters of the mountains, and away down the 1 in 35 grades which lead to Wellington.” [1: p123-126]
The Rimutaka Incline was built in the early 1870s and, as of 1909, was the steepest commercial railway in the world (the only railway on a grade of 1 in 15 on which ordinary rolling stock was used). “It [crossed] a spur of the Tararua Range at an elevation of 1,114 ft. above sea-level, and about a dozen trains [passed] over it in each direction daily.” [1: p121] It avoided what would have been a 25 mile (or more) deviation. Until the middle of the first decade of the 20th century, the line was worked by Fell locomotives alone, by 1909 a Mallet type of locomotive (designed and built in New Zealand specifically for work on the incline) was included in the roster.
Fell locomotives operate conventionally on regular gradients but are equipped with an extra four laterally-set wheels, which grip an additional centre-rail laid between the usual rails. The “lateral wheels are driven by a separate set of engines located under the smoke-box, and they are pressed to the rail by a lever which the fireman moves when the engine reaches the place where the centre-rail begins. Until that place is reached, progress is made by the usual driving wheels. The pressure exerted by the four grip wheels amounts to 70 tons, and, in addition, the engine has two powerful brakes, having jaws which grip the centre- rail in case of a stoppage and when descending the incline.” [1: p122]
In 1909 the relatively new Mallet-type loco, No.66, was proving to be highly effective. It was “65 tons in weight, carried on 12 driving-wheels and two leading wheels, an articulated tank engine working at a pressure of 200 lbs. to the square inch. The driving-wheels [were] in two [six-coupled sets], each set being driven by compound engines, the exhaust from the rear cylinders occurring through a pipe on the top of the engine cab. On the incline this engine [could] pull a train weighing 110 tons, and to accomplish this she [burned] half a ton of coal. Usually, however, she [took] the train up the hill in conjunction with the Fell engines.” [1: p122]
The incline was on the line from Wellington to Napier with the steep upward grade being on the Napier to Wellington service.
Wikipedia tells us that the “Rimutaka Incline was a 3-mile-long (4.8 km), 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge railway line on an average grade of 1-in-15 using the Fell system between Summit and Cross Creek stations on the Wairarapa side of the original Wairarapa Line in the Wairarapa district of New Zealand. … The incline formation is now part of the Remutaka Rail Trail.” [2]
These notes come from the Wikipedia entry about the incline. …
The construction of a railway from Wellington to Masterton was authorised in the Railways Act passed on 13th September 1871. Julius Vogel, Colonial Treasurer, travelled to England to raise finance for a major public works programme for railway construction. Vogel returned via the United States, where he studied rail systems.
After the Act was passed, a survey party investigated four different routes. A commonality between all the proposals was the section from Upper Hutt to Kaitoki (later Kaitoke). Between Kaitoke and the Wairarapa, the four proposals were the Tauwharenikau Route, Mr Sinclair’s Route, a coastal route and the Pakuratahi Route.
While the government was conducting its surveys, Wellington Province Superintendent William Fitzherbert instructed his Provincial Engineer, Charles O’Neill, to investigate the possibility of a railway through the Rimutaka Valley (the route of the road between Featherston and Upper Hutt), with a tunnel through the dividing range. The survey was carried out between May andJuly 1871, and O’Neill reported that a tunnel 130 chains (2.6 km) long would be required, with the line rising at 1 in 60 from the Pakuratahi to the tunnel then descending at 1 in 40 to Featherston. This survey was forwarded to the Minister for Public Works.
In mid-1873 the route to Featherston was chosen after a final survey for the route from Upper Hutt to Summit.
For the line between Summit and the Wairarapa, several proposals were considered. The first, with gradients up to 1 in 30, was dismissed. It was found that to keep the gradient to no steeper than 1 in 40, curves of three chains (60 m) radius would be required. This would have required special rolling stock and heavy earthworks and was thus abandoned.
Another proposal was known as the Birch Spur Incline. This would have involved the line continuing from Summit to Birch Spur from where a rope-worked incline would convey traffic to the valley floor where the railway would continue through a narrow valley to the Wairarapa plains. The Public Works Department engineers investigating this proposal were unable to locate a suitable incline, so this proposal was also abandoned.
The last option was a three-mile (4.8 km) incline with gradients averaging 1 in 15 “to be worked by locomotives of an unusual nature”. This line was the most favourable from an engineer’s point of view, and required not unreasonable earthworks. The final decision was made by the head of the Public Works Department, John Carruthers. He determined that an incline worked by the Fell system would be suitable, and cited the Mont Cenis Pass Railway as an example. Though special locomotives would be required, factors in its favour were that ordinary rolling stock could be used and it was a proven system. It was to be the third and last Fell system employing the centre rail for both tractive power and braking, and the longest surviving. Though it was considered to be a “temporary” measure, it outlasted the second such system in Brazil by 72 years. [2]
Construction
Construction of the Rimutaka Incline was included in two contracts that were let for the building of the original Wairarapa Line. These contracts were known as the Summit contract and the Incline contract. [2]
The Summit Contract included the excavation of Summit station yard and related drainage, Summit tunnel, and formation work to a point 26 chains (523 m) beyond the tunnel. It was the shortest contract of those let for the line, it was finished by the original contractor, and it had the fewest alterations. Work was to start on 12th July 1874 and to be completed by 22nd July 1876, at which time the Pakuratahi contract was due to be completed. [2]
Summit yard was a large cut into the hillside, 120 feet (37 m) wide and 500 yards (460 m) long initially. Excavations removed material to a depth of 15–20 feet, with this fill being dumped on the opposite side of the yard to form level ground. On the hillside above the yard, further ground was levelled and houses erected thereon. [2]
After the yard had taken shape, work commenced on the tunnel. The approach to the tunnel was about 6 chains long and up to 60 feet (18 m) deep. The line entered the tunnel on a downward grade of 1 in 1,000, steepening to a grade of 1 in 15 at the eastern portal. At that end a small drainage tunnel had to be built to divert a stream that had flowed down a steep gully where the tunnel mouth was to be. The maximum height of the tunnel was 15 feet (4.6 m) above the floor: once rails were laid the maximum clearance was 13 feet 9 inches (4.19 m) The width of the tunnel varied from 10 feet 6 inches (3.20 m) at the floor to 12 feet (3.7 m) at 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 m) above the floor. Despite castigation from various parties, it was not until March 1877 that work on both ends of the tunnel met at the middle, having taken three and a half years to complete. [2]
The Public Works Department lined the tunnel after the rails had reached the site, enabling them to use work trains to bring materials and other supplies in. It was during this phase that the only fatality on this contract occurred: on 3rd May 1878, a sizeable portion of the lining collapsed on two men. One was killed outright, the other lost his eyesight due to severe head injuries. [2]
The Summit contract was completed on 10th December 1877, 17 months behind schedule. [2]
The Incline Contract was let on 5th October 1875 to Charles McKirdy for the sum of £49,029. The contract covered the formation only, with the Public Works Department responsible for track laying. [2]
Work on the contract began on 22nd October 1875. None of the major earthworks seem to have presented any great difficulties, save the lower tunnel, which was plagued by accidents and materials failures largely because of the unstable nature of the rock through which it passed. The tunnel was named Price’s after the manager McKirdy employed for this contract. On 2nd March 1876, two men died due to a cave-in of the tunnel roof. [2]
Between October 1877 and March 1878, platelaying was completed up to Summit. This enabled the use of work trains to haul up materials that were used to line Summit Tunnel. Track laying on the incline commenced in April 1878 and reached Cross Creek the following month. During this work, locomotive H199 was stabled at Summit and used to haul work and ballast trains to the railhead. [2]
Initially, only simple arrangements were made for the station yard at Cross’s Creek, as it had yet to be decided the nature of operations on the Incline. It consisted of the main line, an engine siding of 10 chains, and the runaway siding. [2]
After formation work continued beyond Cross Creek, McKirdy ran out of time and money, with the remainder of his contract being picked up by his guarantors, T. W. Young and Robert Greenfield. They finished the formation to Featherston on 17th August 1878, with track laying finishing the following month. The contract was completed 13 months late. [2]
Operation – Initially, trains on the incline were limited to the weight that could be managed by a single locomotive. After complaints from management of the expense of running too many trains, two locomotives seem to have been used, both at the head of the train. From 1887 trains were worked with multiple locomotives, each at the head of its rated load. As the maximum weight of a train during this period was 150 tons, no more than three locomotives were used per train. Train operations continued to be modified until by 1908 the maximum load allowed per train had increased to 250 tons descending and 260 tons ascending. [2]
When the line opened, there were two Fell brake vans in service, each 12 ft 6 in (3.81 m) long and 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) from floor to ceiling, with open platforms at either end. The wear on the brake blocks fitted to these vans was so severe that a set of blocks seldom lasted more than one trip down the incline. Like the positioning and loading of the locomotives, the arrangements for positioning of the Fell vans varied until they were largely standardised by 1897. For ascending trains, Fell vans were placed at the rear of the train. For descending trains, a Fell van was placed between the locomotives and the leading vehicle. If the gross weight of the train exceeded 120 tons or included more than 15 vehicles (excluding the locomotives in both cases) a second Fell van was attached to the rear of the train. These rules applied before the introduction of the Westinghouse continuous air brake. The Fell locomotives were never turned, running cab first on descending trains. [2]
As descending trains departed Summit the “through” guard applied the brakes on the leading vehicle, then moved through the train applying the brakes on the other vehicles until he reached the train van, which also had brakes that had to be applied. Each Fell van had its own guard to operate the two sets of brakes. [2]
After the introduction of the continuous brake system in 1903 it became possible to operate trains with five locomotives, and on descending passenger trains up to five Fell brake vans could be used – two next to the locomotives, one in the middle, and two at the rear. As each brake van had its own guard and the train had a train guard and locomotive crews, a train with five brake vans and four locomotives had a crew of 14, which added to the expense of the operation. Moreover, to reduce the strain on couplings, when several locomotives were used they would be distributed through the train, as can be seen from photos. This necessitated significant re-marshalling of the train at either end of the incline. [2]
Instructions issued in 1885 regarding the use of the safety siding required that the points for the incline be set to the safety siding. As descending trains approached the Cross Creek yard, the driver of the leading locomotive sounded a long whistle, which signalled that all was well. On hearing this signal the signalman would set the points for the arrival road. As far as is known no real emergency occurred. Cross Creek had an unusual six-lever partially-interlocked signalling installation and had no “distant” signals so had points indicators which applied to the “main” line (see Heine for station layout), while Summit had a fully interlocked 27-lever frame. [2][3]
Unusual traffic included four royal trains: for the Prince of Wales in 1921; the Duke (later King George VI) and Duchess of York in 1927; the Duke of Gloucester in 1935; and Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh in 1954. Trains were diverted from the Manawatu line due to slips, floods or other mishaps. [2]
The original yards at Cross Creek and Summit were sufficient for the traffic levels of the time, but increasing traffic brought about incremental additions. The full extent of the Summit yard was reached in 1903, which coincided with the introduction of full signalling and interlocking, not introduced to Cross Creek until 1915. [2]
The Fell locomotives (H class) were not to be operated on any part of the railway other than the Incline, with the sole exception of conveying them to the Petone (and later Hutt) Workshops for maintenance. In the latter case, bunkers, water tanks and boilers were to be empty and the locomotives were to be towed at a speed not exceeding 10 miles per hour (16 km/h). These rules were relaxed to allow the locomotives to travel light engine to Petone and back under their own steam, subject to the same speed restrictions. In 1887 they were permitted to be operated between Cross Creek and Pigeon Bush, later extended to Featherston to enable them to be used for banking purposes. Running rights between Cross Creek and Featherston were revoked about 1943. [2]
Speed limits for trains on the Incline were changed several times. From 1884 to 1888 the limit was 6 mph (9.7 km/h) ascending and descending, except light passenger trains for which the limit was 8 mph (13 km/h). In 1888 these limits changed to 5 mph (8.0 km/h) up, 9 mph (14 km/h) down. The limits were finally 6 mph (9.7 km/h) up, 10 mph (16 km/h) down. [2]
Various classes of locomotives were deployed to supplement the H class when one or more was away for maintenance or repairs, including
W192 and 238 2-6-2T locomotives, built in 1889 and 1891 respectively, which spent most of their time on the Wellington to Summit section until their transfer in 1909;
54-ton We 4-6-4T locomotives rebuilt from 4-8-0 B Class locomotives, rated to haul passenger trains up to 55 tons and goods trains up to 60 tons, until 1906, after which they were used mainly on the Upper Hutt to Summit section and rated to haul passenger trains up to 130 tons, mixed trains 150 tons and goods trains 155 tons, and were then later sent to work on the Rewanui Incline on the South Island;
65-ton E 66, rated to haul 80 tons up the Incline, and nicknamed Pearson’s Dream. In 1910 it was transferred to banking duties on the Wellington to Johnsonville section, but it was never popular with crew. (This is interesting, given Lawson’s very positive description of the loco in use on the Incline);
Wg 480 4-6-4T locomotive, during the first World War.
After the Great War traffic was well within the capabilities of the six H class Fell locomotives. [2]
The mileages run by the H class locomotives show notable increases that correspond to economic and other major events, such as the opening of the Wairarapa Line as far as Masterton, completion of the line to Woodville, and the nationalisation of the Wellington and Manawatu Railway. With the opening of the railway to Masterton the annual mileage of the H class rose from less than 7,000 to more than 8,000, in 1883–1897 to 34,000, and to 42,000 when the line was opened to Woodville and began carrying traffic from the Hawke’s Bay. Mileage peaked at 64,123 in 1906–07, about 10,687 miles per locomotive or 1,780 return Incline trips. [2]
Wairarapa railcars
In 1936 seven lightweight Wairarapa railcars, RM 4–10, were introduced between Palmerston North, Masterton and Wellington. They were specifically designed for the Incline, and were built at the Hutt Workshops. They were named after historic Maori canoes: Maahunui, Mahuhu, Mamari, Matahourua, Mataatua, Arai-te-Uru and Arawa. Initially powered by 130 horsepower (97 kW) Leyland petrol engines, they were upgraded after several years to 120 horsepower (89 kW) diesel engines. They had a single rear driving axle with 38½” (978 mm) diameter wheels, necessitated by the need for the axle and final drive unit to have sufficient clearance above the Incline’s centre rail. Because of the large rear wheels the floor of the passenger compartment was 52½” (1334 mm) above rail level, more than 12 inches (300 mm) higher than normal. They were rated for a maximum speed of 60 mph (97 km/h) and expected to climb the Incline at 15-17 mph, but actually managed only 10–12 mph. Nevertheless, they greatly speeded up passenger trains on the route and immediately proved popular. They were withdrawn in 1955 when the Incline closed. [2]
Several options for an alternative to the Incline were considered in the 20th century, but it was not until after WWII that a route through a tunnel between Maymorn and Lucena’s Creek was selected. Construction was started in 1948 by the Public Works Department and completed by a private contractor in 1955. The tunnel and deviation opened on 3rd November 1955, five days after this the Incline closed. [2][6]
Demolition was swift, with the removal of track between Cross Creek and Pigeon Bush largely completed by March 1956. H 199 was used to haul the work trains that removed the track between Cross Creek and Summit. The buildings were sold at auction, on site. Some of the rails were sent to the Rewanui Incline, as were a couple of the Fell brake vans. Five of the six H class locomotives were towed to the Hutt Workshops, later to Silverstream, to be scrapped. [2]
Today
A resurgence of public interest in the incline followed the publication of a book in 1976 and the opening of the Fell Engine Museum in the early 1980s, prompting the New Zealand Forest Service to re-establish access to Cross Creek in 1984. [5: p40] Interest increased following the publishing of an article in the NZ Runner magazine “Try this Run” in the November-December 1984 issue, which promoted this incline as a backcountry running opportunity [Issue No 35]. The official opening of a rail trail using the formation of the original railway line from Cross Creek to Kaitoke followed in 1987. [5: p41] It is today one of the more popular recreational facilities in the region and forms part of the Remutaka Forest Park. [5: p41]
The Raurimu Spiral
“The Raurimu Spiral is a single-track railway spiral, starting with a horseshoe curve, overcoming a 139-metre (456 ft) height difference, in the central North Island of New Zealand, on the North Island Main Trunk railway (NIMT) between Wellington and Auckland. It is a notable feat of civil engineering, having been called an ‘engineering masterpiece’. [8] The Institute of Professional Engineers of New Zealand has designated the spiral as a significant engineering heritage site.” [7][9]
A bird’s eye view of the Raurimu Spiral, seen from the West and taken in November 2007, (c) Duane Wilkins and licenced for reuse under a Creatiev Commons Licence (CC BY-SA 2.0). [10]
“During the construction of the central section of the NIMT, a major obstacle arose: how to cross the steep slopes between the North Island Volcanic Plateau to the east and the valleys and gorges of the Whanganui River to the west? … South of Taumarunui, the terrain is steep but not unmanageable, with the exception of the stretch between Raurimu and National Park, where the land rises too steeply for a direct rail route. A direct line between these two points would rise 200 metres (660 ft) in a distance of some 5 kilometres (3.1 mi), a gradient of 1 in 24. The area was thoroughly surveyed during the 1880s in an attempt to find a route with a lesser grade, but the only viable possibility seemed to require a 20-kilometre (12 mi) detour and nine massive viaducts. Even then, the gradient would have been steeper than 1 in 50.” [9]
“The problem was solved in 1898 by a surveyor in the employ of Robert Holmes, Public Works Department engineer. He proposed a line that looped back upon itself and then spiralled around with the aid of tunnels and bridges, rising at a gradient of 1 in 52. Though costly and labour-intensive, the scheme was still cheaper than the previous plan by Browne and Turner which required 9 viaducts down the Piopiotea River.” [9]
Wikipedia tells us that the railway “forms an ascending spiral southwards, with two relatively short tunnels, a circle and three hairpin bends. From the north, trains pass Raurimu before going round a 200° bend to the left in a horseshoe curve, climbing above the track on which they have just travelled. Two sharp bends to the right follow, after which the line passes through two short tunnels, the Lower Spiral Tunnel (384 m) and the Upper Spiral Tunnel (96 m). Trains then complete a full circle, crossing over the Lower Spiral Tunnel through which they have just passed which is 23-metre (75 ft) below, before continuing towards Wellington. Two kilometres (1.2 mi) further on the line has two more sharp bends, to the right and then to the left. … After the second of these bends a train has risen 132 metres (433 ft) and travelled 6.8 kilometres (4.2 mi) from Raurimu– the straight-line distance is 2 kilometres (1.2 mi). Some of the sharp curves are only 7½ chains (150 m) radius. … A masterly feature of Holmes’ layout is the way in which it uses natural land contours so that no viaducts are needed, and only two short tunnels.” [9]
The line to Auckland was only completed in November 1908. The work on construction of the line across the feet of substantial mountains such as Mt. Ruapehu, Mt. Tongariro and Mt. Ngaruhoe (still an active volcano) proved arduous and held back the opening of the route. Overall, the “line rises to 3,000 ft. above sea-level. The maximum grade in the 90-mile mountain section is 1 in 50, and the sharpest curve has a radius of 7. 5 chains.” [1: p126]
At Raurimu, the railway rises 700 ft. in 7 miles, of which 4 miles constitutes the spiral. For the main lengths of the trunk route New Zealand Railways designed 72-ton four cylinder balanced compound Class ‘A’ locomotives. For the 90-mile mountain section a bigger beast of an engine was required! The Class ‘X’ “mountain engine [was] a monster weighing 92 tons. … The ‘A’ was probably the first narrow gauge locomotive, (3ft 6in gauge) in the world to be fitted with inside as well as outside cylinders, and the ‘X’ [was] similarly equipped. She [was] a four-cylinder engine, with eight-coupled 3ft. 9in. driving-wheels, which, carrying about 50 tons of her weight, [gave] her immense grip of the rail, her tractive force being 30,000 lbs. The ‘A’ (six- coupled 4ft. 6in. wheels) [had] a force of 17,000 lbs. So the ‘X’ [pulled] nearly double the load an ‘A’ [could] haul. A four-wheeled leading bogie and a two-wheel trailing truck [completed] her wheel arrangement. New Zealand, in the design and construction of this engine, [had] taken a stride which [brought] her narrow gauge on almost level terms with the standard one. The only fault which [could] possibly be found in the ‘X’ [was] in the width of the locomotive in the region of her fire-box. Her furnace and tubes [had] a heating surface of 2,000 square ft., and she [worked] at a pressure of 250 lbs. of steam to the square inch. Consequently, she [had] an enormous fire-box, which [overhung] at the sides. But, having length as well, she [had] symmetry and stability. At a high speed she [would have been] inclined to roll. Her speed, however, rarely [exceeded] 30 miles an hour, her business being to pull a heavy train up the hills at a fair pace.” [1: p126-127]
On the mountain section, the rails are 70 lbs., flat-footed (Vignoles) ones, spiked to sleepers and heavily ballasted. “The line [crossed] viaducts of great height, two of them curved ones, and it [pierced] many tunnels, one of which [had] an S-curve in its length. Altogether, the engineering conditions [were] severe, making the maintenance of a service of fast travel over this section a strenuous task.” [1: p127]
Train ascending the Raurimu Spiral in the early 1900s, (c) Frederick George Radcliffe/Auckland Libraries and authorised for reuse without restriction (Public Domain). [12]
Lawson goes on to describe a journey South over the spiral:
“There is bustle and babel on the railway platform at Taumarunui when the south-bound overland train is due. Her strident whistle sounds through the wintry morning air. A porter hurries along, his lantern gleaming in the dark, bidding all stand back, and he has hardly walked the length of the station when the express engine rushes past, bringing as her train six passenger cars, and the mail and baggage cars, three in number. She has come headlong from Te Kuiti, 50 miles away, through the long Poro-o-tarao tunnel and along the banks of the beautiful Ongaruhe River. But her ‘beat’ ends here. To fill her place comes a broad-backed monster whose bulging flanks overshadow her narrow wheel base. This is the ‘X’ engine, the monster of the mountains which will carry the mail, careering, where all Nature is, like herself, colossal. Her footplate is wide and her cab roomy and comfortable, after the American pattern. When her fire-door is opened it discloses an enormous cavern whence a stinging glare strikes out to the eyes. Beneath her tremendous energy one can almost feel the giant quiver. A shrill whistle is blown, and the fireman, watching for the guard’s starting signal, says, ‘Right away!’ There is a deep hoot from her whistle, and her throttle is opened slowly. So gently does she apply her strength, that the first sign of her moving is a gentle puff from her funnel 20 ft. away. Gathering way, she blows out a steady succession of muffled puffs, for there is nothing noisy about this locomotive until occasion in the shape of hard work demands it. Soon she is warming up and getting into her stride along the gently-rising track which leads to Piriaka. Originally it was intended that no grade on this line was to exceed 1 in 70, which, if not an easy one, is not unusual when cost of construction has to be studied, but the trend of the land towards the mountains compelled a maximum of 1 in 50, as already stated. Except on the Spiral, the maximum is 1 in 55. The big engine is making light work of her train of 9 heavy cars. Her fireman finds time to lean out and watch the carriage lights twinkling away in perspective. Past Kakahi and Owongo to Oio (surely the shortest railway name in the world!) and then the grades begin. Her furnace yawns for coal, her funnel’s roar rises in tone and intensity, her fireman mops his brow. Presently her hoarse, booming whistle hoots at the lights of Raurimu, the station at the foot of the Spiral. She steams into the station and makes her first stop after a 30-mile run. The engine is uncoupled, and runs along to a tank to water. This done, she returns to the train, and again her whistle blows for a starting signal. ‘X’, now thoroughly warmed to her work, makes haste to gather speed on the level stretch below the Spiral. It is a brave effort, and when she meets the rise she has attained some pace. Looking back, one may see where the grade begins. Some of the cars are still on the level. One by one they lift their noses to the grade until the whole train is hanging heavily on the engine’s draw-bar. Round to the left we sweep, and faintly can be heard the flange of a carriage wheel crying on the curve. Round and upwards for a mile.
Then nearly 100 ft. below, pale in the coming dawn, gleam the lights of Raurimu. One mile to gain a hundred ft. – that is, approximately, the achievement of Raurimu Spiral. Up we go: the engine blowing stentoriously, the fireman firing furiously, the carriages following unwillingly, and the speed a good 20 miles an hour. There is never a slip from the 8 driving-wheels, though there is a slight frost on the mountain side. The driver is watchful, and sands the line judiciously. A hoot from her whistle, and we are in the long 35-chain tunnel, and we feel it to be a relief when we are out in the pure mountain air once more.
Round and upwards, the big ‘X’ roars, steaming well. At last, the spiral motion ceases, and we rush out on to a length of straight line, which carries us over the long tunnel just passed through, which is 85 ft. beneath us. The mail rushes southward to the muffled measure of deep sound which her wheels toss out. Suddenly the thunder of our speed changes to an echoing, hollow-crashing sound. The earth which choked and deadened the uproar has dropped away, and a deep gorge, crossed by a towering entanglement of steel, echoes and re-echoes the sound. At either side of the engine, white handrails gleam. We are on Makatote Viaduct, the tallest in New Zealand, standing 260 ft. above the river-bed. Soon after, two curved viaducts are crossed: Toanui and Hapuawhenua. Then the train runs into Ohakune, which is half-way between Auckland and Wellington. After a short pause, we speed on across the Karioi Plains, and climb up to Waiouru, which is 2,659 ft. above the sea, and is the highest railway point in New Zealand. Snow-clad Ruapehu, the nearest and highest of the trio of mountains, shows bravely in the morning sunlight, and the wind that blows from the mountain is bitterly cold. So far, there has not been need for a snow-plough here, yet the possibility of one being required is always to be reckoned with. Last winter (1908), on the Central Otago Line, in the South Island, a snowstorm swept the high lands traversed by the railway, effectually blocking the line. One train was cut off from civilisation, and the engine belonging to it was set to the task of clearing the line. A snow-plough was devised by fastening a stout beam from the point of the cowcatcher to the top of the funnel, resting also against the smoke-box. Then all around were arranged timbers bound with iron. The engine, one of the “B” type of the New Zealand railways – 4-8-0, with 3ft. 6.25in. driving-wheels, weight 65 tons – patrolled the line, and finally succeeded in clearing the road again. Her enginemen had a cold time, working in a blizzard at 2,000 ft, above the sea. At one time it was freezing so hard, that icicles were formed on the engine. Whether such conditions will be met with on the North Island Trunk Line remains to be seen. Even the ‘X’ engines will find it hard work to climb the Raurimu Spiral if there are ‘ice-whiskers’ on the rails.” [1: p127-129]
A Wf class tank engine climbing the Raurimu spiral in 1909 Original photographic prints and postcards from file print collection, Box 5. Ref: PAColl-5800-54. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. (c) A. Williams/Alexander Turnbull Library and made available without restriction provided reproduced as taken with no alteration. [13]
References
Will Lawson; New Zealand’s Mountain Railways; in The Railway Magazine, August 1909, p121-129.
Richard Leitch, David; Scott, Brian (1995). Exploring New Zealand’s Ghost Railways (1998 ed.). Wellington: Grantham House.W. Heine; Semaphore to CTC: Signalling and train working in New Zealand, 1863-1993; New Zealand Railway and Locomotive Society, Wellington, 2000.
The June 1922 issue of The Railway Magazine celebrated its Silver Jubilee with a number of articles making comparisons between the railway scene in 1897 and that of 1922 or thereabouts.
In celebrating its Silver Jubilee, The Railway Magazine was also offering, in its June 1922 edition, its 300th number.
Reading through the various celebratory articles, a common theme encountered was statistical comparisons between 1897 and 1922.
This started in the first few words of J.F. Gairns article, Twenty-five Years of Railway Progress and Development: [1]
“Railway mileage in 1897 was officially given as 21,433 miles for the British Isles, of which 11,732 miles were double track or more. In the course of the past 25 years the total length of railway (officially stated as 23,734 miles according to the latest returns available) has increased by 2,300 miles, and double track or more is provided on no less than 13,429 miles. Detailed figures as to the mileage laid with more than two lines in 1897 cannot be given; but there are now about 2,000 miles with from three to 12 or more lines abreast. Therefore, while the total route mileage increase is not so great indeed, it could not be, seeing that all the trunk lines and main routes except the Great Central London extension were completed long before 1897, and additions are therefore short or of medium length – there has been a very large proportionate increase in multiple track mileage. As the extent to which multiple track is provided is an important indication of traffic increase, this aspect calls for due emphasis. … The total paid-up capital of British railways, including in each case nominal additions, has increased from £1,242,241,166 to £1,327,486,097, that is, by some £85,000,000, apart from the cost of new works, etc., paid for out of revenue.” [1: p377]
Gairns went on to highlight newly constructed railways during the period which included:
The London Extension of what became the Great Central Railway in 1899;
The Cardiff Railway at the turn of the 29th century, which “involved a number of heavy engineering works. … Nine skew bridges, five crossing the Merthyr river, three across the Glamorganshire Canal, and one across the River Taff. Near Nantgawr the River Taff [was] diverted. The various cuttings and embankments [were] mostly of an extensive character. Ten retaining walls, 12 under bridges, 10 over bridges, a short tunnel and a viaduct contributed to the difficult nature of the work.” [2]
The Port Talbot Railway and Docks Company, which “opened its main line in 1897 and reached a connection with the Great Western Railway Garw Valley line the following year. A branch line to collieries near Tonmawr also opened in 1898. The lines were extremely steeply graded and operation was difficult and expensive, but the company was successful.” [3]
The London Underground, which had its origins in “the Metropolitan Railway, opening on 10th January 1863 as the world’s first underground passenger railway. … The first line to operate underground electric traction trains, the City & South London Railway… opened in 1890, … The Waterloo and City Railway opened in 1898, … followed by the Central London Railway in 1900. … The Great Northern and City Railway, which opened in 1904, was built to take main line trains from Finsbury Park to a Moorgate terminus.” [4] Incidentally, by the 21st century, “the system’s 272 stations collectively accommodate up to 5 million passenger journeys a day. In 2023/24 it was used for 1.181 billion passenger journeys.” [4]
Many Light Railways “by which various agricultural and hitherto remote districts have been given valuable transport facilities.” [1: p377]
Brackley Viaduct was one of many heavy engineering works entailed in the construction of the GCR extension to London which opened formally on 15th March 1899. It was built to carry the railway across the Great Ouse and the river’s flood plain, the 22 arch 755 foot viaduct was perhaps the most striking piece of architecture on the London Extension. It was demolished in the late 1970s. [1: p377][10]
Gairns goes on to list significant lines by year of construction:
“In 1897, the Glasgow District Subway (cable traction, the first sections of the Cardiff and Port Talbot Railways, and the Hundred of Manhood and Selsey, and Weston, Cleveland and Portishead Light Railways were brought into use.
In 1898, the Lynton and Barnstaple narrow gauge (1 ft. 11 in.), Waterloo and City (electric tube, now the property of the London and South Western Railway), and North Sunderland light railways, were added.
In 1899, … the completion and opening of the Great Central extension to London, the greatest achievement of the kind in Great Britain in modern times.
In 1900, the Rother Valley Light Railway was opened from Robertsbridge to Tenterden, and the Sheffield District Railway (worked by the Great Central Railway) and the Central London electric railway (Bank to Shepherd’s Bush) were inaugurated. …
In 1901 the Bideford, Westward Ho! and Appledore (closed during the war and not yet reopened), Sheppey Light (worked by South Eastern and Chatham Railway), and Basingstoke and Alton (a “light” line worked by the London and South Western Railway, closed during the war and not yet reopened), were completed.
In 1902, the Crowhurst and Bexhill (worked by the South Eastern and Chatham Railway), Whitechapel and Bow (joint London, Tilbury and Southend – now Midland – and Metropolitan District Railways, electric but at first worked by steam), Dornoch Light (worked by Highland Railway), and Vale of Rheidol narrow gauge (later taken over by the Cambrian Railways) railways were opened.
[In 1903], the Letterkenny and Burtonport Railway (Ireland), 49 miles in length 3 ft. gauge; [the] Llanfair and Welshpool, Light (worked by Cambrian Railways), Lanarkshire and Ayrshire extension (worked by Caledonian Railway), Meon Valley and Axminster and Lyme Regis (worked by London and South Western Railway), Axholme Joint (North Eastern and Lancashire and Yorkshire – now London and North Western Railways), and Wick and Lybster Light (worked by Highland Railway) railways were opened.” [1: p377-378]
A number of the lines listed by Gairns are covered in articles on this blog. Gairns continues:
In 1904, the Tanat Valley Light Railway (worked by the Cambrian Railways), Great Northern and City Electric (now Metropolitan Railway), Leek and Manifold narrow gauge (worked by North Staffordshire Railway but having its own rolling-stock), Kelvedon, Tiptree and Tollesbury Light (worked by Great Eastern Railway), Mid-Suffolk Light and Burtonport Extension Railways were opened.
1905 saw the Cairn Valley Light (worked by Glasgow and South Western Railway), and Dearne Valley (worked by Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, now London and North Western Railway) railways opened.
1906 includes quite a lengthy list: part of the Baker Street and Waterloo electric (now London Electric), Bankfoot Light (worked by Caledonian Railway), Amesbury and Bulford Light (worked by London and South Western Railway), Burton and Ashby Light (Midland Railway, worked by electric tramcars), Corringham Light, North Lindsey Light (worked by Great Central Railway), Campbeltown and Machrihanish (1 ft. 11 in. gauge), and Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton (now London Electric) railways.
In 1907, the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway(now London Electric) was added.
In 1908, the Bere Alston and Callington section of the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway, worked with its own rolling-stock, was opened.
In 1909, the Strabane and Letterkenny (3 ft. gauge) Railway in Ireland. Also the Cleobury Mortimer and Ditton Priors Light, Newburgh and North Fife (worked by North British Railway), and part of the Castleblaney, Keady and Armagh Railway (worked by Great Northern Railway, Ireland) in Ireland.
In 1910, the South Yorkshire Joint Committee’s Railway (Great Northern, Great Central, North Eastern, Lancashire and Yorkshire – now London and North Western – and Midland Railways) was opened.
1911 saw passenger traffic inaugurated on the Cardiff Railway, and the Shropshire and Montgomeryshire Light, East Kent, and Mawddwy (worked by Cambrian Railways) lines opened.
In 1912 the Cork City Railway was opened, the Dearne Valley line brought into use for passenger traffic, and a section of the Derwent Valley Light Railway opened.
In 1913 the Elsenham and Thaxted Light Railway (worked by Great Eastern Railway) was opened, and a part of the Mansfield Railway (worked by Great Central Railway) brought into use for mineral traffic.
Then came the war years, which effectively put a stop to much in the way of new railway construction, and the only items which need be mentioned here are: a part of the old Ravenglass and Eskdale, reopened in 1915 as the Eskdale Railway (15 in. gauge), and the Mansfield Railway, brought into use for passenger traffic (1917). The Ealing and Shepherd’s Bush Electric Railway, worked by the Central London Railway, was opened in 1920.
A lengthy list, but including a number of lines which now count for a great deal, particularly in regard to the London electric tube railways, … It must be remembered, too, that except where worked by another company and as noted, most of these lines possess their own locomotives and rolling-stock.” [1: p378-379]
Despite the extent of these new lines, Gairns comments that it is “the extensions of previously existing railways which have had the greatest influence.” [1: p379] It is worth seeing his list in full. It includes:
“In 1897, the Highland Railway extended its Skye line from Stromeferry to Kyle of Lochalsh, and in 1898 the North British Railway completed the East Fife Central lines. 1899 was the historic year for the Great Central Railway, in that its London extension was opened, giving the company a main trunk route and altering many of the traffic arrangements previously in force with other lines. Indeed, the creation of this ‘new competitor’ for London, Leicester, Nottingham, Sheffield, Manchester and, later, Bradford traffic, materially changed the general railway situation in many respects. In the same year, the Highland Railway direct line, from Aviemore to Inverness was opened, this also having a considerable influence upon Highland traffic. In 1900 the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway completed the new ‘Quarry’ lines, giving an independent route from Coulsdon to Earlswood.
In 1901, the Great Western Railway opened the Stert and Westbury line, one of the first stages involved in the policy of providing new and shorter routes, which has so essentially changed the whole character of Great Western Railway train services and traffic operation. In that year, also, the West Highland Railway (now North British Railway) was extended to Mallaig, adding one of the most scenically attractive and constructionally notable lines in the British Isles. The Bickley-Orpington connecting lines of the South Eastern and Chatham Railway, brought into service in 1902, enabled trains of either section to use any of the London termini, and this has essentially changed the main features of many of the train services of the Managing Committee.
In 1903, the Great Western Railway opened the new Badminton lines for Bristol and South Wales traffic, a second stage in the metamorphosis of this system. In 1906 the Fishguard-Rosslare route was completed for Anglo-Irish traffic, while the opening of the Great Central and Great Western joint line via High Wycombe materially altered London traffic for both companies in many respects. The same year saw the completion of connecting links whereby from that time the chief route for London-West of England traffic by the Great Western Railway has been via Westbury instead of via Bristol.
The year 1908 provided still another Great Western innovation, the completion of the Birmingham and West of England route via Stratford-on-Avon and Cheltenham.
In 1909 the London and North Western Railway opened the Wilmslow-Levenshulme line, providing an express route for London-Manchester traffic avoiding Stockport. In that year also the Thornhill connection between the Midland and the then Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway introduced new through facilities.
In 1910 the opening of the Enfield-Cuffley line of the Great Northern Railway provided the first link in a new route for main line traffic to and from London, though this is even yet only partially available, and opened up a new suburban area for development. The same year saw the advent of the Ashenden-Aynho line, by which the Great Western Railway obtained the shortest route from London to Birmingham, with consequent essential changes in the north train services, and the inauguration of the famous two-hour expresses by that route and also by the London and North Western Railway.
In 1912 the latter railway brought into operation part of the Watford lines, paving the way for material changes in traffic methods, and in due course for through working of London Electric trains between the Elephant and Castle and Watford, and for electric traffic to and from Broad Street and very shortly from Euston also. In 1913 part of the Swansea district lines were brought into use by the Great Western Railway, and in 1915 the North British Railway opened the new Lothian lines. [1: p379-380]
Many of the changes over the 25 years were far-reaching in character others were of great local significance, such as station reconstructions, widenings, tunnels, dock/port improvements and new bridges.
New long tunnels included: Sodbury Tunnel on the GWR Badminton line; Ponsbourne Tunnel on the GNR Enfield-Stevenage line; Merstham (Quarry) Tunnel on the LB&SCR ‘Quarry’ line.
Reconstructed/new/enlarged stations included: Victoria (LB&SCR); Glasgow Central (CR); Manchester Victoria (L&YR); Waterloo (L&SWR); Birmingham Snow Hill (GWR); Euston (LNWR); Crewe (LNWR) and Paddington (GWR)
Among a whole range of Capital Works undertaken by the GWR, was the new MPD at Old Oak Common. The LNWR’s new carriage lines outside Euston and the Chalk Farm improvements were significant, as were their system of avoiding lines around Crewe.
The MR takeover of the LT&SR in 1912 and their works between Campbell Road Junction and Barking are noteworthy. The L&SWR undertook major electrification of suburban lines, built a new concentration yard at Feltham, and made extensions and improvements at Southampton.
The LB&SCR’s widenings/reconstructions of stations on the ‘Quarry’ lines, which enabled through trains to run independently of the SE&CR line through Redhill were of importance. As we’re the SE&CR’s works associated with the improvements at Victoria, the new lines around London Bridge, the new Dover Marine Station and changes throughout their system.
The GCR London Extension is equalled in importance by the High Wycombe joint line and the GCR’s construction and opening of Immingham Dock in 1912. Gairns also points out that the NER and the H&BR works associated with the King George Dock in Hull should not be forgotten.
Also of significance were some railway amalgamations and some other events of historic interest between 1897 and 1922. Gairns included:
In 1897, the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railways name changed to ‘Great Central Railway’.
In 1899, the South Eastern and Chatham Joint Committee was set up.
In 1900, the Great Southern & Western Railway took over the Waterford & Central Ireland Railway and absorbed the Waterford, Limerick & Western Railway in 1901.
In 1903, the Midland Railway took over the Belfast & Northern Counties Railway.
In 1905, the Hull, Barnsley & West Riding Junction Railway & Dock Company became the Hull & Barnsley Railway; the Great Central Railway headquarters were moved from Manchester to London.
In 1906 the Harrow-Verney Junction section of the Metropolitan Railway was made joint with the Great Central Railway.
In 1907, the Lancashire, Derbyshire & East Coast Railway was amalgamated with the Great Central Railway; the Dublin, Wicklow & Wexford Railway became the Dublin & South Eastern Railway; and the greater part of the Donegal Railway was taken over jointly by the Great Northern of Ireland and Midland (Northern Counties section) under the County Donegal Railways Joint Committee.
In 1912, the London, Tilbury & Southend Railway was taken over by the Midland Railway.
In 1913, the Great Northern & City Railway was absorbed by the Metropolitan Railway.
Gairns also noted “the now almost universal provision of restaurant cars and corridor carriages of bogie type, Pullman cars upon many lines, and through carriages providing a wide variety of through facilities, culminating in the introduction last year of direct communication without change of vehicle between Penzance, Plymouth and Aberdeen, Southampton and Edinburgh, etc.” [1: p382]
In the period from 1897 to 1922, there had been essential changes to traffic characteristics:
“notably in the abolition of second-class accommodation by all but a very few lines in England and Scotland, though it is still retained generally in Ireland and to some extent in Wales.” [1: p382]
“the generous treatment of the half-day, day and period and long-distance excursionist, who in later years has been given facilities almost equal, in regard to speed and comfort of accommodation, to those associated with ordinary traffic.” [1: p383]
Gairns also provides, in tabular form, comparative statistics which illustrate some remarkable changes over the period from 1827 to 1922. His table compares data from 1897, 1913 and 1920.
Table showing comparative statistics for 1897, 1913 1920 and, in the case of cash receipts and expenditure, 1921. The year of 1913 was probably chosen as it was the last full set of statistics available prior to the start of the first World War. [1: p383]
In commenting on the figures which appear in the table above, Gairns draws attention to: the decline in numbers of second class passengers, the dramatic fall and then rise in the number of annual season tickets; the rise and then fall in tonnages of freight carried by the railways; and the significant increase in turnover without a matching increase in net receipts.
In respect of season tickets, Gairns notes that “whereas in 1897 and 1913 each railway having a share in a fare included the passenger in its returns, in 1920 he was only recorded once. … [and] that in later years the mileage covered by season tickets [had] considerably increased.” [1: p383]
He also comments on the way that in the years prior to the War, local tramways took significant suburban traffic from the railways, whereas, after the War, that traffic seemed to return to the railways.
Gairns also asks his readers to note the limited statistical changes to goods traffic over the period and to appreciate that in the 1920 figures freight movements were only records once rather than predicted to each individual railway company.
In respect of gross receipts and expenditure, he asks his readers to remember that in 1920 the Government control of railways under guarantee conditions was still in place and to accept that, “the altered money values, and largely increased expenditure (and therefore gross receipts) figures vitiate correct comparison, so that the 1897 and 1913 figures are of chief interest as showing the development of railway business.” [1: p383]
‘Articulated’ Sleeping Car, East Coast Joint Stock, designed by H.N. Gresley and built at Doncaster. [1: p382]Two different Pullman Cars. The top image illustrates a First Class car on the SE&CR, the lower image shows a Third Class car on the LBSCR. [1: p384]
Gairns goes on to show rolling-stock totals for 1897 and 1920. …
Steam Loco numbers increased from 19,462 to 25,075; ElectricLoco numbers rose from 17 to 84; Railmotor cars rose from 0 to 134; Coaching vehicles (non-electric) increased from 62,411 to 72,698; Coaching vehicles (electric, motor and trailer) rose from 107 to 3,096; Goods and mineral vehicles rose from 632,330 to 762,271.
A GWR Steam Railmotor and Trailer Car. [1: p385]
“In 1897 the 17 electric locomotives were all on the City and South London Railway, and 44 of the electric motor cars on the Liverpool Overhead, and two on the Bessbrook and Newry line, with the 54 trailer cars on the City and South London, and seven on the Liverpool Overhead.” [1: p383-385]
Gairns notes as well that by 1922 there was a “widespread use of power for railway signalling with its special applications for automatic, semi-automatic and isolated signals.” [1: p385]G
Gairns completes his article with an optimistic look forward to the new railway era and the amalgamations that would take place as a result of the Railways Act, 1921. Changes that would come into effect in 1923.
References
G.F. Gairns; Twenty-five Years of Railway Progress and Development; in The Railway Magazine, London, June 1922, p377-385.
The Cardiff Railway in The Railway Magazine, London, April 1911.
Roger Farnworth 
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