BackTrack Volume 24 (2010)
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Published by Pendragon, Easingwold, YO61 3YS
Caledonian Railway 4-2-2 No.123 at Norwood Junction shed on
15th June 1963. J.P. Mullett. Front cover.
On its visit to the Southern Region where it ran with LSWR T9 No.120.
See also colour photo-feature on page 32..
Sending out the right signals. Michael Blakemore. 3.
Editorial on signal boxes or cabins and signalmen. Personal contact
began at Bury Gas Works Sidings, a small ex Lamncashire & Yorkshire Railway
box on the electrified line to Bury where the "3-1-3" code was used to indicate
an ordinary electric passenger train. Notes on the appropriate gas lighting
and heating from a coal-fired stove and on the nature of the signalman's
lot working on his own, sometimes in remote locations. More recently he had
visited Falsgrave box at Scarborough where ths working environment had improved,
but manual signalling is still employed as at Great Yarmouth.
Northern train sheds. Steve Burdett (phot.). 4-5.
Colour photo-feature: Manchester Piccadilly on 11 May 1979 with BRCW
Class 104 DMU for Buxton and two types of electric traction (high voltage
locomotive and 1500V dc Glossop EMU; Holyhead on 18 May 1980 with Class 40
40 077 with train from Manchester Victoria; Huddersfield on 15 May 1982 with
Class 47 No. 47 450 on a Newcastle to Liverpool express formed of six coaches
(noble entrance portico visible from unusual angle); Manchester Victoria
on 3 April 1980 with Type 40 No. 40 067 with arrival from North Wales;
Stoke-on-Trent on 2 July 1983 with 47 590 on a Birmingham New Street to
Manchester service. Caption to first picture concerning
"running powers" into former LNWR station is corrected/amplfed in letter
from E.M. Johnson on page 189..
Patterson, Alan. Hall Lane Signal Box in 1976-77.
6-11.
Hall Lane signal box was on a short stretch of line which bypassed
Bradford Interchange (Exchange) and was between the boxes at Bowling and
Laisterdyke. Its main function was to protect a level crossing: railway traffic
was extremely light.
Clarke, Jeremy. The Redhill to Tonbridge line.
12-18.
Formed part of the South Eastern Railway main line from London to
Dover engineerd by William Cubitt which ran in an almost straight line from
Rehill to Ashford and then veered towards its destination. North of Redhill
the South Eastern had to share its access to London & Brighton Railway
and with the London & Croydon Railway. In 1868 the character of the line
was altered by the South Eastern Railway opening its cut-off via Sevenoaks.
A few cross country services continued to use the route until the railways
were McGregorized. Initially this led to improved services, but now it just
acts like a local bus or tram route. The line was electrified on the chaep
to take Channel Tunnel freight, but the current cannot cope with the Type
92 electric locomotives. The route is described in detail and notes the
architecture employed in the former stations. See also
letter from Adrian Gray on page 189 which notes that the Government
intervened to make the South Eastern and London & Brighton Railways to
share a route through the North Downs via Merstham, rather than via Riddlesdown.
Captain Alderson of the Royal Engineers selected the route which had considerable
military significance..
A Border Line Train. Michael Mensing (phot.). 19.
Colour photo-feature: three photographs each show a single Gresley
corridor brake composite hauled by a Standard Class 2 2-6-0 on Berwick to
Kelso and St Boswells services: No. 78048 crossing the Royal Border Bridge
on 25 May 1962; 78048 near Teviot Viaduct on 30 May 1962, and 78047 just
south of Royal Border Bridge on 31 May 1962.
Griggs, Clive. Paddington Station — Wartime memories
of an evacuee. 20-1.
Evacuated from suburban Middlesex (near Castle Bar Halt) to an aunt
in Cheltenham. Memories of the jostling crowds at Paddington, the long journey,
and arrival after dark in Cheltenham. Ilus.:No. 7814 Fringford Manor piot
to 43XX at Paddington in August 1939; Bulldog No. 3421 passing Kensal Green
gasworks and under West London line, but see Michael J.
Smith on p. 125..
Wells, Jeffrey. The nine days' strike of 1919. Part
One. 22-7.
The National Union of Railwaymen, supported by ASLEF, called a national
strike of railway workers which lasted from 25 September to 4 October 1919.
The strike caused considerable hardship to the public, to the railway companies,
and to those on strike, and led to some services being operated by volunteers.
The NUR was led by Jimmy Thomas, who was an early Labour Party MP and the
Minister of Transport was Sir Eric Geddes, with the Prime Minister being
David Lloyd George.It is noted that several of the politicians had their
snouts in the trough (Sir Robert Norne, Minister of Labour, had just received
a £30,000 salary increase) and the union leaders were aware of this.
Althoughh Thomas had appealed for a disciplined reaction by the strikers
there was some sabotage to railway property and the potential for endangering
passenger safety. The national press was especially antagonistic towards
railwaymen who neglected horses normally in their charge. The Government
did everything within its power to ensure that food supplies were not disrupted.
The Co-operative Wholesale Society did what it could to allevaite suffering
by the strikers. There were tales of hardship experienced by the fare-paying
public. Part 2 see page 120. Illus.: Charles S. Lake,
on the editorial staff of The Railway Gazette on the footplate of
GWR 2-6-0 No. 5350 at Paddington station and
according to Phil Atkins (p. 125) John Aiton
Kay standing alongside; Major Eden on the footplate of LSWR locomotive on
train between Southampton and Winchester; Charles S. Lake on tender of locomotive
taking water; and breaking up coal; Major Sandys, Divisional Traffic
Superintenden of the Sudan Government Railways acting as signalman at one
of a Watford signalbox; Guards Officers acting as porters at Paddington;
volunteers learning about the Westinghouse brake.
Morse, Greg. The crockery of British Railways. 28-9.
Dudson stoneware crockery (cups, saucers, jugs and teapots) as supplied
to Travellers' Fare.
Echoes in the hills. Alan Tyson (phot.). 30-1
Colour photo-feature:Fairbairn 2-6-4T acting as banker departing Tebay
for Shap on northbound freight on 28 August 1965; Class 5 No. 44937 at foot
of descent from Shap approaching Tebay on 28 August 1965 with a holiday extra;
Class 5 No. 44773 on climb to Grayrigg passing Docker with down parcels train
on 2 july 1964; Britannia Pacific No. 70014 Iron Duke travelling light
engine on climb to Shap; Class 4 4-6-0 banking northbound coal train past
Scout Green signal box on 7 October 1967 passing a clusteer of
photographers.
Caledonian 123. 32-3.
Colour photo-feature of preserved 4-2-2: at Edinburgh Princes Street
on 19 April 1965 (David Idle); with GNoSR 4-4-0 No. 49 Gordon Highlander
at Carstairs on 19 April 1965 (J.M. Bairstow); with LSWR T9 No. 120 on the
Bluebell Special near Merstham en route from London Victoria to Sheffield
Park on 15 September 1963 (note whitewashed coal on tender of No. 123 (J.P.
Mullett); at Addiewell with Scottish Rambler with two preserved
ex-Caledonian Railway carriages on 19 April 1965; at Edinburgh Haymarket
shed in 1960 (Derek Penney). See also front cover and
letter from Arnold Tortorella on page 189.
Baker, Allan C. and Fell, Mike G. Thomas Weatherburn Dodds.
Part 2. 34-40.
See page 740 in previous Volume. The Lawton
Junction accident of 26 September 1873 was reported on by Colonel W. Yolland
on 31 October 1873. He found that the cause of the multiple collisions in
the Harecastle area was caused by lax working methods coupled with excessive
hours, and the probable influence of alcohol. No mention was made of Dodds'
wedge motion.
Smith, Michael J. Burst boiler at Bishop's Road.
41-3.
On 9 May 1864 partly as observed by Robert H. Burnett, Resident Engineer
and Locomotive Superinetndent of the Metropolitan Railway, although the
locomotive concerned belonged to the Great Northern Railway. Illus.: GNR
0-4-2 No. 161 (Tayleur & Co., 1846, for contractors Peto, Brassey &
Betts and sold to GNR in 1850; GNR 0-4-2 No. 110 (built R. & W. Hawthorn
in 1848), GNR 0-6-0 No. 138 (built R. & W. Hawthorn in 1850).
Rutherford, Michael. Travelling through. Part 3. (Railway
Reflections No. 158). 44-53.
Through trains which served Transatlantic luxury liners sailing from
the Mersey, mainly from Liverpool, and for which Riverside Station was opened
on 15 June 1895. The LNWR provided luxury trains to connect with the luxury
liners, and the GWR attempted to compete for the traffic by running specially
built through coaches over the Mersey Railway to Liverpool Central. There
were also specially built double-ended slip coaches to link Birkenhead
with the Channel port of Dover which involved co-operation between the GWR
and the SECR.
Time Spent at Hereford. 54-5.
Colour photo-feature:No. 5099 Compton Castle entering Hereford
from the south with a "North & West Route" express in May 1962 (Malcolm
Thompson): see letter from Hugh Blundstone on page 254;
which notes that probably empty stock for Paddington train as indicated by
headcode A04; Class 2 2-6-0 No. 46514 approaching Burcott Road level crossing
with a Hereford to Brecon local train in June 1962 (J.M. Wiltshire); No.
6850 Cleeve Grange taking water on avoiding line when hauling down
freight on 16 May 1964; Castle No. 5054 Earl of Ducie with Oxford
University Railway Society special on 16 May 1964 (David Idle); 51XX No.
4107 on 16.30 to Gloucester on 16 May 1964 (David Idle).
Newcastle in the coldest of seasons. Roger J. Kell (phot.). 56-8.
Black & white photo-feature of the frigid winter of 1963: J72
No. 69025, west end pilot, shunting ex-works Pullman car; J27 No. 65873 towing
a failed DMU; A4 No. 60026 Miles Beevor light engine on Platform
9; WD No. 90273 coming off King Edward Bridge and heading for freight lines
with a freight; rebuilt Patriot No. 45531 Sir Frederick Harrison as
a replacement for diesel locomotive on express from/to Liverpool, A2/3 No.
60513 Dante on Glasgow to King's Cross (13.30 ex-Newcastle) finding
adhesion difficult and A1 No. 60142 Edward Fletcher also finding departure
difficult.:
Wince, Peter. Piloting the 'Irish Mail'. 59.
Author acted as pilotman driver on a Britannia Pacific when diverted
over the Northampton Loop which the Holyhead-based driver did not possess
route knowledge. The Welsh-speaking driver lacked driving skill: worked the
engine too hard leading to excessive fuel wastage and effort by the fireman,
did not ensure that the boiler remained adequately filled, drove at excessive
speed through restrictions and failed to communicate with the pilotman and
his firemen.
Readers' Forum. 60-1.
A Stephenson Centenary. R.A.S. Hennessey.
See original article on page 646 et seq
in previous Volume: corrects date of Centenary and adds
more on the Society's involvement in the naming of Brighton Baltic No. 329
Stephenson.:
A Stephenson Centenary. Colin Foster.
See article on page 646 et seq
in previous Volume: further information about
F.C. Hambleton (Locomotives worth
modelling) and Laurie Ward.
Mr Watson's not so bright 'Stars'. Joseph Cliffe.
See previous Volume page 664: JC
George Hutchinson, the draughtsman responsible for the 400 and 341 classes
was "a very able and competent engineer and draughtsman" Maunsell wanted
him to leave Inchicore and move to Ashford, but Watson blocked that which
led to Holcroft's appointment. Writer claims that Watson rerjected proposed
designs for a twso-cylinder 4-6-0 and a four-cylinder design similar to the
Claughton, insisting on the Swindon four-cylinder layout, but the front rockers
(Swindon placed the rockers behind the cylinders) made things worse by increasing
the forces on the outside cylinders and transmitting valve expansion errors
to the inside` cylinder. The best four-cylinder layout was that on the Duchess
layout with the levers at the back and the cylinders in line. Hutchinson
was the patentee of what became known as the Maunsell nsuperheater in which
the top-mounted header connection bollts gave simpler access. Watson patented
his own superheater design which followed the Swindon model, but more complicated
due to the higher superheat. Nos. 407-409 were fitted with Schmidt MLS
superheaters. Hutchinson was not the chief draughtsman, but a talented leading
draughtsman who was born in Galway in 1887 and died in 1969. He left Inchicore
for war service in 1917. Joynt remained Chief Draughtsman until 1919 when
he resigned. He was replaced by L. Frazer, an ex-NBL man who worked under
Bazin. Summers was allowed to respond to this and the
next letter on pp. 189-90..
Mr Watson's not so bright 'Stars'. Jeremy Clements and Michael
McMahon.
See previous Volume page 664
for an ill-timed and sometimes erroneous article about
the Watson 400 class. Tend to be critical of Coey's designs: the 0-6-0s were
too heavy, the freight 4-6-0s were poor-riding and uncomfortable machines.
The Maunsell class 257 was far more modern and encompassed superheating and
piston valves. They suggest that the excessive weight of No. 341 was due
to Coey, and the Civil Engineer's reservations about its use. Notes that
several engineers encountered difficulties in designing a four-cylinder
locomotive. Robinson designed nine classes of 4-6-0, none of which could
match the GWR Stars all suffered from an identical 1 inch lap. Watson and
Joynt disagreed on the lap: Joynt wanted 7/8in, whereas Watson
wanted 1½in, and a compromise of 1¼ was reached: Swindon used
15/8 .
Firmly state that the Watson 400 class shared little in common with the Star
design other than the cylinder layout. The Hughes Dreadnoughts were far more
similar. Thus the 400 class was not uniquely bad.br Specific errors included
the caption (page 664) to No. 404 which states that locomotive waas withdrawn
in 1930, whereas it was not withdrawn until 1958 as its identity was swapped
with No. 409. Summers was allowed to respond to this and
the previous letter on pp. 189-90.
Mr Watson's not so bright 'Stars'. David W. Green.
See previous Volume page 664
'County' champions. Alan
Wild.
See previous Volume page 608 (for picture of County
class shunting at Dolcoath siding) notes that movements on County class were
restricted at this location and other points on the 18.20 from Penzance milk
train which did not appear to be worked by a Britannia class if this had
arrived on the appropriate inward working (down Cornish
Riviera)
Book Reviews. 62
Britain's railways in old photographs: Cheshire railways. Mike
Hitches. History Press. MB *
"dreadful standard of the photographic reproduction" coupled with
"odd layout".
Lost railways of Essex. Robin Jones. Countryside Books. PR
***
Moderately well received: the pictures are interesting, although there
are some errors in the text: reviewer includes an eulogy for the lost delights
of the Ongar branch and its possible extension to Dunmow or Chelmsford, and
of the pier tramway on Walton-on-the-Naze pier.
Directory of British Tramways, Vol. 1 (Southern England
and the Channel Islands) and Vol.2 (Central England, Wales and
Ireland). Keith Turner. History Press. RH ****
In common with a good deal of tramway literature, the text is stronger
on geography and rolling stock matters than on power generation and distribution.
Who produced energy for the tramways, where and how it was distributed, remain
largely unsaid. There are some helpful, separate references to some of the
tramway owning companies, but the overall picture is incomplete. The Urban
Electric Supply Co. (Camborne & Redruth, Glossop), for example, was a
subsidiary of a subsidiary within a network of capital running back to the
USA. Also, a general description of the breakdown between municipal and private
ownership would have been helpful: the eagle's eye view is missing. Yet the
basic structure, the readable compression of large amounts of
carefully-marshalled information, and a high level of attention to detail
remain, inherited from the memorable first edition. The books are also well
produced and pleasant to handle. This work was, and remains, the definitive
guide to individual tramways, whether run by horse, steam, electricity or
even (Haslar Hospital) sailor-power. Encyclopaedic and enjoyable, even if
a few flaws remain. [KPJ after all that praise hope that Walton-on-the-Naze
is included]
The Trans-Siberian Railway: from Moscow to the Pacific Ocean.
Anne and Olaf Meinhardt. Bucher Publishing of Munich. DWM
This is an absolutely beautiful book, elegantly produced with splendid
colour pictures and engaging text – and both your editor and reviewer
are really at a loss as to what to make of it for, in spite of the title,
it isn't a railway book at all in the Backtrack sense of the words. More
it is coffee table, armchair train travel based on a journey from Moscow
across Russia, Mongolia and China to Vladivostok and Beijing and any 'railway'
references to the Trans-Siberian with regard to history or operation, motive
power or services are there as afterthoughts to the travelogue. There are
plenty of excellent pictures of contemporary trains in the often harsh and
usually spectacular landscape and from the coverage in the book the 'steam
special' alongside Lake Baikal seems well worth a visit if you are ever out
that way. The feature on the Railway Museum at Novosibirsk whets the appetite
but it is people on and alongside the railway and the places through which
the TransSiberian passes which are the authors' (who are after all travel
writers) obvious focus of interest. It would be unfair to give this book
a 'star rating' in the usual Backtrack style. As a conventional railway book
it only merits one star – and perhaps not even that – but as the
finished item, as a book, it is a real five star production. Well worth a
look if you get a chance, BackTrack readers - but the glory of the pictures
still couldn't convince your reviewer that he really wanted to travel across
the breadth of Asia!
Snowy New Year at Crewe. Eric Saunders. rear cover.
Metro-Cammell Class 101 DMU crossing Crewe North Junction with DMU
from Chester on very cold 3 January 1979.
BR Class 3 2-6-2T No.82041, in the Western Region's fully lined
green livery, stands outside Bath Green Park shed on 30th September 1962.
(David Idle) front cover
See also colour photp-featuer beginning page
96.
Why doesn't the public look more deeply? Allan Patterson. 67.
Guset editorial: comment of the Beeching debacle: "Far from saving
anything, the shutting down of rail routes was an appalling waste of an
invalauble resource."
Freight haulage on the East Coast Route. 68-9.
Colour photo-feature: WD Austerity No. 90070 hauling empty iron ore
tipplers past Great Ponton in July 1959 (Trevor Owen); 9F 2-10-0 No. 92186
passing Sandy on up main line with a ballast train in January 1963 (A.C.
Sterndale); 9F 2-10-0 No. 92149 passing Brookman's Park on up freight in
February 1959 (Trevor Owen); A4 No. 60022 Mallard on 01.59 Millerhill to
King's Cross express goods passing St Neots on 20 October 1962 (David Idle);
WD Austerity 2-8-0 No. 90454 with train of locomotive coal passing Brookman's
Park in February 1959 (Trevor Owen).
Williams, Sitwell D. Imperial 'Jubilees'. 70-7.
Mainly concerned with the names of LMS Jubilee Class locomotives
associated with the Commonwealth or British Empire and which produced some
fine, and some very odd (anything including an "and" is odd for the name
of a thing) names. Earlier articles covered the admirals
(Volume 10 page 46 et seq) and their warships (Volume
20 page 12 et seq). Illus. (mainly black & white): No. 5591
Udaipur at Rugby in 1939; No. 5613 Kenya climbing out of Liverpool
with up express No. 5599 Bechuanaland on Edge Hill shed; No. 5597
Barbados passing Edge Hill with some GWR vehicles in train (all Eric
Treacy and seemingly pre-WW2); No. 5570 New Zealand departing St.
Pancras; No. 5616 Malta G.C. (photo. probably taken at time of George
Cross award); No. 5633 TransJordan in crimson lake livery leaving
Birmingham New Street and locomotive as renamed No. 45633 Aden leaving
Northchurch Tunnel with up express; No. 45565 Victoria in apple green
livery near Radlett with Sheffield to St Pancras express on 26 June 1948
(Eric Bruton); No. 45621 Northern Rhodesia in brunswick green entering
Morecambe branch on Nottingham to Morecambe Raleigh Works Special
on 24 May 1952 (Eric Bruton); No. 45593 Kolhapur on Dillicar troughs
with milk train on 2 June 1952 (Eric Bruton); No. 45613 Kenya on up
freight near Penrith on 29 May 1952 (Eric Bruton); No. 45742 Connaught
at Burnside on Windermere branch in 1950; No. 45562 Alberta approaching
Millhouses & Ecclesall with train for Poole in summer of 1966 (colour:
Derek Penney). Further information on the selection procedure adopted by
the LMS railway management, especially in India, and why "territories" in
Australia and Canada did not receive names and an essay on the Irish Free
State and Eire by David Pearson n page 251/4,.
Letter from Canada (Gord Wilson page 318) on No. 5573
Newfoundland, and on No. 5623 Palestine.
Out of Euston. David Idle (phot.). 78-9.
Colour photo-feature: Stanier Class 5 2-6-0 No. 42958 on up freight
for Euston on 16 May 1964; 3F 0-6-0T No. 47435 crossing Grand Union Canal
with BR Class 2 No. 78035 and Ivatt Class 4 2-6-0 No. 43018 in background
in Willesden shed yard on 27 March 1965; Britannia No. 70014 Iron Duke
on up ballast train near Bushey troughs on 23 November 1963; Stanier Class
5 2-6-0 No. 42950 on up freight near King's Langley on 28 December 1963;
8F 2-8-0 (with Fowler tender) on down coal empties passing Carpenders Park
on 1 January 1964.
Evans, Edward A. A South East Wales miscellany.
80-7.
Mainly anecdotes: first relates how two youths crossed the line at
Llanbradach immediately before a DMU arrived and frightened the driver and
led to the guard refusing to allow them to travel. Relates how Josh Powell
of Cwmbargoed informed how children travelled by car to Pontwalby Halt, travelled
through Pencaedrain Tunnel to Hirwaun, where they changed to the Merthyr
train which traversed Merthyr Tunnel. At Merthyr they took the Abergavenny
train (see Backtrack) as far as Cefn Coed where they attended school.
Comment on Nelson & Llancaiach station buildings is
criticised by Nick Holliday on page 254.
Illus.: G2A 0-8-0 No. 49064 passes Llanbradach with a Treherbert to Barry
excursion on 6 July 1958 (S. Rickard); British Rhondda signal box, Pontwalby
looking towards Hirwaun, Hirwaun station on 6 June 1963 (R.H. Marrows),
Binks, Michael B. Level crossings. 88-95.
The text examines the types of crossing in existence based on the
type of road (whether public or private) and the type of protection: traditional
gates, automatic half barriers etc and the complications of electric tramways
and electrified railways, both third rail and overhead electric. The author
is aware of crossings on the East Coast and West Coast main lines, but appears
to be unaware of the large number of such crossiings in East Anglia: there
are two on the A10 including one on a relatively recent section of
road near Littleport. Accidents are ignored other than groundings. The
illustrations are mainly of less usual locations: Abbey Wood level crossing
c1970 wirh red Routemaster bus (colour: David Monk-Steel); Slade Green level
crossing probably in 1950s (2 views); Picton level crossing with G5 No. 67343
hauling Whitby to Stockton service arriving; the mystery picture: farm occupation
crossing on third rail electric route with two horses in a field and two
huge gasholders; Sydenham Hill foot crossing for staff use (note lack of
gap in conductor rail); J27 No. 65872 hauls coal from Ryhope Colliery across
road on 31 )ctober 1966; public footpath at St Mary Cray (across third-rail
electrified tracks; interior of Picton signal box showing wheel to operate
crossing; footpath crossing; Bonsall crossing near Blyton on Gainsborough
to Barnetby line on 18 Juky 1989 (colour: J.S. Gilks); Low Row signal box
with motorised gates running on pneumatic tyres (colour: David Monk-Steel).
Further information contained in letters on page 251: Joe
Cassells on Irish level crossings (both South and North),
Stephen G. Abbott on correct terminology and Hixon,
Rory Wilson on level crossing replacement and David
Monk-Steel on attribution. W.T. Scott (page 764) wrote
in response to Joe Cassells at length on level crossings over runways, notably
in Ulster, but also elsewhere...
The BR Class 3 tanks. 96-9
Colour photo-feature Class 3 2-6-2Ts were built at Swindon and used
by the Western, Southern and North Eastern Regions, latterly many were painted
in lined Brunswick green, but in many of the illustrations it is difficult
tto detect the livery: see also cover illustration: No.
82006 on short freight leaving Barmouth on approach to viaduct in October
1963 (J.H. Moss), No. 82004 (unlined green) on turntable at Bath Green Park
in September 1952 (C.R. Gordon-Stewart), No. 82023 at Bude on 16 June 1962
(R.C. Riley), No. 82025 at Launceston with 13.10 from Okehampton with Royal
Mail van waiting in June 1963 (P.A. Fry), No. 82036 (in lined Brunswick green)
with 9F No. 92220 Evening Star in background and clashing Southern
malachite liveried rolling stock at Bath Green Park on 15 August 1963 (Hugh
Ballantyne), No. 82039 at Cheddar with a Yatton to Witham train in February
1962 (Bruce Nathan), No. 82039 at Shepton Mallet with 15.28 from Witham to
Yatton crossing 14.45 from Yatton hauled by 57XX 0-6-0PT No. 3643 on 27 July
1963 (Hugh Ballantyne), No. 82024 above River Medway near Tonbridge with
09.34 to Redhill on 19 December 1964 (David Idle), No. 82043 at Bristol Temple
Meads having arrived on 08.22 from Witham via Yatton on 28 September 1959
(Michael Mensing) and No. 82024 at Redhill shed on 1 January 1965 (David
Idle).
Tester, Adrian. An introduction to steam locomotive
testing. Part 3A. 100-7.
The first dynomometer was developed by George Stephenson and Nicholas
Wood to measure the resistance of wagons
Southampton and thereabouts. Michael Mensing (phot.). 108-9.
Colour photo-feature: class 205 DEMU No. 205025 at Southampton on
10.20 to Portsmouth Harbour on 17 October 1989; two class 73/1 electro-diesels
(Nos. 73 108 and 73 101 Brighton Evening Argus in Network SouthEast
livery) haul ballast train out of Eastleigh yard on 23 November 1989; No.
37 015 in Railfreight Speedlink livery with two tank wagons approaching Redbridge
station on 17 October 1989, class 205 DEMU No. 205025 in Network SouthEast
livery at St Denys with 11.20 Southampton to Portsmouth on 17 October 1989;
No. 47 214 Tinsley Traction drawing train of containers from Maritime
Freightliner depot towards Millbrook station on 23 November
1989..
Rutherford, Michael. LMS Eight-Coupled. Part 1. Deep
roots. (Railway Reflections No. 159). 110-18.
The LMS acquired 904 eight-coupled tender engines and 41 eight-coupled
tank engines. Begins with the William Chapman eight-wheel locomotive built
for the Lambton Waggonway. Cites the work of Andy Guy and the Early Railway
Conferences which have introduced new names to the history of the locomotive.
Notes the transition from coke (and anthracite) burning in locomotives to
coal. The eight coupled locomotive was developed in North America to burn
anthracite, and later culm — a waste form of anthracite. In Europe
locomotive design owed much to John Haswell who had been trained at Robert
Stephenson & Co. and was appointed works manager of the Vienna-Raab Railway
shops in 1840. The Alpine railway from Vienna to Trieste via the Semmering
Pass led to the Semmering locomotive trials in 1851. The entrants were
Seraing by John Cockerill & Co (a double-bogie 0-4-4-0T); Wiener
Neustadt (another 0-4-4-0T which anticipated the Mallet type);
Bavaria which had two cylinders and eight driving wheels connected
by rods and John Haswell's fairly straightforward 0-8-0 Vindobona:
the fourth axle was behind the firebox and linked to the other driving axles
by a long connecting rod and a form of compression braking was employed which
anticipated Le Chatelier. The Bavaria won the prize, but none of the
entrants were successful and Baron Wilhelm Engerth was charged with developing
a suitable locomotive which was based on the Bavaria. Meanwhile John
Haswell developed his long boiler 0-8-0 which became the mainstay of main
line freight mountain work. This type was built by many of the British locomotive
manufacturing companies including Sharp, Stewart & Co. and Neilson Reid
became involved. Sharp, Stewart supplied the Swedish & Norwegian Railway
with outside-cylindered 0-8-0s from 1886. The Scandinavian company was
experiencing financial problems and some of the locomotives were returned
and sold on to German railways and to the Barry Railway. (See letter from
Rory Wilson on page 251 concerning Sharp Stewart eight
coupled which served Kaiser and ended up in France after WW1)..It is known
that to reach Wales the locomotives had to have their cylinders removed and
had to traverse LNWR lines and this may have brought the design to the attention
of Webb. A prototype eight-coupled 'Coal Engine' No. 2524 emerged from Crewe
Works in October 1892. This was the first of 632 (including tank engine versions)
and no further six-coupled mineral engines were built. A three-cylinder compound
version, No. 50 and Nos 2526 et seq was introduced and these were successful
in reducing the need for banking and hauling increased loads. But coal traffic
was limited by the "needs" of small traders who needed supplies in small
quantities and forced the railways to retain obsolete wagons without brakes
and automatic couplers. Illus.: G2A No. 48952 at Rugby in February 1953 (colour);
Class B four-cylinder compound No. 2024 at Buxton; Class G No. 1274 on
dynamometer tests to assess wagons and lubrication (in this case 20 ton and
oil lubrication) on 6 January 1910; G2 No. 49448 taking water at Penrith
in March 1957 (colour: Ray Oakley); LYR )-8-0 No. 65 with piston valves;
No. 52727 (LYR 0-8-0 still with original boiler at Horwich in October 1959
(T.J. Edgington); p. 117 (top) 49361 and 46456 at Heath Town
Junction (colour: A. Trickett): see letter from Colin
Hadley (p. 251) which gives more precise location.
Manningtree memories. John D. Mann (phot.). 119.
Colour photo-feature: Class 47s Nos. 47 018 and 47 225 (on down and
up Norwich "expresses") and Craven Class 105 DMU on 20 June 1979; Class 47
speeding through on Norwich to Liverpool Street express on 15 May 1979 and
47 180 County of Suffolk heading for Ipswich
Wells, Jeffrery. The Nine Days' Strike of 1919. Part
2. 120-4.
Part 1 see page 22. The description of the effects
of the strike is limited to five railways: the Great Western (GWR), Great
Eastern (GER), Caledonian (CR), North British (NBR), and the London Undergroung
Group. The role of volunteers is noted and the actions taken by the companies
to simplify their operations and concentrate mainly on long distance passenger
services and the transport of food. Includes a circular from C.J. Churchward
to volunteer trainmen concerning the need to run with caution and to be viligent.
The Great Eastern Railway operated its services on the time interval system.
One of the problems encountered was that many people were on holiday when
the strike started and encountered difficulties in their return journeys.
The strike ended unexpectedly with an announcement made on Sunday afternoon,
6 October at 16.15 and this was followed by an official statement from 10
Downing Street at 19.00. Problems were encountered on the Metropolitan District
Railway with restarting services due to rust on the rails. There is a brief
biography (and portrait) of Jimmy Thomas of the National Union of Railwaymen.
Illus. soldier with rifle on LSWR station platform, crowds on platform at
Paddington, volunteer carter being intimidated by strikers and other
troublemakers (mainly female) near King's Cross, volunteer porters at Liverpool
Street station, lady volunteers working in King's Cross stables, scenes of
idleness at Charing Cross and Waterloo.
Readers' Forum. 125
At Doncaster. Editor
Number of WD 2-8-0 on p736 of the December
issue got left out — it was 90001.
Travelling through. Andrew Barrowman.
The shot of Cardean in Vol. 23 page
698 upper reminded writer of "more recent" journey between
Glasgow and Euston, recollected from memory. With the inauguration of the
WCML electrification to Glasgow in the spring of 1974, BR offered a cheap
day return between Glasgow and London for a low price, probably £5.
Writer and wife decided this was too good an opportunity to miss. She would
do a bit of shopping in London and he would attend a model railway exhibition,
then hop on the 17.00 from Euston and be back in Glasgow around 22.00. It
was a beautiful morning when they arrived at Central station to catch the
07.l0 to Euston, but a blockage down the line had prevented the train from
arriving at Central and in due course they were put on diesel-hauled MkI
stock to go down the old G&SWR to Carlisle where they expected to make
up lost time by switching back to electric traction. Things did not go well
as held at a signal in Barrhead for ages. The line had been singled by then,
and had to await a freight clearing the section. After a leisurely meander
through much of south-west Scotland, they finally arrived at Carlisle. The
diesel locomotive was uncoupled and super power electric traction was brought
forth. Another delay and a lot of head scratching ensued. Finally, that
locomotive was replaced with one that was actually compatible with the train.
Presumably this was because nobody had warned Carlisle to expect vacuum braked
stock. They ran into a signal failure somewhere south of Rugby and sat in
the sweltering heat for about another 40 minutes! As he recalled, they finally
arrived at Euston around 16.00. BR did allow them to take a later train back
to Glasgow, so they went for something to eat before returning to Glasgow
shortly before daybreak. They have not attempted another Glasgow-London day
trip since then. [KPJ tales of adventure
on Trans-Essex express comparable with Trans-Siberia]
Travelling through. Peter Davis
Regarding photograph on p. 691 (lower) in
Vol. 23: the GWR had running powers over the LMS from
Yate South Junction to Gloucester and at this date, 1936-37, bridge strengthening
on this route had been done to allow Class 5 4-6-0s and thus 'Halls'. The
engine in the photograph would have come off at Gloucester and the train
been taken forward by a Derby or Nottingham engine. Train reporting numbers
were introduced on the GWR in 1934. The number 595 suggests that
the train near Brewham in the lower view on p. 694
originated in the Exeter area probably Kingswear or Paignton. This train
would have followed the original Wilts., Somerset & Weymouth route from
Westbury to Thingley Junction, then via Foxhall Junction, Oxford, Banbury
and up the Great Central to Nottingham. The upper
view on page 695: train No.660 would have originated in the Plymouth
area and is most likely to have been a Plymouth to Manchester express. The
location is Filton Junction and the photographer was standing in the 'four-foot'
of the down line of the chord to the Avonmouth line via Henbury. The train
is on the South Wales Union main line; to the left of it can be seen the
down home signal on the line from Stoke Gifford to Filton Junction. The station
building can been seen to the right of the train and the signal has been
returned to danger very smartly. It is possible to date the picture between
May 1936 and August 1937 when No.5053 ran with the name Bishop's Castle
This engine would have worked through to Shrewsbury.
Railways, Steamships and the 'Merchant Navy' Class. Ian
Simpson.
In footnote 22 to of his article 'Railways,
Steamships and the 'Merchant Navy' Class', Part Two, John W E. Helm (Vol.
23 page 628) states that the French Line ship SS Mont
Blanc blew up after striking a pier. While it is true that the Mont
Blanc was resting against a pier at the time of the explosion, striking
the pier was not the cause of the disaster. The Mont Blanc caught
fire and ultimately blew up after colliding with the Norwegian ship the SS
Imo. It appears that the Imo was steaming in accordance with
the local custom of ships passing starboard to starboard. The Mont Blanc
was not following the same custom and confused actions by both captains resulted
in the collision. As well as the City of Halifax, the neighbouring communities
of Richmond and Dartmouth were flattened by the explosion which caused about
2,000 fatalities and 9,000 injuries. The disaster remains the world's largest
accidental man-made explosion.
The Tay Bridge Disaster and the Press. Nick
Daunt
See article on the press coverage of the Tay
Bridge Disaster (Vol. 23 page 710) where one of the picture
captions makes the common mistake of associating Julius Caesar's "I came,
I saw, I conquered" remark with Britain. The words actually refer to his
defeat of an eastern prince Pharnaces at the battle of Zela in what is now
Turkey in 47 BC.
The Tay Bridge Disaster and the Press. John
Macnab.
See article on the press coverage of the Tay
Bridge Disaster (Vol. 23 page 710) where it is observed
that certain churches and their adherents viewed the event as a consequence
of Sabbath breaking. The writer recalls hearing of the Tay Bridge disaster
from his paternal grandmother, a native of Arbroath, who was eleven years
old in 1879. She still averred there was no other cause for the disaster
but for the fact they should not have run the train on the Sabbath. It was
the Lord's will!
Masonry, munitions and myth. David
Pollard
The gauge of nearly all the post-1844 Bath stone quarry tramways or
trolley roads, as known locally, was 2ft 5½in. This is the gauge specified
in the Corsham Tramways Order of 1876 and referred to in Major General
Hutchinson's Report of Inspection dated 15 July 1878. In imperial units it
is an odd gauge; however, in metric units it is exactly 750mm which is consistent
with the radical thinking (both political and technical) of the two principal
partners of Randell, Saunders & Co., who were the first to use this gauge.
It quickly became an industry standard. The Corsham tramway system survived
until September 1939; internal quarry systems continued much later and the
last one, at Monks Park Quarry, ended around 2003. A short length is still
used in the slope shaft at Hartham Park Underground Quarry at Corsham. All
the munition tramways were 2ft gauge. Underground in the Ridge Quarry there
is mixed gauge 2ft/2ft 5½in track still in situ in the capped Ridge
Monks slope shaft. Samuel Hansard Yockney worked for Messrs. Brewer and Lewis,
the contractors for the eastern end of Box Tunnel, but it was his younger
brother Augustus who inherited Corsham Down (Tunnel) Quarry through his wife
and eventually evicted his tenants Randell, Saunders & Co. Augustus Yockney
did not work at Box Tunnel – he was a schoolboy at the time. He is believed
to have been an assistant to Brunel later in the 1840s.
The Meta-Motors. Michael J Smith.
Location of official London Transport photograph of the two-car Metadyne
unit (23, 732 lower) was not Moorgate,
as stated, but District Line's Ealing Common sheds. The unit entered service
on the District in 1937, being transferred to the Metropolitan Line the following
year. Its immaculate condition and the white-painted wheels also suggest
1937 as correct date rather than 1970.
The Nine Days' Strike of 1919. C P Atkins
See January Backtrack page 22:
pretty sure that rather severe figure in the bowler standing
below the cab of the GWR 2-6-0 is John Aiton Kay (1883-1949) who was proprietor
of the Railway Magazine from 1916 and Editor of it from 1942, both
until to his death. If indeed it was he would still have been only 36 in
1919!
Memories of a wartime evacuee. Michael J.
Smith
Train shown in the photograph on p21 of the January
issue is not passing under the West London line but beneath the flyover by
which light engines and empty stock moved between Old Oak Common sheds and
the Paddington departure platforms without fouling the main lines. The double
track flyover came into use in November 1912 and was singled in September
1967. The West London line crosses the Paddington main line about a third
of a mile further west.
Book reviews. 126
Stockport Tiviot Dale – a Cheshire line remembered and
revisited. Gregory K. Fox. Foxline. RH ****
"a thinking person's album... a worthy record"
A historical dictionary of the railways of the
British Isles. David Wragg. Wharncliffe. AJM ***
Main criticism is the work's brevity: perhaps the compiler should
have contacted Dawn Smith.
A history of British Railways North Eastern Region. John G.
Teasdale. NERA. GBS *****
A collection of 22 essays which reflect on the achievements of the
Region based on the Headquarters of the old North Eastern Railway. Its tangerine
signage was in marked contrast to the dreary plum adopted on the
LMR.
D.J. Norton's pictorial survey of railways in
the West Midlands. 3 Parts. Bob Essery. Wild Swan. MJS
*****
"wonderful set of books"
Light engine through Leicestershire. Tommy Tomalin. Rear cover.
English Electric Type 40 No. D225 passing Theddingworth (with level
crossing) on 2 June 1966.
A travel-stained GWR 'Grange' 4-6-0 No. 6861 Crynant Grange approaches Birmingham Snow Hill with an up freight in November 1955. (T.J. Edgington). Front cover
Night and Day on the Western Region. Keith Dungate (phot.). 132-3.
Colour photo-feature: No. 47 608 on arrival at Paddington on 18 March
1985 (at night); Nos. 37 007 and 37 178 on Paddington to Plymouth special
as replacemnt for King George V passing Totnes on 7 April 1985; HST
in original proper livery on down working passing Souhall on 18 March 1985;
No. 50 013 Agincourt arriving down the hill at Totnes with Plymouth to Paddington
train on 7 April 1985; Class 128 diesel parcels railcar at Paddington Platform
11 on night of 18 March 1985.:
Stewart-David, David. Light engine movements.
134-40.
Stemmed from locomotive and brake van movements to pick up trains
at collieries, changes of engine as at Grantham (increasing risk of smuts
in Margaret Roberts' eyes) and movements to and from locomotive depots. Last
reduced by stabling points at major termini such as Kink's Cross and Paddington
(Ranelagh Bridge yard) and making trains of locomotives as at Salisbury.
Also return movements of bankers. See also letters on page
318 from J.A. Cassells on Irish light engine movements, and
from P.J. Buonacorsi on how seeking to avoid them worsened
the Harrow & Wealdstone disaster (No. 45637 Windward Islands was working
back as a pilot on the 08.00 to Liverpool on 8 October 1952)..
Glasgow Central. Adrian Willats (phot.). 141.
Colour photo-feature: photographs taken on 7 July 1984: former wonderful
depature indicator showing 13.20 departure for Swansea and 13.25 to Largs
and others; two 303 EMUs on Gourock services and 47 515 with Sealink livery
Mark 1 train from Stranraer.:
Mullay, A.J. Railways and No.10: from Wellington to
Asquith. 142-6.
Others included Robert Peel, William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli
(all of whom had locomotives named after them). Herbert Asquith was not
commemorated in this way, but Wellington was many times.
See also fine photograph of Prime
Minister Asquith and his wife arriving at Earlston on 3 October 1908 in Rly
Arch., 2010 (26). 75 lower..
Crosse, J. Stanier Pacific Trials. 147-9.
Article based upon official dynamometer car records which must have
beeen dated, although is not quoted for first run. This was a test non-stop
from Euston to Glasgow hauled by No. 6201 Princess Elizabeth with
seven carriages (including dynamometer car) which achieved a time of 5 hours
54 minutes 12 seconds (average 68.2 mile/h; maximum 95). The minima at Shap
and Beattock were 57 and 56 and two firemen were pn the footplate. The driver
was T. Clarke of Crewe. The return on the next day with an extra coach was
slightly faster. Both runs are included in
C.J. Allen's British Pacific
locomotives pp. 123-5 where the dates stated are 16 and 17 November
1936. The next run considered was the press demonstration run (see Allen)
of 15 August 1933 by No. 6200 The Princess Royal when fifteen carriages
were taken to just beyond Tamworth where a hot box brought the demonstration
to a halt (see Allen, who was on the train, for how the press party was returned
to Euston). Other runs considered were those by No. 6200 on 23 July 1933
from Crewe to Carlisle and back and by No. 6201 on 17 December 1933 over
the same route. Dynamometer car records from two series of runs on service
trains with No. 6209 Princess Beatrice between 29 November and 9 December
1938, and 10-20 January 1939 were run over the Crewe to Carlisle section
in connection with an evaluation of lagging for superheater elements. Finally
there are some details of test running with No. 6234 Duchess of Abercorn
on 12 and 26 February 1939 between Crewe and Glasgow and return with
600 ton trains (for latter when equipped with a double chimney see also Allen
pp. 140 et seq). See also letter from P. Justin
McCarthy (page 318) which adds that he has inspected Halade records recorded
in Coach No. 1048 during the November 1936 dynamometer car tests: these show
some violent oscillations when passing through speed restrictions at higher
speeds.
Campbell, Robert D. The Forth & Clyde Junction Railway.
Part One. 150-7.
Line ran between Stirling and Balloch. It was proposed in 1845, opened
in 1856 and closed in 1959 having lost its through passnger services earlier.
The history is slightly complex in that the Blane Valley route to Aberfoyle
shared the route betweeb Balfron and Buchlyvie.
Midland Class 3. 158-9.
Colour photo-feature: No. 43474 at Bedford shed in March 1961 (Chris
Gammell); No. 43645 at Ashcurch with passenger train for Upton-on-Severn
in August 1961 (Michael Covey-Crump); No. 43219 (with LMS on tender) on train
of timber-bodied empty coal wagons passing Chinley North Junction in 1952;
Nos. 43762 and 43186 on Bromsgrove shed with 0-6-0T No. 47502 on 20 April
1957 (R.C. Riley); No. 43645 approaching Hitchin with freight (J.M. Cramp).
'Granges' of the Western Lands. 160-2.
Colour photo-feature: No. 6832 Brockton Grange (plain GWR green)
at north end of Birmingham New Street on 20 February 1939; No. 6800
Arlington Grange in lined green on Penzance shed on 29 April 1961
(R.C. Riley); No. 6805 Broughton Grange leaving Truro westward on
parcels working with road mounted milk tank on flat wagon at front on 15
May 1959 (Michael Mensing); No. 6833 Calcot Grange arriving Bath Spa
with 17.35 Salisbury to Cardiff on 29 June 1961 (Hugh Ballantyne); No. 6800
Arlington Grange in unlined black approaching Chacewater with up freight
on 15 May 1959 (Michael Mensing); No. 6826 Nannerth Grange crossing:
Liskeard Viaduct with 13.25 Plymouth to Truro very slow passenger train on
17 June 1960 (R.C. Riley); 6855 Saighton Grange approaching Snow Hill
Tunnel with down freight on 2 December 1961 (Michael Mensing); No. 6831
Bearley Grange passing Cowley Bridge Junction with 08-40 Paignton
to Nottingham on 16 July 1960 (R.C. Riley)
Nicholls, Arthur R. Southern eights. 163-7.
Urie G16 4-8-0T built for hump shunting at Feltham; Maunsell
three-cylinder Z class 0-8-0T and Hecate.
Rutherford, Michael. LMS Eight-Coupled. Part 2. The
inheritance. (Railway Reflections No. 160). 168-76.
Considers the nature of British coal production including the export
or long distance carriage of specialist fuels, notably anthracite from
South Wales and coking coals from County Durham; the large number of small
coal mines; the large number of small customers; and the use of small, cheap,
low capacity wagons, with crude brakes, couplings and buffers (dumb buffers
were not eliminated in Scotland until WW1). A great deal of shunting took
place and Rutherford estimates that 100 shunters died per annum, and there
were also deaths and injuries amongst goods guards. Illus.: Fowler 7F 0-8-0
No. 49508 at Horwich Works in June 1957 (colour: P.J. Hughes); LYR 0-8-0
No. 114 fitted with corrugated steel circular firebox; SDJR 2-8-0 No. 53807
climbing 1 in 50 to Devonshire Tunnel with freight from Bath on 13 December
1962 (colour: Hugh Ballantyne); LYR Little Egbert 0-8-2T No. 1504; LNWR Bowen
Cooke 0-8-2T No. 1548; former CR 0-8-0T No. 16950; LYR large boiler 0-8-0
No. 216 between Mytholmroyd and Hebden Bridge; LNWR 0-8-0 near Roe Green;
SDJR 2-8-0 No. 53809 assisting West Country No. 34103 Calstock at Evercreech
Junction in 1962 (colour: J.G. Dewing); SDJR 2-8-0 No. 53808 between
Midford and Wellow with 07.35 Nottingham to Bournemouth West on 28 July 1962
(Hugh Ballantyne); SDJR 2-8-0 No. 13806 with larger boiler at Derby on 25
January 1948; former ROD MM 2-8-0 as LMS No. 9471 (ex ROD 2138) at Holyhead;
SDJR 2-8-0 No. 53809 at Stalbridge with; SDJR 2-8-0 No. 53807 with 07.32
Nottingham to Bournemouth on 25 August 1962 (colour: T.J. Edgington); LNWR
0-8-0 No. 49362 approaching Rugby with long train of empty stock in 1953
(colour: J.M. Jarvis); large boiler LYR 0-8-0 No. 12870; SDJR 2-8-0 No.
53804 between Devonshire Tunnel and Midford on freight on 26 August
1954 (Hugh Ballantyne); LNWR 0-8-0 No. 8962 near Roe Green; 8F No. 48191
at Wyedale in snow in 1967 (R. Jones); 7F 0-8-0 No. 9531 at Toton South End
Junction with coal train.
Lancashire Coalfield industrials. Brian Magilton, photographer with
notes by John Scholes. 177
Colour photo-feature: all 0-6-0STs; all except last painted maroon:
Harry (Hudswell Clarke WN 1776/1944) and Stanley (Hunslet WN
3302/1945) fitted Giesl ejector at Astley Green Colliery; Warrior
(Hunslet WN 3823/1954) with Giesl ejector at Walkden; Spitfire (Hunslet
WN 3831/1955) in apple green livery with Giesl ejector at Bickershaw Colliery:
all in 1970.
Bennett, Alan. Ocean coasting by Great Western Railway. 178-9.
Publicity material with colour illustrations therefrom taken from
Holiday Haunts mainly from the covers. Illustrations from Holiday Haunts:
cover for 1939 (signed Muriel Gill); cover for 1932 (very chic and glamorous),
surfing from frontispiece of 1932 (more glamour); 1934 (dreadful job signed
"Mel") and 1959 (signed Batchelor: and how did those holidaymakers bring
all those bits and pieces to the beach by train?). Also pre WW1 GWR postcards
of Weymouth and Lynmouth. There are also quotations of purple prose: one
of the best was "Penzance, modern as Cornish towns go". :
Armstrong, David Paul. Constable on the track. 182-3.
Author came from a Newcastle railway family and joined the British
Transport Commission Police in 1967.
Stopping at the following stations. John Spencer Gilks (phot.). 184-5.
Colour photo-feature: Kirkandrews (Silloth branch) on 6 September
1964; Filey Holiday Camp on 9 July 1977; Finstock Halt (with Castle class
No. 7007 Great Western passing through) on 17 February 1963; Sharnall
Street on 29 September 1964. and Yeoveney Halt with single railcar (later
Class 121) arriving or departing on 31 March 1962.
Wray, Tom. Charles Fay and James Newall mechanical railway
brakes. 186-8.
Charles Fay
was the carriage & wagon superintendent of the Manchester & Leeds
Railway and James Newall held a
similar position on the East Lancashire Railway. Includes diagrams of both
systems..
Readers' Forum. 189-90.
A Christmas journey in 1904. Michael Hardy.
See prevous volume page 717 et seq:
notes that Malcolm Blane was killed during WW1 and that there are references
to a talk given by him at the Railway Club (Rly Mag., .January 1914)
and an obituary in Locomotive Mag., 1915, 15 October).
Northern train sheds. E.M. Johnson.
See pictorial feature on page 4:
Manchester London Road was the joint property of the LNWR and the MSLR (GCR)
and remained in this state until nationalization. The two companies maintained
what was in effect separate ststions with their own station masters, booking
offices, etc (KPJ: this was emphasised by the LNER side using letters rather
than numbers for its platforms).
The Redhill to Tonbridge line. Adrian Gray.
See article on page 12 et seq: notes that
Government intervened to make the South Eastern and London & Brighton
Railways share a route through the North Downs via Merstham, rather than
via Riddlesdown. Captain Alderson of the Royal Engineers selected the route
which had considerable military significance..
Thanet's railways. John Duddington.
See previous Volume page 722: notes former
SER track in Margate still in use for stabling stock until early 1960s and
lack of tramway connection to new Ramsgate station as distinct from
old SER station..
Caledonian No. 123. Arnold Tortorella.
See colour feature on page 32: cites
Northern Division Minute Book entry associated with preservation of No. 123
dated 11 September 1934 and strange misleading paragraph in Glasgow
Herald on 5 June 1934 which refers to No. 123 participating in a race
to "Birmingham" in "1883" (before it was built).
Mr. Watson's not so bright 'Stars' L.A.
Summers.
A highly rebarbative letter which refers back to
letter writer's own flawed contribution (previous
Volume page 664 et seq, the response to it from two high qualified
writers, Clements and McMahon (who had recently published
an excellent, and excellently reviewed in
this magazine book on Irish locomotive development and
another writer, Joseph Cliffe, who dared to cross this
new Clement Stretton. See also broadside from Allan C.
Baker (letter page 318) on failure by Summers to know about link between
William Beardmore & Co. and Caprotti Valve Gears. This could be regarded
as a useful contribution as it elicited further information from
Clements and McMahon on pp. 381-2 with fresh
information...
Book Reviews. 190
The Hughes and Stanier 2-6-0s: locomotives of the
LMS series. John Young and David Tyreman. RCTS. MB *****
"meticulously compiled details of design, construction, allocations
and work... Essential for all locomotive historians. " [KPJ: Oh not to dwell
in a rusty bibliographical siding].
The rise and fall of the Severn Bridge Railway
1872-1970. Ron Huxley. DTG ***
Reprint of book originally published in 1984
Rose Grove. Volume 2. East Lancashire's great railway complex.
Noel Coates. Lancashire & Yorshire Railway Society. MB *****
Very well received: reviewer decries neglect of Burnley/Blackburn
area by railway "planners"
Bleak expectations at Sheffield. Cliff Woodhead. rear cover.
B1 No. 61392 departs Sheffield Midland with 12.50 to Chinley in March
1964 when gtound and roofs of coaches covered in snow. Sheffield South No.
1 signal box being prepared to be moved.
Ex-SECR D1 4-4-0 No.31739 awaits departure from Dover Priory with the 07.24 London Bridge-Ramsgate on 6 May 1961. (Rodney Lissenden). front cover
Judging a book by its cover. Michael Blakemore.
Editorial plug for Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway locomotives
by Barry Lane.
Up from Somerset. 196-7.
Colour photo-feature: No. 6027 King Richard I at Weston-super-Mare
Locking Road with excursion in September 1937; No. 1454 with Clevedon at
Yatton in 1956 (J. Mitchell); Class 2 2-6-2T No. 41208 emerging from Shuteshelf
Tunnel on Cheddar Valley branch with 14.00 ex-Yatton in February 1962 (P.A.
Fry); 43XX 2-6-0 No. 6372 with Whitaker tablet apparatus extended at Dulverton
on Taunton to Barnstaple train in August 1962 (J.M. Chamney) and 2-6-2T No.
5543 arriving Bishop Lydeard with train for Taunton in early 1960 (G.H. Hunt).
Flann, John L. The fascination of railways. 198-203.
Travel in the 1880s based on contemporary accounts replete with florid
language: footplate journey on Cannon Street to Dover Night Mail probably
in 1876 accompanied by the locomotive superintendent of the South Eastern
Railway A.M. Watkin, footplate journey from Bedford to Moorgate Street in
1868, young lady travelling from Oxford to London stuck at Radley in Great
Blizzard of January 1881, and another account of this storm by a passenger
guard on the London & South Western Railway between Salisbury and Waterloo,
and in March of 1881 of the Settle and Carlisle line at Dent Head..
Sinclair, Neil T. Beyond the Highland Railway. Part
One. 204-9.
The Highland Railway was a tough school for engineers and other
professional railwaymen who took their skills elsewhere. Donald Campbell
(illustrated in family portrait) was a guard in 1900. He had joined the Inverness
& Aberdeen Junction Railway in 1864 His two sons also served on the Highland.
John Campbell became a clerk in 1892 and rose to become station master at
Lairg and later at Aviemore. Alexander Campbell also served with the Highland,
but emigrated to Canada in 1908, working on the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway
and probably becoming an auditor on the CNR at Edmonton. William Roberts
was Engineer-in-Chief Highland Railway from 1898 to 1913: trained as civil
engineer under Peter MacBey of Elgin. In 1870 he was involved in surveying
Sutherland & Caithness Railway and was its resident engineer until 1874.
He then worked for Hector Mackenzie on the Dunfermline & Inverkeithing
Railway, the Eglinton Tunnel, Stobcross Dock and the East India Railway before
returning to the Highland.. Sir
Alexander Matheson, (Chairman of the Inverness & Aberdeen Junction
Railway; then Highland Railway (until 1884). He was responsible for the Woosung
Road Co., the first (brief) railway in China). David Ross was the Highland
Railway goods agent in Inverness. In 1862 he left for India to become assistant
traffic manager on the Scinde Railway, later the Scinde, Punjab & Delhi
Railway. He was involved in the Second Afghan War between 1878 and 1880 and
wrote Military transport by Indian railways, Lahore: 1883. When the
railway was taken over by the North West State Railway he was not retained
and returned to Scotland where he died in Perth in 1891. Thomas Robertson
started his railway career as a porter at Ballinluig in 1863. He became
Superintendent of the Line in 1875. Following the Armagh disaster he became
General Manager of the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) in 1890. He became
Chairman of the Irish Board of Works and was appointed to the Special Government
Commission for the Railways of the Indian Empire which produced a Report
and led to the Indian Railway Board. He died in 1906. James Ross was born
in Cromarty in 1848. It is not known where he trained to be a civil engineer,
but he became involved in Canadian railway construction in the Rocky Mountains.
Ross was joined by Alexander Hogg who had been educated at the Inverness
Royal Academy and had been apprenticed under
William Paterson. from 1865-9. He
then joined the Caledonian Railway before emigrating to the USA in 1870.
Their work is recorded in Pierre Berton's The last spike. Ross became
a major railway contractor, was involved in the electrification of urban
tramways (including in the City of Birmingham) and became an iron and steel
magnate. He died in 1913. Others mentioned include
Charles and William Mills,
George Garrow and
William Batcher...
Continued on page 348..
Birkenhead Class 03s. Tom Heavyside (phot.). 210
Colour photo-feature: D2162 (green) at Duke Street on 30 June 1968;
No. 03 073 (blue) at junction of Duke Street and Corporation Road on 5 August
1987 and No. 03 073 (blue) pushing Grainflow wagon at Joseph Rank's Ocean
Mill on 8 July 1987.
Grayer, Jeffery. Want to run a Railway? 211-13.
Want to run a railway? was the title of a Southern
Region 48 page booklet printed in red and heavy black and aimed to show the
difficulties faced in the complexity of train operation south of the Thames.
There is a challenging "Which 8.15 to Town?": this showed a huge number of
such departures on the South Western approaches; a moderate number on the
Central Section and remarkably few on the South Eastern! Shades of the old
Southern Railway lingered on in a map which appeared to annex the French
coast from Brest to Calais and make Paris a provincial capital. The people
who ran railways, or thought about such activities, wore bowler hats and
heavy spectacles.
Ludlam, A.J. Kirkstead to Little Steeping – the New Line.
214-20.
A Bill for a Lincoln & Skegness Railway was defeated in the House
of Lords in 1884. On 16 September 1887 an Act was passed for a Lincoln,
Horncastle, Spilsby & East Coast Railway, but this failed to attract
capital. Skegness sought access from the Midland Railway and this prompted
Oliver Bury to promote the Kirkstead & Little Steeping Light Railway
and a Light Railway Order was obtained on 27 December and 15 miles of level
double track were opened to passenger traffic on 1 July 1913. The engineer
was Alexander Ross and the line was always termed the New Line. One line
of rails was lifted in 1916 as part of WW1 War Effort, but was restored by
the summer of 1923. WW2 brought considerable military traffic with RAF airfields
at Coningsby and East Kirkby. Bombs arrived in large quantities and there
were weekend trains to enable airmen to have a night out in Lincoln and return
from leave. There were stations at Tumby Woodside, New Bolingbroke, where
some of Harold Squires memories are recorded, and Stickney. S.M. Fox remembered
a serious fire in the lamp room at the last-named and this was treated as
enemy action. The line closed with much of the Lincolnshire network in 1970.
Lincolnshire seems to lack either railways or public loos.
In and out of Leeds Central. Gavin Morrison. 221-3.
Colour photo-feature: A4 No. 60025 Falcon departs with 12.30
to King's Cross on 24 April 1961; Classs 5 No. 44853 passes Copley Hill on
16.50 to Doncaster on 22 September 1965; No. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley
backs out on 28 February 1960; D1103 on up Yorkshire Pullman at Wortley
South Junction on 29 April 1967; Deltic No. D9015 Tulyar on London
express with Metro-Cammell DMU alongside; J50 No. 68984 on empty stock on
9 August 1961; B1 No. 61165 on 10.10 to Eastern counties on 9 April 1962.:
Night must fall. 224-5.
Colour photo-feature: Deeley 0-4-0T No. 41537 inside Gloucester Barnwood
shed in September 1962 (Paul Riley); A4 No. 60019 Bittern outside
St. Rollox prepared for working the final steam-hauled passenger train to
Aberdeen on 3 September 1966 (Jim Carter); BRCW Class 33 D6508
Eastleigh in original livery at Brighton on 7 November 1992, and preserved
A3 No. 4472 Flying Scotsman in King's Cross on 18 November 1967 with
The Palatine (David Idle).
Baker, Michael H.C. South Eastern 4-4-0s. 226-31.
Mainly personal memories, and photographs, of Maunsell inside-cylinder
4-4-0s including rebuilds of the Wainwright 4-4-0s: i.e classes D1, E1, L
and L1. Led to correspondence (p. 381) from Peter Tatlow
concerning state of the bridges and their need for strengthening and from
Philip Atkins on the James Clayton influence..
Rutherford, Michael. LMS eight-coupled. Part 3. The
inheritance. (Railway Reflections No. 161). 232-40.
Table 2 lists pre-grouping eight coupled tender lcomotives, with some
exceptions. The exceptions were the Barry Railway 0-8-0s which had been by
Sharp Stewart for export, but were acquired by the Barry Railway in 1889.
The Locomotive Superintendent, J.H. Hosgood, must have been satisfied with
the design as seven 0-8-0Ts based on it were delivered in 1896. Furthermore,
his brother, W.J. Hosgood, ordered three further modified versions of the
type for the Port Talbot Railway & Docks in 1901. The Webb compounds
in their original form, and the Holden 0-10-0T to 0-8-0 rebuild are also
excluded. Notes the lack of eight coupled designs on the North British Railway
and how the Glenfarg tests had evaluated the NER 0-8-0 type (T2 later Q6
class), the Churchward 28XX 2-8-0, and the highly successful Raven three-cylinder
T3/LNER Q7. Walter Chalmers had drawings prepared for a three-cylinder 2-8-0
in 1921. The Midland Railway also failed to construct any eight coupled
locomotives, although Johnson prepared designs for an 0-8-0 shortly before
retirement. (see Atkins Midland
Record. 13, 38). Derby did, however, design and construct
a successful 2-8-0 for the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway: Rutherford
notes the involvement of Mervyn F. Ryan
(who was later to ascend to great heights in Argentina) in this
design.
Edgeley atmosphere. Mike Kinder (phot.). 241.
Colour photo-feature: Stockport Edgeley shed (9B) during its terminal
period of decline with Britannia No. 70015 and WD No. 90056 (with small
snowplough) on 26 October 1966; 8F No. 48639 and 9F 2-10-0 and 8F 2-8-0s
surrounded by ash: not quite the swinging sixties.
Tester, Adrian. An introduction to steam locomotive testing. Part
3B. 242-50.
Joseph Doyen, Chief Engineer of the Belgian State Railways, introduced
the ergometer which measured work done as measured by Desdout's pendulum
inertia dynamometer. This Belgian school of testing was followed by George
Hughes and feature in the L&YR dynamometer car and in LMS Car No. 3.
Includes detailed log of Star class No. 4039 Queen Matilda on Paddington
to Bristol (via Bath) run. Illus.: NER dynamometer car showing flexible pipes
to connect to locomotive for measuring boiler and steam chest pressures and
dynamometer spring (protective covers removed), L&YR car, P&O Pacific
231-725 with high degree superheat (Houlet elements)..
Readers' Forum 251
Level crossings. Joe Cassells.
See feature on page 88 et
seq: Irish practice:colour of levers on Great Southern
Railways; gate wheels were quite common on GSR and GNR systems: at Ballinasloe
the wheel was directly behind the signalman. Some life expired wheels were
replaced by a hydraulic mecanism as at Athenry, Killucan and Castlerea.
See also W.T. Scott letter page 764.
Level crossings. Stephen G. Abbott.
See feature on page 88 et
seq: correct terminology and Hixon,
Level crossings. Rory Wilson.
See feature on page 88 et seq: when the track
was relaid through Greenland Mill AHB at Bradford-on-Avon British Rail had
a gang of men on hand ready to lay a temporary crossing of sleepers for emergency
vehicles.
Level crossings. David Monk-Steel.
See feature on page 88 et
seq:picture of Abbey Wood level crossing should have
been credited to M.J. Furnell.
LMS eight-coupled. Rory Wilson.
See Part 1 of this feature on page 110 et
seq : some of the Sharp Stewart locomotives which
were returned from Norway went to the Pfalz [Palatine] State Railways and
to the Baden State Railways and following WW1 some went to Poland and to
the CF de l'Est in France.
LMS eight-coupled. Colin Hadley.
See page 117 (top): location given
as "Heath Town Junction" was Portobello Junction near Wolverhampton between
High and Low Levels.
Imperial 'Jubilees'. David Pearson.
See page 70: information on the selection procedure
adopted by the LMS railway management, especially in India, and why "territories"
in Australia and Canada did not receive names and an essay on the Irish Free
State and Eire
A South East Wales miscellany. Nick Holliday.
254
Remarks made timber platform forming Nelson & Llancaiach
station buildings is criticised
Time spent in Hereford. Hugh Blundstone.
which notes that probably empty stock for Paddington train as indicated
by headcode A04
Look back in Ongar. Paul Joyce. 252-3.
Colour photo-feature of photographs taken on 17 June 1993: one of
the London Transport roundels at Ongar, Ongar station at dawn; train at North
Weald, exterior of North Weald station and interior of Central Line car devoid
of passengers.:
Book Reviews. 254
The Merchant Navy: ships and trains in World War II. Ben Carver.
Finial. AJM **
Emphasis on shipping lines
Horton's guide to Britain's railways in feature
film. Glyn Horton. Silver Link. RH ****
"Excellent value"
Making for Shap summit. Peter Tatlow. rear cover.
Class 5 No. 44767 with Stephenson motion climbing to Shap with van
train on 27 June 1967.
LNER A4 Pacific No.60024 Kingfisher calls at Dunblane with the 13.30 Aberdeen-Glasgow, next stop Stirling, in September 1965. (Derek Penney). front cover
Meanwhile, back on the Parliamentary train... Michael Blakemore.
259.
Editorial on the pack of liars who will be hoping to buy your vote.
"A minor kerfuffle broke out a couple of months-back when one of our elected
representatives to the Mother of Parliaments bemoaned the changed state of
affairs which appears to mean that in future he would not be entitled to
claim first class railway travel on the public purse. The issue was less
to do with the fairness or otherwise of of such a situation, more about the
relevant grandee's haughty disdain for the apparent cesspool of life into
which he faced being pitched: a world in which standard class passengers
"are a totally different type of people – they have a different outlook
on life... If I was in standard class I would not do work because people
would be looking over your shoulder the entire time, there's lots of children,
there would be noise, there would be distraction". And once he'd done
expostulating on the iniquity of it all (I was. expecting "this is the end
of civilisation as we know it" at any moment), other MPs piped up to bewail
the indignity of being denied the best seats on the train courtesy of the
state. One wanted to travel first class because on later trains "there are
often a number of people who have been drinking"; another maintained he needed
the extra leg room in first class, being over 6ft tall; another claimed the
'at seat' service meant she didn't have to interrupt her work to go and queue
at the buffet. None of this evidently applies to anyone else.
Well, now... The change in the rules, of course, arises from the MPs' expenses
scandal, when we discovered how well so many had feasted at the trough of
plenty. As it seems our representatives have been able to fund so much of
their everyday lifestyle (even disregarding the widely reviled moats, flagpoles
and duck houses) off the taxpayer, you might well suggest that if MPs wish
to travel first class it would do them no harm to put their hands in their
own pockets and pay the difference in cost above the publicly issued standard
rate ticket, since they haven't had to fork out for much else. That's what
many people choose to do when travelling on company business.
On the other hand, we might derive some measure of satisfaction at the prospect
of Honourable Members, even Right Honourable ones, having to travel in bog
standard class, with all the unpleasantness which that often entails. Perhaps
exposing them to the conditions in which the 'poor and huddled masses' have
to travel would concentrate their minds on improving things (though history
tends to suggest not), while you might argue that a couple of hours of being
harangued by disgruntled real fare payers could hardly fail to leave an
unsuspecting parliamentarian better informed. And as to the said MP's plaintive
"Are we supposed to stand when there are no seats?", the answer is yes, actually
– the rest of us have to. Perhaps we should call it 'parliamentary'
class again to make them feel at home.
St. Pancras — before the 'Eurostars' came. Peter Butler (phot.).
260-1.
Colour-photo feature: Class 45 No. 45 121 departing on 5 September
1979;. remainder on 8 June 1983: Class 47 No. 47 570 approaches terminus;
High Speed Train (in original livery) on 18.15 to Derby; EMU Class 317 Unit
£27 leaving on 17.25 to Bedford; Type 45 No. 45 180 light engine.
R.A.S. Hennessey. Flags, trade
and traction: aspects of the 'fifteen hundred' era. Part One. 262-7.
Influence of Sir Eric
Geddes, Minister of Transport, and
Charles Merz of Merz & McLellan
on railway electrification. The significance of the North Eastern Electricity
Supply Company (NESCO) and the
Kennedy Committee. Prior to
the Kennedy Committee's deliberations the North Eastern Railway had set out
to electrify the Shildon to Newport line. This did not open until 1915 and
was closed on 31 December 1934. The Manchester, South Junction & Altringham
was electrified from 11 May 1931. Finance was provided via the repeal of
Passenger Duty introduced by Leslie Hore-Belisha, Minister of Transport in
1929. There was some contemporary criticism that the third-rail system was
not adopted. The system was subsequenty converted to 25kV ac, and then to
750V dc to form part of the Metrolink. The Manchester-Sheffied-Wath scheme
was financed by the Railways (Agrement) Act of 1935 which established the
Railway Finance Corporation an led to the New Works Programme of 1935-40.
Hennessey emphasises beneficiaries of schemes (that is British industrial
companies). In the case of Manchester-Wath-Sheffield these were Balfour Beatty,
Henley's Cables, BICC (overhead equipment) and AEI (Metrovick). Notes Gresley's
favourable stance on electric traction and that he had been impressed with
regenerative braking observed on the South African Railways 3kV dc system.
Notes how the system, most of which closed in 1980, suffered from adopting
the wrong voltage and failed to be extended. The "Shenford" Shenfield system
faired better and Hennessey notes how the whole 1500V dc was converted to
25kV ac in a single weekend, but this was a pre-macgregorized railway (that
man should be forced to travel from Diss by "train" to London for an urgent
appointment at the weekend). Continued page 342.
See also lettrer from David Clough on page 573 who
notes that the BR decision to switch from 1500v DC to 25kv AC was subject
to considerable scrutiny by Board.
Geoffrey Skelsey. "Not King
Canute...": Barbara Castle and the railways, 1965-8. 268-75.
Very sympathetic biographical appreciation of Barbara Castle's role
as Minister of Transport with some very interesting asides on how other
politicians reacted to Beeching and his flawed Report. Perhaps the most
interesting of these was that Harold Macmillan, who knew more about the transport
industry than most prime ministers was dubious of Beeching's ability and
was over-ruled by the crooked Marples. Castle's lasting achievements were:(1)
designation of a core railway network forming the identifiable basis of the
present system, restoring a positive attitude in and towards the industry
after five years of perceived decline. (2) institution of a system of revenue
grants to support socially-necessary but uneconomic railways, thus limiting
(if not eliminating) the depredations of the Beeching Report. (3) establishment
of multi-mode transport authorities in the major conurbations, and of capital
grants for new construction and development. (4) seeing through, against
hysterical opposition, a major enhancement of road safety measures, saving
innumt!rable lives and producing one of the safest road systems in the world.
(5) introducing financial support to safeguard rural transport. (6) proposing
modernisation and development of ports. (7) saving leisure inland waterways
from neglect and closure. See also letter on page 381 from
John Macnab who comments upon the Scottish Region's response to Beeching's
"Lines for development" Responses from John Macnab on page
381 Scottish Region's response to Beeching's "Lines for development"
which he claims was "quietly forgotten" in Scotland
and. from John Pearse on pager 445 who was critical
of her handing over of Freighliners to the National Freight Corporation;
from John Spencer Gilks who notes that the downgrading
of maintenance on the Settle & Carlisle line started during her Ministration;
Tony Reinhardt-Rutland; notes the redction of road
accident deaths beteen 1967 and 2007 and attributes this partly to improvements
in trauma treatment (which also applies to railway accidents) and that increaing
traffic congestion slows traffic and reduces the severity of accidents
Late letter from Peter Griffiths (page 573) who considers
that most lines shut were "hopelessly uneconomic", but adds that singling
programme, e.g. Chiltern line has led to very expensive
reinstatements..
The Central Wales Line. 276-7.
Colour-photo feature: Fowler Class 4 2-6-4T No. 42585 at Pontardulais
departing over level crossing for Swansea Victoria on a local train in June
1960 (Hugh David);`8F at Sugar Loaf Summit Signal Box with southbound freight
in May 1964 (A.A. Jarvis); Class 5 No. 44835 arriving Builth Road (High Level)
on Swansea to Shrewsbury passenger train (S.B. Lee); 57XX No. 3697 at Swansea
Victoria with local train for Pontardulais in May 1963; 8F climbing 1 in
60 towards Sugar Loaf Tunnel with freight in May 1964 (A.A. Jarvis).
Jarvis, Jonathan. Chelsea Box and Chelsea Basin. 278-83.
West London Line: Chelsea and Fulham Signal Box. Illustations include
colour photographs of exterior and interior in 1969 and black & white
photograph of John Metcalfe, signalman. Other illus.: K class 2-6-0 No. 32353
with two horse boxes on 16.45 Kensington to Lewes on 8 August 1959 and aerial
view of Chelsea Basin and Lots Road power station on 26 November 1965.
John Spencer Gilks. 'Talking of Trains' for 50 years.
284-7.
Biographical feature on the adult education classes, evening classes,
on railways and transport in general organized via the Workers' Education
Association (WEA) in Surbiton, Surrey from 1960. students were drawn ftrom
a wide area. Author's own studies led to him becoming a Fellow of the Chartered
Institute of Transport, an MSc from Salford University and Liveryman of the
Worshipful Company of Carmen. He worked for the Local Government Association.
In association with his WEA classes he organized study rail tours and arranged
for visiting speakers. Dr Gerry Siviour took over as organiser in 1984 and
was succeeded by Dick Crane in 2002. Illustrations: poster at Hammerton station
on 7 September 1973; telegram from LMR authorising DMU special in 1967; Fife
& Galloway Ranger at Barrhill on 12 May 1984; menus; interior of Eastern
Region General Manager's Saloon en route from York to Redmire with Michael
Blakemore and Michael Rutherford in picture on 8 May 1984. Many photographs
in Backtrack are credited to him and some reproduced in Volume 29 clearly
come from these hired special trains,.
A4s on the Caledonian Route. Derek Penney (phot.). 288-9.
Colour-photo feature: No. 60024 Kingfisher leaving Dunblane
with 13.30 ex-Aberdeen in May 1964; No. 60009 Union of South Africa
leaving Perth with 17.30 ex-Glasgow Buchanan Street; No. 60026 Miles
Beevor beside Allan Water north of Dunblane with 17.30 ex-Glasgow in
September 1965; and 60004 William Whitelaw leaving Perth with 13.30
ex-Aberdeen in May 1964.
Cornish prairies. 290
Colour-photo feature from Chris Deamer Collection: summer 1960: No.
4167 (green) at Par on Newquay service; No. 4566 (green and claen) at St.
Ives on train for St. Erth and at Helston for Gwinear Road: No. 5541 on freight
in latter.
Two Irish main lines. David Idle (phot.) and David
Mosley (captions). 291
Colour-photo feature: WT 2-6-4T No. 57 at Goraghwood on Belfast to
Dublin service on 10 August 1964; UTA 0-6-0 No. 44 (ex-GNR SG class No. 176)
with long northbound freight on same day (Mountains of Mourne in background);
diesel railcar No. 21 at Ballycarry on Larne to Belfast working (painted
maroon and light grey) on 25 August 1968. See also letter
from Sam Somerville on page 381 on Ulster Transport Authority
liveries..
Campbell, Robert D. The Forth & Clyde Junction Railway.
Part Two. 292-9.
Description of the route including its traffic. Notable were the textile
dyeing and printing works owned by John Orr Ewing (1809-1878) at Alexandria
in the Vale of Leven: known as United Turkey Red or UTR which owned its green
'pug'. Ewing was a director of the Caledonian & Dumbartonshire
Railway and of the North British Railway. Illus. J37 No. 64598 at Balfron
whilst working Blanefield to Aberfoyle shuttle on 18 September 1951 (G.H.
Robin), portrait of Ewing; Endrick Viaduct in 1950s; Gartmore station on
28 July 1957 (J.L. Stevenson); Sentinel steam railcar at Port of Menteith
c1930; J37 No. 64598 at Buchlyvie whilst working Blanefield to Aberfoyle
shuttle on 18 September 1951 (G.H. Robin), United Turkey Red (UTR) wagon
No. 7 (7 plank built R.Y. Pickering), Sentinel steam railcar No. 311
Quicksilver at Balloch c1930 (G.H. Langmuir). See
also list of errata on page 382 especially in data and the route of the
Dalmonach branch.
Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway locomotives. 300-1
Colour-photo feature: Aspinall 0-6-0 No. 52271 at Newton Heath mpd
in 1960; Aspinall 0-6-0s Nos. 52275 and 52140 (latter rebuilt with Belpaire
boiler) alongside Manchester Victoria waiting next banking turn to Miles
Platting (R.J. Maxwell); 0-4-0ST No. 51218 at Bristol Barrow Road in October
1961 (Douglas Tritton); 2-4-2T No. 560647 outside Horwich Works in 1959 (G.
Warnes); 0-6-0ST No. 51371 at Newton Heath shed in 1960.
Nisbet, Alistair F. The Tay Bridge Disaster: the Reports
and the aftermath. 302-5.
See also article on the press coverage of the
Tay Bridge Disaster (Vol. 23 page 710) 28 December
1879.Colonel William Yolland and
W.H. Barlow served on the Tay
Bridge Commission with Henry Cadogan
Rothery, the Commissioner of Wrecks. One of the Commission's problems
was the consideration of General Hutchinson's inspection and report which
had permitted the bridge to be opened to traffic. Compares it with the Hatfield
accident (but fails to note Wee Macgregor's contribution).
See also letter from Allen Ferguson on page
510.
Rutherford, Michael. LMS eight-coupled. Part 4. The
age of total war. (Railway Reflections No. 162). 306-15.
Unlike on Continental Europe railways in Britain were not considered
to be of strategic military significance (KPJ: this is not true for those
south of the Thames), but Rutherford does note that the Liverpool &
Manchester Railway was used to send troops from Manchester more quickly to
Liverpool for deployment in Ireland, and the primitive military railway
constructed in the Crimea. He argues that the Engineer and Railway Staff
Corps was largely decorative, but in 1897 the Army Railway Council was
established. In India the railways were perceived to have a strategic role
and standardization was recognized and a standard range of locomotive designs
emerged (cites Cyril Hitchcock The standardization of locomotives in India,
1910. Proc. Instn Mech.
Engrs., 1910, 79, 1409.). The selection of a standard locomotive
for use in France during WW1 is briefly sketched: the Robinson 8K 2-8-0 being
selected reflected Sir Sam Fay being
Director General of War Transport and G.S. Lynde, a former Gorton apprentice
being in charge of the ROD workshops at Audruic. Rutherford skirts around
the surplus ROD locomotives except to note that those purchased by the LNWR
did excellent work north of Crewe, but that most of LMS infrastructure was
not up to the standard of military railways in France (or that of the Great
Central). He notes how most of the LNWR 0-8-0s were converted to simples
and larger boilers were fitted aand the emergence of the Fowler G3 0-8-0
(nickname Austin 7) with its boiler based upon the LNWR G2 type, but with
Walschaerts valve gear and inadequate axleboxes. Various proposed Hughes
and Fowler for large eight-coupled remained on paper and do not seem to have
influenced the 8F which emerged with two prototypes in 1935. When WW2 came
it was selected as the standard design with 8Fs being built in the workshops
of the other mainline companies including Swindon and Brighton (and some
being the property of the LNER Class O6), but eventually the Riddles Austerity
displaced it for mass production.
Illus.: LNER O6 8F No. 7659 at March in October 1945 (Colour: H.N. James);
LYR 0-8-0 No. 1563 as BR No. 52857 at Burn Naze on 9 June 1951 (Alan Tyson);
8F No. 48744 at Buxworth in April 1966 (colour: Brian Magilton); No. 8001
at Bedford on long freight in 1937; 8F No. 8036 (Vulcan Foundry WN 4713/1936)
ex-Works with burnished bare metal; No. 8127 near Skipton on freight; 8F
Nos. 8199, 8198, 8105, WD 544, 8001 and 8133 at Toton in 1942 (posed publicity
shot); 48372 approaching Dumfries from Kilmarnock direction on 15 August
196 (colour: David Idle); )6 No. 7675 as new in September 1944.
See also letter from Adrian Tester on page 507 on hot
box problems on Fowler G3 0-8-0 (Austin 7) type due to inferior bearing material
and poor lubricants.
Adrian Gray. Steam, science, adultery and corruption. 316-17.
Dr Dionysius Lardner and his elopement with Mary Heaviside, wife of
a London, Brighton & South Coast director.
Also a biography of
Lardner.
Readers' Forum. 318
Light engine movements. J.A. Cassells.
See feature on page 134:. Irish locomotive sheds
were sometimes relatively far from their termini and this involved light
engine movements over long distances. Thus Broadstone locomotive depot remained
open after its associated passenger terminus had moved away and Kingsbridge
was over a mile from Inchicore. Cork teminus was separated from its engine
servicing by a tunnel (KPJ: this was quite common in Scotland, in Liverpool
and at King's Cross). Adelaide shed in Belfast was served by a bidirectional
third line. The last steam worked Royal Train in Ireland involved a steam
pilot in its journey to Londonderry via Antrim. Portrush holiday traffic
involved many light engine movements to Coleraine.
Light engine movements. P.J.
Buonacorsi-How
See feature on page 134: avoidance of light engine
movements by employing a pilot engine in spite of adequate power worsened
the Harrow & Wealdstone disaster (No. 45637 Windward Islands was
working back as a pilot on the 08.00 to Liverpool on 8 October 1952: 46202
Princess Anne did not require a pilot)..
Mr Watson's not so bright 'Stars'. Allan C.
Baker
See response from L.A. Summers (page 189) to
justifiable criticism on ( his article (Volume 23
page 664 et seq) about Watson 400 Class which included surprise
at link between William Beardmore & Co. and Caprotti Valve Gears. Letter
writer notes reference to Locomotive Magazine 1930 article which
was listed in Steam Locomotive Development (1969) and on Steamindex
for several years: some authors need to read more and write
less.
Stanier Pacific trials. P. Justin
McCarthy
See page 147 for article on dynamometer car tests:
writer has inspected Halade records recorded in Coach No. 1048 during the
November 1936 dynamometer car tests: these show some violent oscillations
when passing through speed restrictions at higher speeds.
Imperial 'Jubilees'. Gord Wilson.
See page 70: No. 5573
Newfoundland: Newfoundland was a Crown Colony and did not join the
Confederation of Canada until 1948. No. 5623 Palestine, it is claimed
was not renamed "Isreal" because of anti-Jewish, pro-Arabic sentiments in
the Government..
Crossing at Ardlui. T.J. Edgington. rear cover
B1 No. 61197 arriving with train from Fort William and Class 5 waiting
to head north on 3 July 1957.
LMS 'Jubilee' 4-6-0 No.45593 Kolhapur makes a vigorous climb out of Sheffield heading south on the Midland main line at Millhouses & Ecclesall on 22nd April 1967. (Derek Penney). front cover
Why are we so partisan. Alistair F. Nisbet. 323
Guest Editorial on why he liked the NBR, the LNER, the Northern Line
at its southern extremity and the Southern: a bit like KPJ's taste (but there
is a GWR 4575 Prairie in glorious brunswick green and brass on the Poppy
Line at the present: there are even some carmine & cream coaches for
it to haul). It is to be hoped that the Editor submits a copy to the Dreadful
Society of Syndrome Analysis.
Setting Standards on the Somerset & Dorset. Martyn Burch (phot.).
324-5.
Colour-photo feature (some of colour is near sell-buy date):Class
4 2-6-0 No. 76014 leaving Combe Down tunnel with local for Bournemouth in
October 1964; Class 5 No. 73092 leaving Devonshire tunnel on descent to Bath;
Class 4 2-6-4T No. 80067 on ascent from Bath in September 1964; Class 4 4-6-0
No. 75008 leaving Bath Green Park for Templecombe in September 1964; Class
4 2-6-0 No. 76062 climbing towards Devonshire tunnel with clean exhaust in
autumn 1964.
Emblin, Robert. The Great Central Railway's Southern
Division. Part One.– Rugby to Woodford Halse. 326-30.
This section constructed across agricultural countryside and had to
cross the limestone ridge south of Rugby via the Catesby Tunnel which was
very wet near the north end. There were significant bridges and viaducts:
one north of Rugby required extensive preparatory work to ensure that the
Oxford Canal was not damaged by the piers for the viaduct: this included
the use of a trough to retain the water in the canal. There was the major
steel girder structure across the London & North Western Railway and
south thereof viaducts at Staverton and Catesby. Rugby station was situated
within a long cutting. The stations (all with island platforms were designed
by Alexander Ross.
See also letters from Neville C. Taylor and
from author on page 507. See also
letter from Alistair Nisbet on page 573.who considers that the Woodford
to Banbury was the only link on this section, the Brackley Central avoiding
line was not constructed and Helmdon Viaduct is north of Brackley.
Part 2 see page 748 et seq..
Wells, Jeffrey. Cubitt's great national undertaking.
Part One. 331-5.
This follows Author's particular style of history as perceived by
contemporary periodical literature: in this case The Railway Times
and Herepath's Journal. The South Eastern Railway received its Act
on 21 June 1836 and William Cubitt
became its Engineer in succession to
Henry R. Palmer who had to resign
due to ill-health. The significant contribution from the expertise of
Lt. Col. C.S. Hutchinson
(KPJ: Wells may be incorrect: it was Hutchinson's elder brother who
contributed to the project through his expertise in explosives) and
General C.W. Pasley is noted.
There are major tunnels on the approach to Dover, notably Shakespeare [Cliff]
Tunnel and Abbot's Cliff, and Foord Viaduct in Folkestone. Illus.: J class
0-6-4T No. 1539 at Folkestone Junction with Ashford to Dover stopping service
foprmed of birdcage set on 25 April 1947 (H.C. Casserley); electro-diesel
locomotive No. 73 1122 University of Kent hauling CEP 1545 leaving
Shakespeare Cliff Tunnel on 3 May 1990 (colour: Rodney Lissenden).
Concluded in Part 2 page 424.
Birth of the blues. Michael Mensing (phot.). 336-7.
Colour-photo feature: AL1 E3020 on down Ulster Express near
Nuneaton on 1 August 1965; AL2 E3052 on 13.15 Euston to Liverpool Lime Street
crossing level crossing at Berkswell on 10 August 1968; Class 304 EMU on
16.55 Wolverhampton to Coventry at Hampton-in-Arden on 1 August 1968; AL6
E3169 at Adderley Park with 12.15 Euston to Manchester on 31 August 1968;
AL10 (Class 310) at Stechford on 13.20 Birmingham New Street to Euston on
22 August 1968.:
Williams, Sitwell D. Old names for new. 338-41.
LMS Jubilee class: names formerly on original Royal Scot class, associated
with early locomotives. Illustrations (black & white): 5737 Atlas
with two milk tanks and passenger brake van on water troughs on WCML in 1930s;
5734 Meteor on express on WCML up fast; rebuilt Jubilee No. 5735
Comet at Camden in 1946; No. 45735 Comet at Eccles in June
1959 with express for Barrow in June 1959 (W.D. Cooper); rebuilt Jubilee
44736 Phoenix at Scout Green on freight on 15 May 1962; 45733
Novelty on down The Midland at Bushey on 10 June 1952 and 45732
Sanspariel at Shap on northbound freight.;.
Hennessey, R.A.S. Flags, trade and traction - Part
Two. 342-7.
Continued from page 262: begins by citing William
Whitelaw's paper presented to the Chartered Institute of Transport where
he implied that finance for electrification was difficult to justify. Frank
Lydall of Merz & McClellan advocated 3kV as 1.5kV was near the liimit
for the Ghat inclines on the GIPR. There were the alternaives of Bo + Bo
with axle hung motors versus body-mounted motors with rod or quill drives.
Cites J.D. Twinberrow's paper The mechanism of electric locomotives.
Proc. Instn Mech. Engrs.,
1932, 122, 51-106. Disc.: 106-54. The hammer-blow with axle-hung
electric traction motors. J. Instn
Loco Engrs., 1938, 28, 140-85. Disc.: 185-97 (Paper No. 382).
Cites the Madras South Indian Railway, a metre gauge line as being on the
margin of economic viability, but case made for it by Bruce Gordon White
(cites a Proc. Instn Civ. Engrs
paper by Bruce Gordon White). Representatives from France visited
Shildon and were impressed with the 1.5kV system as it was not compatible
with the German system: on the other hand they were worried about damage
to the catenary from artillery. Illus.: Spanish 2-Co+Co-2 built in Spain
with Metrovick components at Villaba on Madrid to Salamanca express on 23
March 1965..
Sinclair, Neil T. Beyond the Highland Railway - Part
Two. 348-51.
Continued from page 204: Locomotive engineers:
Table 2 summarises links. Notes that
Ernest Lemon spent a year with HR
before moving to Hurst Nelson. Robert
Collie did not move on as he died from TB aged 33. George Reid was a
Stroudley apprentice at Lochgorm Works and had become Works Manager by 1893
when he left for the Natal Government Railways where he introduced 4-10-2Ts
known as Wallopers to assist inthe Boar War campaign.
Hugh Jones, son of David Jones,
went to work on the South African Railways.
Ian Roberts was an apprentice
at Lochgorm Works from 1909. Served with the Lovat Scouts during WW1; following
which he moved to St. Rollox on the Caledonian Railway. In 1921 he became
assistant locomotive superintendent on the Mesopotanian Railway, and became
works manager at the Stalchiyah Works in Baghdad. In 1939 he left to work
for the British Ministry of Supply in Canada. He retired to Ireland. Civil
engineers included Archie McMurdo who climbed to be Divisional Civil Engineer
for Scotland, William Paterson who was District Engineer for Glasgow Central
and was involved in electrification works and Angus Beaton who was apprenticed
to James Fraser at Inverness and worked for the LNWR in North Wales and on
the second? (third?) Standedge Tunnel. Further information
on George Reid and David Anderson Hendrie provided by W.T. Scott on page
637....
A 'Jubilee' Celebration. 352-5.
Colour-photo feature: No. 45588 Kashmir at Castle Douglas with
Dumfries to Stranrear special on 15 April 1963; No. 45639 Raleigh
on down Thames-Clyde Express at Wortley Junction on 25 September 1960
(Gavin Morrison); No. 45649 Hawkins on northbound express at Low Gill
on 1 September 1962 (Gavin Morrison); No. 45698 Mars at Gretna Junction
with a Liverpool Exchange to Glasgow express (A. Doyle); No. 45647
Sturdee approaching Penistone from Barnsley with a Poole to Bradford
via Huddersfield express on 2 July 1966; No. 45654 Hood on Mold Junction
shed in April 1964; No. 45565 Victoria departing Bradford Exchange
with an excursion on 2 August 1966 (Gavin Morrison); No. 45593
Kolhapur shunting freight at Horton-in-Ribblesdale on 18 April 1967
(Gavin Morrison); No. 45593 Kolhapur passing Ledstone station and
Allerton Bywater Colliery with special on 22 April 1967 (Gavin Morrison);
and No. 45562 Alberta at Ashington Colliery with railtour from
Huddersfield on 10 June 1967 (David Idle).
To Doncaster again. 356-7.
Colour-photo feature: A1 No. 60147 North Eastern ex-works in
August 1961 (John C. Hart); N2 0-6-2T No. 69546 ex-works in 1958; A1 No.
60143 Sir Walter Scott ex-works (P.J. Hughes); K3 No. 61957 (in reverse
state of grime with an express) in August 1961 (John C. Hart); A3 class No.
60097 Humourist in March 1962 (K.R. Pirt); A3 No. 60075 St.
Frusquin (with single chimney and early lion on wheel on tender) on up
express, still with some teak Gresley stock, in 1953; rebuilt Royal Scot
No. 46162 Queen's Westminster Rifleman on 08.40 King's Cross to Edinburgh
on 19 August 1961 (Bruce Nathan); and GNR J50 formerly No. 68914 as Departmental
No. 11 newly painted in January 1964 (J. Mitchell).
Smith, Michael J. Kilburn: a story of three viaducts. 359-63.
Began as the Metropolitan & St. John's Wood which had intended
to climb towards Hampstead, but headed towards Willesden Green and had to
cross a depression which included Watling Street thus requiring viaducts
and skew bridges. Includes a description of the Burnett-designed heavy 0-6-0Ts
intended for the climb towards Hampstead and their disposal to South Wales,
being used on the Taff Vale Railway, LNWR via the Sirhowy Valley Railway,
and the Alexandra Docks & Railway. The viaducts required augmentation
to accommodate the London Extension of the Manchester, Sheffield &
Lincolnshire Railway (Great Central). The viaducts were perceived as a risk
in WW1 and this was justified in WW2 when a bomb inflicted severe damage
on 15 September 1940 (illustration of T stock crossing crude tressle
formed from timber). Before then the major works associated with the northward
extension of the Bakerloo tube from Baker Street to Finchley Road. The works
included a new platform at Kilburn (illus. 4 December 1939).
Sawyer, Robert. Styal's last Station Master. 364-5.
Styal line opened on 1 May 1909 as a means of avoiding congestion
at Stockport and is now part of rail access to Manchester Airport. Harry
Jackson was the last Station Master when the station was noted for its Best
Station Garden awards. Shown meeting Prince Philip at East Didsbury.
Smith, George. The standing stones of Stanhope. 366-9.
Stanhope & Tyne Railway which was constructed without Parliamentary
sanction and the land was acquired via wayleaves. When the venture failed
in nearly ruined Robert Stephenson financially. Part of the route is followed
by the Waskerley Way, cycle way and footpath..
Around Morecambe Bay. Tommy Tomalin (phot.). 370.
Colour-photo feature: DMU approaching Kent's Bank with 15.06 Preston
to Carlisle on 5 May 1980; Class 108 DMU crossing Leven Viaduct on 16.12
Preston to Barrow on 20 July 1984 and No. 47 567 leaving Ulverston on 15.24
Barrow to Crewe on same day.
Evans, Edward A. The railway to the 'Bwl. 371-7.
Ynysybwl branch located in the Clydach Valley, off the Pontypridd
to Aberdare line, and dominated by the Lady Windsor Colliery. Branch opened
in 1885 or 1886 and a passenger service was started by the Taff Vale Railway
on 1 January 1890. Passenger services ceased on 28 July 1952. Illus.: TVR
railmotor (steam railcar) No. 9 at Windsor Passing Loop?; Old Ynysybwl Halt
with No. 1461 and trailer No. 114 on 13 March 1948 (Ian L. Wright); No. 6411
and trailer No. 114 at Pontypridd on 11 September 1951 (H.C. Casserley):
DMU on Stephenson Locomotive Society railtour to closed station on
11 July 1959; 56XX No. 6619 with trainload of coal at Windsor Passing Siding;
0-6-0ST Hunslet WN 3829/1950 at Windsor Colliery in 1975..
Tatlow, Peter. Dunkirk – the dispersal of evacuated troops.
378-9.
Operation Dynamo: a meeting was called by the War Office on 21 May
1940 involving Major General M.G. Holmes, Director of Movements; H.E.O. Wheeler,
Chief Operating Superintendent of the Southern Railway and Percy Nunn, Divisional
Superintendent of the South Eastern Division when it became clear that the
British Expeditionary Force would have to be evacuated from France. Vice-Admiral
Bertram Ramsey of the Royal Navy was responsible for shipping. Boulogne fell
on 25 May and Calais fell two days later. With the reluctant agreement of
the War Office the other railways became involved: the GWR supplied 40 trains,
the LMS 44, the LNER 47 and the SR 55. Eventually 620 trains were run carrying
over 300,000 troops and others, including over 100,000 French troops who
would require repatriation via ports further west. Dover was the key British
port, but others came ashore at Folkestone, Sheerness, Ramsgate and Margate.
Plug for new Oakwood Press book.
Rolling Stock Focus. Roy Hobbs, photographer and notes by Mike King. 380.
Pre-Grouping Southern coaches on the Isle of Wight.
Readers' Forum. 381
South Eastern 4-4-0s. Peter Tatlow
See page 226: the L class may have
faced an initial ban on the LCDR lines, but the Board was aware of the need
for bridge strengthening (see Dendy Marshall History of the Southern Railway
pp. 498-500 and 523-4). Many of the strengthened bridges, where strips of
steel had been riveted to the structure, in South London had to be replaced
in the 1950s.
South Eastern 4-4-0s. Philip Atkins
See page 226: considers the superficial
similarity between the D1 and E1 rebuilds with the MR 2P 4-4-0s.
James Clayton had worked in the Ashford
Drawing Office from 1899 to 1902. Clayton was born in Stockport in 1872 and
served his apprenticeship at Beyer Peacock and then worked in the Drawing
Office between July 1893 and July 1898. At Ashford he had designed the frames
for the C class 0-6-0. The D class closely resembled the Johnson slim boiler
4-4-0s even to the extent of having individual brass digits on the cab side.
The E class inspired the NSR G class 4-4-0 and a superheated 4-4-2T on that
railway which also closely followed the LBSCR I3.
Two Irish main line. Sam Somerville.
See colour photographs and captions on page 291.
The liveries employed by the Ulster Transport Authority on its motive power:
Morocco maroon & cream.
'Not King Canute'. John Macnab.
See page 268 et seq; comments upon
the Scottish Region's response to Beeching's "Lines for development" which
he claims was "quietly forgotten" by the Scottish Region..
LNER B17s. Ron Vale
Request for information on performance, etc and colour slides (of
locomotives withdrawn early).
Mr Watson's not so bright 'Stars'. Jeremy
Clements and Michael McMahon. 381-2
See letter on page 189 from L.A. Summers who was
attempting to defend his position. This establishes that the GSR 800
class was a probable influence on the design of the rebuilt Scots as H.G.
Ivatt [KPJ Ivatt was born in Dublin] and some colleagues from the LMS visited
Inchicore in January 1940 and were given No. 801 Macha 'to play with'
on the Dublin to Cork main line and were highly
impressed.
Forth & Clyde Junction Railway. Robert D.
Campbell
See Part 2 beginning page 292 list
of errors relating to data and the Dalmonach branch and spelling of
Buchlyvie.
Book Reviews. 382
Locomotive names: an illustrated
dictionary. John Pike. History Press. DWM *****
New edition: "well thought-out and researched book"
The Welsh Highland Railway. Volume 3:
Ain't no stoppin' us now! John Stretton. Past & Present.
DJ ****
Mainly the current scene
Footplate ride to Laisterdyke. Gavin Morrison. rear cover
Jubilee No. 45565 Victoria approaching Quarry Gap Junction
on 9 July 1964 with freight from Shipley.
Two-car Derby lightweight diesel multiple unit at Bletchley on 09.25 to Cambridge on 7 August 1961. Michael Mensing. front cover
Memos from the department of administrative affairs. Michael Blakemore.
387.
Editorial plea for more subscriptions, preferably made via standing
orders and another plea not to use domestic scanners to prepare copy for
articles: Pendragon demands much higher standards.
The Derby lightweights. Michael Mensing (phot.). 388-9.
Colour photo-feature: light green two-car unit with whiskers on driver
training run on 30 September 1959 on Churnet Valley line app[roaching Rushton;
dark green unit with yellow warning panels on Conway Valley line near Roman
Bridge on Whit Monday, 30 May 1966; unit in corporate main line blue &
grey livery with MetroTrain brand on 13.46 Severn Beach to Bristol Temple
Meads at Clifton Down on 5 August 1987; refurbished unit in white livery
with blue band with 14.54 Leedds to Skipton at Bingley on 24 April 1976;
12.52 Shrewsbury to Swnsea at Pantyfynnon on 10 August 1989 (unit formed
from two power cars and in main line livery.
McConnell, David. Ever on a Sunday. 390-5.
Electric tramway system operated by Ayr Corporation ran from Prestwick
through the centre of Ayr to Alloway with a short branch to the racecourse.
Trams were supplied by Hurst Nelson. Also brief details of the G&SWR
Maidens & Dunure Light Railway.
Thrower, David. The Adams 'Flyers'. 396-403.
Mainly the William Adams 4-4-0s of classes X2, T3 T6 and X6, but records
that Adams produced several famous designs of tank and freight locomotive
when he was Locomotive Superintendent of the London & South Western Railway.
although his most impressive design, if not the longest-lived in service,
was his remarkable family of 4-4-0 passenger locomotives, most notably the
final four classes of X2, T3, T6 and X6. These latter four types were built
in the last years of his tenure of office and numbered sixty locomotives.
One example, No.563 of Class T3, survives today. There were four earlier
classes of 4-4-0 tender locomotives. divided between the 380 Class, the 135
Class, the 445 Class and the 460 Class. The 380 Class numbered twelve
locomotives, Nos.380-391. constructed by Beyer, Peacock and known as
'Steamrollers' due to their distinctive solid bogie wheels. Whereas the
'Steamrollers' had been a mixed traffic design, the next design of 4-4-0
was specifically for express passenger work. These were the 135 Class of
twelve locomotives built by Beyer, Peacock with 6ft 7in coupled wheels and
3ft 4in bogie wheels and were initially allocated to Nine Elms for fast passenger
work, before being displaced after about a decade. Most were withdrawn in
1921-22 but three locomotives survived into early SR days.. The success of
the '135' Class had encouraged Adams to try a still larger design of 4-4-0,
with larger diameter driving wheels. See page 637 for letter
from Arthur Nicholls commenting upon locomotive class identification.
Further letter from T.H.J. Dethridge..
Strangers on a train. David Idle (phot.). 404-6.
Colour photo-feature: preserved No. 4472 Flying Scotsman at
Portchester on 17 September 1966 when working a circular tour from Victoria
down Brighton main line and back via Chichester and Eastleigh; A4 No. 60031
Golden Fleece at Beattock Summit on Scottish Rambler railtour
on 18 April 1965; 60532 Blue Peteer at Waterloo on 14 August 1966
prior to working a special to Exeter; rebuilt Merchant Navy class No. 35026
Lamport & Holt Line at York station on 22 October 1966 on
Elizabethan special; Jubilee class No. 45552 Silver Jubilee
with chromium-plated cabside numerals at Paddington on 6 October 1963 waiting
to depart for Bristol; K4 2-6-0 No. 3442 The Great Marquess taking
water at Norwood Junction en route from Victoria to Brighton on 12 March
1967; No. 4472 Flying Scotsman with two tenders at Norwich on 20 May
1967 about to depart for King's Cross via Cambridge.
Nisbet, Alistair F.. The Bankfoot Light Railway.
407-11.
Locally sponsored, worked by Caledonian Railway from junction at
Strathford north of Perth. Passenger service withdrawn on 11 April 1931,
following use of Sentinel steam railcars, but freight lasted until 7 September
1964. See also letter from Arnold Tortorella on page 573
which quotes from relevant LMS Northern Division Minutes concerning economics
of passenger service..
Andrews, David. The Great Western Railway's speed record
attempt of 1933. 412-14.
National Archives RAIL 253/458 item 46 is a Memorandum from the General
Manager to C.B. Collett dated 10 April 1933 which called for the 11.45 Bristol
to Paddington to reach a speed of 100 mile/h between Hullavington and Little
Somerford, using No. 6000 King George V. Refers to interesting
correspondence between Collett and C.J. Allen quoted by Allen in Rly
Wld., 1967 (November) wherein Collett had implied that the lubrication
to cylinders and motion was inadequate for high speeds and that the lack
of super elevation increased flange friction on curves. C.J. Allen Rly
Mag. 1934 May and July alluded vaguely to the failed attempt.
See also letter from Walter Rothschild on page 573 on
Deutsche Reichsbahn attempts to raise the speed above 195km/h with steam
using 4-6-4 No. 05.002 in May 1936 between Berlin and Hamburg. The letter
also refers to high speeds attained by the Rail Zeppelin and by the diesel
Flying Hamburger.
The Afon Wen branch. Alan Tyson (phot.). 415.
Colour photo-feature: 2-6-4T No. 42282 approaching Llangybi with 13.55
Afon Wen to Bangor on 20 July 1964 and Afon Wen station with class 3 2-6-2T
No. 82005 departing on 13.30 to Pwllheli on same day.
North British. 416-19.
Colour photo-feature: D34 Glen class Nos. 62496 Glen Loy and
62471 Glen Falloch on 8 May 1959 at Crianlarich Upper whilst working
Fort William to Glasgow train during filming of BBC Railway Roundabout;
two Class J83 0-6-0Ts Nos. 68477 and 68474 (both in spotless condition) shunting
at eastern end of Edinburgh Waverley in April 1957 (J.M. Chamney); J37 No.
64615 leaving Dundee with freight on Perth line in June 1962 (Trevor Owen);
J36 No. 65288 (with smokebox door decorated with silver (aluminium) hinges,
centre securing device, etc and red coupling rods) gleams at Dunfermiline
Lower in October 1966 (G.M. Staddon); D34 No. 62467 Glenfinnan hauls a short
mail train into St. Monance in May 1959 (G.H. Hunt); D30 class No. 62426
Cuddie Headrigg on shed at Dundee in May 1959 (G.H. Hunt); C15 No. 67460
on Craigendoran to Arrochar push & pull at Garelochhead in May 1959 (coaches
unusual in providing first class and lavatory on a push-pull) (D.H. Beecroft);
J35 No. 64478 fitted with snowplough and tender cab at Montrave Siding on
Lochty branch in 1960; J35 No. 64535 leaving Inverkeithing
with Rosyth Doickyard to Kirkcaldy workmen's train in August 1961 (C.J.
Gammell) 419 middle: see letter from R. Urquhart who
corrects the caption; J37 No. 64629 calling at Anstruther with Crail to Thornton
Junction passenger train in May 1959 (G.H. Hunt);
Smith, George. Rocket man – William Huskisson and
the early railways. 420-2.
Unlike the ODNB entry by A.C. Howe
which merely records the subject's death at the hand of the locomotive, George
Smith shows that Huskisson
was a significant and powerful friend in the creation of railways
The Post Office Railway. Paul Joyce. 423.
Colour photo-feature: three photographs taken in April 1988 at Mount
Pleasant of the workshops; Greenbat power unit (2 views), one with
train
Wells, Jeffrey. Cubitt's great national
undertaking. 424-9,
Began page 331 et seq continues Author's
particular style of history as perceived by contemporary periodical literature:
in this case The Railway Times and Herepath's Journal. The
Illustrtaed London News is brought into the picture with descriptions
of the very extensive blasting required to make the chalk cliffs safe on
the approach to Dover. There are major tunnels on the approach to Dover,
notably Shakespeare [Cliff] Tunnel and Abbot's Cliff, and Foord Viaduct in
Folkestone.
Bennett, Alan. Landscapes and identity: Great Western Railway.
430-2.
Brief general introduction followed by six exemplars from GWR publicity
material (illustrated in colour) with extended captions: Somerset and Dorset
(illustration from 1935 edition of Holiday Haunts shows bearded rustic,
Text by Maxwell Taylor refers to Thomas Hardy's Wessex novels; Western Hills
and Moorlands (illustration from 1938 edition of Holiday Haunts shows
pair of ramblers seated in idyllic hilly countrside with distant hills and
church; text refers toi "our national heritage and inheritance"; Cornwall
(2 paintings: 1935 shows fisherman with pilchard basket and wicker lobster
pot; 1938 shows fishing village like Mullion) original texts noted foreigness
of Cornwall an later one the sense of community; Oxford shows the 'High'
with its colleges and formed the cover for Douglass Woodruff's Oxford
of 1938; London painting by Frank Newbould showing Horseguard on duty in
Whitehall formed the cover for Maxwell Taylor's London and how to see
it of 1939. Considers this and earlier material in Holiday Haunts
and argues that GWR gave most comprehensive literature on London of the four
post-grouping companies.
Fell, Mike G.. 'Lanky' influence at Goole. 433-9.
Author was Assistant Docks Manager from 1981 to 1983 and subsequently
Port Director responsible for docks at Goole and Hull from 1997 to 2003.
Goole was a canal port created by the Aure & Calder Navigation. Later
it was joined by the Wakefield, Pontefract & Goole Railway which received
its Act on 31 July 1845 and opened on 1 April 1848 by which time it formed
part of the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway which developed its fascilities
in competition with Hull, although it had running powers over the North Eastern
Railway to Hull. Table of coal tonnages shipped through Goole from 1849 to
1914. Illus.: aerial view on 14 April 1968; 25-ton capacity hydraulic crane;
Bennett Steamship Co. SS Africa loading Kirtley 0-6-0s en route to Italy;
32-ton hydraulic hoist tipping cvoal into hold of SS Gallium; 22 Shed, Stanhope
Dock; Cowan Sheldon 40-ton travelling crane; Cowan Sheldon 50-ton electric
travelling crane (three views); See also feature on Goole Docks in
Archive Nos. 37 page 3 et
seq and 38 page 7 et seq.
and further feature by same Author about King's Lynn
docks in next volume page 144 et seq.
Foster, Richard. Country signal boxes on the Salisbury to Southamton
line. (Signalling spoptlight). 440-1.
Colour photo-feature: Dean signal box: exterior view taken on 13 July
1979 with Class 31 No. 31 401 approaching on a Cardiff to Porrtsmouth service
(A.B. Jeffery); interior of signal box on 3 May 1980 (including lever frame,
wheel to operate level crossing gates and locking room (Richard Foster);
Dunbridge signal box exterior on 3 October 1982 (A.B. Jeffery).
Gorman, W.V. Catastrophe at Kiltimagh. 442-3.
Collision between two freight trains at Kiltimagh on 16 December 1916:
one was formed of empty stock travelling from Sligo to a cattle fair at
Claremorris; the other was a heavy ballast train from Limerick to
Tubbercurry.
Signs of privatisation. Neil Taylor (phot.). 444.
Colour photo-feature: Pyle station with British Rail and Swanline
logos photographed on 26 October 2003; Great Western Merlin logo still visible
on Arriva Trains/National Car Parks bi-lingual notice at Cardiff Central
on 22 March 2008; English, Welsh & Scottish (EWS) sign at Margham Yard,
Port Talbot on 8 November 2007; Railtrack notice at Walker Street Margham
photographed on 16 February 2004.
Readers' forum [letters]. 445.
Not King Canute. John Pearse.
See page 268 for article by Skelsey on Mrs Barbara
Castle as Minister of Transport: critical of her handing over of Freighliners
to the National Freight Corporation and of her policy of calculating individual
grants. Somewhat unfair response to this letter from Peter
Griffiths en passant on page 563.:
Not King Canute. John Spencer Gilks.
See page 268 for article by Skelsey on Mrs Barbara
Castle as Minister of Transport: notes that the downgrading of maintenance
on the Settle & Carlisle line started during her
Ministration:
Not King Canute. Tony Reinhardt-Rutland.
See page 268 for article by Skelsey on Mrs Barbara
Castle as Minister of Transport: notes the redction of road accident deaths
beteen 1967 and 2007 and attributes this partly to improvements in trauma
treatment (which also applies to railway accidents) and that increaing traffic
congestion slows traffic and reduces the severity of accidents [KPJ: could
have added improvements in vehicle design to improve safety].
Kilburn – a story of three viaducts. R.A.S.
Hennessey.
The Smallest Show on Earth; a British Lion film
commedy was set in a ersatz cinema frontage at the apex of the Shoot Up Hill
bridges: part of the humour stemmed from the seismic disturbance caused by
the passing trains.
Book reviews. 445-6.
Thomas Elliot Harrison (1808-1880): founder and engineer of the North
Eastern Railway. John Addyman and Bill Fawcett. Rocket Press.
DTG *****
"Small but perfectly formed"
Peter's railway and the Moonlight Express. Christopher Vine.
Author. DWM. *****
Excellent review
The history of the Whittingham Hospital Railway 1884-1957. Mark
Cornwell. Author. DWM *****
Very well received, but some criticism of
grammar.
Lost railways of Gloucestershire. Stan Yorke. Countryside Books.
RH. ****
"masterpiece of compression" and a "great bargain" and congratulates
author on sensible organization.
On the trail of the Royal Scot. David Packer. History Press.
DWM **
Condemned for the poor standard of reproduction of the
pictures.
En fête in Essex. rear cover
Colour photograph taken on 6 June 1936 which managed to freeze the
movement of the crowds at an exhibition organized by the LNER at Romford
to celebrate the naming of B17 No. 2858 The Essex Regiment seen in
forground. Further back were B12/3 No. 8579 and D16 No. 8900 Claud
Hamilton. Two containers painted in brown visible in background.
Ex-GWR 57XX 0-6-0PT London Transport No.L91 (formerly No.5752) at Neasden
on 1st June 1957. R.C. Riley. front cover
With a variety of LT stock in the depot sidings and the railway's
power station in the background.
Laying it on the line. Michael Blakemore. 451.
Editotial on permanent way and its simplification.
Going on the railbus. 452-3.
Colour photo-feature: A.C. Cars No. W79975 leaving Yeovil Pen Mill
for Yeovil Town (Paul Joyce); Park Royal No. SC79970 at Craigellachie on
service to Aviemore in July 1960 (C.J. Gammell); A.C. Cars No. W79977 at
Boscarne Junction with pram being loaded onto railbus in June 1964 (J.M.
Chamney); Park Royal No. SC79970 at Kilmarnock with service to Dalmellington
in 1960 (Ray Oakley); interior of A.C. Cars No. W79976 (Paul
Joyce)
Rose, Peter. John Soar — Holbeck fitter. 454-9.
John Soar began work, when aged fourteen, in December 1939 as
an apprentice fitter at Kirkby-in-Ashfield shed on the LMS. The shed was
located in the Nottinghamshire coalfield and conditions were primitive. In
1947 he moved to Holbeck shed in Leeds having received training at both Crewe
and Derby. Before moving to Holbeack he had observed the installation of
oil fuel tanks at Kirkby for the oil firing fiasco in the immediate post-WW2
period. One 8F was received with the capability for oil firing.In Leeds he
was accommodated in the Toc H Brotherton Houxe where he was very happy. On
arrival at Holbeck mpd he encountered G. Pickersgill, its Superintendent,
R. Bourne (a senior fitter) and Bill Slegg, chargehand fitter from Melton
Constable who retained a strong Norfolk accent. On the locomotives at Holbeck
he encoutered oily deposits on the slidebars and wheels of 8F 2-8-0s caused
by steam being blown through the seals on the cylinders. The drag box on
Type 4 tenders tended to work loose: this failure was encountered on Nos.
44853 and 44943. Removal of superheater elements, especially on the Royal
Scot class, led to uncoventional techniques. One of the most difficult tasks
tackled was the replacement pipe on water pick-up gear which had been blocked
by a piece of sleeper. Tools available in the workshop are outlined. Locomotives
overhauled between 1943 and 1946 are listed. Cites
Stephen Summerson's Midland Railway
locomotives. Volume 4. 2005 for further information on locomotives
overhauled at Holbeck until their closure on 18 August 1950. He had a brief
period at the sub-shad at Keighley where there was a Johnson 0-4-4T and a
2F 0-6-0. He left British Railways in June 1952 to earn more money working
for the National Coal Board at Rufford Colliery. Illus.: Class 5 4-6-0s Nos.
44853 and 44828 inside Holbeck on 8 May 1963; 2F No. 22900 waiting outside
Holbeck shops for repair (Ken Metcalfe); 4P compound No. 41045 under repair
(rear wheelset removed) on 23 November 1952 (Peter Rose); 8F 2-8-0 No. 48157
on 5 May 1963 (Peter Rose); WD 2-8-0 No. 90010 inside; No. 73059 from Polmadie
mpd outside; Jubilee No. 45647 Sturdee inside on 5 May 1963 (Peter
Rose); 3F 0-6-0 No. 43586 outside Keighley shed on 22 August 1961 (Roy Wood);
1P 0-4-4T No. 58040 (O. Metcalfe). . .
Twells, Nelson. Turnberry Station Hotel. 460-6.
The Turnberry Hotel and its associated golf courses were developed
by the Glasgow & South Western Railway in association with its Maidens
& Dunure Light Railway which opened on 17 May 1906. Unfortunately the
Author fails, both in his text and in his illustrations fails to record either
the nature of this light railway or the country through which it travelled.
The steel viaducts were very substantial (KPJ traversed them on foot in 1957)
and were near Culzean Castle and the Electric Bray). Illus.: Hotel in 1910
(coloured postcard); G&SWR 4-4-0 No. 710 at Turnberry station with train
for Ayr; G&SWR coloured advertisement (aerial perspective); biplanes
flying over Turnberry lighthouse (RAF postcard of 1918 possibly faked);
page 462 upper: Miss Wethered putting on 4th green during
Ladies Open Championship: see also letter from H.N.
Twells on p. 637; page 462 lower Claude H. Buckle painting as depicted
on LMS poster (original is in Turnberry Hotel); 463 upper former Midland
Railway sleeping car (50 ft) at Annan; 463 lower LMS poster (colour), Holiday
Runabout Ticket LMS 1939; BTH luggage lable; three colour views of interior
(1999). Further information on the Hotel and Light Railway
extracted from GSWR and LMS Minutes by Arnold Tortorella on page 574.
R.A.S. Hennessey page (702) adds more on the architect
James Miller and his railway
buildings. Comment on runway designations by RFC in letter
by L.F.E. Coombs (p. 637), and further letter from Twells
on page 764..
Bad day at Pontypridd. 467.
On 23 January 1911 the 09.15 Treherbert to Cardiff passenger train
ran into the rear of a stationary coal train at the outer home signal at
Rhondda Cutting signal box at Hopkinstown. Eleven passengers and the guard
of the coal train were killed. Vehicle telescoping was the main cause of
caualties, as shown in the photographs. The primary cause of the accident
was the failure of the driver of the coal train to follow Rule 55 (report
his train's presence to the signalman) and the failure of the signalman to
be aware of the train when "accepting" the passenger train.
Wilson, Rory. The Heathfield trip goods. 468-9.
Residual freight services, after passenger services withdrawn in June
1958 over ever reduced length of branch now mothballed due to cessation of
china clay traffic. Had for a time included concrete castings and bananas.
Illus Heathfield, Trusham, Chudleigh and Lusleigh stations..
See also addenda page 573:Heathfield to Christow line
was standard gauge within a broad gauge area.
Joyce, Paul. Wartime memories [of Dennis Kelly] of Swindon.
470-5.
Was a cleaner at Plymouth Laira (see 17 Issue 12). Moved to Swindon
on 3 January 1943 to become a fireman. His first lodgings suffered vfrom
the presence of a pastor from the Four Square Gospel Church. Some of the
other lodgers were willing to share his strict views, and Johnny Taylor went
on to drive HST, but never on a Sunday. He moved lodgings to escape. His
first firing turns were in Swindon Works on a 1366 Classw 0-6-0PT with Driver
Jack Stanley. Happy Houndsworth was another driver restricted to Works shunting
as he had been involved in an accident at Stroud station whereat he failed
to stop on the platform and a passenger, a sailor, stepped onto the parapet
of bthe viaduct and fell off through the brewery roof in the blackout. Happy
went off the vroad in Swindon Works. Contaminated carriages were shunted
vinto the bug house for deinfestion: lice did not like a high temperature/low
pressure environment. There was a criminal link associated with drink: further
misdemeanour led to dismissal. He acquired an allotment and assisted an old
former driver: Timber Higgins who eventually left him his watch and gold
chain. Higgins had started at Weymouth and had retired in 1937 when aged
sixty. In Timber's day the driver was supreme on the footplate and could
order an inspector off it. He had worked through the General Strike and was
subject to intimidation: his windows at home were blacked and fellow drivers
performed mock funerals which extended to the carrying of coffins.One of
the turns was called the "Doodlebug pilot". There was a single weekday working
and one on Sundays to Uffington. Driver Bert Withers was known as Muff as
he used to carry muffins on his head.
He moved on to the Control Link where it was possible to spend a day in the
cabin without actually boarding a footplate. Sometimes trains were held up
for days at Knighton Sidings due to Wartime traffic wherein ordinary freight
had a very low priority. Sometimes locomotives ran out of fuel: the 72XX
were especially prone, and shunting of queues of trains had to take place
for the locomotive to return to Swindon for refueling. Fuel was very poor
in quality: coke was used which clinkered and briquettes were welcomed. Mention
is made of ambulance trains to Shrivenham and that these for a time were
Westinghouse fitted and required "North Eastern", surely Great Eastern
locomotives for trains to Worcester. Hospital trains were also worked over
the Midland & South Western route to Cirencester.
Illus.: 850 Class No. 992 in 1935; Dean Goods 0-6-0 No. 2415 on 2 February
1938; alleged No. 4585 (wrong sort of side tanks):
see letter from Michael Dunn on page 637 who suggests
No. 4525 or 4526 [KPJ prefers latter]; 43XX No. 6300, No. 4934 Hinlip
Hall, and C4 Robinson Atlantic No.5263 inside Swindon shed in April 1932;
No. 6817 and No. 2849 outside shed in 1960; p. 473: No. 3816
County of Leicester attached to bogie tender (see
letter from Tony Blackman page 574 states bogie tender off The Great
Bear); interior of Swindon roundhouse in April 1932; Aberdare 2-6-0 No.
2680 at Banbury shed.
Ballantyne, Hugh. (phot.). The North Somerset Branch. 476-7.
Black & white photo-feature: 57XX No. 8741 calls at Hallatrow
with 14.53 Bristol Temple Meads to Frome on 12 September 1959; ROD 2-8-0
No. 3032 crossing Pensford Viaduct with Bristol to Radstock freight on 14
March 1955; No. 3735 leaving Radstock West with express headlamps with 17.55
ex-Radstock which ran in connection with Channel Islands boat train; Class
3 2-6-2T No. 82040 at Whitchurch Halt on 10.50 Frome to Bristol on 31 October
1959; No. 9615 at Midsomer Norton & Welton on 16.05 from Frome on 12
September 1959; and 2-6-2T No. 5532 at Clutton with 14.53 from Bristol on
last day (31 October 1959).
Up and down the Lickey [Incline]. 478-9.
Colour photo-feature: Jubilee 4-6-0 No. 45660 Rooke on 08.30
Cardiff to Newcastle with carmine & cream LMS and BR standard vehicles
on 11 July 1956 (T.J. Edgington); Class 5 No. 44805 entering platform line
at Bromsgrove station with empty mineral wagons in July 1962 (C.R.
Gordon-Stuart); 4F 0-6-0 entering Bromsgrove station with carmine &
cream LMS coaches on 17.46 Birmingham New Street to Gloucester Eastgate
stopping train on 11 August 1956 (T.J. Edgington); 9F buffers up to rear
of "express" at Bromsgrove on 11 August 1956 (T.J. Edgington); 9F No. 92234
and 0-6-0PTs Nos. 9429 and 8402 at Bromsgrove coaling stage in October
1961 (Tommy Tomalin).
The LNER in the '30s. 480-1.
Colour photo-feature: D15/2 No. 8891 in lined black at Bishop's Stortford
engine yard in 1938; A1 No. 2548 Galtee More under coaling tower at
York in 1937; No. 4489 Dominion of Canada (with bell) on up West
Riding Limited at Leeds Central in summer of 1939 (H.M. Lane), D16/3
No. 8900 Claud Hamilton in apple green with burnished metalwork at
Romford on 6 June 1936. See also letter from G. Luke (page
637) who complains about colour quality of picture of West Riding Limited,
wording of caption and adds information on A4 names..
Patterson, Allan. Cab ride from Marylebone. 482-3.
Colour photo-feature: pictures taken from secondman's seat in DMU
by a signalman (see especially Volume 22 page 616)
who notes semaphore signals en route: Marylebone Station inmterior on 4 September
1986; approaching colour light signal outside Lord's Tunnel (covered way);
Neasden South Junction with overbridge on North Circular Road (A406); Sudbury
Hill on 9 May 1987; Northolt Junction; passing Ruislip London Transport depot..:
Kell, Roger J. Northumberland's railway highways and
byways. 484-8.
Survey of main line railways in Northumberland. The Blyth & Tyne
Railway remained independent from the North Eastern Railway until 1874, The
Newcastle Newbridge Street terminus remained apart from the NER in Newcastle
until 1904 asat Benton and 1909 at Manors North. The Newcastle & Carlisle
Railway organized an outing from Redheugh in Gateshead to Carlisle on 18
June 1838, but torrential rain in Carlisle delayed the return journeys, many
passengers not arriving back until the following day. The Border Counties
Railway built a railway along the North Tyne Valley from Hexham which reached
Riccarton Junction in 1862. The NBR acquired the Central Northumberland line
from Scotsgap to Morpeth which gave it access to the Blyth & Tyne, but
this was taken over by the NER thwarting the NBR's attempts to extend into
industrial Northumberland. A very uneconomic line was that from Alnwick to
Coldstream via Wooler. More profitable was the Riverside branch which gave
access to the shipyards on the Tyne. A line was opened to Ponteland, but
unlike the Riverside branch it was not electrified. Services were withdrawn
prior to Beeching. See also letter from K.A. Gray on page
573 which corrects some of the statements concerning points of divergence
of Border Counties Railway from Newcastle & Carlisle line west of Hexham
at Border Counties signal box werst of Hexham; also notes replacement of
NBR standard classes (Scott and J36) by LNER and BR standard classes at Hawick
and use of V3 No. 67606 on St Boswells to Berwick services.
London Transport's pannier tanks. 489.
Colour photo-feature:L90, formerly No. 7711, in rich maroon livery
on Neasden shed on 1 June 1957 (R.C. Riley) L89 (ex-No. 5775) in worn condition
at Lillie Bridge on 2 July 1969 (David Idle); L89 leaving Lillie Bridge with
freight for Acton on same day (Whiteley's Furniture Depositoty behind).
Clarke, Jeremy. From Redhill to Reading. Part 1. 490-8.
The Reading, Guildford & Reigate Railway, promoted by local interests,
was authorised in 1846. The line was leased and worked by the South Eastern
Railway. It partially opened on 4 July 1849, and completely on 15 October.
The line begins at was originally known as Reigate Junction, became Redhill
Junction and plain Redhill from 1929, The station was rebuilt in 1930 in
preparation for the main line electrification. There was a locomotive depot
at Redhill. Reigate is reached via a long climb from Redhill. The original
Reigate Town had staggered platforms, but this feature disappeared in a 1907
rebuilding. The line was electrified thus far on 17 July 1932, but at present
electric traction is limited to a few peak-hour journeys.There is a climb
alongside the North Downs to Betchworth followed by a decent into the Mole
Valley at Dorking where there are two stations on this line and another on
the Mole Valley line to Horsham. Illus. U class 2-6-0 approaching Reigate
with 12.05 Reading to Redhill on 24 October 1964 (colour: David Idle). F1
4-4-0 No. A228 leaving Reigate wwith 12.10 to Reading on 5 April 1926 (H.C.
Casserley); Q class 0-6-0 leaving Dorking Town with 12.04 Redhill to Reading
on 1 September 1964 (colour: David Idle); Redhill shed with Schools class
No. 30903 Charterhouse and N class No. 31870 on 27 February 1960 (R.C. Riley);
Betchworth station on 27 March 1929 (H.C. Casserley); N class No. 31866 leaving
Betchworth with 15.04 ex-Redhill on 1 September 1964 (colour: David
Idle); L12 4-4-0 No. 416 near top of climb out of Mole Valley in 1947 (Roy
Vincent); Buckland level crossing keeper's house in 1947 (Roy Vincent); exterior
of Dorking Town station on 2 July 1963 (H.C. Casserley); F1 No. 1028 departing
Gomsahll & Shere with 11.11 Reading to Redhill on 18 May 1935 (H.C.
Casserley); U class No. 31809 leaving Gomshall with 17.31 Redhill to Reading
on 2 September 1964 (colour: David Idle); F1 No. 1089 arriving at Chilworth
& Albury on 21 March 1936 (H.C. Casserley); Shalford station on 7 April
1956 (H.C. Casserley); B1 4-4-0 No. A9 at Guildford with 16.31 ex Redhill
on 24 May 1926; B4 0-4-0T No. 30089 on Guildford shed on 19 March 1961; N
class approaching North Camp with Margate to Reading service on 12 September
1961.
Another Cheshire set. 499-501
Colour photo-feature: Class 5 No. 44993 near goods depot in Chester
with a down freight of tank wagons, alomgside train of insulated containers
in ice blue livery on 4 March 1967 (David Idle); 8F passing Bredbury
Junction with westbound freight on 25 March 1966 (Alan Tyson); Class 5 heading
09.20 Paddington to Birkenhead past Chester No. 4 signal box on 4 March 1967
(David Idle); Class 123 InterCity eastbound express leaving Stalybridge in
December 1979 (Brian Magilton); Stanier Class 4 2-6-4Ts Nos. 42616 and 42647
run through Capenhurst with a railtour on 29 April 1967 (David Idle); 8F
No. 48551 with coal empties (look loaded to KPJ) alongside Type 4 No. D328
at Godley Junction under 1500V dc catenary in April 1968 (Brian Magilton);
9F 2-10-0 No. 92160 passing Woodley with empty mineral wagons on 4 May 1968
(Brian Magilton); Class 5 4-6-0 No. 45065 passing Stockport en route for
Godley Junction tender-first in January 1968 (S.C. Dent).:
Binks, Michael B. Track renewals of yesteryear. Part
1. 502-6.
Insppection and selection. Rail wear assessment. Rail foot galling
due to electrolysis under wet conditions. Anecdote of jacking up rail in
Sunderland South Tunnel interrupted by unexpected arrival of train of empties.
Formation subsidence in coalmining and salt exctracting areas. Timetable
changes could lead to disruption of renewal programme. Cost factors.
Readers' Forum. 507; 510.
Editorial gremlinia. Editor
LMS eight-coupled. Adrian Tester.
See page 306 et seq which
considered the hot box problem on the Fowler G3 0-8-0s (Austin 7). This problem
was also associated with Fowler's 4F 0-6-0 type. This was due not to the
design of the axle boxes, but due to cost cutting measures whereby inferior
bearing metals were used. The Midland Railway had not used lead in its white
metal — the LMS incorporated lead. Similarly, lubricants were cheapened
with inferior mineral oils. The LNWR 0-8-0s also suffered from this nad from
the removal of the centre bearings. The outside cylinder designs could
accommodate inferior lubricants.
The Great Central Railway's Southern Division. Neville
C. Tylor.
See page 326 et seq detailed
comments on dates and locations stated in captions; also detailed notes on
locations stated in text and observation that much would have been ideal
for alignment of HS2.
The Great Central Railway's Southern Division. Robert
Emblin.
See page 326 et seq detailed
response concerning visibility or otherwise of Oxford Canal bridge (surely
an anachronism when the railway was built), the crossing of the River Avon
and damage to the road infrastructure of Rugby.
The Tay Bridge Disaster. Allen Ferguson.
See article on the press coverage of the Tay
Bridge Disaster (Vol. 23 page 710) and sequence on page
302 et seq. Notes supplement to Engineer of 4 April 1873
which shows nearly complete Tay Bridge which was published when C. De Bergue
was about to terminate its contract and was to be replaced by Hopkins &
Gilkes.
Atkins, Philip. The curse of '03. 508-9.
A consideration of some very short lived locomotive types which emerged
during 1903: the Dean double-frame, inside-cylinder Kruger 2-6-0 Nos. which
were withdrawn in 1906; the Webb four-cylinder compound express goods 4-6-0s
withdrawn from 1913; the Hoy inside-cylinder 2-6-2Ts withdrawn from 1920;
the Holmes 317 Class 4-4-0s withdrawn between 1922 and 1926.
Book reviews. 510
Lost railways of South Wales. Mike Hall. Countryside Books.
EAE ****
"book is informative", but notes some errors in place name
spellings.
Poster to poster: railway journeys in art. Vol. 1. Scotland.
Richard Furness. JDF Associates. AJM **
"The 330-plus colour illustrations of landscape posters are of superb
quality". Most of the originals were in the NRM Collection. Sandy Mullay
is highly critical of the many errors within the text (notable of which are
the "view" of the seabird colonies at St. Abbs Head from the train! —
they are also far off the A1, and the "Sisters Rock" at North Berwick which
is presumably the Bass Rock). The errors are not limited to topography: the
Caledonian Princess was constructed by Debby, and the Coronation service
took nearly seven hours to get from London to Edinburgh.
Derbyshire in the age of steam. Steve Huson. Countryside Books.
DWM ***
Very well received.
Jolly boating weather. J.S. Gilks. rear cover
Class 37 in Speedlink livery hauls china clay empties along banks
of River Fowey at Golant on 21 April 1988.
SR H15 Class 4-6-0 No.30475 stands outside Basingstoke shed on 22nd April 1956. (R.C. Riley)
Rail travel by numbers. A.J. Mullay. 515.
Guest Editorial. Suggestion that railway routes should be given numbers
akin to those used for roads. Thus the ECML might become R1; the line to
Kent R2.
Past Barnetby's signals. Gavin Morrison, (phot.). 516-17.
Colour photo-feature: Wrawby Junction looking west on 19 December
1988 with lines to Lincoln, Retford and Doncaster; Class 37 No. 37 707
approaching Barnetby with eastbound petrol tank wagons on 8 July 1995; Class
47 No. 47 401 Star of India with number D1500 and original two tone
green livery on train of tankers and No. 47 327 light engine at Wrawby Junction
on 12 September 1991; Wrawby Junction signal box on 13 May 1992; Class 56
No. 56 102 Scunthorpe Steel Centenary on coal empty merry-go-round
train at Barnetby East box on 13 May 1992.
Nisbet, Alistair F. Willie Gow and the Selkirk branch.
518-24.
The Selkirk & Galashiels Railway was incorporated on 31 July 1854
and opened on 5 April 1856. There were intermediate stations at Abbotsford
Ferry (for Abbotsford House) and Lindean. The railway crossed both the Gala
Water and the Tweed. Private sidings were provided for St. Mary's Mill (Gibson
& Lumgair Ltd,), Yarrow Mill (T. Craig-Brown & Cp. wool spinneers)
and Ettrick Mill (Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society Ltd'). The line
was amalgamated into tthe North British Railway on 1 July 1859. Quite a generous
passenger train was operated by the NBR, but this was reduced during WW1.
The LNER attempted to make savings by using Sentinel steam railcars:
Protector was in use in 1931, but by 1933 this had been replaced by
Nettle. Selkirk was a popular destination for excursions, and during
the rugby season excursions were run both to and from the branch. The NBR
used 2-2-2WT Nos. 31 and 32: these had been built at St. Margaret's Works
and were driven by Willie Gow, the first engine driver on the line, who had
begun his railway service as a cleaner at St Margaret's in 1847 and drove
the branch train for 42 years: he was a quiet man who worshipped at Heatherlie
Parish Church. See also letter from Robin Boog on page
702 which makes some corrections and additions: The first sod was cut
on 31 July 1854 by Mr Murray of Philphaugh and Provost Roberts (not Chalmers).
The celebratory opening was attended by Horne, a Director of the NBR and
by Rowbotham, General Manager of the NBR. Notes on station buildings. Location
of bridge over Gala Water. Name of Abbotsford Ferry station was Boleside
not Boldside. No. 31 was constructed from spare parts. No. 97, an 0-4-2T,
became the branch engine in about 1870 and it was replaced by an R class
4-4-0T. The signalling at Galashiels was rationalised in 1936 with the aid
of electric point motors.: .
Grayer, Jeffery. A bridge too far [Langstone Bridge]. 525-7.
Langstone Bridge, a timber structure with an opening span was the
key element on the Hayling Island branch which linked the resorts on the
south of the island to the main line at Havant. Its strategic value was
accentuated for a long time by the terminal state of the road bridge across
Langstone Creek which restricted passenger loadings on buses, but this was
replaced in 1956 and made the railway vulnerable. It survived until November
1963 when the line closed completely. The motive power had been provided
by Stroudley Terrier 0-6-0Ts. These were fitted with spark arrestors. When
the light opened on 17 July 1867 it had been worked by a variety of light
locomotives, but the Terrier class was used from as early as October 1872.
The P class 0-6-0T was trialled as a substitute, but without success. After
closure there were attenpts at preservation using tramcars and the Pacerailer,
a prototype luxury railbus, but these attempts failed as did attempts to
completely remove the railway bridge.
Mullay, A.J. Underrating the diesels. 528-34.
Contemporary arguments, both for and against, the replacement of steam
traction by diesel. Argues that British Railways management tended to
underestimate the performance of diesel especially the capacity for
diesel units to work for extended periods with very rapid turnrounds. Management
also underestimated the longevity of diesel traction. Considers the failure
of the British Transport Commission to buy in American technology from General
Motors. The over-enthusiastic response of Riddles, Bond and Harrison for
steam traction and failure to note its limited overall potential, and overplay
the imported fuel argument. Continued on page 664.. Illus.:
Class 40 No. D332 on up Royal Scot passing Shap Quarry on 31 May 1963
(colour: David Idle); D254 on up express freight passing Beningbrough on
5 June 1960 (Gaven Morrison); No. 46229 Duchess of Hamilton on inaugural
up The Caledonian near Penrith on 17 June 1957 (colour Ray Oakley);
prototype Deltic turning test train on Shipley triange on 7 August 1956 (Gavin
Morrison); A4 No. 60033 Seagull passing Potobello with up non-stop
Elizabethan (Gavin Morrison); Deltic D9010 passing Muskham with up
express from Glasgow Queen Street on 4 June 1963 (colour: David Idle); Deltic
D9001 St. Paddy on 14.05 Leeds Central to Doncaster passing Wakefield
shed on 7 September 1961 (Gavin Morrison); diesel hydraulics D819
Goliath and D6346 on breakdown train at Exeter St. David's in 1965
(Charles Dougan); 46243 City of Lancaster on up Midday Scot
passing Thrimby (Eric Treacy); Paek D67 leaving Bingley with Morecambe to
Leeds train on 10 May 1962 (Gavin Morrison),
Summers, L.A. Electrification and the 'Jazz': steam,
diesel and electric II. 536-40.
Part I presumably on page 646 of Volume 22..
Attempts to show that improved operating methods could defer electrification
and instances the Thornton Russell improvements at Liverpool Street whereby
the locomotives from incoming trains were released and went into a special
bay at the country end of the platform to await the next departure. Summers
fails to note that this was possible at Liverpool Street as the services
affected operated virtually independently from a separate portion of the
station. Ends article by suggesting that a modified version of the River
class could have worked an intensive suburban service over the South Eastern
inner-suburban section. Illus.: J69 No. 7087 on 13.54 Liverpool Street to
Palace Gates near Seven Sisters on 4 April 1925 (Ken Nunn); LBSCR high voltage
overhead train at Wandsworth Road in 1909; L77 0-6-2T No. 1001 at Bethnal
Green on 17 June 1915 whilst undergoing indicator tests (Ken Nunn); I3 No.
25 on Southern Belle Pullman near Purley on 20 June 1914 (Ken Nunn);
Billinton 4-6-4T No. 328 on 17.35 Victoria to Brighton near Purley in July
1919; 2-6-4T No, A793 River Ouse; 3-SUB EMU near Bromley South on
17 September 1927 (Ken Nunn, but see letter on page 699
from Richard Bell for correct caption). See William
A.M. Barter letter on page 699 which disputes Summers' naive assertions
that the Southern Electric system could have been worked by steam.
Also letter by Kevin Payne which notes failure to consider
developments on the Metropolitan and District lines, and reduction in
maintenance, crewing costs wrought by electrification..
Gray, Adrian. Steam, bogies and passion [Robert Fairlie's
relationship with George England]. 541-3.
Article stimulated by a chance discovery of a picture of a Fairlie
locomtive on the Neath & Brecon Railway dating from about 1869 and probably
published in The Pictorial Times. Considers
Robert Fairlie's elopement with George
England's daughter; the construction of Fairlie articulated locomotives at
George England's works and a brief overview of the Fairlie articulated locomotive
on the Festiniog Railway and elsewhere. See also letter
from Robert Barker (p. 764) who comments upon origins of main
illustration.. Another letter in next Volume
page 62 from Darryl Grant who suspects that locomotive in main picture
may match one illustrated and described by
A.R. Bennett in Chronicles
of Boulton's Siding, and to that described in
Abbott's The Fairlie locomotive. Also
gives possible explanations for the print: one that an actual Fairlie ran
on the Neath & Brecon, and the other that an artist depicted a Fairlie
type (as depicted elsewhere) on a railway known to him.
Small but perfectly formed [small pannier tanks].
544-6.
Colour photo-feature: 1361 0-6-0ST No. 1363 at Plymouth Laira with
Warship diesel hydraulic on 30 August 1961 (R.C. Riley); 1366 class 0-6-0PT
No. 1368 on Weymouth Quay with 15.40 Weymouth Harbour to Paddington in the
vglorious summer of July 1959 (G.H. Hunt); 16XX No. 1655 ex-works at Carddiff
Canton in February 1962 (J.M. Wiltshire); page 545 lower No.
1363 at Plymouth Laira on 30 August 1961 (R.C. Riley) see
also letter from G.L. Huxley on page 699 which explains at length the
crossing with the Plymouth & Dartmoor Tramway just visible in the
bottom of the picture and further information from Bob
Watt mainly on the sub-standard gauge tramway; No. 1661
with spark arrestor chimney at Worcester shed on 1 June 1963 (R.C.
Riley) letter from Bob Watt suggests spark arrestor
was for working Cleobury Mortimer & Ditton Priors Light Railway; No.
1621 at Little Somerford with Malmesbury branch freight with load of bright
red agricultural machinery in March 1962 (C.J. Gammell); No. 1364 at Plymouth
Millbay on 2 July 1955 (R.C. Riley)
Branch train to Brecon. 547.
Colour photo-feature: Ivatt Class 2 2-6-0 at work on Hereford to Brecon
line: No. 46510 crossing Wye at Whitney-on-Wye (J.M. Wiltshire); No. 46513
at Glasbury-on-Wye (J. Phillips).
Wilson, Andrew. The RAF 'Castles' of the Great Western
Railway. 548-52.
Rather sadly the article does not give any real indication as to why
the names of the specific aircraft were selected, but some indication is
given of the aircraft classes and the locomotives named after them (and their
previous names). Considers each locomotive in turn: No. 5071 Spitfire
(illustrated at Swindon shed on 19 March 1961); No. 5072 Hurricane;
No. 5073 Blenheim; No. 5074 Hampden (illustrated on up
Cambrian Coast Express approaching Solihull on 8 June 1957 (Michael
Mensing)); No. 5075 Wellington; No. 5076 Gladiator; No. 5077
Fairey Battle; No. 5079 Lysander; No. 5080 Defiant (shown
inside Swindon Works but without nameplates in February 1953); No. 5081
Lockheed Hudson (illustrated entering Dinmore Tunnel on 16.40 Cardiff
General to Liverpool Lime Street on 18 August 1962 (Michael Mensing)) and
No. 5082 Swordfish. (illustrated approaching Solihull on 14.35 Birkenhead
to Paddington on 12 May 1961 (Michael Mensing))
Kilday, Glen. The 'Ashington Tankey'. 553-8.
Based partly on a visit to the National Coal Board railways at Hartley
Main and Ashinton in 1963. At the former an experimental battery elecric
locomotive was seen and a footplate ride was made on a steam locomotive.
At the latter the internal passenger train service for colliery workers was
sampled which at that time was providing an intensive service to Linton Colliery,
but the coaches lacked continuous brakes. The history of coal mining at Ashington
is recorded, notably the influence of Jonathan Priestman, a Quaker, who developed
the Ashington Coal Company which in 1913 was contributing 5.2% of the British
output. Much of the output was shipped via the Blyth & Tyne Railway via
Blyth. New shafts were sunk and production extended under the North Sea.
Cites Ashington Coal Company: the five collieries – Ashington, Woodhorn,
Linton, Ellington, Lynemouth, by Mike Kirkup, (People's History, 2000)
details verified Northumberland County Library. Includes a list of the
locomotives in service (3 diesel and 37 steam) in 1963. Illus.: Robert Stephenson
& Hawthorn 0-6-0T (WN 7765/1954) NCB No. 40 at Ashington Colliery on
19 May 1965 (colour: Alan Tyson); Robert Stephenson
& Hawthorn 0-6-0T No. 31 ar Hirst platform on internal passenger
train; Peckett 0-6-0ST with loaded BR hopper wagons;Hawthorn Leslie 0-6-0T
No. 14 at Hirst platform; Robert Stephenson & Hawthorn 0-6-0T (WN 7764/1954)
No. 39 in blue livery on Stephenson Locomotive Society Manchester
Locomotive Society rail tour on 10 June 1967 (David Idle); Robert Stephenson
& Hawthorn 0-6-0ST WD Austerity No. 27 approaching New Moor.Robert
Stephenson & Hawthorn 0-6-0ST No. 3 passing Hirst platform; J27 0-6-0
No. 65816 with loaded train for North Blyth; Vulcan WD Austerity 0-6-0ST
No. 26. See also letter from R.C. Brown (page 702)
concerning "battery electric" locomotive which was an energy storage
locomotive, but the power was stored in a flywheel or gyroscope. KPJ: full
details of electric gyroscope (electrogyro name given by authors) locomotive
given in Institution of Locomtive Engineers
Paper 599..
Nisbet, Alistair F. The wandering '1500'. 559.
Black & white photo-feature of the now preserved No. 61572 snapped
at Finsbury Park on a remarkable railtour which included Towcester in its
itinerary: for full details see David Butcher in
Steam World Nos. 238
and 239 published in 2007.:
A day spent at Bletchley. David Idle (phot.). 560-1
Colour photo-feature: the day was 8 February 1964 and station was
being prepared for electrification and the Bletchley flyover was in operation:
9F 2-10-0 No. 92108 on up coal train; 3F 0-6-0T No. 47521 acting as station
pilot (with work on platform taking place); Jubilee No. 45584 North West
Frontier on up freight alongside flyover; 8F No. 48445 on up coal train
passing partly demolished platform; No. 92108 with flyover visible and 8F
hauled freight on it.
Binks, Michael B. Track renewals of yesteryear. Part
two. 562-5.
Planning for track renewals: detailed site planning; the concept of
the renewal year. Plans for switching off and protecting staff from electric
current either via overhead or third rail. Possible need for accommodation,
messing and transport of permanent way staff. Pre-assembly of points and
crossings. Continuous weled rail. Ballast trains needed to be brought to
the site the correct way round. Illumination required for work at night.
Illus.: laying pipe in trench situated in the six foot; conductor rail being
mounted alongside new point at Barking; Newcastle East diamond crossing being
pre-assembled at Low Fell Storeyard Depot; Newcastle East diamond crossing
being renewed on 10/19 November 1912.
Wells, Jeffrey. Images of Oldham's railways. 566-9.
Black & white photo-feature which fails to record the full variety
once visible (no pictures of Delph Donkey or push & pull service over
Oldham, Ashton & Guide Bridge Joint (see for instance
Goddard, Larry and Wells, Jeffrey Delph
(Saddleworth and Greenfield) to Oldham, including Lees motive power depot,
motor trains and the OA&GB to Ashton. Bredbury: Foxline, c2005).
The illustrations (all black & white): 8F No. 48456 on brake van special
run for Locomotive Club of Great Britain (LCGB) halted on 1 in 27 Werneth
Incline on 5 January 1963 (Peter Hutchinson); view from train approaching
Werneth station from Hollinwood hauled by BR Standard Class 4 2-6-4T on 12
April 1957 (H.C. Casserley); No. 80046 arriving Werneth via Incline with
passenger train on 11 May 1955 (Graham Whitehead); BR Standard Class 4 2-6-4T
No. 80093 leaving Oldham Central with Clegg Street and its colour light
signal in background (Jim Davenport); Aspinall 0-6-0 No. 52248 shunting empty
passenger stock at Mumps, c1952 (Jim Davenport); Class 5 No. 44677
leaving goods concentration depot with train of vans on 27 June 1967 (Peter
Hutchinson); Fowler 2-6-4T No. 42343 on Middleton Branch Tour run for
LCGB on 7 August 1965 in brake vans (Peter Hutchinson); L&YR 0-6-0 No.
52456 at Mumps on 7 January 1962 (Don Cash); scenic joys of Glodwick Raod
looking towards Lees (service to Guide Bridge departed from bay platform
hereat). .
Wince, Peter. Hard work and a good trip. 570-1.
Young engine driver's memories of footplate work from Bletchley to
Crewe and back. On one trip the locomotive became a failure when part of
the safety valve fell awa. On another run the author had to fire as well
as drive due the inexperience of the fireman. On one return trip where the
train was double headed there was a complete failure by the crew on the leading
engine to cooperate and they were soaked at water troughs and little effort
was made to assist in the locomotive work required.
East Riding country junctions. John Spencer Gilks (phot.). 572
Colour photo-feature: Market Weighton on with four-car DMU for York
on 1 August 1964 (date seems incorrect as giggling school girls are carrying
satchels) and Beverley on 29 June 1989 with class D110 DMU terminating on
service from Hull:
Readers' Forum. 573.
The Great Central's Southern Division. Alistair
Nisbet.
See page 326 et seq: considers that the Woodford
to Banbury was the only link on this section, the Brackley Central avoiding
line was not constructed and Helmdon Viaduct is north of
Brackley..
Flags, trade and traction. David Clough.
See page 262 et seq: notes that decision
to switch from 1500v DC to 25kv AC was subject to considerable scrutiny by
Board
The Bankfoot Light Railway. Arnold
Tortorella.
See page 407: quotes from relevant LMS Northern
Division Minutes concerning economics of passenger service
The Heathfield trip goods. Rory Wilson
See page 468 et seq Heathfield to
Christow line was standard gauge within a broad gauge area.
Not King Canute. Peter Griffiths.
See page 268 for article about Barbara
Castle: argues that few of the lines closed to passenger traffic were potentially
viable and few have been reopened (contra John Pearse on
page 445): possible exceptions were Oxford to Cambridge and Great Central
for freight.
Northumberland's railway highways and byways.
K.A. Gray.
See page 484 et seq concerning
points of divergence of Border Counties Railway from Newcastle & Carlisle
line west of Hexham at Border Counties signal box werst of Hexham; also notes
replacement of NBR standard classes (Scott and J36) by LNER and BR standard
classes at Hawick and use of V3 No. 67606 on St Boswells to Berwick
services.
GWR speed record attempt of 1933. Walter
Rothschild.
See page 412 et seq Deutsche Reichsbahn
attempts to raise the speed above 195km/h with steam using 4-6-4 No. 05.002
in May 1936 between Berlin and Hamburg. The letter also refers to high speeds
attained by the Rail Zeppelin and by the diesel Flying
Hamburger.:
Wartime memories of Swindon. Tony Blackman.
574.
See page 473:Photograph of No. 3816 County of
Leicester attached to bogie tender off The Great Bear)
Turnberry Station Hotel. Arnold Tortorella.
See feature on page 460: further information on
the Hotel and Light Railway extracted from GSWR and LMS Minutes. Sir Henry
Lunn approached the Glasgow & South Western to lease the Hotel and Links.
There was a siding installed for the School of Aerial Gunnery in 1918 and
the LMS introduced rail and hotel coupons for use at Turnberry and Gleneagles
to encourage uptake.
Book Reviews. 574
The Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway: the challenge of Morecambe
Bay. Leslie R. Gilpin. Cumbrian Railways Association. GBS
*****
Semaphore sunset. Gavin Morrison. rear cover.
No. 47 319 on train of tank wagons from Immingham at Wrawby Junction
on 19 December 1988
Ex-GNR N2 0-6-2T No.69523 leaves Moorgate with train for Welwyn
Garden City. (R.C. Riley). front cover.
Via the City Widened Lines, on 30 July 1958. This member of the class
was later preserved. Metropolitan line trains on the Rickmansworth and Uxbridge
services (latter red EMU F stock with oval windows) over to the left; LMS
Fowler 2-6-2T No.40039 cowers by the water tank on the right (KPJ modified
caption). See also letter from Andrew Kleissner who
points out that caption refers to London Transport "locomotive-hauled stock"
of which none visible in picture, but was Metropolitan Railway T stock which
had compartments eather than open saloons..
Paper chase. Michael Blakemore. 579.
Editorial: Price increases (but not on subscriptions) due to the wicked
escalation in the price of paper presumably due to the greed of bankers,
the cunning of politicians and the gullible nature of consumers.
25 Years Ago. Keith Dungate (phot.). 580-1
Colour photo-feature: High Speed Train power car in appropriate livery
No. 43100 Craigentinny ar Leeds City on 11.45 to King's Cross on 30 March
1985 with Class 141 about to lurch to Knaresborough alongside; Class 33 No.
33 210 arriving Eridge on 18 May with 08.45 Workington to Uckfield on SAGA
special; Class 40 No. 40 122 running as D200 in original livery approaching
Leeds with 10.40 from Carlisle (via Settle); Class 58 No. 58 026 with large
corporate logo (now looks like a mobile station) on a merry-go-round empties
at Bardon Hill on 24 May; and Class 108 DMU on 11.10 Barrow to Lancaster
and Class 120/Class 108 on 10.45 Preston to Barrow pass at Kent's Bank on
28 May.
Roake, John. By train and bus in Sutherland and Ross.
582-5.
Garve & Ullapool Railway obtained Act of Parliament on 14 August
1890. Following the Light Railways Act of 1896 this scheme was revived, plus
further lines from Culrain to Lochinver and from Lairg to Laxford Bridge
and Kinlochbervie. Construction materials were obtained for the North of
Sutherland Railway which obtained powers on 13 July 1898 to build a line
from Forsinard to Melvich and Portskerra. Following WW1 the Government produced
a remarkable report on proposed light railways in wildly unlikely areas,
such as the Isle of Arran, and the Ullapool line once again featured: these
would have been narrow gauge. These lines failed to materialise and coach,
and later mailbus services developed to serve Sutherland and Wester Ross.
Illus: Sutherland Transport & Trading Co. mailbus straddling the railway
tracks at Lairg station loading mail and parcels for Scourie on 21 August
1979 (Peter Tatlow colour)(when Scourie was visited in the 1950s by KPJ on
his Raleigh Lenton everything from bread to sausages arrived in the late
afternoon off the mailbus); Royal Mail Postbus straddling railway tracks
at Garve on 24 May 1986 (colour John Roake). See also
colour-photo-feature in Volume 25 page 55 et seq..
Wells, Jeffrey. Restoration and innovation in 1919. 586-93.
Survey based mainly on contemporary sources notably Railway
Gazette (if they were bound copies rhen handling them demanded
biblio-calisthetics). As the suggests there are two themes: recovery from
WW1 (and the changing nature of the post-War world), and innovation in railway
technology. Women had been employed much more widely and a table shows statistics
of the tasks which they performed, many of which were menial. There was a
shortage of wagons due to a backlog of repairs. A Memorial Service was held
at St. Paul's Cathedral on 1 May 1919 for fallen railwaymen: this was attended
by King George V. On 11 November all activity ceased for two minutes of silence.
Labour unrest grew in the post-War period and reflected high inflation. This
eventually led to the Nine Days Strike (25 September to 5 October) promulgated
by both Aslef and the NUR (described by Wells in two-part article
on pp 22 and 120. During the War the railways had
been controlled by the Railway Executive Committee. Work on many capital
schemes, such as the LBSCR electrification, had been suspended. During the
War the railways were controlled by the Railway Executive Committee. The
Ways and Communications Bill led to the formation of the Ministry of Transport
with Sir Eric Geddes as Minister
from 13 August 1919 . Cites Christian Wolmar
for this aspect. It was a period of uncertainty foor the railway companies:
H.W. Thornton summed it up:
"We do not know what the future of railways is going to be and it takes a
great deal of courageto incur capital charges,.
The technological assessment just fails to be highly lucid: probably because
it is impossible to present a true picture on the basis of a single year
even as portrayed by a noble journal like the Railway Gazette. The
locomotives selected were not seminal: the GNR H3 (later LNER K2); GWR 47XX,
and NER T3 0-8-0 and Stumpf Uniflow Z class 4-4-2. The coaling towers (Hull
for the NER and Carlisle Upperby) on the LNWR did represent an attempt to
make the operation of steam locomotives less labour intensive. Feltham Yard
showed a similar attempt to make marshalling freight more logical and avoid
delays. A motor inspection car was manufactured by the Motor Rail & Tramway
Co. in Bedford. Water troughs were not new in 1919.
Marriott was the engineer of the
Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway and developed concrete technology:
in 1919 the mighty GWR which was already using cast concrete on a large scale
and had a special works at Taunton took up Marriott's technology for concrete
signal posts. Large scale civil engineering was required to bring the New
Line to Watford Junction into Euston: the approach works mentioned the section
between Chalk Farm and Kensall Green. The Great Northern Metroipolitan line
was notorious for smoke and steam in the tunnels and an accident involving
permanent way staff due to lack of warning led to a system of electric gongs
enclosed in a tube activated by treadles to give ample warning. Illus.: GNR
H3 No. 1664; concrete signal posts at Langley near Slough; 4700 (works official);
water troughs at Langley near Stevenage; Raven Atlantic (Z class) with Stumpf
Uniflow cylinders at Edinburgh Haymarket as LNER No. 2212; Hull coaling plant;
No. 53 Clan Stewart near Newtonmore; coaling plant at Carlisle Upperby;
Feltham yard; Chalk Farm widening; T3 No. 63460 at Consett on 28 September
1963..
Thrower, David. The Tyneside Electrics – Tyneside's
first 'Metro'. 594-9.
Map appears to incorporate an error in that it shows the line from
Carlisle crossing the Tyne west of Newcastle near Blaydon. This line is now
closed and trains from Carlisle approach Newcastle via Gateshead and have
done so since 1982. Illus.: Gresley articulated car No. 24195 in blue &
cream livery in Newcastle Central (colour); refurbished NER set in blue &
white livery n Newcastle Central; train of 1920 stock in BR green enetering
High Shields with service for Newcastle in September 1954 (colour: I, Davidson);
eight coach set of Gresley stock in blue & cream livery entering Newcastle
Central from Manors; green liveried Gresley unit entering Manors on 28 May
1962 (Michael Mensing); Bo-Bo locomotive No. 26500 (NER green livery) at
Heaton depot (Colour-Rail); motor parcels van No. E29468E at Manors on 28
May 1962 (Michael Mensing); Gresley articulated unit in BR dark green at
Manors with tangerine signage in April 1965 (colour: R. Denison); and 2-EPB
in Newcastle Central on 19 May 1962 (Michael Mensing). Some
corrections and additions see leteer from R.A.S. Hennessey on page 702
who considers that author underplays the significance of Charles Merz and
the Carrville electricity generating station which was a world leader. Sir
George Gibb did not leave the NER for the Matropolitan Railway, but for the
Underground Electric Railways. The 2-EPB stock was vile and dreary whereas
the Gresley units were a delight to travel in.. See also
letters in Volume 25 page 62 from William A.M.
Barter (largely on Isle of Wight electrification and
from Bob Bemand on survival of Tyneside 2-EPB
unit...
N2 suburban. 600-1.
Colour photo-feature (all locomotives except one shown fitted with
condensing apparatus, but some fitted with a longer, higher pipe between
exhaust and tanks): No. 69568 on empty stock working at Hornsey on 20 September
1958 (R.C. Riley) ; No. 69504 in King's Cross on empty stock in June 1960
(John C. Hart); 69560 (non-condensing) on Hornsey shed in Sptember 1957 (W.
Potter); No. 69593 in Met shed in October 1961; No. 69526 on 12.15 Hatfield
to Finsbury Park near Brookman's Park in February 1959 (Trevor Owen).
Roberts, James. The great Railway Mania of the 1840s: how Britain
proposed to simultaneously build 650 railway lines. 602-6.
Charles Dickens coined the expression: "muddle of railways" (original
source not cited). There is a portrait and a cartoon of
George Hudson, but his role is
not over-played. Cites John Francis A history
of the English railway (1851); M.C.
Reed Railways in the Victorian economy (1969);
J.H. Clapham (misquoted as Chapman) An
economic history of modern Britain : The early railway age,
1820-1850. Also references to Illustrated London
News and The Times. Remarkably
Lewin's magisterial Railway mania and its
aftermath is not mentioned, although the ramblings of more recent
"authorities" like Christian Wolmar, Matthew Engel and Adrian Vaughan are
noted. Illustrated with contemporary cartoons.
Family likeness. Dick Riley. 607.
Colour photo-feature: 3F 0-6-0T: Midland Railway version No. 47236
at Horninglow shed, Burton on 28 September 1957 and LMS version No. 47413
ex-Works Derby on 23 September 1959.
Paddington and Old Oak. Geoff Rixon. 608-10.
Colour photo-feature: No. 4082 Windsor Castle arrival at No.
10 Platform with train of LMS stock on 18 August 1962; pannier tanks Nos.
9707 (condensing) and 8420 at Old Oak Common on 19 October 1963; No. 7031
Cromwell's Castle outside Paddingtonm in August 1962; No. 5014
Goodrich Castle awaiting departure at Paddington on 18 July 1962;
No. 7003 Elmley Castle (with double chimney) backing out with arrival
from Worcester; No. 7010 Avondale Castle (with double chimney) at
Old Oak Common on 19 October 1963.
Collins, Michael. The broader gauge in Ireland: the
Ulster Railway between 1836 and 1845. 611-12.
For a time Irish railways endured a variety of gauges: the Ulster
Railway had the broadest (6ft 2in). It received thge Royal Assent on 19 May
1836 and was intended to link Belfast with Armagh and had reached Lisburn
on 12 August 1839 and Portadown on 12 September 1842. Cites
Whishaw's Railways of Great Britain and
Ireland (but fails to note the correct spelling for the author) (book
centres in Norfolk failed to acquire when David & Charles reprint available)
and blames John MacNeill
(who suffers from alternate spellings herein) for the chaotic nature
of Irish gauges. The Dublin & Drogheda Railway (Mac Neill was engineer)
had opted for 5ft 2in in spite of intending an end-on junction with the Ulster
Railway. Major-General Pasley was
asked to adjudicate and he demanded 5ft 3in. The broad gauge locomotives
were supplied by Sharp Stewart and had names: all were regauged.
They are all surveyed in the excellent
work by Norman Johston. The carriages were supplied by Dunn & Wise
of Lancaster and by Braby of London.
Horse & carriage. David Idle (phot.). 613.
Colour photo-feature: three transparencies show arrival, unloading
and departure of Class 5 (No. 44851) hauled horse box (Army) special from
Melton Mowbray to North Camp on 17 October 1964. The red hatted soldiers
may have been Royal Military Police or Royal Horse Artillery:
Warrington, Gordon. A trip to remember. 614-15.
Firing an A3 on the King's Cross to Newcastle turn when inexperienced
and without sufficient preparation of food and drink. On the ourward journey
No. 60064 Tagalie failed with an injector problem at Grantham and
had to be replaced by No. 60054 Prince of Wales. Return was with No.
60066 Merry Hampton on the Talisman when time was lost through
the writer's lack of competence. Illus.: No. 60037 Hyperion (single
chimney) at Newcastle Central on train for Edinburgh; No. 60066 (double chimney
and smoke deflectors) near Retford on 7 July 1962 (Alan Tyson); No. 60078
Night Hawk at King's Cross on 2 June 1962 (Alan Tyson).
Tester, Adrian. An introduction to steam locomotive
testing: traditional locomotive testing techniques – Part 1.
616-23.
Cites a considerable amount of material notably
C.E. Wolff's Modern locomotive practice
(1912). Considers Drummond's tests which attempted to show that higher
boiler pressures led to lower fuel consumption. He arranged tests between
4-4-0 Nos. 76 and 79 with 200 psi boilers; No. 77 with 175 psi and No. 78
with 150 psi. The trains selected were the 16.30 Carlisle to Edinburgh which
divided at Strawfank Junction and the 10.15 from Edinburgh to Carlisle which
added a Glasgow portion at Strawfank Junction. Indicator measurements were
taken, but Tester is critical of Drummond's methodology whilst agreeing that
the tests did show the overall advantage of higher pressures. Deeley
attempted to establish the effect of train resistance.
Tatlow, Peter. The Hallade Portable Track Recorder. 624-5.
Invented by Emile Hallade.
First used in Britain by the GNR who purchased an instrument manufactured
by Korsen of Paris: this instrument is preserved at the NRM. On the Southern
Region the author was involved with tests at the behest of the Permanent
Way Department at Waterloo. Tests were performed in service trains in a
compartment reserved for the task, preferably adjacent to a bogie and on
a service with few stops.
Clarke, Jeremy. Reading to Redhill. Part Two. 626-33.
Text relates to the section beyond Farnborough North: each station
is considered in turn. At Farnborough North the station was near the Surrey
Border & Camberley Railway – a 10¼in gauge line which ran near
to near Frimley station on the Ascot to Aldershot line, and had a short life.
Blackwater station had wide platforms to accommodate military traffic. There
were stations at Sandhurst, Crwothorne (serving Wellington College and
Broadmoor), Wokingham, Winersh and Winersh Triangle and Earley. At Reading
a spur linking the line to the GWR was opened in 1899: another one was added
in 1941. Reading South was eliminated by the Western Region in 1965 and
substituted a single bleak platform No. 4A. Diesel operation started on 4
January 1965 using Class 206 "Tadpole" DEMU trains. Illus.: N class No. 31401
at Crowthorne on 12.47 to Guildford on 31 December 1964 (David Idle colour);
F1 4-4-0 No. 1058 at Wokingham with birdcage set on 13.46 Reading to Redhill
c1933 (H.C. Casserley); No. 7813 Freshford Manor departing Dorking
Town with 10.45 Tonbridge to Reading (Manor presumably working from Redhill)
on 1 January 1964 (David Idle colour); Farnborough North station on 21 April
1956 (H.C. Casserley); F1 No. A118 at Wokingham on 1 April 1933 with 12.20
Redhill to Reading; R1 0-4-4T on train to Guildford on 1 April 1933 (H.C.
Casserley); U class No. 31797 on 11.05 Reading to Redhill on 1 January 1964
(David Idle colour); Blackwater station on 6 July 1962 (H.C. Casserley);
Reading shed with U No. 1638, F1 No. 1140 and R1 No. 1708 on 9 April 1938
(H.C. Casserley); L1 4-4-0 No. 31785 approaching Reading South with Huntley
& Palmer's behind on 24 April 1957 (A.E. Bennett); Crowthorne station
on 12 March 1964 (H.C. Casserley); Crowthorne station with F1 No. A203 on
11.24 Reading to Redhill on 20 August 1932 (H.C. Casserley); 43XX No. 6366
near Betchworth in March 1957 (R.E. Vincent); No. 76062 leaving Reigate in
March 1957 (R.E. Vincent); T9 4-4-0 No. 30705 with birdcage set in March
1957 (R.E. Vincent).
Atkins, Philip. Robinson Great Central Locomotives –
a postscript. 634-5.
The relationship between Beyer Peacock and its draughtsmen and Gorton
and the design of the locomotives engineered thereat. In particular the work
of Carl Heinrich Schobelt at Beyer
Peacock and William Thorneley
for the GCR. Also mentions Samuel
Jackson and C.S. Cocks
and our failure to establish where he was trained. Illus.: Atlantic No. 1092
at Neasden; 8G 4-6-0 No. 1113; LNER B9 No. 1475 stated to
be at Neepsend shed, but see letter from J. Richard
Morton (p. 764) who states that location was Liverpool Brunswick; 0-8-4T
No. 1171..
World of sport. 636.
Colour photo-feature based on handbills from the David V. Beeken
Collection: LMS handbill for half-day excursion to London on 10 September
1934 departing Derby, Nottingham and Loughborough in afternoon and returning
from St. Pancras at around midnight: ran in connectrion with boxing match
between Jack Peterson and Larry Gains (note was made for special buses top
meet the train in Nottingham, but no advice was given on how to reach White
City from St. Pancras); LMS excursion for Rugby League match at Hull from
Huddersfield on 5 December 1931 starting at Holmfirth: Hull Kingston Rovers
versus Huddersfield, train stopped at Thongs Bridge (see
letter from J. Richard Morton page 764), Brockholes, Honley, Berry Brow,
Lockwood, Bradley and Mirfield, and then ran via Goole to Hull Paragon (note
observes limit on luggage to sunch items as luncheon baskets, presumably
for last of summer wind) and LNER handbill for hare coursiing meeting at
Brandon Colliery on 22 February 1926: the outward journey was by the 09.21
express from Bishop Auckland and the 09.43 express from Durham which would
stop to set down passengers at Brandon Colliery: no information was given
on fares or on return arrangements (if any). See also rear
cover.
Readers' Forum. 637.
North British Steam. R. Urquhart,
See middle photograph on page
419: caption is incorrect. The train in the photograph
is not, or should not be, leaving Inverkeithing. Having come off the Rosyth
dockyard branch, it is standing on the up line facing Kirkcaldy. The signals
on the left of the picture show that the road is not for Dunfermline. The
signals on the right control the main line to Kirkcaldy which veers to the
right under the bridge. The ground signals on the extreme right would control
the movement of the Kirkcaldy train on the main line, when this is clear.
Beyond the Highland. W.T. Scott
See page 348 for article by Neil Sinclair on locomotive
engineers who left the Highland for South Africa.
George Reid was the elder brother
of W.P. Reid, of North British Atlantic fame, and uncle of R.W. Reid, who
became vice president of the Natal Government Railways in 1896, not 1893.
He was known especially for a design of 4-10-2 tanks, the Class W of 1898-1900.
The NGR had an obsession with tank engines, probably because the tender added
to the train weight but earned nothing. So to get extra power within a very
restrictive 14ton axle load using tank engines, ten coupled wheels were needed.
When Reid saw the gradients of the NGR – 1 in 30 up to Cato Ridge –
he must have thought that 1 in 60 up to Slochd was easy! The 4-10-2 tanks
did well on the main lines but when reduced to shunting by Hendrie's new
tender engines they showed a tendency to derail, especially when running
in reverse. This may have earned them the name 'wallopers'. The habit was
cured by removing the trailing wheels and making them into 4-8-2 tanks. In
this form they worked out their lives, finishing on mines and industrial
railways.
David Anderson Hendrie: never heard
of him being called William, had a varied early career from Inverness Royal
Academy to. Lochgorm drawing office. Spells followed with Sharp Stewart and
Dubs, again in drawing offices where he must have gained much experience
of locomotive building. This saw him back at Inverness as Chief Draughtsman
in 1893. Further promotion meant a move to South Africa. His experience of
steeply graded lines may have helped here: Reid and Holland suggest that
his predecessor George Reid may also have recommended him. He ended his career
as CME of SAR in 1922, after nineteen years' service. Hendrie introduced
many notable locomotives, including the world's first 4-8-2, and this wheel
arrangement became an SAR standard, culminating in the Classes 15, 19 and
23. He was also an innovator, introducing the steam reverser and electric
headlamps. His British training did not make him overly conservative and
he visited America in 1909, returning with ideas on superheating and the
Mallet engine. In 1921 he introduced the GA and GB Garratts. The latter was
a success on such lines as the difficult Barkley East branch where they worked
for many years. Those wishing to learn more of these two great locomotive
engineers would do well to consult T.J. Espitalier's The Locomotive in
South Africa, D.F. Holland's two-volume study Steam Locomotives of
South African Railways and B.Reed's
Locomotives in Profile Vol. 2: The Jones Goods.
Wartime memories of Swindon. Michael Dunn.
The '45XX' tank pictured on p. 471 cannot be number
No. 4585 as it has one of the straight tanks only used on numbers 4500 to
4574. Despite staring long and hard at it, he could not read the numberplate
for certain but it looks like 4525 or 4526 [KPJ favours latter].
Turnberry Station Hotel. H.N.
Twells.
Reference the photograph on p. 462
upper, putting at the 4th green, was THE Miss Wethered,
considered by many in the sport to be the best lady golfer of all time. The
author wishes to thank Messrs. Bill Flack and Charles Revell for providing
this further information.
Turnberry Station Hotel. L.F.E. Coombs.
See page 460 et seq Turnberry
airfield runways may have used compass designations by the RFC twenty years
before they were considered necessary for RAF and civil aerodromes. At the
time, cl918, an airfield was just that, a field. Take off and landing direction
related to the wind and windsock. See also further letter
from H.N. Twells on page 764..
The Adams 'Flyers'. Arthur Nicholls.
See page 396 et seq. where
the author comments on the identification of LSWR locomotive classes as "anything
but memorable". Its method was certainly no less memorable than that of most
pre-grouping railways with the exception of the Great Western and even that
was idiosyncratic in its early days. In the earliest days of the LSWR, if
the type of locomotive was referred to it was by its makers' name. From the
start of construction at Nine Elms in 1843 the class name was usually, but
not always, that of the first one built. The '231' Class of 2-4-0s was built
by Beyer Peacock and, not being named, were so classed. There is no obvious
reason for most discrepancies in this system. The standard well tanks from
1861 were so-called and not named, being built by Beyer Peacock as was a
series of 0-6-0s. With W. G. Beattie came the 'Metropolitan Tanks', a Beyer
Peacock design, the '348' or 'Sharps Express' 4-4-0s, the 'Ilfracombe Goods'
and the Beyer Goods 0-6-0s. From them onwards the class was known under the
running number of the first built. Adams brought with him from the Great
Eastern Railway the system of allocating the works order number as the class
number and this was continued with few exceptions into SR days. The order
numbers were not only for locomotives but for everything manufactured in
the works down to such things as boilers, cranes and even shovels. The numbers
ran in chronological sequence, with the exception of the A12 0-4-2s, which
discrepancy has never been explained. A second or further batch of the same
class obviously had a different order number, sometimes there were detail
differences and in some cases for a time it was used as a class number, only
to be dropped in favour of a common class number, eg M7 and later X14, X15
0-4-4Ts. Locomotives built by outside contractors were classed under the
running number of one of the class, eg 700 0-6-0s ('Black Motors'), in this
case not the first supplied. This is a rough outline of the system which,
once understood, is really quite memorable despite the larger number of small
classes of locomotives.
The Adams 'Flyers'. T.H.J.
Dethridge.
See page 396 et seq. writer
familiar since early 1930s with Adams 4-4-0 'Flyers' (and others of his classes)
of the Southern Railway. The shot of T3 No.E569 illustrates the efforts of
the Southern, uniquely of the 'Big Four', to turn out many of its older,
non-front-line engines in really impressive condition. Writer sceptical of
the claim that T6 No.684 – or indeed any engine in SR service –
retained an Adams stovepipe as late as 1940, or even much beyond 1930. The
only example recalled was one of the pair of Beattie Beyer 0-6-0 tanks retained
in the Eastleigh 'museum' (virtually defunct by 1940). The other one of the
pair had a Drummond boiler and chimney. Writer had photo by the late Alf
Coffin of No.684 at Fratton in the mid-1930s, newly outshopped and with Drummond
boiler and chimney. Mention is made of the SR power classification, which
is printed as figure One. This should be letter 'I' (for India). This grading
was actually an LSWR introduction in the Urie era and perpetuated by the
SR. It was never applied to non-Eastleigh types. The earlier Adams 4-4-0s
were graded K. The comment is made that the replacement Drummond boiler was
disliked for its tendency to priming. It is also the case that many felt
that aesthetically it looked wrong on an Adams engine. Reverting to the picture
of No.E569, the caption states this to be a train for Andover at Eastleigh
in 1925. It appears to be at the down platform from where an Andover departure,
while not impossible, might be unexpected. The disc headcode on the engine
was for Waterloo-Bournemouth up to 1928. Finally, with regard to the loan
of the Webb compound LNWR No.300, it is reported that on arrival south of
the Thames on 10th May 1884 with its crew, it went on to the Waterloo-Portsmouth
service for a few days, where it seems to have performed well with the lighter,
less tightly timed trains, albeit on a somewhat difficult line, but was less
satisfactory when it was then tried out west of Salisbury, with mention of
difficulties in starting and lost time.
The LNER in the '30s. G. Luke.
Refers to centre spread in August issue (pp.
480-1). Complains that photograph of West
Riding Limited appears to have faded and gives an incorrect showing of
the colours of the locomotive and train. The A4, being one of the five original
Coronation locomotives, was painted garter blue, as were the two specially
treated locomotives for the West Riding Limited service – Nos.4495
and 4496, Golden Fleece and Golden Shuttle. The coaches of
both trains were painted garter blue to below the windows and Cambridge blue
(pale blue) above the waist line, not silver-grey as stated. When new, the
wheels of the seven A4s were painted dark red as were the tender wheels.
Writer saw the Coronation trains at York during their first week of
operation in July 1937 and, of course, they were in pristine condition. By
1939, when the photograph was taken, the tender wheels are black and may
be replacement wheel sets. These seven locomotives and tenders were embellished
with stainless steel numbers, letters and strips which can be seen in the
illustration. Colour reproduction on pre-war film was always unreliable as
the two green locomotives show. [KPJ: the photograph of No. 4489 Dominion
of Canada is also reproduced in
LNER locomotives in colour
compiled by White and Johnston on page 69 where the sky is less blue
and the locomotive and train are slightly lighter: it is remarkable that
so many of H.M. Lane's images have survived. On pp. 36 No. 4496 Golden
Shuttle is shown at Wakefield Westgate and No. 4489 Dominion of
Canada is shown at Doncaster Works (non-Lane transparency?). Marlborough
blue rather than Cambridge blue is the term adopted by White and Johnston
(and by others).
Book Reviews. 638.
Early railways 4. Graham Boyes. Six Martlets,
RH *****
The review is reproduced in full on the
Early Railways page.
Herein is limited to noting the origins and content of the work under review
and its excellence. The text results from the Fourth International Early
Railways Conference held in London, 2008 and sets high standards. The book
contains 22 papers covering a wide, range of subjects all lying within the
ambit of early railways. The collection is set fair by the first paper by
John Liffen on 'Searching for Trevithick's railway of 1808'. Liffen has
discovered where it ran (South Murrell's field, near Euston), how it was
reported on, and represented in art largely by fakes, it turns out, although
a recent discovery may illustrate the locomotive boiler in question. Papers
by Geoff Smith-Grogan ('Rutways in Cornwall'), Michael Messenger ('Early
Railways in the South West'), Stephen Hughes ('The Emergence of the Public
Railway in Wales') and David Gwyn on the early railway in Wales suggest that
the modern railway namely mechanical traction on fixed formation track was
a Celtic invention, witness the names Trevithick and Pen-y-Darren. Still,
it was the Geordies and other Northerners who raised all of this to the necessary
high register and they are well represented here, for example in Bailey and
Glithero Turning a Blind Eye to Braddyll', Jim Rees on a possible model of
Hackworth's Sans Pareil and Winifred Stokes on the financing of the Clarence
Railway. Further North we have a paper by Niall Ferguson, known to BT readers,
'Locomotives of the Dundee & Arbroath Railway - Timely New Evidence?'
- a play upon words in that the evidence is a rare and unusual clock-face.
The scope of the collection goes far beyond the UK, to Malta, Canada and
South Africa.
Southern rails on the Isle of Wight.
Volume 1. The Central and Freshwater lines. Ian Drummond.
Holme. AB *****
"closely constructed and authoritatively researched work that is surely
a landmark production in this field" .
Lost railways of Oxfordshire. Terry Moors. Countryside Books.
LAS ****
"heartily recommend" [but] attack on matt illustrations.
Send it by Great Western. rear cover.
Handbill in David V. Beeken Collection: see also page
636.
LMS Class 4 2-6-0 No.43036 leaves Platform 7 of Birmingham New Street with the empty stock of the 08.15 from Worcester on 7 July 1962. (Michael Mensing). front cover
To smoke, or not to smoke. Jeffrey Wells. 643.
Guest Editorial. Early railway policy was not to permit the smoking
of tobacco on trains, but litigation forced tolerance until this policy was
reversed prior to 2007 when smoking was banned in public places. The
Southern Railway had a policy of one third of its accommodation permitted
smoking.
London trainsheds. Steve Burdett. (phot.). 644-5.
Colour photo feature: Marylebone Station with Class 115 dmu waiting
departure for Aylesbury on 21 April 1979; Fenchurch Street exteerior obn
24 March 2008; Paddington with Class 52 No. 1048 Western Lady on arrival
on 14 December 1974; Broad Street with Class 501 emu on Richmond service
on 25 September 1972; St.Pancras with Class 127 dmu on Bedford service on
25 September 1972.
Flann, John L. Management of the Midland Railway in
the early years of the twentirth century. 646-53.
The Board of Directors appointed the General Manager who was in overall
control of the Company's business.
George Turner was appointed in
1892 as successor to John Noble. Turner had joined the Midland Railway at
Bristol as a goods clerk in 1853. The Superintendent of the Line was
W.L.Mugliston: his duties
covered timetables, the goods and mineral managers,
etc.The Secretary was A.L.
Charles. He was the Company's legal representative. The Engineer in Chief
was J.A. McDonald (who was born
in 1847). The Carriage & Wagon Superintendent was
T.G. Clayton. Other key officers
were the Accoiuntant, Locomotive Superintendent and the Works Manager.
Illus.:No. 993 taking on water at either Derby or at Carlisle
(p. 653): see Editorial query on page 62 of
next Issue. Further examination of Midland Railway's management structure
and its influence upon that of the LMS see Volume
25 page 334..
Helm, John. W.E. 1948 — The birth of British Railways
— The first year. Part One. 654-9.
Opposition to Nationalisation was organized by thr general managers
of the Big Four: namely Milne,
Missenden,
Newton and
Wood; an with more force by the
chairmen (Hambro,
Holland Martin,
Matthews and
Royden) who organised a Campaign
in 1943 and communicated with the Minister of Transport,
Lord Leathers. This was
of no avail as the Labour Government had a clear mandate and introduced an
Act which received the Royal Assent on 6 August 1947. This led to the British
Transport Commission with five full-time and two-part time members, each
to serve for five years. The former were:
Sir Cyril Hurcombe;
Lord Ashfield (who died in
November 1948 and was a key loss);
John Benstead (ex-General Secretary
of the National Union of Railwaymen);
Lord Rusholme (ex-General Secretary
of the Co-operative Union); and Sir
William Valentine Wood. The Headquarters was established at 55 Broadway
and had 152 staff. Beneath this were several executives, notably the Railway
Executive, but the London Transport Executive was also a key operator of
railways. Milne declined the chairmanship of the Railway Executive and Sir
Eustace Missenden was appointed. The other members were
W.P. Allen;
V.M. Barrington-Ward,
David Blee,
R.A. Riddles,
J.C.L. Train and
General Sir William J. Slim. The
Railway Executive modelled itself upon Lord Stamp's LMS and this led to excessive
centralisation with the Regions having only limited powers. At one stage
eight regions were envisagedwith one for Wales and another for North West
England. "The capital debt was a matter of some concern for the new
administration: "There is no equity stock to absorb the impact of possible
reduction in earning power"". "By 1948 the railways were in a sorry
state". A statistical analysis of the steam locomotive stock is than conducted.
See also letter from A.J. Mullay on page 62 of next
Volume commenting upon the relative sizes of the Regions: writer believed
that Scottish was larger than North Eastern and arguments within Commission
on NER being too small and LMR too big (but NER enjoyed best economic
performance). Letter from Frederick M. Littlewood
in next Volume page 62 on the renumbering of the former LNER War Department
purchases of Austerity 2-8-0s into separate sequences for those supplied
by North British Locomotive Co. and Vulcan Foundry: .
From the green fields of Somerset. 660-3.
Colour photo feature: 43XX 2-6-0 No. 7304 at Dulverton stastion with
a Taunton to Barnstaple service in November 1962 (C.R. Gordon Stuart); 8750
class No. 9628 at Shepton Mallet High Street with 15.17 Frome to Yatton in
March 1962 (P.A. Fry); Ivatt class 2 2-6-2T No. 41203 at Cranmore with 13.30
Witham to Yatton in February 1962 (P.A. Fry); 14XX No. 1444 at Bath Spa with
auto-train on Great Western Society rail tour on 20 September 1964 (David
Idle); 2251 class No. 2268 on 08.12 Frome to Bristol near Croscombe on 6
September 1963 (David Idle); 4F 0-6-0 No. 44560 (built for SDJR) shunting
at Evercreech Junction on 30 September 1962 (David Idle); 57XX No. 3681 at
Bath Green Park shunting stock for farewell special on 5 March 1966 (David
Idle). :
Last day on the Ledbury branch. Hugh Ballantyne (phot.). 663.
Black & white photo feature: 11 July 1959: diesel railcar W19W
at Dymock; 2251 No. 3203 with five coaches on final service from Gloucester
at Barbers Bridge and at Newent.:
Mullay, A.J. Underrating the diesel. Part Two: Modernisation
in a time of despair. 664-9.
Continued frtom page 528. Diesel traction was
originally perceived as an intermediate stage towards electrification. In
1954 this was briefly enshrined in the British Transport Commission's
Modernisation and re-equipment of Britsh Railways, but in July 1959 a White
Paper Re-appraisal of the Modernisation Plan cast doubts on electrification
due to its slow implementation on the London Midland Region and its high
costs and disruption during preparatory work. This led to a dash for diesel
and a lack of any real attempt to exploit residual steam traction other
than in Scotland where the redundant East Coast Pacifics were used
in preference to the unreliable North British diesel electrics which the
Scottish Region had failed to test prior to their despatch to the Eastern
Region. Notes the influence of the Cock
Report on electrification which had recommended the use of diesel shunters
in marshalling yards. Also notes the influence of the Stedeford Committee
under Marples, the potentially malign influence of David Serpell and that
Sir Reginald Wilson had argued in prioritising fitted freight over suburban
electrification. Cites BTC Minutes (NAS BR/BTC/1/13 and 14), Stedeford Report
(BR/DD17/1124); Gourvish. British Railways
1948-1973, Hall Railway
milestones and Bonavia's
British Rail: the first 25 years. Further consideration with special
reference to the NBL fiasco see 25, p. 396 et
seq.
Nisbet, Alistair F. The attempt on James Stirling's
life. 670-1.
On 29 June 1885 George Hopkins attempted to shoot
James Stirling near Ashford Works
and then shot himself. Hopkins had been a footplateman, and due to an accident
was put in charge of a stationary boiler for the forge at Ashford Works and
due to a threatened loss of earnings attempted to murder Stirling.
Looks aren't everything. 672-5.
Colour photo feature: Ivatt Class 4 2-6-0 known by enthusiasts as
Doodlebugs or Flying Pigs: No. 43046 at Birmingham New Street with stock
forming 17.25 to Malvern Wells on 16 June 1962 (Michael Mensing); No. 43120
at Tyseley with freight off North Warwickshire line on 7 November 1964 )Michael
Mensing); No. 43063 leaving Evesham with passenger train for Ashchurch in
July 1962, and same train? at Broom Junction (C.R. Gordon Stuart); No. 43131
with freight off Scarborough line negotiating Waterworks Crossing, York on
14 April 1961; No. 43109 on Boston shed on 14 July 1963 (Geoff Rixon); No.
43021 appoaching Northchurch Tunnel with 12.33 Tring to Euston in July 1964
(J.P. Mullett); No. 43067 on Eastleigh shed on 28 March 1965 (Geoff Rixon);
No. 43106 on Lostock Hall shed en route to Severn Valley Railway on 1 August
1968 (A.F. Nisbet), and No. 43045 at Newcastleton with freight in June 1964
(L. Williamson).
Morse, Greg. The Foxhall Junction Accident – 1967. 676-9.
Accident on 27 September 1967 was due to excessive speed on the down
relief line approaching Didcot which led to the derailment of the last coach
on a crossover limited to 25 mile/h. The train was hauled by a diesel hydraulic
locomotive No. D853 Thruster and O.S. Nock was an occupant of the penultimate
vehicle. Driver Biggin was in charge of the locomotive on the Paddington
to Weston-super-Mare working. 23 people were injured in the crash. Major
P.M. Olver conducted the accident inquiry and the report was published on
29 November 1968 which commented on the driver's lack of route knowledge
and the ambiguous signalling. Nock considered that the train had been travelling
at 70-75 mile/h..
Addyman, John. Tyne Dock 1859-1937. 680-6.
Tyne Dock is being filled in with spoil taken from the second Tyne
Road Tunnel. Tyne Dock was a T.E. Harrison
project and was developed following the York Newcastle & Berwick Jarrow
Dock & Railway Act of 10 July 1854. It was situated at Jarrow Slake and
the contractor Jackson, Bean & Gow experienced problems from former mining
activity and unconsolidated material. The lock into the Tyne was constructed
by Robert Stephenson & Co. and was constructed from cellular wrought
iron and was hydraulic powered with machinery supplied by Sir W.G. Armstrong
& Co. Timber staiths were employed for coal shipment; two thirds of which
was for overseas. Imports included timber and esparto grass. The latter was
the cause of fire and storage was moved to a warehouse at West Bolden. Andrew
Thomas Park was foreman at the dock for 44 years. William Moffat was dock
superintendent from 1871 to 1880 and John M. Hicks was superintendent from
1880 to 1905. The LNER sold the dock to the Tyne Improvement Commission:
the handover taking place on 1 May 1937. The dock was improved for the transport
of iron ore to Consett. Illus. Sir Wiliam Whitelaw handing over dock to Tyne
Improvement Commission on 1 May 1937.
Around Leeds Central again. Gavin Morrison (phot.). 687-9
Colour photo feature: B1 No. 61129 on fast train for Doncaster on
28 February 1960; A1 No. 60132 Marmion on Copley Hill shed on 12 October
1961; Fairburn 2-6-4T No. 42699 on empty stock leaving Central station on
18 February 1967; J6 No. 64277 on Copley Hill shed on 19 June 1961; A3 No.
60074 Harvester with double chimney but without smoke deflectors on
down Queen of Scots passing Holbeck High Level; V2 No. 60930 at Wortley
South Junction on semi-fast for Doncaster on 31 August 1960; DP2 leaving
with Yorkshire Pullman for Bradford on 18 February 1967.:
Cock, Chris. Edward Davy: block signalling pioneer.
690-1.
Davy was born at Ottery St
Mary, Devon on 16 June 1806. He was the author of An
experimental guide to chemistry (1836) and Outline of a new plan of
telegraphic communication (1836). He was a pioneer of the use of the
electric telegraph in association with block signalling on railways for which
he obtained a patent 7719/1838. Illus. includes portrait of Davy..
Beale, Mike. 150 Years of the Dorset Central Railway. 692-5.
Act of 29 July 1856. Opened Blandford to Wimborne on 31 October 1860.
The opening train was double-headed by LSWR 2-4-0Ts with Minerva in
the lead. The opening train conveyed officials from Waterloo and on arrival
Blandford was en fete. There were intermediate stations at Sturminster Marshall
and Spetisbury. H.D. Seymour was the Chairman and Sir Ivor Guest who lived
at Canford Manor was one of the directors. The Secretary, Robert A. Read,
and the Engineer, Charles Gregory
were shared with the Somerset Central Railway with which the Dorset Central
Railway merged to form the Somerset & Dorset Railway.
Topping, Brian. "My Mother called me Harry". 696-8.
Life as a passed cleaner firing for Driver Harry Taylor of Bury shed
on shunting duties and as a banking engine on Broadfield bank.
Readers' Forum 699; 702.
Small but perfectly formed. G.L. Huxley.
See page 545 lower: the photograph
shows part of the the Plymouth & Dartmoor Railway (Tramway) crossing
at Laira Junction. The special signalling arrangements thereat were described
by Larry Crosier in Memories of Laira Junction in Journal of the Signalling
Record Society in 2008 (Nos 129 pp. 84-93 and 130 pp. 121-30).
Small but perfectly formed. Bob
Watt.
See page 545 lower: the photograph
shows part of the the Plymouth & Dartmoor Railway (Tramway) crossing
at Laira: see page 546 upper suggests spark arrestor
was for working Cleobury Mortimer & Ditton Priors Light
Railway
Electrification and the 'Jazz'. William A.M.
Barter.
See page 536 et seq, especially
the concluding comments which imply that the River class (suitably modified)
could have worked an intensive steam service into Charing Cross and Cannon
Street. Space was very limited at both these termini and multiple units increased
passenger capacity. The downstream girders at Charing Cross were weak and
would have required strengthening for more powerful locomotives. Smoke pollution
was leading to pressure to move Charing Cross station to south of the Thames:
a site at Waterloo was proposed: this would have increased pressure
on the tube
Electrification and the 'Jazz'. Kevin
Payne.
See page 536 et seq, failure of author to
consider developments on the Metropolitan and District lines, and reduction
in maintenance, crewing costs wrought by electrification.
Electrification and the 'Jazz'. Richard
Bell.
See page 536 et seq, EMU shown in Ken Nunn photograph
was not one of LSWR origin, but one of those built in 1925-6 for Eastern
Section on new underframes, but with recycled coach bodies and train was
probably destined for Victoria. Also cites David Brown's splendid Southern
Electric
The 'Ashington Tankey'. R.C. Brown. 702.
See page 553 et seq. "battery electric"
locomotive was an energy storage locomotive, but the power was stored in
a flywheel or gyroscope. KPJ: full details of electric gyroscope (electrogyro
name given by authors) locomotive given in
Journal Institution Locomtive
Engineers Paper 599 (1959, 49,396 .
The Selkirk branch. Robin Boog.
See page 518 et seq. corrections
and additions: The first sod was cut on 31 July 1854 by Mr Murray of Philphaugh
and Provost Roberts (not Chalmers). The celebratory opening was attended
by Horne, a Director of the NBR and by Rowbotham, General Manager of the
NBR. Notes on station buildings. Location of bridge over Gala Water. Name
of Abbotsford Ferry station was Boleside not Boldside. NBR locomotive No.
31 was constructed from spare parts. No. 97, an 0-4-2T, became the branch
engine in about 1870 and it was replaced by an R class 4-4-0T. The signalling
at Galashiels was rationalised in 1936 with the aid of electric point motors.
.
Turnberry Hotel. R.A.S. Hennessey.
See page 460 et seq: writer
considers that James Miller, the
architect requires greater recognition (might have added that he is not
in the ODNB). His work included Wemyss
Bay station (see article by Jim MacIntosh
Railway Archive, 2009 No. 24 page
19), the now demolished stations at Botanic Gardens and Kelvinbridge,
the offices of the North British Locomotive Company, an extension to Glasgow
Central station, the wonderful stations on the West Highland line
(see Dow's The story of the
West Highland, 1947) and the iterior of RMS Lusitania. Letter
writer also notes Miller's work in Adirondacks and Florida..
The Tyneside electrics. R.A.S. Hennessey.
See page 594: considers that Thrower
underplayed the significance of Charles Merz and the Carrville electricity
generating station which was a world leader. Sir George Gibb did noi leave
the NER for the Metropolitan Railway, but for the Underground Electric Railways.
The 2-EPB stock was vile and dreary whereas the Gresley units were a delight
to travel in. (KPJ travelled all the way from Saddleworth to Newcastle to
sample them in 1950s courtesy of free travel).
Long jib steam breadown cranes: Rolling Stock Focus. Peter Tatlow.
700-1.
Colour photo feature: Ransomes & Rapier 36 ton steam crane GWR
No. 2 at Swindon Works; Ransomes & Rapier 45 ton crane supplied to War
Department in 1943 on display at Longmoor Military Railway open day on 5
July 1969; Ransomes & Rapier 30 ton crane No. 330136 (supplied to LMS
in 1942 as RS1068/30 at Ripple Lane on 17 April 1970; 75 ton steam crane
No. 141 supplied in 1961-2 at Swindon Works on 23 August 1971 and Cowans
Sheldon 30 ton No. RS1075/30 at Ripple Lane on 30 August 1969.:
Book Reviews. 702
Southern electric. Vol. 1: Development of the London
suburban network and its trains. David Brown. Capital Transport.
RH *****
Reviewer perceives it as a successor to
Moody. Volume
2 reviewed by Roger on same page in next volume.
The gathering storm. P.M. Alexander. rear cover
No. 6843 Poulton Grange on running-in turn from Swindon near
Thingley in summer of 1958.
Note concerning print qulaity of this Issue: many of the colour images appear burnrt out and some of black & white images lack "contrast". Checked with copies in Sheringham newsagents and they suffer similarly.
Early morning at Pontardulais, on the Central Wales line, and BR Class 5
4-6-0 No.73024 departs over the level crossing with the 8.00am to Swansea
in March 1963. Hugh Daniel. front cover.
Locomotive in green livery: "smart red bus" whose advertisement urges
us to 'Drinka Pinta Milka Day'.
A picture book for Christmas – and more questions than
answers. Michael Blakemore. 707.
Editorial: plug for
A Colour-Rail
journey and enclosed "reader survey": see Volume
2 page 53 for editorial comment on previous survey of readership.
The 'Manchester Pullman'. Edward Talbot (phot.).
708-9.
Colour photo feature: No. 86 256 on down Manchester Pullman
north nof Milford & Brocton on 18 April 1980; No. 86 233 on souhbound
train leaving Shugborough Tunnel on 1 March 1979; up train passing Stafford
on 4 April 1978; No. 86 038 on up morning train passing Stafford on 1 June
1979; No. 86 252 with up afternoon train passing Stockton Lane on 1 August
1979. See also letter from Pete Williamson in Volume
25 page 190 who notes the presence of non-Pullman vehicles in the formations:
between 1967 and 1976. Also notes how in about 1970 down failed down train
was propelled by down Executive from near Castlethorpe to Rugby..
Smith, Michael J. "A properly co-ordinated system of
transport". Part One. 710-15.
Formation of London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB) and the absorption
of the Metropolitan Railway within it, and the effect of this on the other
Underground Group's lines, notably the District, the former Met and the main
line companies, notably the LNER. Thus Piccadilly Line trains ran to Uxbridge,
Metropolitan Line trains ran east to Barking; the Brill branch closed and
Verney Junction ceased to be served. The LNER took over the freight service
and provided steam traction north of Rickmansworth. On the other hand the
diamond or lozenge shaped Metropolitan signs survived into the 1950s.
See also review of book about Metropolitan Railway in
this Issue. Illus.: Beyer Peacock 4-4-0T No. 23 with London Transport
on its tank sides at Brill, and at Quainton Road; LPTB freight brake van
No. 8 at Chalfont & Latimer on 17 August 1935 (H.C. Casserley); refurbished
Circle Lined EMU; Uxbridge terminus under construction; Ashbury stock at
Stanmore; North Harrow station.
Skelsey, Geoffrey. "Not opened every day": new stations
on Britain's railways, 1923 to 1972. 716-25.
Begins with quotation from E.M. Forster's Howard's End where
one of the characters refers to the new station with island platforms and
a subway and the author wonders whether this could have been the then rebuilt
Stevenage or Knebworth.stations. Other stations opened to reflect changing
population patterns in Hertfordshire were opened at Letchworth in 1903/5
(subject of Camden Group painting), and Welwyn Garden City (1920/6). The
influence of private property developers is considered: these were very active
in the Southern Electric area although the last Lullingstone was built, but
never opened, due to the Green Belt legislation which followed WW2. Electric
traction favoured new openings especially in the Manchester area, in the
Wirral and on the Tyneside electrics. Sometimes local authority housing estates
were met with new stations, but Wythenshaw in Manchester which had been intended
to be served by trams was served by buses. Table of new stations in Glasgow,
Liverpool and Manchester (mainly LMS) Table of openings between 1923 and
1947 by railway company Table of opened and reopened stations by British
Railways: 1948-1972 Table of new towns designated 1947-1970..
Illus.: publicity leaflet for Kemble to Tetbury and Cirencester railbus services;
preserved GWR pagoda shelter at Didcot Railway Centre (colour); Llanstephan
Halt with Class 2 2-6-0 No. 46511 on 13.20 Brecon to Moat Lane Junction on
4 August 1962 (Robert Darlaston); Pans Lane Halt with a Newbury to Trowbridge
train calling (printed back to front: see letter
from Rob Pearce in Volume 25 126); Butler's Lane opened in September
1957 by London Midland Region on Birmingham to Lichfield line; Scale Hall
station opened on Lancaster-Morecambe-Heysham electrified line on 8 June
1957; Watford station (London Transport) with Metropolitan Line T stock EMU
in 1961; Bounds Green (Picadilly Line) surface building; Brookman's Park;
Longbenton station; Port Sunlight station exterior; Bowker Vale station opened
26 September 1938; H class No. 31553 at Grain with train for Gravesend (oil
refinery and tank wagons behind) in June 1960; Class 2 2-6-2T No. 41310 at
Watergate with Torrington to Halwill train on 3 September 1962; Morebath
Junction Halt on 12 May 1962; Green Bank Halt with 0-6-0PT No. 3732 on 16.40
Much Wenlock to Wellington on 29 June 1957; railbus at Imperial Cottages
on 12.14 Aviemore to Elgin service on 15 June 1959; Craven DMU at Dee Street
on 6 February 1961. See also letters in Volume
25 126 by Peter J. Thirlwell on Dilton Marsh Halt near Westbury opened
in 1937 and from W. Tollan on Garrowhill Halt
opened by LNER to serve a housing estate in Eastern Glasgow. Estate also
served by trams to Airdrie. Garrowhill was between Barrachnie and
Barlanark.
Return journey on the Central Wales Line. 726-7.
Colour photo feature 8F 2-8-0 No. 48190 beginning descent from Sugar
Loaf Summit towards Llandovery with freight in 1964 (A.A. Jarvis); Class
5 4-6-0 No. 45272 on arrival at Swansea Victoria in 1964 (Celyn Leigh-Jones);
Standard Class 5 No. 73095 calling at Llandilo with Shrewsbury to Swansea
service in June 1963 (C.R. Gordon-Stuart); 8F 2-8-0 No. 48400 stopping at
Tirydail with train for Shrewsbury in October 1963; BR Class 4 2-6-4T No.
80099 at Swansea Bay with 12.44 Swansea Victoria to Llandovery in May 1963
(J.M. Wiltshire).:
Mosley, David. The ship that sank itself twice – and other stories.
728-34.
Great Western Railway-owned SS Ibex was shipwrecked twice on
the Weymouth to Channel Islands service on Guernsey and on approaching
Jersey.
Illus.: SS Ibex (coloured postcard); Roebuck or Reindeer
at Weymouth Quay; Lynxin St Peter Port harbour in 1890s;
LSWRFrederica (coloured postcard); Ibex entering St Peter Port
in early 1900s; St Helier Harbour (coloured postcard); West Park station
on Jersey Railway; Ibex stranded in St Aubin's Bay on Good Friday
1897; Roebuck stranded on Kaines reef; Ibex leaving Weymouth
in 1920s.
Two Lancashire labourers. Photographs in Alan Tyson Collection;
captions by John Scholes of the Industrial Railway Society. 735
Colour photo feature: Hawthorn Leslie outside-cylinder 0-4-0ST WN
2780/1909 painted a rich red, named Asbestos and owned by Turner Brothers
Asbestos (photographed 3 )ctober 1964) and Peckett R2 class 0-4-0ST (WN
1370/1915), originall supplied to Coventry Ordnance Factory and after passing
through George Cohen & Sons owned by Yates, Duxbury & Sons Ltd at
Heap Bridge between Bury and Rochdale: painted green when photographed on
31 May 1969. See Editorial note in next Issue on
electronic printer's pie.:
Hobbs, Roy. Brighton beautiful. 736-9.
Colour photo feature: A1X Terrier 0-6-0T No.32636 in fully lined out
livery on Brighton shed on 7 October 1962; E4 class No. 32503 and E6 class
No. 32417 (both 0-6-2T) double head Locomotive Claub of Great Britain (LCGB)
Sussex Coast railtour at Selham bound for Midhurst on 24 June 1962;
Terrier No. 32635 Brighton Works in ochre livery in August 1961
(it is interesting to compare this iamge with the pair taken in 1946 which
appear in David Jenkinson's The
Big Four in colour page viii); No. 32670 approaching Langstone Halt
with train for Hayling Island on 22 July 1963; K class 2-6-0 No. 32345 in
fully lined black at Three Bridges shed in September 1962; C2X 0-6-0 No.
32525 at Three Bridges shed in Octobr 1961; E2 class 0-6-2Ts Nos. 32104 and
32109 (latter with extended tanks) at Southampton Docks on 6 April 1963;
enthusiats swarm over Newhave shed on 7 October 1962 to see Terriers Nos.
32636 and 32670, and E4 0-6-2T No. 32418; and Terrier No. 32670 on West Quay
branch at Newhaven in August 1962: see also letter
frpm Paul Heinink (Volume 25 p. 126) on antiquity of No. 32670 which
is still in use.
Lewis, Derek; augmented by Edward A. Evans. Western Region
clerk. 740-4.
Derek Lewis joined the Western Region at Abercynon on leaving school
aged sixteen in 1955 and worked in booking office. Became a relief clerk
in the Cardiff District and then sent to Merthyr to work under Dan Harris,
the Chief Clerk. Work was assisted by a mini printer for issuing tickets
and a change machine. He then moved to the Divisional Superintendent's office
in Cardiff where he was responsible for checking the printing of handbills
for excursions. He also worked at Aberdare.
Bennett, Alan. The English Riviera: red Devon by the
sea. 745-7.
Great Western Railway promotional material aimed at potential
holidaymakers in the Torbay Area, especially Torquay, but Paignton, Goodrington
and Brixham also mentioned. Publications included S.P.B. Mais's Glorious
Devon and Holiday Haunts..
Emblin, Robert. The Great Central Railway's Southern
Division. Part Two – Woodford Halse to Quainton Road. 748-53.
Previous part see p. 326 et
seq. Junctions at Woodford Halse onto East & West
Junction Railway which provided route to Stratford-upon-Avon. Difficult soil
conditions: wet gravel and silt at the junction and blue clay which became
very greasy when wet encountered elsewhere on this section and affected cuttings,
embankments and viaducts. The Hemdon Valley had to be crossed by viaduct
and the construction of Brackley Viaduct caused particular difficult where
two of the piers had to be joined and two of the spans were replaced by plate
girders. To ease construction some roads were diverted to avoid skew crossings.
Notes steep (1 in 9) incline for contractor's use from LNWR Banbury branch
to viaduct level (text states Helmdon Viaduct: illustration shows "similar"
incline at Brackley Viaduct); Calvert station and Quainton Road (Metropolitan
Railway); also Banbury station (GWR). Illus: Finmere station; Woodford Halse
Junction; Culworth Junction (KPJ suspects captions for last two transposed:
see letter from Author Volume 25 page 126);
Helmdon to Sulgrave overbridge; Helmdon Viaduct; Brackley Viaduct (shown
under construction; partially complete and with girder replacement for two
spans. See also letter from Keith Fenwick in Volume
25 page 190 which notes that line which crossed GCR at Helmdon was not
part of LNWR, but line which became part of SMJRY. Village near Woodford
was Eydon, not Eyndon.. Also note on B4525 known as Welsh Lane.
Nisbet, Alistair F. W.F. Windham and the Eastern Counties Railway:
a curious tale from East Anglia. 754-9.
It is difficult to know whether the subject of the article or the
author is the greater eccentric (apologies for those seeking other sort and
find themselves here). What KPJ finds quaint is that an article relating
to more or less his own backyard situated just over the top of the hill beyond
his home, namely Felbrigg (and its inhabitants) should cite references in
the Glasgow Herald and Caledonian Mercury. KPJ may be rude
about Norfolk being a bibliographical desert, but newspapers were published
in Norwich and Yarmouth at the time.
William Frederick Windham of Felbrigg, near Cromer and Sheringham, was "guilty"
of eccentric behaviour and his uncle, sought to deprive him of his inheritance
on the basis of insanity and brought a case against him in the Court of the
Exchequer in front of a Master of Lunacy. Amongst the evidence brought forward
was his behaviour on trains and in driving a horse-powered coach from Norwich
to Cromer. A rather more reliable account of the debacle is given in R.W.
Ketton-Cremer's Felbrigg: the story of a house. Ipswich: Boydell Press
(1962): the author inherited Felbrigg and arranged for its transfer to the
National Trust.
Ludlam, A.J. First and last trains from Wragby. 760-1.
Wragby was situated on the Bardney to Louth single line which opened
for freight as far as Wragby on 9 November 1874 and to Louth on 26 June 1876:
the line opened for passenger traffic on 1 December 1876. The line closeed
to passengers in 1951 and to freight in 1960. From the early 1930s the line
was worked on the Metal Tickets and Staff signalling system which was also
used on two branches from Bury St Edmunds.
Book Reviews. 762
Last call for the dining car – The Telegraph book of great railway
journeys. ed Michael Kerr. Aurum. RH ****
The sort of book which many railway enthusiasts will find (reluctantly?)
in their Christmas stockings: Roger's review is a model and produces a couple
of quotable quotes: "Crane proves more bearable here than on TV" and "the
high level of craftmanship displayed by journalists who have learned to write
economically and readably". If is not in your stocking then Roger's entertaining
review may be enough to amuse..
Directors, dilemmas and debt – the Great North of Scotland and
Highland Railways in the mid-nineteenth century, Peter Fletcher.
Great North of Scotland Railway Association in conjunction with the Highland
Railway Society. GBS ***
The Swindon to Gloucester Line. Colin Maggs. Amberley Publishing.
RH ****
An entertaining review which should encourage its readers to get hold
of a copy of the book.
Peter's Railway and the forgotten engine. Christopher Vine.
Author. DWM *****
This is the third book of a splendid series, beautiful1y produced,
splendidly illustrated and aimed at younger readers. All that is needed is
a grandson within sufficient proximity in place and time.
The Metropolitan Line. Clive Foxe1l. MJS
*****
This is an opportune review as the reviewer and the topic of the book
under review can be linked to the content of this Issue (p.
710 et seq). The reviewer is (rightly) critical of the book's
title (it duplicates an Oakwood
Press volume of 1951). He refers to his own reviews of two earlier excellent
volumes The story of the Met & GC Joint
Line. by Clive Foxell and Memories
of the Met & GC Joint Line. and could have added
Rails in Metro-Land. Well received
and reviewer emphasis that book is as much about the former Great Central
and successor Chiltern Railways as about the Metropolitan Line.
The Bordon Light Railway. Peter A. Harding. Author. TJE
****
The branch authorised by a Light Railway Order in 1902 and opened
11 December 1905. Closed on 16 September 1957, but due to the growth of Bordon
and Whitehill there are proposals that line be reopened. Highly
recommended.
Colour-Rail
Catalogue No.19. MB *****
As is usual this is well reviewed.
Thunder in the mountains. W.R. Mitchell. Great Northern Books.
MB *****
An account of how the Settle & Carlisle line was built: "by the
people who actually did it by digging cuttings and tunnels, erecting stone
viaducts, digging away the earth and blasting through rock. They built
encampments to live in up in the Pennine wilds where life and death set their
own standards: drinking, fighting and disease were prevalent, yet there a
society of sorts developed in which could be found homes, shops, post offices,
mission rooms, schools. Bill Mitchell tells the story through real people,
with names and families, and describes eloquently and often in their own
words how they lived and worked to create a railway"
Brunel in South Wales: Volume III Links with
Leviathans. Stephen K. Jones. History Press. DG ****
Text packed with fact, anecdote, allusion and intense detail throughout.
It is eminently well researched and a careful and detailed reading will enable
the reader to get the most from it. Whilst it is inevitable that some material
has been covered elsewhere, for example the troubled launch of the Great
Eastern, it is the making of links to South Wales, its personalities,
towns and industries that adds value. The illustrations are of high quality
and relate to every aspect of the story, the central colour section is especially
good.
Readers' Forum. 764
N2 Suburban. Andrew Kleissner
Refers to picture of Moorgate station (front cover
October issue: caption is incorrect in stating that the Underground stock
on view is 'loco-hauled' as all trains in picture were formed of multiple-unit
stock. The brown-coloured trains on either side were Metropolitan Railway
'T' stock, built in various batches by Metropolitan-Vickers and Birmingham
RC&W in 1927-31 and used largely on Watford services and those terminating
at Rickmansworth. The earlier vehicles were wooden although later batches
were built of steel. Unlike most 'underground' trains, these carriages were
compartment stock rather than open saloons with sliding doors. A pair survives
on the Spa Valley Railway in Kent. The red-liveried train in the centre,
with distinctive oval windows, was 'F' stock, built for the District Line
by Metropolitan-Cammell in 1920-21. Of advanced design for the era, these
trains were incompatible electrically (and more powerful) than other stock;
they were transferred to the Metropolitan Line in the early 1950s and used
mainly on services to Uxbridge.
Robinson's Great Central locomotives. J Richard Morton
Photograph of GC 8G 4-6-0 (LNER B9) not at Sheffield
Neepsend (p. 635 upper), but at Livetpool Brunswick shed
where the mechanical coaling plant, under which it was standing. was jammed
hard up against the towering rock face which glowered above the very restricted
shed yard. By the' 408 the B9s were all over on the CLC working almost anything
except the expresses. See also page 636 refers to Thongs
Bridge Thong derived from a Viking word meaning a strip of land (wonder what
web browser will make of that).
Steam, bogies and passion. Robert
Barker.
The artist of print on page 541,
which claims to illustrate a new engine on the Neath & Brecon Railway
in 1867, took his inspiration from Robert Fairlie's own design for an express
passenger double engine to have had 5ft 9in driving wheels, and 15in x 22in
cylinders. Fairlie's drawing gave the engine more of an Allan-Buddicom appearance
and showed a round firebox with a single door topped by a Ramsbottom safety
valve. It was worded in French and quoted both imperial and metric units.
A copy came into the hands of Isaac Watt Boulton of Ashton-under-Lyne and
a side elevation prepared from it appears in
Alfred Rosling Bennett's book
The Chronicles of Boulton's Siding ,
The Turnberry Hotel. H N Twells
See letter writer's article on Turnberry Hotel (page
460 et seq) and letter from L.F.E. Coombs (page 637)
notes correction that WW1 airfield was grass not concrete, as concrete airfields
not installed until some years after 1919: confirmed by researcher at RAF
Museum, Hendon.
Level Crossings. W.T Scott
See page 88 and follow-up letter
from Joe A. Cassells (page 251) . There were three
places known to the writer where aircraft crossed railways on the level.
These were at Ballykelly on the LMS main line between Coleraine and Londonderry,
at Peshawar on Pakistan Railways in North West Punjab, and at Napier, New
Zealand on the line from Gisborne to Napier.
Ballykelly was complicated. During WW2 heavily armed aircraft (Liberators)
needed somewhere to land. Ballykelly, practically on the Atlantic seaboard,
was the obvious place, but the runway was too short and in 1941 extension
over the railway was demanded. Aircraft needed priority since a damaged machine
almost out of fuel could not circle whilst a train passed. The problem rmained
for how to accommodate five trains each way plus goods traffic and military
specials to the naval base at Londonderry. So a short section of two miles
between Limavady Junction and Ballykelly Halt was introduced, complete with
a signal cabin which liaised with the RAF control tower. The main runway
was extended by a distance of over 300 yards in 1943 and remained so until
the 1970s. The last users of the base were four-engine Shackletons employed
on long-distance weather patrols over the Atlantic. Fuller details in Bill
Scott's letter. For illustration see page 198 of
Evan John's Time table for victory.
See also Volume 25 page 126 for letter from Richard
Pratt on a crossing near Bristol built to take taxiway across railway
for the Bristol Aircraft factory at Filton.
Wince, Peter. Keeping control. 765.
Steam brake failure on a Class 5: freight had to be stopped with tender
hand brake and putting the locomotive into reverse.
Index to Backtrack Volume 24. 766
Somerset September. David Idle. rear cover
Taken from carriage window during Locomotive Club of Great Britain
railtour on 30 September 1962 over Somerset & Dorset passing through
Radstock hauled by S&DJR 2-8-0 No. 53808.
Updated 22 April 2015