Railway World Volume 33
(1972)
Key Volume
No. 380 (January 1972)
Cecil J. Allen. Could oil-firing have saved the steam locomotive?
Locomotive running past and present—No. 232. 6-9.
Cites Railway World Annual
for article by R.A. Barnes; quotes log of run from Bristol to Paddington
behind oil-burning Castle No. 5039 Rhuddlan Castle in autumn 1945; the experience
on the Great Eastern with the Holden system; European and American adoption
of oil firing, the relative cost of coal and oil, Cox's observations in
Locomotive panorama Vol. 1
and the ease with which diesel electric locomotives handled heavy loads
Illustrations: No. 3952 Norcliffe Hall (oil-burning) near Durston with train
for Bristol and Taunton on 3 August 1947 (P.C. Short), oil-fired 2-8-0s:
No. 4854 passing Northolt with uo freight (C.R.L. Coles) and No. 4807 climbing
Dainton with down freight making smoke (M.M. South)
L.F.E. Coombs. For fuel and water. 10-13
Tender design: . Illustrations: Paris Orleans Railway 2-10-0
coupled to a short four-wheel tender, corridor tender on No, 4472 Flying
Scotsman, Drummond LSWR bogie tender on 4-6-0 No.462; Manson G&SWR No.
386 with bogie tender and motor car;
David Jenkinson. The Princess Royal Pacifics—1. Stanier's half-forgotten engines? 14-19.
D.H. Ballantyne. Impressions of Mulhouse. 20-1
Railway museum in a former roundhouse opened in 1971.
Charles Walker. The year of the might-have-beens.
22
William James and Richard Trevithick were both born in 1771 (original
text states 1871) and outlines their relative lack of success as compared
with George Stephenson
R.S. Greenwood. 72 on the Wednesday service: driving the Keighley
and Worth Valley USA tank. 23-5
Driving a former USA class 0-6-0T from Keighley to Haworth on a steeply
graded line: at that the locomotive appeared to be in an ochre livery.
Harold W. Hart. Richard Peacock's partner: the personality
behind the famous firm. 34
Charles Beyer and Johann Andreas Schubert
John A. Lines. Locomotive portraits—4. GCR 8F, LNER class B4,
Immingham. 35. illustration
Robinson 4-6-0 with 6ft 7in coupled wheels introduced in 1906
Barrister, pseudonym. A railway lease—problems of termination. 36.
New books. 37-8
The "King" of railway locomotives. W.G.
Chapman. Patrick Stephens Ltd.149pp. reviewed by Basil K. Cooper.
When King George V appeared in 1927 it would have been unthinkable
to refer familiarly to so splendid a machine as " K.G.5". For one thing,
it was before the age of cryptic initials, and for another the press and
broadcasting had not yet eroded the capacity for reverential awe. W. G. Chapman's
book, now available in facsimile form, is representa- tive of an interesting
phase of railway public relations as practised by the GWR. He wrote for the
younger reader in a chatty style that conveyed much accurate information.
In this book he outlines the evolution of Great Western motive power before
describing how a King was built. Many older readers can study this section
with advantage, particularly if their main interest on a Swindon works visit
when younger was to decipher numbers chalked on frames. The final chapter
describes a footplate trip from Paddington to Plymouth, and one notes that
already the railways were beginning to be on the defensive against the private
car. Chapman highlights the pleasures of a journey to the West free from
nervous tension and the risks of congested highways. The numerous half-tone
illustrations in this facsimile have stood up to the reproduction process
better than some of the diagrams.
Deutsche dampflokomotiven
Deutsche elektrolokomotiven (German steam and electric locomotives).
Horst J. Obermayer. Franckh. Available in the United Kingdom from
lan AlJan Ltd only . Reviewed by G.M. Kitchenside
With enthusiast interest broadening to railways in other parts of
the world, literature on foreign railway history and equipment is now in
greater demand and these two pocket books covering respectively German standard
gauge steam locomotives and electric locomotives provide a useful source
of reference to present day German motive power. These first two parts, that
dealing with steam locomotives in 270 pages and electric locomotives in 222
pages, describe and illustrate most, if not all, classes in service on the
present day Deutsche Bundesbahn and also the East German Reichsbahn although
care is needed in distinguishing information which refers to the pre-war
all-Germany Reichsbahn. The steam classes are dealt with one to a page with
a photograph, technical details and thumbnail history and a summary of the
running numbers. An introduction lists classifications of recent years with
the original class designations of the former State Railways where locomotives
existed before the Reichsbahn was formed in 1925. Further tables give the
more recent reclassification of surviving steam classes which are now prefixed
O. The new numbering scheme is explained together with various other inscriptions
found on locomotives denoting depot, modifications, etc. Each electric locomotive
class is dealt with in two pages with a more expanded thumbnail history and
two photographs generally portraying each side where possible. Again an
introduction unravels pre DRjDB codes and gives a useful survey of German
electrification progress. Both books are in German only and while the non-German
speaking enthusiasts will have problems with the Introduction, the locomotive
details in the tables are fairly obvious. A third booklet devoted to diesel
locomotives is due for publication in March and will be of similar format
and style
A pictorial record of Great Western wagons. J.H.
Russell. Oxford Publishing Co. 138pp. Reviewed by M.J.
Despite the wealth of published material about the Great Western Railway,
there are still gaps on certain of the Company's activities one of which
has now been filled with the publication of a book devoted to GW wagons,
an album with descriptive text and diagrams compiled by that noted GW enthusiast
Jim Russell. Most types are included but the author admits one or two managed
to escape his camera although they are mentioned in order to make the record
complete. A large proportion of the photographs are of his own taking but
they are supported by official photographs to illustrate some of the older
types in their original condition. Broadly speaking, the album covers wagons
built from about the turn of the century until the end of GW as a separate
company. Diagrams, reproduced to 4mm-1ft scale, accompany most of the
photographic illustrations and the descriptive text includes brief numbering
details. Not excluded are the many variations of brake vans and travelling
cranes as well as departmental specialised vehicles. Particularly useful
is the list of GW wagon code names with their descriptions which have baffled
enthusiasts over the years unless they were fortunate enough to have access
to official documents or to have caught sight of occasional translations
in the enthusiast press. This book will be welcomed by modellers and GW
enthusiasts alike and the publishers hope to follow it with a companion book
devoted to GW coaches.
Railway pioneer: the story of George Stephenson.
John Rowland. Lutterworth Press.121pp. reviewed by Basil K.
Cooper.
When a great man's name is attached to a particular event or achievement
which has become a milestone in history, much of the rest of his career risks
being forgotten. When the Duke of Wellington attended the opening of the
Liverpool and Manchester Railway he may well have grumbled to Stephenson
that he had already become the" Waterloo man", and warned that George would
find his name inseparably linked with the Rocket. John Rowland's book
is written for young people to give them an overall picture of Stephenson's
life and achievements. It is partly in narrative form and contains imaginary
dialogue. A book in such a form and for a young audience is bound here and
there to simplify situations and personalities, particularly amid the hectic
setting and rivalries of the early railway years. It is, however, a useful
groundwork in railway engineering history and must stimulate interest in
George Stephenson as a man
The Tavistock, Launceston & Princetown Railways
G.H. Anthony The Oakwood Press 100pp 37-8
The three lines dealt with in this history were opened respectively
in 1859, 1865 and 1883. All three had a somewhat complex background of proposal
and counter- proposal before they got off the ground, and this aspect of
their stories is related with the attention to detail for which the Oakwood
histories are noted. Their installations and working are also described,
the latter having its moments of drama on the exposed Dartmoor lines. The
book is illustrated with maps and photographs.
The Stour Valley Railway. B.D.J. Walsh. Colchester: Stour Valley
Railway Preservation Society. 26pp. reviewed by Basil K. Cooper. 38
The main line of the Eastern Counties Railway to Col- chester missed
the busy and prosperous town of Sudbury by 11 miles and it was left to local
enterprise to build a branch to Sudbury from the ECR at Marks Tey. The subsequent
history as told here by Mr Walsh is based on an article and paper already
published. The Marks Tey-Sudbury line was the nucleus of a cross-country
network between Cambridge, Bury St Edmunds and Colchester which eventually
carried important freight and passenger traffic to and from places well outside
the area. Its story forms a necessary back- ground for appreciating the aims
of the Stour Valley Railway Preservation Society and obtaining maximum interest
from a visit to the society's headquarters and depot at Chappel & Wakes
Colne station, where this book can be bought on the society's bookstall.
The illustrations cover a wide span in time and types of motive power.
Railways in the Peak District. .Christopher P. Nicholson and Peter
Barnes. Clapham, Lancaster: Dalesman Publishing Co Ltd, 96pp.
paperback. Reviewed by KHS
For those who chose to travel to Manchester from St Pancras or Marylebone,
the closing stages of the journey were an eagerly-awaited climax for the
grandeur of the scenery. Some thought the Midland route had the better of
it, but the solitudes around the Great Central as it climbed to Woodhead
were impressive in a different way. The area was a cradle of early railways
connecting canals with sources of minerals. Main lines came later, and eventually
the lordly LNWR pushed southwards from Stockport to Buxton. The last event
in the age of railway expansion was the opening of the Midland's Hope Valley
line to compete with the GCR direct route between Man- chester and Sheffield.
Other projects in the region were unfulfilled, but they find a place in this
well-written account, which combines history with an overall view of the
later development of the lines since Grouping and Beecham. There is a sidelight
on the social history of the period, too, for an early chapter records
indifference to workmen's health and safety during building of the Woodhead
Tunnel, while towards the end one reads of devastation of stations in the
Hope Valley by vandals with very much less to complain of.-
Locomotives in profile. Vol. 1. General Editor,
Brian Reed Profile Publications 292pp reviewed by Basil K. Cooper.
To some the steam locomotive is primarily a thing of beauty, to others
it is a machine, and to others again it appeals in an infinite variety of
combinations of these two aspects. As readers of the publisher's Locomotive
Profile series already know, there is something in these books to give lasting
pleasure to all, and the present collection of twelve of the individual
publications in one volume puts them where they belong-on the library shelf
in a format and presentation appropriate to their value. The locomotives
dealt with are: LNER non-streamlined Pacifies, NYC Hudsons, GWR 4-cylinder
4-6-0s, the American type 4-4-0, British single drivers, the Mallets, the
Rocket, the Royal Scots, Camels and Camel backs, the Met tanks, Norris
Locomotives, and the BR Britannias. Brian Reed, General Editor of the series,
writes on the first eleven and Brian Haresnape contributes the Britannia
chapter. There are nearly 400 black-and-white illustrations and full-colour
plates of each class. together with technical and other drawings appropriate
to a book which covers the active life of the engines as well as their design
and construction. The book recreates the age of steam in the study, which
for several months of the year is a more alluring environment than the preserved
branch line.
British Pacific Locomotives Cecil J. Allen.
lan Allan Ltd 239pp. Reviewed by HFE
Paperback edition of British Pacifies extending from The
Great Bear to the BR standard classes, and rounded off with some notes
on designs that were never built. From this author, naturally, performance
figures largely, and T.C.B. Miller, Chief Mechanical and Electrical Engineer,
BRB, sums up the appeal of the book neatly in his foreword when he writes:
"Here will be found the smell of warm oil and burning brake blocks, the flicker
of the speedometer needle and the eager click of stop watches, intermixed
with the sober facts of building and testing, of power output and physical
characteristies". Devotees of particular Pacific classes will hear in imagination
the roar of thunder of their favourite locomotives again, and will certainly
be tempted by the author's narrative and the excellent illustrations to take
a broader view of a locomotive type that symbolises the peak of steam achievement
on British express services.
The trains we loved. C. Hamilton Ellis. London:
Pan Books Ltd. 110pp. paperback format, reviewed by Basil K. Cooper.
In paperback format, this railway classic is illustrated with a new
selection of eight colour plates from the author's paintings. Readers will
be glad that the attractive cover of a Midland single and 4-4-0 topping the
Lickey is repeated inside, where it is less subject to the ravages of time
and handling. There is an interesting colour spread with a GCR Director fighting
it out with a Metropolitan Uxbridge train on one side (while LNW coal and
passenger traffic passes below), and a SECR Stirling 7-footer near Dorking
on the facing page. Some austere enthusiasts say the author's style is not
their cup of tea but few would deny that it is an aperitif. The reader sips,
and takes a rosy view of yesterday's railways. When Hamilton-Ellis says"
the old pot lamps, burning rape oil, were abominable things, and provided
little light" one suspects he was secretly fond of them. His chapters are
as lively as his pictures, where he never stints the interesting touch.
The chronicles of Boulton's Siding. Alfred Rosling
Bennett. David & Charles. 275pp. Reviewed by LLE
For many years Alfred Rosling Bennett's book, The Chronicles of
Boulton's Siding, has been only a name to many enthusiasts, large numbers
of whom would have been hard put to it to say where the siding was and what
was to be found there. In this reprint they can find out what it was all
about at first hand and enjoy not only the wealth of detail on early industrial
steam—often adapted by Boulton from superannuated main-line
locomotives—but also the author's gift of narrative. Much pleasing anecdote
and personal reminiscence is mingled with the technical information. The
present edition has an introduction by John Marshall and an index has been
added..
No. 384 (May 1972)
Cecil J. Allen. Scottish Region santions 100 mph. 194-7.
Speed limits in Scotand and sections available for 100 mile/h running.
Logs of Class 50, Class 45 and Class 50 in pairs between Glasgow Central
and Carlisle and onee solo effort by Class 50 in reverse
direction
Michael H.C. Baker. The "2" trains. 202-4.
The Wmbledon to West Croydon service which at that time was still
the oddity of being a semi-rural single track electric branch line within
the London suburban area worked by 2-car EPB units under the threat of being
withdrawn. The author could remember the former LBSCR units which had been
converted for DC operation, but retained their eccentric seating. There were
also power stations and gas works along the route and a flat junction with
the line for Horsham and the Coast
Vehicle preservation. 205.
Photographic feature: North Eastern Railway Coach Group North Eastern
Railway clerestory autocar No. 3453 originally built in 1904 intended for
North Yorkshire Moors Railway; Great Western Railway Rolling Stock Fund had
purchased a tool and packing van No. 143 and a Collett non-descript brake
saloon No. 9103 built in late 1920s for party travel
A.M. Lawrence. The railway battle of Barnet. 206-8.
Alan Turner. Railway relics. No. 4—A Caledonian Railway clock. 209
Latter-day Great Central. 210-15.
Sandringham B17 No. 2864 Liverpool passing Chorleywood with
northbound express (E.R. Wethersett); Pacific No. 4473 Solario at
Nottingham Victoria on Manchester to Marylebone through working on 31 May
1939 (J.F. Henton); A3 No. 60052 Prince Palatine passing Princes
Risborough with down Master Cutler on 18 June 1949 (note white discs
instead of headlamps) (H.K. Harman); A3 No. 60059 Tracery on up South
Yorkshireman near Lutterworth on 12 September 1956 (M. Mensing); B1 No. 1188
on 15.20 from Marylebone for Manchester (F.R. Hebron); V2 No. 60954 between
Amersham and Great Missenden on Nottingham semi-fast on 15 June 1963 (Brian
Stephenson); rebuilt Scot No. 46111 Royal Fusilier approaching Barnston
Tunnel with 17.15 Nottingham to Marylebone semi-fast (T.G. Hepburn); Britannia
No. 70034 Thomas Hardy leaving East Leake with 17.15 Nottingham
to Marylebone semi-fast (T.G. Hepburn); Jubilee No. 45689 Ajax approaching
Amersham with up parcels train on 15 June 1963 (Brian Stephenson); Classs
5 No. 44858 nears Northwood on up express on 15 June 1963 (Brian Stephenson);
Robinson A5/1 No. 69829 between Manchester Central and Guide Bridge wiith
Liverpool to Harwich boat train in September 1954 (N.F.W. Dyckhoff) and electric
No. 26000 Tommy passing Torside with a coal train on 16 July 1964
(John Clarke)
Charles Walker. Bouch—the railway builder.
218-19.
A short article which notes that he was responsible for a great many
railway lines in the north of England and in Scotland, the introduction of
train ferries for crossing the Forth as well as the Tay Bridge. Article notes
Bouch's able assistant Robert Bow who
assisted in the design of Belah Viaduct
A Barrister. Chidren trespassing on the line. 222-3.
Gradually the law evolved from a state where trespassers, even children,
if killed or injured on the railway were not the responsibility of the railway
to one where the railway was liable if it had not taken adequate measures
to exclude them.
Spotting the spot on the NER. 223
Letters. 227-9
Princess Royal Pacifics. Brian Haresnape
David Jenkinson's article on the magnificent Stanier Princess Royals
appeals for a simple explanation of the boiler variations. So here goes!
The original boilers for the entire class including the turbine locomotive,
were domeless, with smokebox regulator. Various retubings took place, and
a combustion chamber was created in the forward part of the firebox on these
boilers (from new on Nos 6202-12). Stanier experimented with higher superheating
with these domeless boilers, and eventually came to realise the desirability
of providing a steam dome. In 1936 two Pacific boilers appeared with this
feature, one was boiler No 9236 fitted to the turbine locomotive (a new boiler);
the other was boiler No 6048 fitted to locomotive 6201. This was a rebuild
of the first boiler carried by No 6200, and featured a steam dome with regulator
and a separate top feed with external pipes. This was carried by No 6201
for the 1936 record-breaking run. It was then transferred to No 6200, with
No 6201 receiving one of the other two prototype boilers, by this time modified
with higher superheat and altered tube arrangement, but almost certainly
still domeless.
The second batch, Nos 6203-12, never carried a dome- plus-top feed boiler
in pre-war days. The domed turbine locomotive boiler was however carried
by No 6212 for a period during the war, whilst the other domed boiler, No
6048, alternated only between locomotives Nos 6200/1, with the spare boiler,
No 6050, being used as required. This boiler was still domeless in 1949 (as
the photograph at the top of page 61, February issue, proves) and the only
mystery concerns boiler No 6049. To establish whether or not this boiler
was rebuilt along similar lines to No 6048, ie, with dome and top feed, prior
to the general conversion of the Princess Royal boilers carried out by BR
between 1952-56, should be a relatively simple matter. All that is required
is an authentic, dated, photograph of locomotive No 6201 taken in 1948, when
it carried the boiler concerned. Not until BR days did any of the 6203-12
batch carry a domed boiler, other than the turbine locomotive boiler, as
already mentioned.
Whilst putting pen to paper I would like to confirm that No 46202, in its
final days as a turbine-locomotive, indeed ran in lined black BR livery.
I frequently saw the locomo- tive at Camden. The photograph of No 46201 in
this livery was taken to show the new BR emblem on the tender, and this
locomotive was officially displayed in this livery at Marylebone station.
No 46212 also carried this livery, but lettered "British Railways" on the
tender. Finally, on the subject of tenders, Mr Jenkinson omits the interesting
point that two of the original three tenders provided, Nos 9000/2, had roller
bearing axleboxes. If the photograph at the top of page 14 (January issue)
is studied this feature can be seen, whereas that of No 6201 at the top of
page 15 shows a tender with plain bearings, most probably No 9001.
Princess Royal Pacifics. Brian D. Mooney
May I add a little to the captions to the illustration of the LMS
turbine 4-6-2 in Mr Jenkinson's article in the January issue.
" Turbo" was certainly in LNWR style lined black in August 1949 when I rode
behind it from Stafford to Euston, and on several other occasions when I
saw it well into 1950. It is almost certain that it remained black until
rebuilt in 1951/52.
During 1948/49 the LNWR style livery was also applied to several Princess
Royals (some of which retained LMS red as late as 1947) but I do not recall
seeing any of them in blue, although I understand 46203 was so repainted.
In fact the later standard green was being applied to some of the" Royals"
by 1952.
Princess Royal 4-6-2 No 6201. (W.H. Whitworth photograph). 227
In post- war livery at Crewe in the 1946/48 period, when this locomotive
carried boilers 6048/9. Boiler No 6050 was attached to locomotive No 6200
until late 1948, when it was switched to 46201. In 1952 boiler No 6050 was
rebuilt with dome, making it almost certain that 6048/9 were fitted with
domes in LMS days prior to the general conversion of Princess Royal boilers
by BR.
Princess Royal Pacifics. M.C. Doubleday. 227-8
I read with interest the article in your January edition on the Princess
Pacifies, and particularly noted the question of the domes on these locomotives.
The dome itself is of course a steam collection area from which to feed the
regulator, and as far as I know always was used for this purpose, the LMS
never making use of the boiler's taper in order to collect steam (unlike
the GWR). The real question however is, I suspect, why separate top- feed
and dome? Could it be that the authorities were worried about introducing
relatively cool feed water to the boiler at a point where one was collecting
steam, and therefore required the steam to be hottest and most" dry"? Did
Crewe in fact suspect the cooling action of the feed water as a reason for
loss of superheater value? I do know that Churchward came under fire for
the same reason with one of his early classes, but he dismissed the criticism
as without foundation.
Finally readers who possess the fascinating book
Handbook for railway steam locomotive
enginemen published by the BTC will find on page 39 a diagram of
a "Princess" type boiler, which clearly shows the dome collecting steam for
a smokebox regulator-and a separate top-feed. The only question now remaining,
is why a dome at all on a taper boiler? The only possible answer is that
the designers were concerned about "surge" in a boiler of such length swamping
a collecting point above the firebox crown. But I must admit that this reason
fails to convince me.
Return to steam . C.M. Devereux. 228
Could I, through the columns of your magazine, suggest a solution
to the problems of photo-stops, mentioned in your December issue, in the
article on the tour of King George V. The Australian answer is this:
each passenger on the special trains signs a form saying that the Commissioner
for Railways will not be responsible for any injury occurring to passengers
who alight at places other than station platforms. Steam specials are run
to a variety of places, and the tour organisers specify where all the
photographers must stand, to prevent spoiling anybody else's photographs.
This system works with particular success, even on the major main line in
the country, though it must be admitted that the vast majority of tours take
place on Sundays. This would surely be the solution for tours on lines such
as the Settle and Carlisle, though impossible on lines such as the South
Wales line, because of the density of traffic.
Return to steam. Peter J. Prior. 228
Mark Wilkins asks (February issue) why King George V only hauled
seven coaches on its tour. The answer [from Managing Director, H. P. Bulmer
Ltd, Hereford] is that this was the number required to convey the people
who bought tickets. British Rail would have been quite prepared to hire more
coaches if they had been required. It must be remembered that this tour was
organised without advertising and at very short notice, the date being determined
by the necessity of arriving in Birmingham for the Tyseley Open Day. It was
not intended to demonstrate the potential profitability of steam excursions,
but only to evaluate the technical difficulties involved. The length of stop
at each station was dependent upon the need to take water. Passengers could
scarcely be expected to wait for an hour at every stopping point, but I have
no doubt that on any future tour British Rail will certainly do its best
to meet the requirements of spectators, photographers and recordists.
William James. B.J. Bull. 228
lt was with interest I read C. Walker's notes on William James in
the January issue, for recently I was able to acquire a copy of a plan, projected
and surveyed by James in 1820, at his own expense. The plan refers to the
lines of the Central Junction Railway or Tram-Road, and shows its communications
with the coal fields, canals and principal towns and with the metropolis.
According to the legend (I quote) "Plan of the First Railway ever Surveyed
in the World", I would welcome your readers' comments on the validity or
otherwise of this claim. The plan is for eventual display in the Railway
Preservation Society's museum at Chasewater, Brownhills, Staffordshire.
London area preservation. Robin W. Doust. 228
Considerable interest has been shown in the possible closure of the
London Transport Epping-Ongar branch line and of the potentialities of this
line as the site for a London area preservation scheme. The line was originally
built by the Great Eastern Railway, and still retains much of the GER
architecture and atmosphere, but also has close affinities with London Transport.
For this reason, it has been suggested that it could provide an ideal site
for the display and operation of preserved rolling stock within easy reach
of London. Whilst no formal approach to London Transport con- cerning the
possible sale of the line can be made until a decision on its future has
been taken, the implications of a preservation bid for it are being considered
by a small group of enthusiasts.
Highland "Yankee" tanks. Willlam Nicholson. 228-9
Following publication of my article on the Highland "Yankee" tanks
in the February issue, I have had a letter from Robert K. Currie of Heswall,
Wirral, Cheshire, quoting extracts from the Railway Observer during the period
January 1929 to January 1935. The most interesting one is from the August
1930 number which says: "4-4-0T Nos 15013/4 (H.R. 101/2) are not at Inverness
as suggested (in the July 1930 number), but at Dingwall. They share the work
of the Strathpeffer Branch and Dingwall Pilot duties, while one of them works
regular daily trips to Raven Rock summit for ballast and quarry traffic ".
I am most grateful to Mr Currie for this information which fills in a gap
in the movements of the prototypes 101 and 102 in their twilight years. It
is extraordinary how they were giving useful service for quite some years
after the three later Class 11 locomotives were withdrawn.
Another correspondent, Mr Neil Sinclair of Cheltenham, wrote to me as follows:
I have some notes on the Yankee Tanks which I took from an article in the
Locomotive Magazine for July 7, 1903. This article states that at
the time there were two of the class on the Burghead branch, and one each
on the Black Isle, Buckie and Thurso branches. This would suggest that No
11 was working between Georgemas and Thurso rather than on the Fort George
branch, which was worked by Stroudley 0-6-0T No 16 for at least a few years
after its opening. In those days the Thurso branch would be less important
than now, when it contributes more traffic than Wick. I suppose that the
use of a 4-4-0T on the branch and 4-4-0s on the main line bears the same
kind of relationship as a 3P 2-6-2T on the branch did to Class 5 4-6-0s in
the last days of steam in the Far North.
Highland "Yankee" tanks. John R.H. Cormack. 229
To add a note to the Rev W. H. Nicholson's interesting article in
your February issue on the Highland" Yankee" tanks: in the early 1920s No
101 sometimes worked the Strathpeffer branch. It was a particularly clean,
well kept engine, with copper capped chimney and polished brass. As No 15013
and painted red, it apparently finished its career on this branch, where
early in 1934 it succeeded No 15014, which had worked it for several years.
Plight of the Ulster railway enthusiast . G. Marshall.
229
I doubt if many people on the British mainland realise how badly the
activities of the railway enthusiast in Ulster have been affected by the
present state of crisis in our province. Those who live in the main cities,
Belfast and Londonderry, are not safe to venture far after dark, to attend
society meetings, etc, for fear of being caught up in a riot, or having their
car hijacked and burnt, or being injured by one of the numerous explosions
which occur so regularly, maiming innocent civilians. Also, public transport
in the cities is often withdrawn or restricted in the evenings in some areas,
so those without other transport are not free to move about as they would
like. Apart from these restrictions, railway installations have been targets
for the terrorists. The Belfast Transport Museum has also been a target for
stone-throwers and vandals, as it is situated in a troubled area. It may
then be said that the Ulster railway enthusiast is having a hard time, but
we still hope for a time when peace will reign in this land, which has been
of so much interest to railway enthusiasts in the past.
"Under the wire". James Witham. 229
May I quote from your November issue the last paragraph in Brian Perren's
article on the LM electrification:- " The tremendous success of the LMR
electrification has necessitated yearly expansion of the service to cope
with rising demand, and a situation could soon be reached where the route
would be used to maximum capacity throughout the daytime periods."
May I point out that this situation has already been reached, as the tell-tale
notes in the LMR timetable demand- ing compulsory reservation tickets for
certain trains reveal. I believe that two complementary alternatives are
available to BR to overcome this problem. First, to provide relief for
Anglo-Scottish traffic in future the Settle & Carlisle route should be
kept in being and the GSWR route retained to provide alternative diversions
in the event of inclement conditions over Beattock.
Secondly, in the case of Birmingham and Merseyside traffic one would have
to rule out Paddington as this station has already demonstrated its abysmal
and pathetic failure to cope with the traffic to the West alone by having
en- gineered the tragic singling of Salisbury-Exeter and the closure of
Okehampton-Bere Alston, thereby denying any relief to the West, and then
having the effrontery to demand compulsory reservation, regulation, and
supplementary tickets with the excuse that owing to excessive demand seats
have to be secured in advance.
However, a good alternative is still available in the shape of Marylebone,
whence trains could proceed via Neasden to Northolt and thence by the former
GWR main line which would be restored to double track between Princes Risborough
and Aynho, and continue to Snow Hill, which would effect connection with
relief West of England trains via Gloucester, Honeybourne, Stratford, and
Tyseley, and use the existing Snow Hill-Wolverhampton section, itself a route
which could be incorporated into the recently published West Midlands Development
Plan. From Wolverhampton there would be two options; either to effect junction
with the LNWR there or to re-open the section Wolverhampton-Bushbury and
use the GWR route via Shrewsbury to Crewe, a route which has recently seen
increased traffic as your magazine has recorded. Such a traffic flow could
also be used to enable through fares to the Carnbrian Line to be restored
and possibly through coaches as well. It would be interesting to see the
effect on bookings to the stations serving the Welsh narrow gauge lines if
this restriction was removed. In conclusion may I hope that the new BR Chairman,
whose remarks re "Steam" in a recent television broadcast indicated a man
who is prepared to be more flexible than his predecessors, will also be prepared
to reverse the trend towards contraction and restriction and allow the railways
in this crowded and polluted environment (television advertisement) to expand
and meet the challenge of the road.
Short runs tightly timed. R.W. Layton. 229
Having just read the article "Short runs tightly timed" in your September
issue, I would like to add some further information on train formations of
the Liverpool Street-Clacton emus. It is most common during the rush-hours
to run 12-car formations on some of the more popular runs; these usually
take the form of three 4-car units giving a total of 3,384hp for a 504 ton
train, or as is becoming more common the trains consist of two 4-car units
and two 2-car units giving a total for a 12-car formation of 4,
412hp! Later in the article the correspondent refers to problems with
under-powered diesel-hauled trains on the GE route. It seems strange that
BR still have to resort to diesel power at all for its services south of
Colchester. There are nearly 52 miles of electrified route from London and
with the marginal expense of wiring the tracks to the Stratford freightliner
terminal, the under-used catenary north of Shenfield could start to justify
some of the expenditure that was initially put into it.
Colchester has a depot for diesel and electric use, so stabling of locos
should not present too great a problem and the diesel locos released from
the main-line could be used to assist in what availability problems the Eastern
Region already has.
No. 388 (September 1972)
H.A. Gamble. A tale of two Terriers. 384-7.
Ian Krause. Turkey. Part 2. 388-92.
L. Belk. Take the chair! 393.
W.T. Thornewell. Mileposts and number plates. 402-3.