Eastern Times Issue 7 - Full

EASTERN • TIMES •

The history periodical for students of the BR(E), BR(NE), LNER and pre-grouping constituents ISSUE NO. 7 • JUNE 2025

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EASTERN • TIMES • CONTENTS Introduction 3 Workhorse at North Blyth

4

The Twilight years of the LNER D17 4-4-0s

5–14

Whisky Galore – All for the want of a dram

15–23

Edward Thompson’s LNER Rebuilds

24–33

LNER Holiday Handbook 1938

34–37

‘Hush-Hush’ – LNER No. 10000

38–47

Witham to Braintree – A journey in 1957

48–55

The Clickety

57–69

My Trainspotting Odyssey – 1961

70–79

The Headshunt

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EASTERN TIMES • ISSUE 7

4th September 1949 • Built at Stratford Works, Holden Class B12 4-6-0 No. 61532 was released to traffic on the Great Eastern Railway as number 1532 in December 1914. Pictured here at Kittybrewster shed, Aberdeen where it was allocated until April 1953. The loco moved to Keith for a short period of time before withdrawal on 1st July 1953.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection © The Transport Treasury

© Images and design: The Transport Treasury 2025. Design and Text: Peter Sikes ISBN: 978-1-917776-06-6 First published in 2025 by Transport Treasury Publishing Ltd., 16 Highworth Close, High Wycombe HP13 7PJ. The copyright holders hereby give notice that all rights to this work are reserved.

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www.ttpublishing.co.uk or for editorial issues and contributions email: tteasterntimes@gmail.com Printed in the UK by Short Run Press, Bittern Road, Sowton Industrial Estate, Exeter EX2 7LW. 2

EASTERN TIMES • ISSUE 7

INTRODUCTION

W

e begin this issue with an imposing photograph of a Class Q6 ‘workhorse’ resting in the everyday grime at Blyth North shed in the industrial north-east.

The same can be said of Paul King’s article about ‘The Clickety’, which takes us back to a time before the car was king and public transport actually did treat the public as the core reason for its existence.

This is followed by Nick Deacon’s in-depth look at the far more elegant Class D17s, constructed with large coupled wheels, this made them ideal for express duties on the East Coast main line. They went on to give consistent and reliable performances over many years.

Appropriately, we then finish Eastern Times 7 with Geoff Courtney’s final Ilford logs from 1961, accompanied by the phrase ‘all good things come to an end’. But don’t worry, it won’t be the end of Geoff’s contributions.

As ever, if you have anything you think would be an interesting addition to Eastern Times, please don’t hesitate to send it to me at tteasterntimes@gmail.com

Continuing north we arrive in the whisky producing area of Scotland which the railways served to deliver ingredients and then distribute the end product to the wider world.

The author, Ian Lamb, has reproduced one such distillery in model form, which as well as being exhibited at model shows, is used as an educational tool to show how the industry was, and still is, vital to the Scottish economy.

Eastern Times is published three times a year, and is available on a subscription service. To sign up, use the contact details below and ensure your copy is automatically sent to you every four months. https://ttpublishing.co.uk/ transport-books/, email admin@ttpublishing.co.uk, or call us on 01494 708939.

We then look at a series of LNER locomotive rebuilds undertaken on the instruction of Edward Thompson who succeeded Sir Nigel Gresley upon his sudden death. It is no secret that these two gentlemen did not have the best of relationships. The rebuilds were considered a mixture of failure and success.

PETER SIKES, EDITOR, EASTERN TIMES email: tteasterntimes@gmail.com

The popularity of many of our seaside resorts came about because of the railway network spreading to all parts of Britain. Railway companies were quick to market their services to the travelling public and produced many forms of literature to advertise these. We show a selection of pages taken from the LNER 1938 Holiday Handbook, a massive undertaking itself, running to over 900 pages.

A high-pressure experiment is the subject of our next offering in the shape of Gresley’s ‘Hush-Hush’ No. 10000.

Ultimately, his attempt to produce a fuel-efficient express locomotive was doomed to end in failure. The locomotive did survive until 1959, albeit in a different and more successful form.

Front cover: 30th September 1956 • A head-on view from the level crossing at Harleston on the Waveney Valley line of Worsdell Class J15 0-6-0 No. 65447 on the Railway Enthusiasts Club (REC) Suffolk Venturer special. Starting out from Liverpool Street behind Class B12 4-6-0 No. 61576 the train made its way to Colchester. Holden Class E4 2-4-0 No. 62797 took over here and made its way via various lines to Snape Junction where it was joined by No. 65447 to Beccles. From there 65447 took the train Tivetshall, Mellis, Eye and then on to Ipswich. The B12 then returned to the head of the train for the return journey to Liverpool Street.

Photo: Hugh Davies © The Transport Treasury.

Dave Brennand then takes us on a 1957 journey on the Essex byway from Witham to Braintree – still extant – which is illustrated with some charming photography by the kind permission of Richard McLeish.

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WORKHORSE AT NORTH BLYTH 1st May 1965 • Darlington built Raven Class Q6 0-8-0 No. 63381 pictured at North Blyth shed.

Photo: Trevor Davis © Transport Treasury.

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THE TWILIGHT YEARS OF THE LNER D17 4-4-0 s

D

BY NICK DEACON uring the year of 1947, Railway Observer

other classmates had succumbed during the war

correspondents continued to observe the

years or shortly after. Prior to arriving at York

last two surviving York-based D17 4-4-0s,

from Scarborough in January 1943, No. 2112 (then

Nos. 2111/2, intermittently at work in the area –

No. 1902) had even served as a makeshift air-raid

notably on the 8.47am Pickering–York and the

shelter surrounded by sandbags until conventional

10.26am York–Pickering with the 5.40pm return

shelters were provided!

service. At other times they could be seen on

Towards the end of the year, Ken Hoole, with his long

inspection saloon duty, the occasional service to

association as a respected voice on NER/LNER matters,

Harrogate, Normanton and Hull (where Botanic

contributed an article on the D17 topic, observing: “There

Gardens shed were known to borrow No. 2112 for

are only two of these engines left at the time of writing,

local services to Brough), and sundry other tasks

and they have the largest coupled wheels of any

such as station pilot duties. Both locos had been

locomotives now running on the LNER — namely, 7ft.

the sole representatives of the class since seven

1¼in. They cannot possibly last much longer, and this

At West Hartlepool shed during 1933 when the shed had six D17s on its books, D17/2 No. 1871 in workaday grime nevertheless presents its imposing credentials as it stands ready to haul one of the shed’s Class B passenger stopping services. The loco was one of the first four NER Qs completed during June 1896, was superheated and received piston valves in February 1930, and subsequently spent time at Hull Botanic Gardens and finally (from October 1941) at Alnmouth where she was withdrawn during February 1944. Photo: Author’s Collection.

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An evocative high summer 1930s shot on the ECML near Plessey as D17/1 No. 1624, looking in fine fettle, passes with a four-coach Class B stopping service from Newcastle. The loco appeared in June 1893, received piston valves in February 1906 but was not superheated until November 1929. During the early 1920s it was stationed at Tweedmouth for local services and also as a standby in case of main line failures.

By 1933 it had moved to join others of the class at Alnmouth and remained there until withdrawn in November 1938 – a bad year for the class as a whole which saw twelve condemned. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury.

article is intended to honour them before they finally do depart. Fortunately No. 1621 of Type D17/1 is to be preserved, so we shall have at least one reminder of the old North-Eastern ‘big wheelers’.”

The result was a strong, free-steaming example of late Victorian loco engineering with a trademark Worsdell double window cab. In his 1970 book analysing North Eastern steam locos, the respected technical engineer Dr. W. A. Tuplin described the class as “probably the most impressive-looking British locomotive of its day” – a claim ably supported by contemporary photographs taken of the class at the turn of the century.

At the end of December 1947 another Railway Observer correspondent reported ominously that the two survivors ‘had arrived at Darlington’ – usually meaning for locos of this category and vintage that the end was nigh – which was indeed the case for both but not officially confirmed until February 1948.

The locos were put to work on the ECML express services at a time when dining car services had been first introduced on the Anglo-Scottish express passenger services, but undoubtedly their ‘limelight’ moment was during ‘The Race to Aberdeen’ whilst employed on the 8.00pm from Kings Cross. From York the train was hauled by NER locos with a change at Newcastle. During the final week of these events in August 1895 the load was reduced from almost 200 tons to 105 tons over the distance without the need of double heading, reaching a climax over the night of the 21st/22nd August when the 80 mile York stretch was

The 20-strong NER 2-cylinder Class M1 (later Class M) 4-4-0s were Wilson Worsdell’s first express passenger locomotives for the NER and built at Gateshead Works between 1892-94. Each had an 11 inch longer boiler barrel than existing NER express locos, a 6ft. 9in. long firebox and 19in. x 26in. cylinders with Stephenson valve gear.

Although projected use of the boiler would have been to the then company ‘standard’ of 160psi, in fact as built it was capable of much more and was soon uprated to 175psi.

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EASTERN TIMES • ISSUE 7

The next development of the class, the thirty-strong Q 4-4-0s appearing between 1896-7, incorporated detailed changes to the cylinder size and valve positioning, a modified boiler with a deeper firebox and a small reduction in tubes giving an overall loco weight reduction of just over 2 tons. Both the M and Qs were fitted with the T. W. Worsdell 3,940 gallon tenders with a 5 ton coal capacity, with the latter class fitted with water scoop gear and with the Ms following later. From 1937 the scoops were gradually removed. The cab roof included a clerestory middle section with ventilating slits and adjustable shutters along each side incorporated – the only NER class (apart from the two Q1 locos, LNER Class D18) to sport this unusual feature. As with the Ms the class was fitted with Westinghouse braking for the engine and train, and a vacuum ejector for alternative train braking. The Westinghouse pump was positioned inside the splasher, between the coupled wheels.

covered in 83 minutes 24 seconds by No. 1621. At Newcastle the train was taken over by No. 1620 in the hands of Driver Nicholson and Fireman Blades who proceeded to throw caution to the winds (and also, apparently, the speed restrictions in force over curvatures at Morpeth, Alnmouth and Portobello plus the 5 mph limit through Berwick station!) and completed the 124 mile stretch in 113 minutes at an average speed of 66 mph inclusive of a suggested average of 83 mph between Belford and Berwick! This performance over the distance remains the fastest attained by a steam loco, but whether achieved by Driver Nicholson’s thorough knowledge of the route and ‘what it could take’ speed wise or outright recklessness on his part remains a moot point. Tuplin commented that record times achieved by men who liked ‘hard running’ were used to such performances and usually welcomed chances to indulge them – especially on exceptional occasions when officialdom were likely to applaud such efforts rather than criticise them.

In service, the Qs took many of the top link duties away from the Ms, but the latter remained on other main line duties until around 1920 when only half of the class were

At Carlisle station D17/2 No. 1876 is occupied with some carriage shunting – the sort of work deemed unsuited to the girth of its wheel diameter by Ken Hoole. The loco had been based at the North Eastern shed since at least 1925 until closure in 1933 when, with others of the class, it was moved to the former North British establishment at Canal. The loco was superheated and received piston valves relatively early in 1915 and was one of the WW2 emigres to Scotland in September 1942, remaining at Haymarket shed on menial duties until withdrawn in April 1943.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury.

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At Alnmouth station, D17/2 No. 1906, dating from June 1897, has arrived from the north with a two-coach service possibly from Berwick or the Alnwick/Coldstream branches including that as far as Kelso. To the south, the Amble passenger service was also a shed responsibility branch. Helping to date the shot, the loco had moved to Alnmouth shed from Scarborough in August 1935 joining at least four others of the class and remained there until withdrawn in November 1938.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

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After the 1923 Grouping the LNER merged the two classes as Class D17 with the former Ms becoming sub-class ‘D17/1’ and the Qs ‘D17/2’. Visually there was little to separate the two classes other than the shape of the main frames – that of the D17/1s having a downward reverse curve in the top profile behind the smokebox compared to the D17/2s having frames which were slightly lower behind the smokebox and with a single downward sweep.

to be found at main line sheds for semi-fast and stopping passenger services. However, it wasn’t long before the Qs themselves were displaced with the introduction of the NER Class R 4-4-0s from 1899 (see Eastern Times Issue 2).

Between 1903 and 1908 the Ms were rebuilt with new cylinders and piston valves with the latter fitted above the cylinders. The Qs were similarly dealt with from 1913 which permitted superheated boilers to be fitted on both classes – a piecemeal exercise which took until 1930 until the last one was fitted to No. 1871. Further cascading of two classes occurred when the 50 Raven Class Z 4-4-2s were introduced from 1911 and such dispersal took them to Carlisle, Hull (Botanic Gardens), Leeds (Neville Hill), Scarborough, Starbeck, and West Hartlepool sheds where they remained until 1934/5 when the new ‘Hunt’ 4-4-0s began to appear, adding further to the cascading process. In 1923 Carlisle London Road shed was home to no less than eight of the class for the Newcastle services plus other sundry local jobs whilst at much the same time West Hartlepool had seven of the class for its Harrogate services and other turns further north to Newcastle. In 1923 Tweedmouth shed also had eight of the class and even as late as 1939 still had six on its books. In 1927, due to a shortage of GE power, three of the class (Nos. 1880/1927/9) were loaned to Cambridge (No. 1880) and the other two to Stratford for use on light duties including use on Ely services out of Liverpool Street.

The first of the class to be withdrawn (D17/1 No. 1628) resulted from a collision with another loco at Hull Paragon station on 14th February 1927 but no further deletions occurred until 1931 when Nos. 1875/1926 (both D17/2s) were condemned. Five followed in 1932, another five in 1933 until by the outbreak of WW2 there remained just nine survivors of the original fifty. With that said the class were still capable of some very creditable work – one example witnessed by a Railway Observer correspondent A D17 in typical 1930s mode sees Carlisle’s D17/2 No. 1921 happily bowling along the Newcastle to Carlisle line near Greenhead with a Class B stopping service in 1937. The loco emerged from Gateshead Works in June 1897, was superheated and received piston valves during August 1922 and, with others of the class, had formed a fleet of the class at Carlisle since at least the Grouping when eight of the class were based there. The loco remained at Carlisle until September 1942 when it was transferred to St. Margarets shed, Edinburgh, but like its classmate at Haymarket, found little meaningful work and was withdrawn in April 1943.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

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On shed at York in around 1939, D17/1 No. 1629 strikes a grubby, but unbowed pose in the shed yard. Appearing in June 1893, the loco acquired piston valves in December 1908 but had to wait until June 1916 until it was superheated. The loco was the last of its type based at Bridlington shed and at the time of the photograph had moved to Hull Botanic Gardens. Subsequent moves over the next four years of war saw the loco palmed off to Neville Hill, Selby, Darlington, West Auckland and Middlesbrough but somehow it managed to cling to life until the final call came during September 1945. Photo: TOPticl Digital Memories © Transport Treasury

No. 1902 worked a train to York one Saturday morning and returned with the ‘Scarborough Flier’ – some 45 minutes late. Unfortunately it was not carrying the headboard, and it was the last time one of this class was noted on the ‘Flier’. When No. 1901 went to Hawick in 1937 it was to replace D31 No. 9218, which had just been withdrawn. It returned to Carlisle on the transfer of D31 No. 9735 from Aberdeen to Hawick. No. 1908 went to Bradford in February 1936 to replace No. 1903 and was in turn replaced by No. 1925. These engines were shedded at the LMS Manningham shed and worked to York (via Harrogate) daily. In 1932 the Hull engines worked to York, Leeds and Scarborough on light turns, leaving the heavier trains to the D20 and D49 classes. Those at Scarborough worked to Hull, and York, and between 1928 and 1932 the writer travelled behind one of this class almost daily. This was on the 5.08pm from Hull to Bridlington, which was worked by Scarborough shed. Over the 31 miles they were allowed 43 minutes, with one stop, and they usually only just managed to keep time. In the Up direction the 8am from Bridlington was used, worked by Bridlington shed

in 1932 being the 8.5am Bridlington–Hull express on which D17/1 No. 1638, then forty years old, put in “some fine performances” over the 31 mile stretch.

Returning to Ken Hoole and his Railway Observer article, he took up the story of the class during the 1930s by giving a detailed breakdown of the class allocations as they stood between 1936-45 and added further to their story with personal observations of some of the class occurring during this period viz: When numbers 1902 and 1929 were transferred together from Selby to Scarborough in 1937 they were put to work shunting empty excursion stock – a duty performed in previous years by J21 0-6-0s.

An engine with 7ft. 1¼in. driving wheels and screw reverse could hardly be more unsuitable for shunting duties; in fact conditions were so bad at times that trains from York, only 42 miles away, were taking three to four hours to reach Scarborough, due to the accumulation of traffic there. The official explanation of the use of a D17/2 engine was that they could be utilised for working a train in an emergency if required. Towards the end of the summer of 1938, when only one pilot was required at Scarborough 11

EASTERN TIMES • ISSUE 7

Looking remarkably spruce with polished splasher beading and bearing her 1946 LNER number, D17/2 No. 2111 (ex-No. 1873 from June 1896) enters York station with what appears to be a motley empty stock working. The loco had arrived from Alnmouth in July 1945 joining the other class survivor No. 2112 which had arrived the previous March. Both locos enjoyed the occasional swansong on passenger services to and from Normanton and Pickering plus trip employment with the York Inspector’s Saloon which explains the loco’s nicely turned out condition. Both locos lost their distinctive clerestory roof arrangement during the war, receiving standard replacements. Both were allocated BR numbers (62111/2) but never carried them before both were withdrawn in February 1948. Photo: Author’s Collection.

with their D17/1 locomotives, and the better performance of these latter locomotives was most marked. In 1932 timing of the 8am train was cut down to 37 minutes, as was the 9.01am Up, worked by Scarborough shed, and also non-stop. Here again, with exactly the same timings the D17/1 was the better locomotive. In fact in the summer of 1938 D17/1 No. 1638 was timed at 75 mph on the Bridlington working. In 1936/7 the diesel railcar Lady Hamilton was stationed at Hull, and when this failed a two-coach train was run in its place. No. 1871/3 were often used on this job and they put in some very fast work. Locomotives shedded at Neville Hill worked to Hull, West Hartlepool and Scarborough, with a run to Bridlington in the summer.

being. This was a sequel to the unhappy episode in 1933 when classmate No. 1620, the star of the August 1895 record breaking Newcastle–Edinburgh run, was selected for preservation but after arrival at Darlington the decision was reversed and the loco was scrapped early in 1934.

No. 1621 had been the loco on the York–Newcastle run prior to No. 1621 taking over at Newcastle and as such was justifiably qualified for preservation despite not having all of its original NER appurtenances. During the war years the loco remained at Alnmouth until condemned in July 1945 but promptly received a thorough cosmetic restoration (including a repaint in NER passenger livery) at Darlington Works ready for the York Museum reopening in July 1947.

The May 1939 edition of the Railway Observer reported that Alnmouth shed was informed that their D17/1 No. 1621, which had been seeing occasional use on Newcastle turns, was to be directed to the York Museum for preservation but kept in running order for the time

On a more solemn note the same issue reported that the three Carlisle-based D17/2s, Nos. 1876/1901/21, were in store at the former NER shed at London Road and it was doubtful if they would work again. At much the same time the two remaining Bridlington D17s, 1629 and 1905, were to 12

EASTERN TIMES • ISSUE 7

service from Normanton whilst on the following day D17/2 No. 1902 (now renumbered as 2112) was seen on the York Inspector’s Saloon, both in a highly polished condition. And so the days of the class drew to a close with just two of the class creeping into the BR era.

be put into store at Hull, but on a brighter note Botanic Gardens D17/2s Nos. 1871/3 were observed on Leeds–Hull semi-fast trains and substituting for diesel rail car failures.

Apparently, on one occasion, No. 1873 covered the 23½ miles from Selby to Ferriby non-stop, in 23 minutes exactly but the load, however, was only 55 tons.

In retrospect perhaps they were unfairly judged by their star performances of the 1890s which tended to backfire on them in later years when employed on normal duties and occasionally found to be deficient in some way. As an example, when for any reason any of the class was ‘down’ on passenger timings a superficial criticism of the loss might then beg the question as to how it was that an engine capable of such stellar performances was now incapable of even getting close to those levels. Although the class never cut a lasting mark on the legacy of distinguished British locomotive practice, they should be remembered as a solid, no-nonsense design giving consistency of reliable employment over many decades.

Exigencies of wartime still gave sundry opportunities for the class to extend their lives – a typical example being when Middlesbrough’s D17/1 No. 1629 received attention at Darlington Works in March 1942 and was subsequently used on the short Middlesbrough–Scarborough trains, on which duty it stayed at Scarborough on alternate nights before returning. At much the same time two D17/2s, Nos. 1873/1905, were observed on empty stock duties to and from Heaton yard. In the same year three of the D17/1s found themselves north of the border with No. 1901 at Duns on the Reston–St. Boswells line, No. 1876 at Haymarket and No. 1921 at St. Margarets with some occasional employment on local passenger services plus sundry pilot duties. Of the three only No. 1901 managed to avoid withdrawal until 1945, this coming in June.

Sources: North Eastern Steam. W.A. Tuplin. George Allen & Unwin 1970.

The LNER ‘Green Guide’ Volume 3c. RCTS 1981.

The Railway Observer – various editions.

After the war most of the Railway Observer observations concerning the class recorded where they were lying ‘dead’ at various sheds or awaiting cutting up at Darlington.

However, on 3rd April 1946 at York D17/2 No. 1873 (now renumbered as 2111) was recorded arriving with an express

As the lifetime of the surviving D17s draws to a close, clouds gather above an unidentified D17/2 in wartime North Eastern guise whilst hauling a lightweight Class B three-coach stopping service.

Photo: TOPticl Digital Memories © Transport Treasury.

13

This pre-Grouping shot of ‘Q’ (LNER D17/2) No. 1929 is a reminder of the sparkling condition regularly maintained by shed staff and, for a loco of this importance, no less expected by the more discerning of the travelling public. The loco emerged from Gateshead Works in November 1897 and was one of the last four of the class to be built during that month.

It was superheated in February 1914 and received piston valves at the same time. The shot may date from the pre-1914 period when the loco was a prize possession of Hull Botanic Gardens and used on their important Doncaster and Leeds services. As mentioned in the text, the loco was loaned to Stratford shed during 1927 and then had spells at Neville Hill, Selby and Scarborough and was Starbeck-based when it was condemned in November 1938. Photo: Author’s Collection.

EASTERN TIMES • ISSUE 7

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WHISKY GALORE– ALL FOR THE WANT OF A DRAM

I

BY IAN LAMB t is well known that within the new Parliamentary Constituency of West Moray and Strathspey there are 49 distilleries producing the essential ‘amber

Due to the initiative of manufacturer Hornby whose personnel strive to ensure their company is the first choice in models and hobbies, they carefully brought out as accurately as possible in ‘Queen Anne’ livery, a 1/72 scale locomotive that spent its working life connecting three distilleries with the necessary materials and end products from Longmorn, Benriach and Glenlossie complexes, and asked me to create a working model layout that would display ‘Life in Longmorn’.

nectar’ which is such a vital product for the British economy, as well as limited employment for generations of families who have resided in this remarkable area.

It may seem amazing that it is almost half a century since the last train passed through Longmorn, severing a railway line that for around a century provided a vital link to the larger Speyside community.

The ‘Life in Longmorn’ project provides a snapshot in history that offers great educational value. Not only is this layout based in Scotland but it tells a specific story about life in the whisky-producing area of the country, the environment and method of transporting grain into the distillery and the finished product out, using transport that has long ceased to be the staple method.

Queen Victoria was among those who appreciated the delights of the Spey Valley. The area is celebrated for its salmon fishing, but particularly its world famous malt whisky that brought prosperity to this part of Scotland.

The distilleries with their 0-4-0 ‘Whisky Pugs’ made sure that this important export had direct links with the main rail routes which – as a consequence – necessitated the construction of a surprising number of tracks in a somewhat sparsely populated region.

I may live in Strathspey – but only since 1976 – so I had no option but to rely on records of those who did, many of whom inevitably have long passed away. To set the ball

Aerial image of Longmorn Distillery. Photo: Courtesy Chivas Pernod

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BUCKIE

MORAY FIRTH

PORTSOY

ELGIN ORBLISTON

KINLOSS

LONGMORN

FORRES

KEITH CAIRNIE JUNCTION

To Inverness

CRAIGELLACHIE DUFFTOWN BALLINDALLOCH

CROMDALE

To Aberdeen

GRANTOWN-ON-SPEY

To Inverness

BOAT OF GARTEN

AVIEMORE

To Perth

Aveling Porter model with a flywheel very like that on a traction engine we were accustomed to seeing on the roadway. The other was an open top affair and also had a flywheel. The ‘Longmorn Pug’ also performed any shunting to/from Benriach.”

rolling, I start off with the memories of Jimmy Thomson who carefully outlined the distilleries during their working days. “There were two private steam engines, one at Glenlossie and the other at Longmorn. The former was an

“Longmorn was a comparatively busy rural station having the traffic for three distilleries. The peak period would be, perhaps, 1918–1933. The following years to 1940 saw a decline in whisky distilling; this plus erosion by road transport took its toll of rail traffic.”

“The incidence of the rail connection to the various distilleries was a saving feature up to a point for Longmorn.

During the war years 1940–45 there was a cut back in the distillery industry due to the need to use the accommodation for more essential purposes and also shortage of the required barley due to the production of foodstuffs for human sustenance.”

1949 Aveling Porter shunter. Photo: A. H. Unsworth

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arriving at Lossiemouth trips were laid on, as and when required, to serve stations up to Dufftown and also on the Strathspey line. You will gather from above that there was plenty of traffic passing over the Elgin to Keith section.

Up until the early 1930s the only motive power on the GNSR was their own 4-4-0 Class D40 and D41. About 1931/32 Class B12s followed, being sent up north from the Eastern Region. In more recent years prior to closure, there were various types of loco drafted from the south to the ex-GNSR in the 1950s. One could see Ivatt 2MTs and Black Fives, along with J36, J37 and J38 ex-N.B. locos.”

“At the end of the war years road competition grew, making inroads to distillery traffic and while whisky production resumed, replacing stock depleted by war years, by 1950 it was obvious road transport was with us to stay making the lot of rail more uncertain. During the following decade it was obvious roads were winning the fight or struggle and by the mid-1960s Dr. Beeching was at the door.”

“Let us return to 1918–1933. The traffic to or from Longmorn for the three distilleries, barley and malt in sacks, coal, coke and peat. The latter was found mostly locally or within a short distance being outside rail availability.

Barley was imported from Denmark to Lossiemouth, and from there by rail to the distillery destinations, this created quite an extra tonnage at Lossiemouth forwarding and at the distillery stations (Longmorn) getting their share along with other stations between Elgin and Craigellachie and to Dufftown and the Strathspey line.”

Prominent local railway lecturer and author John Ross also recorded his thoughts when he noted that: “In service at Longmorn there was no real requirement to move heavy loads as the train it hauled usually consisted of two fiveplank wooden-frame open wagons of LMS origin and a metal under-frame van. There were two of these that had started out life with the GNSR, they had been modified by the Metropolitan Works at Saltley in 1920, being clad in aluminium for use at the distillery to move malted barley.”

“It could be said that the line just mentioned was essentially dependent upon the distillery production for its economical existence. Train services between Elgin, Craigellachie, Keith and Aberdeen was five passenger trains each way, all calling at Longmorn. During summer time there were two additional semi-fast trains, these did not stop at Longmorn.”

“Tuesday and Thursday were train days with filled casks loaded into the open wagons at Longmorn distillery loading bank. The engine then headed towards the main line or trackbed of the main line after 1969, the train was left in a loop as the locomotive ran round, as it always led

“There were two freight trains each way between Elgin and Craigellachie calling at Longmorn. When barley was The Ruston Hornsby 48DS diesel shunter at Longmorn that took over the roles of the former steam engines.

Photo: Norris Forrest © Transport Treasury

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its train rather than propelled it. Points were changed for the transfer to the distant Benriach complex. Stops were made en route to unload casks at the many bonded warehouses before Benriach distillery was reached. At that distillery, a crossover allowed the engine to run round its train after a shunting operation to swap the empty van with one filled with malted barley destined for Longmorn.

The return journey tended to be quicker because there were no casks to unload.”

One of the most regular engines on the line – especially during the LNER period – was Gordon Highlander, and two of its crew, Jock Hay (Keith) and Jimmy Gray (Aviemore), formed a strong bond with this locomotive.

Jimmy assured me that she “ran like a fine sewing machine!” Inevitably (because of its name) this engine

Longmorn Distillery, founded in 1894, with its first 2-2-0WT No. 614, built by McLaren. Photo: J. P. Peaty.

17th April 1954 • Pickersgill ex-GNoSR Class D40 4-4-0 No. 62265 pictured on a freight working at Ballindalloch.

Photo: John McCann, Online Transport Archive © Transport Treasury

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was known to local railwaymen as ‘the Sojer’. The Speyside line seemed to revolve around whisky. According to Jimmy Gray, “One could be under the influence daily. It was really expected that a dram or two would be given, especially to the station staff and labourers at Ballindalloch. There was quite a lot of work going on as all the coal was distributed to the distilleries. Quite a squad of men were involved with the coal distribution. In turn barrels of whisky would be loaded into wagons.”

the signalman to have a chat with his fellow railwaymen whilst he awaited – single-line pouch in hand – the 11.37 Elgin to Aberdeen (via Craigellachie) service. Grain wagon trains from the Burghead branch west of Elgin regularly plied the ‘Glen’ metals, but rarely entered the yard, so these two vehicles must have been a special order? When the internal line finally closed, the Caledonian Railway at Brechin received the LMS open wagons, whilst the Strathspey Railway obtained the GNSR vans.”

Returning to John Ross, “Meanwhile, the loco crew of the J36, having earlier marshalled its trucks of coal and vans of grain into the distillery yard sidings, awaits permission before uplifting its load of ‘amber nectar’ and then heading back to Elgin for national distribution prior to blending in the Scottish lowlands. Opportunity from this delay enabled

“It is no coincidence that most distilleries were established after the railway appeared. In this region the River Spey and its tributaries provided water of required quality while the railway provided the transport for the inward coal and grain, then outward whisky. This most densely populated Whisky region sits in a fertile valley of rivers and glens.”

16th June 1962 • GNSR Class F 4-4-0 No. 49 Gordon Highlander and Highland Railway Jones Goods 4-6-0 No. 103 double-heading an RCTS/SLS Scottish rail tour at Ballindalloch. Photo: W.A.C. Smith © Transport Treasury

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The diminutive size of the Ruston Hornsby 48DS diesel shunter is shown to good effect in this shot taken at Longmorn.

Photo: Norris Forrest © Transport Treasury

Queen Anne whisky for blending. Today its product is a single malt, distilled in a modern rebuilt complex for the 21st century.

“The water for the distillery comes from a local spring which never dries up, while the former peat came from the nearby Mannoch Hills, and the resulting spirit certainly knows its way around a Sherry cask!”

Apart from local exhibitions Life in Longmorn has been seen at the Great Model Railway Show (Gaydon: October 2023) and Model Rail Scotland (SEC: February 2025), and is due to appear later this year at Perth (June) and Aberdeen (October).

Many of the famous distilleries had fleets of wagons to transport the grain that was so important to the distinctive flavour of their ‘drams’. John Ross reminds us that the BR Class 20s were the first diesels to appear in this area, and initially crews ran them as if they were steam engines with the nose end leading.

A three-minute video interview about the layout when it appeared at Model Rail Scotland is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMycJ-beb_s

These grain wagons were initially built for Scottish Malt Distillers who centralised malting operations for their stills at Burghead. This operation started during March 1966 for transportation of grain from East Anglia, with services running from Doncaster to Keith on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. When the train arrived at Keith, half a dozen wagons went by local goods traffic to Dailuaine and Carron. The rest of the train worked forward

by Mulben to Burghead.

The independent distillers (to whom Longmorn belonged) were impressed with this service, and signed their own deal with BR, and a storage silo was built at Dufftown where operations began in 1966. This deal included a fleet of wagons painted yellow and marked ‘The Maltsters Association of Great Britain’.

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9th November 1953 • An unidentified B1 with its train of Gresley coaches forms the 2.20pm Elgin–Aberdeen service as it passes one of the many distilleries in Strathspey.

Photo: John McCann, Online Transport Archive © Transport Treasury

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EDWARD THOMPSON’S LNER REBUILDS – SUCCESSES AND FAILURES

T

BY NEVILLE STEAD

he sudden death of Sir Nigel Gresley in April 1941, whilst still in charge of LNER locomotive design, sent shock waves through the company. Born in 1876, he was in his 65th year, and would presumably have retired soon anyway, but his demise brought Edward Thompson to the position of Chief Mechanical Engineer.

conditions were far from ideal, especially when applied to Gresley locomotives, incorporating three cylinders and conjugated valve gear. It is understandable that simplicity of design and ease of maintenance were essential.

Two cylinders would replace three – except in the largest classes – and Thompson set about producing locos to that end. His best design was undoubtedly the Class B1 4-6-0, over 400 being built over nine years. Some of his other experiments in locomotive design were less successful.

Thompson has become a controversial figure amongst railway historians. His relationship with his predecessor is generally thought to have been, at the least, somewhat cool. It is questionable whether, if Sir Nigel had survived into retirement, he would have nominated Thompson to succeed him. To speculate further, what if Bulleid had not left Gresley’s side in 1937 to join the Southern Railway – would he have been the inheritor of Gresley’s empire and whither LNER locomotive design in those circumstances?

During his five year tenure, he carried out a series of trial rebuilds of existing locomotives. First of these was the two cylinder reconstruction of a Gresley Class D49 4-4-0, No. 365 The Morpeth. This loco, previously fitted with experimental rotary cam operated poppet valves, was rebuilt at Darlington Works, being outshopped on 24th August 1942. It had two inside cylinders, bore some resemblance to the D11/2 ‘Scottish Directors’, and its tractive effort was reduced by over 1,500 lbs. Trials were conducted at Haymarket depot in December 1942 and

Be that as it may, Edward Thompson took charge, in the middle of a world war, faced with the need for maximum locomotive use, and minimum maintenance. These

Class D49/4 No. 62768 The Morpeth pictured at Thirsk in an undated shot.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection

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1952 • Another view of Class D49/4 No. 62768 The Morpeth, this time at Harrogate. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

January 1943 against a D11/2 and a normal three-cylinder D49, but the results were not encouraging, and The Morpeth, after a spell at Leeds (Neville Hill), was sent to Starbeck shed near Harrogate, in November 1947, to work alongside their D20s and D49/2s, mostly on passenger trains to Leeds and York. There it was viewed unenthusiastically, and when in October 1952 (as No. 62768) it was involved in a collision with the tender of No. 62758 which caused frontal damage to its frames, the opportunity was taken to send it for scrap. It lasted just ten years in its rebuilt state, and disappeared five years before the first programmed D49 withdrawal.

with 6ft. 9in. driving wheels. The welded framing was not a great success. Fractures occurred spasmodically, presumably not helped by the original frames being subjected to greater torque and twisting due to the two outside cylinders. The loco, at first operating out of Neasden shed, up the Great Central main line, spent its final two years working from Immingham depot down the east Lincolnshire line to Boston and Spalding before another serious frame fracture led to its withdrawal, as No. 61497, in April 1949.

On the freight locomotive front, Gresley’s death in 1941 did not immediately result in a halt in production of his threecylinder Class O2 2-8-0s. It was January 1943 before the last ones appeared, by which time Thompson was designing a replacement – virtually a 2-8-0 ‘B1’. He chose to create this newcomer out of a drastic rebuild of one of the numerous ex-GCR Class O4 locos, and in February 1944, LNER No. 6595 emerged. As this loco was given new

Thompson’s second foray into rebuilding involved an exGCR four-cylinder Class B3 4-6-0, LNER No. 6166. Again following his preference for two cylinders, he married the front end framing and cylinders of a B1 to the existing rear frames, topping it off with a B1 boiler and cab. The result, which entered traffic in October 1943, was in effect a B1 25

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26th October 1948 • Class B3 No. 61497 pictured at Sheffield Victoria, less than a year before withdrawal.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

Ex-LNER Class O1 2-8-0 No. 63795 leaving East Leake tunnel (also known as Barnstone tunnel) on the Great Central main line.

Photo: H. Cartwright © Transport Treasury

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23rd May 1954 • The solitary Class K5 No. 61863 at Stratford. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

frames, a B1 boiler and cab, together with outside Walschaerts valve gear, rebuild is scarcely the correct term. One of his better concepts, the class O1, as it became, eventually totalled 58 locomotives. However the programme, which continued into early BR days, was curtailed due to the proliferation of ex-War Department 2-8-0s. The O1s were withdrawn between 1962 and 1965, as much a result of the onset of dieselisation as any major problems in the design itself.

early 1947) it settled down at New England shed, Peterborough, until it was withdrawn in June 1960. By this time a start had been made on withdrawing K3s. No. 61863 was reported to be a smoother rider than the ‘lively’ K3, but the cost of conversion was deemed uneconomic, and the K5 remained a solitary – and rarely photographed – locomotive.

August 1945 saw the first Thompson Class B2 4-6-0 emerge. This was a two-cylinder rebuild of Gresley’s B17 ‘Sandringham’ class, beginning with LNER No. 2871 (later No. 61671 Royal Sovereign). Ten such conversions took place, the last being No. 61644 Earlham Hall which entered service in March 1949. Again a reasonably successful venture – the B17, as its mileage increased, was known to be a ‘rough rider’ and it would seem the B2 was steadier.

However, the remorseless production of new B1s – with 6ft. 2in. driving wheels able to fulfil the mixed traffic role

Thompson really got into his stride during 1945. First rebuild to appear, on 16th June, was a two-cylinder conversion of the Gresley K3 2-6-0. Again, with new frames, higher pressure boiler, cylinders and driving wheels, LNER No. 206 (later BR 61863) was essentially a new locomotive. It was officially classified K5 in October 1945, and after spending its first two years touring a variety of sheds (including a month at St. Margarets, Edinburgh in 27

16th May 1952 • Class B2 4-6-0 No. 61671 Royal Sovereign about to pass Greenwood signal box, New Barnet. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

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Doncaster, where, like Gresley’s W1, it was regarded as a ‘second string’, to be used only when necessary.

better than a 6ft. 8in. B2 – put an end to the conversions, and the ten locos were taken out of service between August 1958 and December 1959, concurrently with the B17s.

The final Thompson rebuild was No. 3445 MacCailin Mor. One of six three-cylinder 2-6-0 K4 class engines built by Gresley for the West Highland line, it was selected for twocylinder conversion, being put into traffic in December 1945. It completed a trio of similar designs – the 4-6-0, the 2-8-0 and now the 2-6-0. Like the K5, it embarked on a tour of English and Scottish sheds for wide-ranging trials.

These ended with a two-year stint at New England, before its return to Eastfield and the West Highland line in late 1949. The trials were obviously successful, as 70 new Class K1 2-6-0s (No. 61997, as it had become, was classified K1/1) entered traffic between May 1949 and March 1950, basically similar in design with minor modifications. The original rebuild was withdrawn in 1961, but some of the new locos lasted to the final days of steam on ex-LNER lines in late 1967. One, No. 62005, is now preserved. As no Thompson rebuild is extant this loco is the nearest we have to an example of the rebuilding work of an engineer whose plans had to be greatly constrained by the very difficult times in which he worked.

Thompson’s most controversial rebuild appeared from Doncaster Works in September 1945, in the shape of No. 4470 Great Northern, Gresley’s pioneer ‘Pacific’. As by this time there were already ten Thompson Pacifics of two similar classes in service, the action of drastically altering such an historic locomotive caused much disquiet. It is generally felt that the selection of 4470 was personally motivated. If Thompson had wished to experiment with a Gresley Pacific there had been plenty of opportunities as locos became due for a trip to the works. Whatever the reasons, the result fell short of success. After his retirement, his successor, A. H. Peppercorn, produced the new A1 Pacific, arguably among the finest East Coast types, to show what could be done with a properly designed update on the Gresley concept. It has always seemed bizarre that No. 4470 (BR No. 60113) also carried the A1 classification, as it differed from the Peppercorn locomotives in several ways. It remained in service until November 1962, most of its BR existence being spent at Grantham or

1958 • Class B2 No. 61671 Royal Sovereign at Liverpool Street. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

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c.1922-1925 • Gresley Class A1 No. 1470 Great Northern pictured in its original form. Photo: © Transport Treasury 4th July 1936 • Renumbered in March 1925, No. 4470 is captured at Kings Cross. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

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17th May 1953 • Class K1/1 No. 61997 MacCailin Mor at Eastfield shed. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury 8th September 1958 • No. 61997 MacCailin Mor at Fort William shed. Photo: Nick Nicolson © Transport Treasury

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In this undated shot we see the Thompson rebuild of No. 4470 Great Northern at Peterborough North. The rebuild took place at Doncaster, No. 4470 entering the Works on 1st May 1945 and emerging in this less elegant form on 25th September of the same year.

His Pacific rebuilds were not the best of designs. They all retained three cylinders, but with divided drive and three sets of independent Walschaerts valve gear. Thompson attached great importance to having connecting rods equal in length. This was not necessary, and as a result the outside cylinders were placed behind the front bogie with the inside cylinder well forward. This arrangement created long exhaust channels and encouraged flexing and fracture of the loco frames. His Pacifics were particularly prone to wheel slips.

Such were the problems, they preceded many of their older counterparts to the scrapheap. Photo: © Transport Treasury

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I

LNER HOLIDAY HANDBOOK 1938

n the nineteenth century the railway network rapidly spread across Britain. Travelling by train became increasingly popular and seaside resorts – now easily accessible by rail – began to spring up all around the coast, and with this the population of seaside towns rose at a fast rate.

including the London & North Eastern Railway. They featured information about the area, attractions to visit and details of B&Bs and hotels. They also included railway maps of different regions. Featured on the following pages are a few examples taken from the Teesdale and the Eden Valley section of the LNER’s 1938 Holiday Handbook.

Railways didn’t just take holidaymakers to the coast.

Rambling and cycling grew in popularity between 1870 and 1914, with many companies providing services and facilities for both. They also contributed to the camping craze by providing special ‘camping coaches’ on sidings or in rural station yards.

Teesside boasted some of the most fashionable and popular resorts of the time. These included Saltburn-bySea, with its Victorian architecture, cliff lift and famous pier, and Redcar with its sandy beaches stretching for nearly eight miles. As mentioned the LNER produced posters as well as holiday handbooks, many of these included its famous strapline ‘It’s quicker by rail’, advertising seaside family fun such as paddling, building sandcastles and exploring rockpools.

The railways’ stranglehold on providing travel to the various resorts lasted until the 1920s when a rival mode of transport started to become a serious competitor, meaning that the railways no longer had the resorts to themselves.

In 1922 the first Austin Seven was produced and the age of mass motoring had begun.

As we all know the following year was a significant one, the plethora of small railway companies were grouped into the ‘Big Four’.

The publication featured is comprehensive and includes descriptions of places of interest, area maps and town plans, lists of hotels, boarding houses, apartments and camp sites. Also included for each area are fare tables, both first and third class, from towns and cities around the country to those areas served by the LNER. Additionally there are adverts for hotels, restaurants and cafés, and services provided by the LNER such as saving schemes. There are also many sepia illustrations of the locations advertised. Running to an impressive total of 932 pages, the cost new was 6d.

To announce their presence the new ‘Big Four’ companies embarked on comprehensive publicity campaigns. The LNER commissioned top graphic artists for a series of 34 new posters which were produced over two years.

They worked closely with the town councils of the resorts, the result being a series of bold holiday poster work to stimulate the market.

Although the railways weren’t the first type of mass holiday transport – that prize goes to the steamships that preceded them – they helped develop many of Britain’s favourite seaside resorts. It was really the rise of cheaper air fares in the 1960s that started the steady decline in holiday rail travel.

With the introduction of paid holidays from 1938, more and more families could afford to holiday at the coast or take a day trip to the seaside. Holiday handbooks or guides were published by all the major railway companies of the time, 34

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‘Hush-Hush’ – LNER No. 10000

H

BY DAVID CULLEN

aving displayed exemplary performance, George and Robert Stephenson’s Rocket took first prize at the Rainhill locomotive trials of October 1829. Small wonder, for although steam traction was in its infancy, Rocket’s multi-tube boiler was technically so advanced that almost every locomotive after was essentially just a larger and more powerful version. Virtually every one, for a modest few were fitted with alternative types of boiler aimed at cutting fuel consumption. Results were never remarkable, but the locomotives themselves certainly were.

very key to steam’s future. A law of physics states that a steam engine’s efficiency is proportional to the ratio between the upper and lower temperatures of steam within its working cycle. In short: the greater the top temperature, the more efficient the engine. This temperature is not simply dependent on the heat applied, but also upon steam pressure. The higher this rises, the higher its temperature will also become, theoretically cutting fuel requirement.

The locomotive Gresley created was the experimental W1 Class No. 10000; a machine of incredibly advanced design.

With a powerful appearance, sleek air-smoothed exterior and chimney concealed between tapering smokedeflectors, it might have been an atomic locomotive from the realms of science-fiction. Its operational steam pressure was 450lbs per sq. inch, well over double that of Flying Scotsman and unprecedented in this country.

One such British machine was built in 1929 for the London & North Eastern Railway to the design of Chief Mechanical Engineer Mr. H. N. Gresley. Having already designed the Class A3 Pacifics (formerly Class A1 and A10) which included Flying Scotsman, he went on to create Mallard and her A4 sisters, eventually becoming Sir Nigel in recognition of his locomotive design achievements.

Never carrying an official name, the W1 was colloquially dubbed ‘Hush-Hush’, which derived from the secrecy surrounding its construction. So great was this that when the partially-completed locomotive needed to traverse rival LMS metals, it was covered over end-to-end to avoid prying eyes. The design included a number of unorthodox features; naturally its boiler being the most significant.

For several years, Gresley had been looking into improving fuel efficiency of LNER express locomotives, knowing one method to be the use of steam at exceptionally high pressure, as in marine boilers. The concept held great sway in this era, with many rail engineers believing it the

1st October 1933 • Gresley Class W1 No. 10000 at Hull Dairycoates shed.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

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18th August 1931 • No. 10000 at Copmanthorpe, North Yorkshire.

Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

outer casing by an air space serving two functions; preventing the casing from overheating and as a duct for providing the firebox with its air supply, pre-heated for efficient combustion. Admitted through three rectangular intakes beneath the smokebox, the air passed over the boiler’s entire length before flowing via a damper to the grate which was just under 35 sq. ft in area. The system gave an evaporating surface of 1,986½ sq. ft, enhanced by a superheater initially of 222 sq. ft. During factory testing, the boiler produced an impressive 20,000lbs of steam per hour over a period of four hours.

The Stephenson flue-tube variety contained too many flat surfaces and joins to safely produce the required pressure, so in 1924, Gresley looked into obtaining a scaled-down version of a much sturdier type used in shipping. He subsequently approached the Glasgow engineering company Yarrow, with whom he co-designed just such a unit. More than three years in the making, this comprised a slightly asymmetrical barrel, triangular in cross section with gracefully curved sides, containing an interconnected system of steel drums and tubes. Two solid-forged waterdrums 18ins in internal diameter and 11ft. 5/8ins. in length were set low down to the rear, one each side of the firebox.

Two further water-drums 19ins. in diameter and 13ft.

5¾ins. long, again placed one on either side, were set ahead of the rear drums and slightly higher. A steam drum of 3ft internal diameter and 27ft. 115/8 ins. length was pitched at 11ft. 3ins. in the top section. These units were supplied by the specialist boiler firm John Brown & Co. Ltd of Sheffield.

The water-drums were linked with the large steam drum by an array of curved, water-circulation tubes. 238 of 2½ ins. diameter were connected to the rear drums alongside the firebox. In direct contact with the fire, these were exposed to colossal temperatures. 444 tubes of 2ins. diameter, plus 74 of 2½ins., were attached to the forwardmounted drums. These were heated by firebox gases flowing forward into two flues accessing the smokebox.

These hot flues were separated from the locomotive’s

Steam of this calibre possesses unique expansive properties. To make optimum use, the locomotive was built as a ‘compound’. Compounding involved two stages; use of the steam at high pressure followed by use at low.

In the W1, steam at full boiler pressure was fed to two HP cylinders 12ins. in diameter by 26ins. stroke. On release it flowed to two LP cylinders 20ins. diameter by 26ins. for re-use before finally going to exhaust. Although common on the Continent and elsewhere, No. 10000 was one of just a handful of British locomotives operating this system.

The HP cylinders were located between the main frames, behind the buffer-beam. These drove the front pair of three sets of coupled wheels via a double-cranked axle.

The LP units were fitted outside and further back, driving the middle pair via normal crank-pins. Connecting and 39

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10000 AT DARLINGTON IN 1930 Thursday 26th June 1930 • A lack of shadows shows that this was an overcast day in the north east of England. The unique GresleyYarrow water tube boilered 4-6-4 No. 10000 brings a southbound express into Darlington Bank Top Station at 1.5pm. The engine had been released to traffic at the end of 1929 and its construction was shrouded in secrecy which led to it being dubbed ‘hush-hush’ – a nickname which stuck! It continued to work in this form until 1937 when a new boiler was required and the decision taken to rebuild the locomotive with a conventional boiler. The grey livery was most unusual at this time and remained unchanged prior to rebuilding. The first four A4 pacifics were also finished in grey (and silver) livery when newly built. It was intended to name No. 10000 British Enterprise and nameplates were cast but never fitted. The engine in its original form was allocated to Gateshead so that it was close to the Tyneside firm of Yarrow who had played a major part in design of the boiler. It did not suffer from any significant ailments but was often out of traffic for periods.

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permissible within the loading-gauge. This left no room above for standard features such as a dome, chimney and safety-valves. Instead, working steam was simply taken from the highest, hottest part of the boiler, the chimney was set on the sloping smokebox between the deflector wings below maximum height, and the safety-valves were sited forward on the curved top section on the right-hand side. No. 10000 weighed 166 tons in working order, the locomotive 103 tons 12 cwt. and tender 62 tons 8 cwt. Set on eight 4ft. 2in. diameter wheels, the tender carried coal and water stocks of 9 tons and 5,000 gallons respectively.

Weight of adhesion was 62 tons 10 cwt., maximum axleload 21 tons and Tractive Effort calculated at 32,000lbs.

The 450lb per sq. in. pressure was too great for standard locomotive fittings, so specially robust regulator valves, safety valves, injectors and cab fittings had to be crafted.

coupling rods were standard components as fitted to LNER pacifics. Piston valves controlled cylinder steam flow. Those of the HP cylinders were 6ins. in diameter with a maximum travel of 613/16ins; the LP valves 8ins. with maximum travel of 611/16ins. Outside-fitted Walschaerts gear operated the LP valves. The HP valves worked through a rocking shaft arrangement linked to these motions, rather than by additional, inside-mounted gear. This system had several advantages. It was very successful and a well-known Gresley ‘trademark’ incorporated in many of his creations. Construction and maintenance costs were reduced, plus the need for bulky mechanisms between the frames was eliminated, permitting large, efficient bearings on the driving axles.

‘Hush-Hush’ was given two sets of steam-powered reversing gear, between them producing optimum efficiency. One set was connected to the external Walschaerts motions, the second providing independent control and adjustment for cut-off of the HP valves. Also provided were two regulator valves. The main unit admitted steam to the HP circuit in the normal manner.

In a unique procedure, a second valve 1 inch in diameter admitted high-pressure steam to the LP cylinders, although solely to assist in starting and would be shut off immediately the train was under way. A safety-valve was fitted as a precaution, set to open if LP cylinder pressure exceeded 200lbs per sq. inch.

Completed in November 1929, No. 10000 began extensive testing the following month. It soon became apparent all was not well. The blast-pipe was too tall and wide, the superheater elements were burning from extending too near the firebox, and the injectors were inadequately proportioned. The superheater and blast-pipe were reduced in size and the injectors increased during April of 1930, when the opportunity was also taken to increase maximum HP valve cut-off to 90%, aimed at reducing steam consumption at speed.

More testing followed, this time with encouraging results.

With teething troubles then apparently cured, No. 10000 entered full operational service on 20th June, initially showing great potential on passenger expresses including ‘The Flying Scotsman.’ A Valentine’s postcard of the day depicted her on this very duty. Unfortunately the superheater again proved troublesome and the main regulator valve began leaking when its levers distorted under the force required in moving them. It was also realised the workload was not being distributed equally between the HP and LP cylinders, a common fault with compounds. The locomotive was duly sent to the LNER’s Darlington works where these three matters were solved by; shortening the superheater elements, fitting a new regulator valve with a spring-closure, and lining the HP cylinders to reduce their internal diameter from 12ins. to 10. In addition, the cab’s standard fire-hole door was upgraded to a three-part counterbalanced version, a modification was made to ensure the superheater elements remained charged with steam when the engine was

No. 10000’s wheel arrangement was unique. The boiler/ smokebox section was mounted over four 3ft. 2in. leading bogies and six 6ft. 8in. driving wheels. The firebox and cab, occupying almost a third of the engine’s length and of considerable weight, required to be carried over two pairs of 3ft. 2in. trailing bogies. The resulting wheel arrangement was often referred to as 4-6-4. Known as the Hudson or Baltic arrangement, this was not strictly correct in the W1’s case. The trailing wheels were fitted as two individual pairs, the fore pair within the main frames and the rear two in a pivoted Bissel truck. As such, 4-6-2-2 is more accurate, although such an anomaly, mention was usually avoided.

Instead of the traditional locomotive face, Hush-Hush had an elegantly sloping smokebox. This was the forerunner of the feature applied to the A4s, although the W1’s front was also shielded between deflector wings for lifting smoke clear to avoid obscuring the driver’s vision. Locomotive and tender were 74ft. 5ins. in overall length, the locomotive constructed to a height of 12ft. 11ins, the maximum 42

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c.1935 • No. 10000 at Ripon on an Up express. Photo: TOPticl Digital Memories © Transport Treasury

concern, resulting in the renowned steam engineer André Chapelon being consulted. His recommendation was to increase the temperature of the used HP steam prior to LP use, so an intermediate 153 sq. ft. superheater was installed.

Tests showed this produced an effective increase of some 100ºF and the locomotive returned to duty in June 1934.

stationary, and a soot blower was fitted for cleaning deposits from the boiler’s water-tubes. No. 10000 returned to duty on 17th January 1931 but was again laid up within weeks when the new fire-door’s bearing failed.

Despite these inconveniences, in service the engine had proved powerful and reliable, easily handling 500 ton expresses over prolonged periods. This prompted Gresley to submit a report to the Institute of Mechanical Engineers, both praising her achievements and conveying his optimism for the future. Ironically, following this the locomotive was to spend long periods out of commission for repairs and sundry modifications. In April of 1932 she needed boiler work and replacement of the reducing-valve on the manifold, which was failing to open correctly.

During May and June of the following year, several variations of the advanced Kylchap (Kylälä-Chapelon) blastpipe/chimney system were experimented with.

The following month, a cowl was installed between the deflector wings to improve smoke clearance. The engine resumed service but then in the August further repair work became necessary and once again No. 10000 was despatched to Darlington. Soon after, Gresley accepted the inevitable; his revolutionary engine would never come up to expectations. Since completion, it had spent an embarrassing, and worse still, non-revenue earning, 1,105 days out of commission for repair, modification and testing, and the trend seemed likely to continue.

In May 1933 she needed her first major overhaul and was sent to Darlington works. During these proceedings, a still smaller blast-pipe was fitted plus additional water-tubes to connect the boiler’s front and rear water-drums. Also addressed was a problem of boiler heat-loss effecting steaming. Aluminium foil insulation was installed and the matter fully investigated. The cause was found to be air leaking into the outer casing. Despite successive attempts, the problem was never to be fully eliminated. Condensation in the LP cylinders while stationary was also giving

When operational, admirable pulling power was frequently undermined by poor steaming. Further, the cost of the Yarrow boiler’s specialised maintenance was far outweighing fuel economy, itself well short of the target.

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Two post-1937 views of No. 10000 in its rebuilt form, unfortunately the locations are unrecorded.

Photos: Milepost 92½ © Transport Treasury

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impressive 41,437lbs, the tractive effort made it nominally the most powerful passenger locomotive in Britain.

service, although fortunately not for scrapping. Having made one last run from Darlington in her original form on 13th October 1936, she was rebuilt at the LNER’s Doncaster works during 1937. The new locomotive was given a streamlined exterior akin to that of the A4 pacifics but keeping the original wheel arrangement. The frames were also re-used, although 18in. had to be trimmed from their length to accommodate the new concept. The four compound cylinders were replaced with three simpleexpansion units 20ins. diameter by 26ins. stroke, their valves operated by outside Walschaerts gear and of course, Gresley’s rocking shaft system.

Several livery styles were borne through the W1’s operation. In original form it was painted in dark grey set off by eight silver boiler bands. Post-rebuild, it received Mallard-style Garter Blue with black frontage. This gave way to all-over wartime NE black in April 1942. Garter Blue was re-adopted in 1946. After nationalisation, dark blue lined with white was applied in 1951.

The following year, the locomotive received standard BR green with orange and black lining, along with the new running number 60700, bearing both until withdrawn on 1st June 1959. Despite historic status, she was not selected for preservation, although one of the tenders has survived.

Numbered 5484, this served the locomotive from the beginning until 1948. As for the original Yarrow boiler, its days of powering a locomotive were over. It was sent to Darlington works for use in research. Having finally outlived its usefulness, it was dismantled in April 1965, surviving the rebuilt W1 by close to six years. With hindsight, the LNER never again ventured into highpressure technology.

The Yarrow boiler was replaced by a normal fire-tube type of 6ft. 5ins. diameter which produced a conventional steam pressure of 250lbs/sq. inch. This was given a total evaporative surface of 3,346 ½ sq. ft, including a large superheater of almost 749 sq.ft. Heat was provided by a firebox with a grate area of 50 sq.ft. Total operational weight was 172 tons 16 cwt; 107 tons 17 cwt for the locomotive and 64 tons 19 cwt. for the tender, which held the same quantities of coal and water as the original.

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July 1955 • No. 60700 on a Down express passing Wood Green.

Photo: Jim Flint/Jim Harbart © Transport Treasury

No. 60700 departing from Peterborough.

Photo: H. Cartwright © Transport Treasury

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1958 • Class W1 60700 at Hornsey. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury

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WITHAM TO BRAINTREE – A JOURNEY IN 1957

BY DAVE BRENNAND • PHOTOS JACK SULLIVAN

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WITHAM JUNCTION • No. 61637 Sandringham Class B17/6 No. 61637 Thorpe Hall thunders across the junction at Witham with an express from Liverpool Street on the 22nd September 1957. Most trains on the Braintree branch were steam hauled in 1957 by F5 Worsdell 2-4-2T tank engines, but the following year they were with withdrawn in favour of new DMU classes.

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T

his is a black and white journey over a lesser known Essex byway that has become a great success in terms of increased train services, electrification and investment over the decades since these images were recorded on the camera of the late Jack Sullivan in 1957.

only used for 21 years until the much larger double-storey brick built structure on a different alignment was constructed by the Bishops Stortford, Dunmow & Braintree Railway (taken over by the Great Eastern Railway in 1863 prior to construction), opening on the 22nd February 1869.

The original station building survived for well over one hundred years, being reused as offices in the goods yard.

Passenger services between Bishops Stortford and Braintree ceased on the 1st March 1952, but freight traffic, (mainly sugar beet at Felsted), kept the line open until 1969, when the Braintree to Felsted section officially closed and freight traffic from Dunmow also ceased. This left just the Bishops Stortford to Easton Lodge section open for Geest’s banana traffic, which in turn succumbed to closure in 1971. The last train over this section was an Enthusiasts’ Special comprising of Class 31 diesel No. D5637 and two brake vans on the 27th July 1972. It seems inconceivable now, but Witham to Braintree was listed for closure in the 1963 Beeching Report. Thankfully, a very strongly

The collection is now owned by Richard McLeish who has kindly given permission for their publication; believed to be the first time they have been seen by the wider world.

The Witham to Braintree line was first proposed by the Maldon, Witham & Braintree Railway Company in 1845, but the company was short-lived and was quickly taken over by the more powerful and better financed Eastern Counties Railway under the direction of ‘The Railway King’, George Hudson. By mid-1847 work had commenced and it is recorded that over one thousand navvies were forging ahead on the Witham to White Notley section. The original Braintree station opened on the 2nd October 1848.

This was a simple single storey wooden building, and was

WITHAM JUNCTION • A better view of the overhanging Witham Junction signal box on 22nd September 1957. The box was of the GE Type 7 ‘elevated’ style, opening in 1893. It closed on 8th May 1960, to be replaced by a modern box on the opposite side of the line. Although the replacement structure no longer carries out any signalling functions, it still stands intact.

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WITHAM TURNTABLE • A short spur off the Braintree branch gave access to a small turntable. The gate on the left protected the macabrely named Cut Throat Lane Level Crossing, which was mainly used by Crittalls Window Company employees living on the east side of the town. The footpath survives to this day. Trains are still limited to 10 mph on this very sharp curve.

supported local Campaign Committee saw off the threat of closure and the line was officially reprieved in 1966. Longer Diesel Multiple Units were then provided for the ever increasing numbers of passengers, and the Committee’s efforts were further rewarded in 1976 when electrification was agreed to by the BR Board. The first electric train left Braintree on 31st October 1977. Some of the accompanying photos show a very healthy flow of wagon load traffic in 1957, and ten companies had private sidings within the yard. By 1969 freight traffic at Braintree had considerably declined, but a reprieve came in the form of the Shellstar Company deciding to use rail for deliveries of pre-packed fertiliser from its Ince factory. These trains were often Class 37 hauled and ceased circa 1991.

suffered from the attention of the 1963 Beeching Report and closure came swiftly on the 7th September 1964. Local opposition was quite weak at the time, which was shortsighted. The majority of the trackbed survives and is now known as The Blackwater Trail. The ornate terminus at Maldon is a Listed Structure and beautifully preserved.

Today, the line is listed amongst 85 potential schemes in the Department for Transport’s Restoring Your Railway Fund. The town’s population now exceeds 25,000 and new housing estates crop up regularly. A strong case exists for restoring trains to the town, but only time will tell.

I would like to express my gratitude to Richard McLeish for supplying all the photos, Dave Underwood and Paul Lemon for background information and Andy Grimmett for his wealth of signalling knowledge.

Looking briefly at the other side of the GE Main Line at Witham, the much-loved branch line to Maldon East also 51

WHITE NOTLEY • The rural charm of White Notley station and signal box on the 22nd September 1957. Jack’s notes tell us that the GE Type 7 signal box had its lever frame removed some 30 years before he took this picture and the structure was being used as an office. The gates are hand worked, most likely by a crossing keeper living in the station master’s house on the left.

WITHAM CRITTALLS SIDING • By very good fortune Jack Sullivan took photographs of obscure infrastructure and this is a very rare image showing the siding at Witham serving the Crittalls Window Factory. The company had other premises in Braintree and between the two sites in the early 1960s over 2,800 tons of window frames were being exported by rail through the London Docks. This changed dramatically in the 1970s as more and more freight was being lost to road haulage.

By 1974 Crittalls stopped using this siding and the traffic from Braintree ceased about the same time.

WHITE NOTLEY • Nothing has changed since the days of the LNER. This is White Notley looking towards Witham on the 22nd September 1957. The platform held just two coaches.

The following year saw the introduction of German Waggon & Maschinenbau 4-wheel railbuses, but these were unpopular due to not having enough seats during peak periods and a lack of storage space for parcels, luggage and bikes. They were somewhat short-lived on the Braintree branch and removed in favour of two-car units.

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CRESSING LAMP • This beautiful ornate Great Eastern Railway oil lamp graced the station for several decades.

These were lit by hand every evening and turned off every morning. A way of life that has largely disappeared with the exception of some preserved stations still retaining them.

Hopefully, it survives in a museum somewhere.

CRESSING • 22nd September 1957. Time stood still at Cressing for decades. This was an unhurried period and the sight of a lone single 16 ton mineral wagon was not unusual at many rural stations. These were dropped off from local freights or mixed trains and the coal would be several weeks supply for the station master’s house, the signal box fire and the waiting room fires.

The station was originally named Bulford which opened in 1893, and became Cressing in February 1911.

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BRAINTREE GOODS JUNCTION • When the new Braintree station opened in 1869 a signal box called Braintree Goods Junction was sited here. The line to the right was the original line to the old wooden terminus and latterly the goods yard. The line veering to the left is on the new alignment on the Bishops Stortford and Dunmow line. The signal box was demolished in 1931 and the junction was then controlled by a ground frame.

Note the ‘D’ sign on the signal post. This was a ‘Fireman’s Call Plunger’ which, when pressed, would remind the signalman at Braintree that a train was standing at this signal.

BRAINTREE SHED – No. 67230 • This diminutive and rarely photographed engine shed was a sub-shed of Colchester (30E) and did not have its own code. The main purpose was to house the yard pilot, but undoubtedly the first train out of Braintree every morning would have required the engine to have been ‘lit up’ several hours before departure.

Similarly the last arrival each night would require the engine ‘to be put to bed’. The loco in the foreground is GER Worsdell 2-4-2T tank engine No. 67230. Jack’s notes tell us that tucked up behind is GER J68 ‘Buckjumper’ 0-6-0T No. 68663.

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BRAINTREE YARD • A delightful view of the extensive Braintree yard in its heyday on the 22nd September 1957. The main line to Braintree station is out of view on the right and we are looking towards Braintree Goods Junction. At least ten companies had premises surrounding the yard, many of which had their own private sidings. Some of the merchandise handled included coal, cattle and oil, malt brewing and a gas works. A brick and tile works opposite the station had its own siding which crossed the access road.

BRAINTREE & BOCKING • This is the 1869 station captured in 1957. It stands largely unaltered today complete with the canopy.

Sadly the signal box closed in 1977 when the line was electrified. Only the right hand platform was used for passenger trains, but it can clearly be seen that the left hand track has shiny rails, which were polished by daily freight trains. This traffic dwindled in the 1960s and the Braintree to Felsted section officially closed in 1969. The station was renamed Braintree & Bocking on 19th October 1910 by the GER. The appendage was officially dropped in 1974 when Bocking Urban District was abolished. To this day Bocking is an non-parish district.

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THE CLICKETY

A

BY PAUL KING

t the grouping in 1923, the London & North Eastern Railway acquired two tramway systems. The older of the two, the Cruden Bay Tramway, served the North British Railway’s hotel at Cruden Bay, Aberdeenshire. It carried passengers and goods from the nearby station of the same name up to the hotel, a distance of 930 yards.

Built to a gauge of 3ft 6½in, it opened on 1st June 1899. It used two single deck tramcars, both capable of towing a wagon. It closed to passengers on 1st November 1932, when the Boddam branch, on which Cruden Bay station was situated, lost its passenger service. The tramway remained in use until the end of 1940 for goods traffic, including laundry, the hotel being the main laundry facility for the North British Railway.

The official title of the other tramway inherited by the LNER was the Grimsby District Electric Railway, although by the grouping its name had changed to the Grimsby and Immingham Electric Railway. Regardless of which name it was known by, it was a tramway with street sections at either end of a cross-country section.

The building and development of the new dock at Immingham, five miles west of Grimsby, required a transport system that could carry the workforce from the Grimsby and Cleethorpes area to and from the dock. In October 1909, two contracts were awarded to build a tramway from Grimsby to Immingham. The first contract was to build a tramway along the south side of the Grimsby District Light Railway, opened in 1906, from Pyewipe, on the western edge of Grimsby, to Queens Road at

THE TRAMWAY STATION at Corporation Bridge was built with both a parcels and ticket office as well as a refreshment room. It is seen here on the 28th April 1954 looking extremely smart. Note the two weighing machines, commonplace in those days. Note also the two benches, when exploring the National Railway Museum at York, if you have come across a bench with the nameboard Grimsby C.B., it is one of these two. The building survived for many years after the closure of the tramway, becoming a yacht chandlers and a saddlery. Unfortunately, it has now been demolished. Photo: H. C. Casserley, Paul King Collection

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21st June 1953 • The view from the opposite direction just under a year earlier. The replacement bridge over the Alexandra Dock is on the right. Although built to accept double tram tracks, these were never laid due to Grimsby Corporation running down its tramway system.

In the background Victoria Mills still exists but is no longer used for milling, it has been converted into flats. The tram, No. 4, is one of the original long cars which opened the service in May 1912. It survived, as will be seen below, until the very end of the tramway.

Photo: Paul King Collection

At Corporation Bridge the terminus was provided with a waiting room and parcels office. Double track at the terminus, the line became single less than 100 yards into the journey and remained so, as a street tramway, along Corporation Road and Gilbey Road before entering open country, after crossing the GCR’s Great Coates branch via Cleveland Bridge. A distance of 1¼ miles. Along Corporation Road, there were passing places at Yarborough Street and Beeson Street, on Gilbey Road the only passing place was at Spencer Street, also known as Little Coates School. After descending Cleveland Bridge, the tramway curved away from the road in a long left hand curve until it met the Grimsby District Light Railway adjacent to the maintenance depot and storage sidings for the trams at Pyewipe. For those unfamiliar with the name, Pyewipe is the local name for a lapwing.

Immingham. The second was for a street section, running from Pyewipe along Gilbey Road and Corporation Road to a terminus at Corporation Bridge. Across the bridge, the Great Grimsby Street Tramways ran along Victoria Street and a triangular junction connecting the two systems was envisaged, enabling through running from both Cleethorpes and the centre of Grimsby to the new port.

Both systems were built to the standard gauge of 4ft. 8½in. but the idea of through running never came to fruition.

The condition of Corporation Bridge, which crossed the Alexandra Dock just beyond the terminus, was such that it was deemed unsafe and would need replacing.

Unfortunately, this didn’t happen until 1928, by which time the tramway system in Grimsby was in decline. Therefore the link was never made.

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Inset: The signalling system at passing places was simple.

The driver of the tram approaching the passing place raised his hand, the number of digits raised indicated how many trams were entering the loop. In this case it is two.

Corporation Bridge is visible in the background as car 11 swings into the first passing place at Yarborough Street. Corporation Road was, at the time, still a busy shopping area with many familiar and much missed shops. On the right is the Corporation Arms, familiarly known as Kingy’s (author’s note: nothing to do with me!). Car 11 was from the second batch of Brush built vehicles and entered service in 1913.

Although on the depot on the last day, it was withdrawn, having suffered a sidelong collision with car 16. Photo: Paul King Collection

the first week. After this, a quarterly franchise car was the only traffic it saw. The overhead wiring was taken down in 1946, the track remained in situ until 1955.

The tramway passed through open country for 4 miles before reaching Queens Road at Immingham. There were eight passing places, appropriately numbered 1 to 8.

Passing Place No. 1 was on the curve from Gilbey Road to Pyewipe. No.2 was just to the west of the depot and No. 3 a further 780 yards away at Woad Lane, Great Coates.

Passing Places 4, 5 and 6 didn’t connect with any roads or lanes. No. 7 was where the tramway crossed Marsh Road and No. 8 at Kiln Lane, both Stallingborough. As it approached Queens Road, where it terminated, the line became double track. The line opened on 15th May 1912.

In hindsight, this does appear to be an opportunity missed.

An extension into Immingham, which was in the process of transitioning from a village to a small town, would have certainly created more business.

The second extension saw the tramway curve 90% to the left onto Queens Road where the trams reversed. The tramway ran along Queens Road as a street tramway, crossing the Light Railway via a bridge. On reaching the banks of the Humber estuary the line separated from the road and ran alongside it to the terminus adjacent to the lock gates at Immingham. This section opened in November 1913.

In 1910, two extensions were authorised. The first ran from the terminus at Queens Road towards Immingham village, terminating alongside the new loco depot entrance.

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and 6.30pm. The journey took 20 minutes with a maximum speed on the street section of 12 mph and 25 mph on the country section. The fare was 5d (2½p). When the extension onto Immingham Dock opened the first car was retimed to leave Grimsby at 5.15am.

Power was supplied by overhead wires, this being generated from the power house on Immingham Dock and transmitted through three substations. The first was adjacent to the grain silo, on the dock estate. The second was near to Passing Place No. 6 and was known, appropriately, as Traction Substation. The third was alongside the maintenance depot at Pyewipe.

Due to the mixture of starting and finishing times around the dock estate and at the loco shed, it was necessary to implement a 24 hour schedule, almost immediately. This was withdrawn at the start of World War I, resuming afterwards. A timetable for 1929 gives a good example of the service being offered in the inter war years. The first car left Grimsby at 1.50am with further departures at 3, 4.15 and 5.20am. From then until 7.50pm a half hourly service was maintained, although there were two additional departures at 7.10 and 8.30am. After the 7.50pm departure, there were further services at 8.50, 9.20, 9.50, 10.30, 10.50

The initial service saw the first tram depart Corporation Bridge at 5.10am, this was followed by a further three cars, at five minute intervals. (Note that the trams were always referred to as cars.) The service was hourly from then onwards until 7.15pm. At Immingham, the first departure was 5.45am with an hourly service being maintained through to 7.45pm. The three additional cars from the outward morning journey remained at Immingham during the day, returning during the evening rush between 5.30

28th August 1955 • The ex-Gateshead & District trams, with their clerestory style roofs, looked older than the native trams, even though they were built in the 1920s. Car 33, former Gateshead 59, is seen at the foot of Cleveland Bridge and is about to enter Spencer Street, or Little Coates School, passing loop.

It is working one of numerous special charters, this one organised by the Light Rail Transport League, prior to the closure of the Grimsby street section. Due to unforeseen circumstances, this section remained open for a further 10 months. Photo: Paul King Collection

Opposite top: 28th August 1955 • A second view of the Light Rail Transport League charter. It is at the other side of Cleveland Bridge, which it will shortly cross. The street furniture is fascinating, especially the instruction not to overtake trams for 500 yards, the length of the bridge.

To the left is Great Coates Sidings No.1 signal box, a remarkable survivor, it still sees occasional use today, when trains for Immingham are diverted over the Grimsby District Light Railway. Cleveland Bridge, named after the company that built it, was never referred to as such by locals, it was The Tip, as that is how it was built, by tipping soil and aggregate to make a bridge.

Opposite bottom: Immediately behind the photographer of the previous picture was Cleveland Bridge Halt. On the closure of the street section, this would become the Grimsby terminus. Tram 15 is approaching from Immingham with passengers ready to jump off as it comes to a stand. Judging by the number of bicycles this could be a Sunday as in the week there would be several hundred stored around the site whilst their owners were at work in Immingham, and scarcely a lock between them. Photos: Paul King Collection

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World War II, sometimes carrying prodigious loads. One driver recalled that on the last journey one night his car carried 151 people, it was part of a convoy of 6 vehicles which carried, in total, an estimated 1,200 passengers. By the end of the war, the cars were very run down and in a poor state of repair. To help maintain the service, three redundant trams from Newcastle were acquired. Somewhat antiquated, they were built by Hurst, Nelson and dated from 1901. Taking the numbers of the three withdrawn short cars they were fitted with upholstered seating, the GCR cars and subsequent acquisitions all had wooden seats.

(Saturdays excepted) and 11.30pm. The Sunday service was much reduced with departures at approximately 90 minute intervals from 3.00am.

In the reverse direction, the first car left Immingham at 12.20am. This was followed by further departures at 2.20, 3.45, 4.45 and 5.50am, then half hourly until 8.20pm.

The evening service saw departures at 9.20, 10, 10.20, 11 and 11.20pm (Saturdays excepted). Additional cars left Immingham at 5.00 and 5.05pm, except for Saturday, which saw an additional departure at midday. The Sunday service was similar to that from Grimsby, commencing at 12.20am. The cheap day return fare in 1935 was 1 shilling (5p) with a workman’s return being 7½d (3p).

In 1951 a further 19 vehicles were acquired from Gateshead & District Tramways. One was damaged beyond repair on delivery, another replaced No.5 as the engineering car. The other 17 entered service as cars 17-33. This enabled the withdrawal of accident damaged No. 2 in 1951, Nos. 9 and 13, both life expired, in 1952, and accident damaged No. 10, also in 1952. The ex-Newcastle vehicles following in 1953.

The only further withdrawal prior to closure being ex-Gateshead 27 in 1959. The bodies of this vehicle and No. 10 were used as store sheds at the depot.

From September 1928 to December 1929 there was a short lived service from Corporation Bridge to Spencer Street.

This ran half hourly providing the Grimsby Street section with a tram every 15 minutes. It was replaced with a bus service operated by Grimsby Corporation.

The initial scheme envisaged an electric tramway from Corporation Bridge to Pyewipe, from where a steam service would be operated. This was reflected in the initial order for vehicles. The GCR ordered eight trams from Brush Electrical Engineering, four with seating for 64 + 8 tip up seats and four with seating for 40 + 8 tip up seats.

The 64 seaters were the longest trams built for use in the UK at 54ft 2in. It is thought that the shorter cars, 38ft 10in, were intended for the through services to Grimsby and Cleethorpes where tighter radius curves would have precluded the use of the longer vehicles. They were delivered in 1911, by which time the decision to take the electric service through to Immingham had been made.

This required further vehicles and another four arrived from Brush in 1913 followed by a final four, ordered from Brush but completed in the GCR’s carriage works at Dukinfield. The long cars were numbered 1-4 and 9-16, the short cars 5-8.

Post-World War 2, passenger numbers continued to flourish but the infrastructure was ageing and major investment would soon be required. The beginning of the end came on 30th June 1956 when the section along Corporation Road and Gilbey Road closed. The new terminus being on the Pyewipe side of Cleveland Bridge.

From the end of September 1959 all services were withdrawn except at peak times. This continued through to closure. The final day was 1st July 1961. I travelled from Cleveland Bridge as far as Queens Road, where I alighted for a quick, surreptitious, visit to the nearby loco shed.

Walking through the dock estate, I boarded the first of the trams to depart at the end of the service. A convoy of six trams had left Cleveland Bridge at 1.30pm. The return was scheduled for departure at 2.03pm and, appropriately, Car 1 led the way, accompanied by exploding detonators, with Car 4 bringing up the rear, adorned with a headboard bearing the legend ‘Grimsby–Immingham Electric Railway – Last Day July 1st, 1961.’ Arriving back at Cleveland Bridge around 2.30pm, those fortunate enough to travel left with their photographs and memories. The trams were taken to the depot and the tramway closed forever.

By all accounts, the short cars were little used as they didn’t have the required capacity for the services to Immingham. With the prospect of through running into the centre of the town not materialising they were used on the short lived local service. When that finished there was little for them to do and they were withdrawn in 1931.

Nos. 6, 7 and 8 were scrapped, No. 5 was converted for use by the engineering department and survived until 1954.

The twelve long cars maintained the service throughout

Why ‘The Clickety’? The sound the trams made as they ran across open country was a distinct clickety-clack. The tramway becoming familiarly referred to as ‘The Clickety.’

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Above: The two road maintenance shed was built where the tramway joined the Grimsby District Light Railway at Pyewipe. It was a simple two road structure, the trams spending their entire lives outside, except when in for maintenance. Car 1, from the first batch, and car 11, from the second batch, stand outside, together with two other ex-GCR cars.

Below: Views of the traction substation adjacent to the former No. 6 Passing Place are extremely rare. It is seen here, with ex-Gateshead car 33 alongside, during the LRTL charter of 28th August 1955. It was soon evident that eight passing places was too many. Nos. 3 (Woad Lane), 4, 6 and 7 (Marsh Road) were removed in 1917. Photos: Paul King Collection

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TRAMWAY TERMINUS IMMINGHAM DOCK

Dock Boundary

IMMINGHAM DOCK

Immingham Loco Shed

QUEENS ROAD This portion not in use

NOT TO SCALE

Short car 5 is seen here at Passing Place No.5, in use as the engineering car, a role it played from c.1931 to withdrawal. Behind it is the tower wagon, purchased on closure by J. H. Price for £10. It is believed to be at the Tramway Museum at Crich.

In hindsight, one can but wonder how useful the short cars could have been to ease the pressure placed on the other vehicles during World War 2 if they had been stored rather than scrapped.

Photo: Paul King Collection

No. 3 LOOP WOAD LANE GREAT COATES

X

No. 5 LOOP

No. 4 LOOP

X

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Signage from No. 8 Passing Place, now resident in Immingham Museum.

Photo: Mike Fish Kiln Lane, Stallingborough, passing place No. 8, and car 12 is heading away from the camera towards Grimsby. Taken from the rear cab of another of the GCR cars as it comes off the loop heading for Immingham.

Nice bag! Photo: Paul King Collection

X

No. 8 LOOP KILN LANE STALLINGBOROUGH

No. 7 LOOP MARSH ROAD STALLINGBOROUGH

No. 6 LOOP

ALEXANDRA DOCK GRIMSBY

TRAMWAY TERMINUS CORPORATION BRIDGE

Tram Depot

YARBOROUGH STREET LOOP

No. 1 LOOP No. 2 LOOP

RECREATION GROUND LOOP

Cleveland Bridge

(Also known as Beeson Street)

SPENCER STREET LOOP

(Also known as Little Coates School) 65

X

Above: 24th June 1961 • The interior of car 12 and the swing back seats so familiar on the GCR cars. Many of these ended their days as garden seats in the local area, I had one for a few months, but only on loan. Between the two saloons is a compartment initially intended for parcels traffic but fitted with eight tip up seats, four each side. These were often occupied by card schools.

The photograph was taken just a week before closure.

Photo: R. M. Casserley, Paul King Collection Left: The interior of a Gateshead car and the difference is immediately obvious. Perimeter seating and no cubbyhole for illicit gambling. Photo: Paul King Collection

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Above: 23rd March 1958 • Queens Road reversal point at Immingham. Car 4 has arrived from Immingham Dock, via the bridge in the background and is in the process of changing trolley poles. The one at this end is about to be raised, the one at the other end then being lowered. Workers from the nearby loco shed, out of shot on the left, are boarding for their journey home to Grimsby. Photo: Boulter-Hancock, Paul King Collection Below: 19th May 1952 • The ex-Newcastle cars weren’t around very long and were somewhat camera shy. They never acquired the standard green B.R. livery and always looked shabby. Car 6 is looking its age as it waits out the day at Immingham after working one of the morning workmen’s services. The vehicles that operated these additional services were stabled at Immingham during the day, working back to Grimsby in the evening. Photo: H. C. Casserley, Paul King Collection

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Above: 28th April 1954 • Taken from the Humber bank, the estuary was directly behind the photographer, captures the fine building that housed the Dock Offices at Immingham. It opened, along with Immingham Dock, in 1912. Car 12 is the service tram and will shortly be departing for Corporation Bridge. To the rear are ex-Gateshead 20 and GCR 4. This pair would be returning to Grimsby later in the day with the workmen’s services. Photo: H. C. Casserley, Paul King Collection Below: The terminus at Immingham with the waiting room to the left, displaying a poster announcing the impending demise of the tramway system. Taken in the final weeks before closure, the replacement bus, in the shape of a Grimsby-Cleethorpes Transport AEC Reliance, is lurking in the background. Car 18 is on layover until the evening. Photo: Paul King Collection

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1st July 1961 • The final day and a convoy of six cars take the final passengers to and from Immingham. Departure from Immingham was timed for 2.03pm and, appropriately, Car 1 was the first to depart. I am proud to say that I was one of the passengers aboard it. This was followed by cars 12, 3, 18 and 14. Bringing up the rear, suitably adorned with a headboard, was Car 4. On its arrival at Cleveland Bridge, the Grimsby and Immingham Electric Tramway closed. It is about to depart Cleveland Bridge for the depot, seen in the background, its final movement under power. There was to be no reprieve and it was scrapped along with all but three cars, Nos. 20 and 26 from Gateshead, and Car 14, one of the GCR built cars.

All survive in preservation, along with the headboard.

Photo: Paul King Collection

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MY TRAINSPOTTING ODYSSEY – 1961 all good things come to an end

BY GEOFF COURTNEY

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ll good things, ’tis said, come to an end, and for my Ilford trainspotting days that was 2nd August 1961, when, having left school and fewer than four weeks before embarking on a lifelong career as a news journalist, I biked from home to Mill Road, on the Liverpool Street side of Ilford station, to log passing trains for the final time.

The first visit had been on 9th April 1957, and my logs from that date up to this last one were in issues 3, 4, 5 and 6 of Eastern Times. In that time I had seen steam being relegated from the Premier League and through the Championship to Division One, and now in 1961, Division Two beckoned.

My first 1961 visit was on 10th February, for 90 minutes in the evening, and the first four trains to pass by emphasised that steam was going to have a tough time defensively, for attacking with a strong forward line was D204 ex-Norwich, D5523 on its way to Parkeston Quay, D5545 with the Up ‘Day Continental,’ and D5050 on an Up freight, although this was followed by a steam fight-back comprising B1 No. 61043 on its way to Norwich with an express and No. 64697, a J20 built at nearby Stratford in January 1923, the first month of the ‘Big Four’ Grouping, running light to Goodmayes.

Then came a balancing act, with six-week-old Type 3 Co-Co D6703 (a new class for my logs that was later to become Class 37) on the Up ‘Norfolkman’ and 11 minutes later Brit No. 70003 John Bunyan on the Down ‘Hook Continental,’ but it was half-time and diesels led 5-3.

The second half followed the pattern of the first, although steam didn’t throw in the towel, thanks to B1 No. 61362 and L1 No. 67729 both on freight duty, and J20 No. 64699 running through light engine. It was, though – with one notable exception – diesel traction that dominated, with D203 on a Down Norwich, D5522 ex-Clacton, and Type 1 or Type 2 power on five freight or parcels workings and another running light.

What was the ‘notable exception’ I hear you ask? Well, the final Up Norwich express of the day thundered through a minute before I cycled the mile home, with Brit No. 70002 Geoffrey Chaucer at the helm. Diesels may have won the day, but a last-minute goal always puts a little gloss on a defeat.

Class B1 4-6-0 No. 61362, a regular entrant into Geoff’s Ilford logbooks, attracts a few glances as it travels light engine through Stratford Low Level. Photo: Dr. Ian C. Allen © Transport Treasury

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No. 61156, seen here at Parkeston Quay, played a small part in the history of Liverpool Street on 9th September 1962, when it brought in the station’s last scheduled steam-hauled passenger train, the Up ‘Day Continental.’ Geoff Courtney logged this B1 class 4-6-0 on 29th July the previous year when it travelled light through Ilford. Photo: Dr. Ian C. Allen © Transport Treasury

Three days later, on 13th February, I was back for a similar early-evening visit, albeit a little longer at nearly 2½ hours, and strangely, every train in the first 45 minutes was a Down working, with the first being Brit No. 70030 William Wordsworth on a Clacton express. Seven minutes later D5581 was heading to Yarmouth, and a few minutes after that classmate D5591 went into my logbook with a semifast to Ipswich. The latter was a newcomer to this line, as just a week before it had been transferred from the ECML shed of Finsbury Park (34G) to March (31B).

Back on the Down line, among highlights were the second and third Brits of the evening, Nos. 70007 Coeur-de-Lion with a Norwich express and 70005 John Milton on the ‘Hook Continental’ to Parkeston Quay, but surely the best highlight of them all was J15 class No. 65361 light engine with B1 No. 61362. Wither they were bound I know not, but my mention of the J15 is due to this 0-6-0 having been built by the GER at nearby Stratford nearly 72 years previously, and yet still had more than a year’s work left before being withdrawn from Ipswich (32B) in September 1962. Another pre-Grouping GER Stratford-built engine to pass by that evening, albeit not of such a venerable age, was No. 64677, a J20 class 0-6-0 that entered traffic in December 1920, and which I logged working a Down freight.

The first Up train was a freight hauled by B1 No. 61301, and then came a close-running group of three diesel-hauled expresses, D205 ex-Norwich, D5543 on the ‘Day Continental,’ and D6702 in charge of the ‘Norfolkman.’

Diesel traction continued to dominate these Londonbound proceedings, comprising D5559 from Clacton, D5630 on a goods train, and D5558 and D8234 each on parcels operations. Steam got a sole look-in late on, with L1 class No. 67728 running light, having, according to my notes, just left the electric locomotive depot on the far side of Ilford station, but I’m not sure about that departure point. However, who am I to argue with myself 64 years later?

These two February 1961 visits brought home to me the realisation that BR steam really was on its way into the history books, but fortunately I was to enjoy a few last hurrahs prior to a summer which led me to very new pastures, so 5th April found me back at Mill Road for a two-hour evening stint, and back to longing for the chime whistle of a Brit. I wasn’t to be disappointed, as early doors No. 70008 Black Prince went through the station en route 72

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Above: K1 No. 62038 of March (31B) is entered into a trainspotter’s notebook as it hustles through Grantham in 1959. The Arthur Peppercorn-designed 2-6-0 was logged at Ilford, also on freight duty, on 5th April 1961. Photo: Neville Stead Collection © Transport Treasury Below: The BR tender lettering of 1920-built No. 64673 shows this is a post-1948 image, but the J19 class 0-6-0 and its rake of elderly carriages passing a 10mph speed restriction sign at the former Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway station of North Walsham Town bring to mind the days of pre-Nationalisation, and with a little imagination, perhaps even the GER. This locomotive was logged at Ilford on 8th July 1961 still at work, albeit on freight duty. Photo: Dr. Ian C. Allen © Transport Treasury

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to Clacton, while an hour later No. 70030 William Wordsworth made an appearance heading for Norwich and not long afterwards No. 70006 Robert Burns was logged on the Down ‘Hook Continental.’ I can almost sense the joy of this trio as I type more than six decades later.

first day and nearly four hours in the afternoon of the Saturday. Steam on the Friday comprised Brit Nos. 70001 Lord Hurcomb and 70003 John Bunyan on Up Norwich and Clacton expresses respectively, and No. 70012 John of Gaunt with a Down Clacton working – these three Brits passing in the space of nine minutes – L1 class No. 67737 hauling electric stock on the Up line, and J19 No. 64667 and N7 No. 69673 both on Up freight trains.

That, though, was it Pacific-wise and almost steam-wise, for the only other non-diesels to enter my notebook were B1 Nos. 61253 on a Down Parkeston Quay express and 61287 in charge of an Up goods, J15 No. 65462 also working an Up freight, and K1 No. 62038 on a Down freight, representing a class that was less prevalent than some others.

Other than that it was diesel traction all the way, including D206 on the Down ‘Norfolkman’, D5553 on the Harwichbound ‘Day Continental’ boat train, and D6707 in charge of the Up ‘Broadsman.’ An empty DMU also passed me by, which according to my notes was heading to Wickford, although I have no idea how I knew that was its destination.

Thus Type 1, 2, 3 and 4 diesels strutted their stuff almost unchallenged, operating a variety of expresses, semi-fast, freight and parcel trains that included D6713 on the Down ‘East Anglian,’ classmate D6711 on the Up ‘Norfolkman,’ and D5545 working the Up ‘Day Continental.’

The following day’s afternoon stint started with D5531 on an Up Clacton train, and the D55xx (later Class 31) theme was to continue throughout, with no fewer than 28 of the 41 expresses, semi-fasts and freight trains I logged being hauled by these A1A-A1A Type 2 locomotives. A variety show it wasn’t.

I returned to Mill Road on Friday 30th June and the following day, for nearly three hours in the morning of the J15 class 0-6-0 No. 65460, seen here shunting the Co-operative Wholesale Society yard at Lowestoft in March 1956 carrying a bicycle on its running plate, was one of the last locomotives recorded by Geoff Courtney at his home station of Ilford, when it came through on 2nd August 1961 hauling an Up freight train, nearly 50 years after it had been built by the GER at Stratford.

Photo: Dr. Ian C. Allen © Transport Treasury

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Pre-Grouping survivor J20 class No. 64677, which was logged by Geoff Courtney on a freight train at Ilford on 13th February 1961, feels at home among the debris of the busy working shed and works of Stratford (30A) on 28th February 1959. The 0-6-0 was built there in December 1920, was allocated to the depot through much, and possibly all, its working life, and withdrawn from there in September 1961. Photo: R. C. Riley © Transport Treasury

Other than those Standard Pacifics, steam comprised just B1 No. 61375 on a Down freight and J19 No. 64673 and N7 69618 both on Up goods trains. The J19 was a GER-built engine, having been outshopped by Stratford Works in October 1920, while No. 69618, also a Stratford product, entered service in January 1924 and at the time of being logged was just two months from withdrawal.

I must give a shout-out to one steam representative, No. 61254, a not so glamourous B1 that passed through the station with the line’s flagship ‘Broadsman’ express, perhaps deputising for a failed diesel or called in because of the unavailability on this busy summer Saturday of the normal Type 4 power. Whatever the reason, the 4-6-0 was right time, although admittedly it was only just over seven miles into its 115-mile journey to Norwich.

Of the diesel hegemony, by far the most numerous was, as usual, the Type 2 D55xx series, two of which were in charge of named expresses – D5533 on the Down ‘Scandinavian’ and D5556 on the Up working – while Type 3 Co-Co power was seen on the Up ‘East Anglian’ with D6709 at the helm.

Classmate D6718 makes it into this report by coming on stage with an Up Yarmouth only four weeks after being delivered to Stratford by English Electric, in stark contrast to the elderly J19 and N7 which had been treading the boards since the 1920s.

Steam also comprised Brit No. 70012 John of Gaunt ex-Clacton, Class N7 0-6-2T class No. 69723 and J20 No. 64697 both on freight duty, and WD 2-8-0 No. 90256 running light.

Onward to a week later, Saturday 8th July, and the writing was on the wall for steam big time, for in nearly four afternoon hours only three of 36 expresses were steamhauled, and the rest by a variety of Type 2, 3 and 4 diesels.

The trio of steam comprised Brit No. 70010 Owen Glendower, who showed the diesels who was boss, at least for the day, by being in charge of the Down ‘Broadsman,’ and Nos. 70001 Lord Hurcomb and 70008 Black Prince on Up Clacton trains.

Unusually, two Clacton expresses were graced by Type 4 power, with D203 on an Up working followed two hours later by a return to the Essex resort. Later that month, on the 26th, it was slim pickings again for steam, as I was to 75

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log in the space of nearly two hours in the evening no steam in the Up direction, and only No. 70008 Black Prince on its way to Clacton, L1 Nos. 67724 and 67737 and N7 No. 69724 all running light engine on the Down line, and on a Down goods, J15 No. 65460. Two named trains that evening were the Down ‘Hook Continental’ (D6709) and the Up ‘Day Continental’ (D6706).

play a part in the line’s history when just over a year later, on 9th September 1962, it brought in Liverpool Street’s last scheduled steam-hauled passenger train, the Up ‘Day Continental.’

And so to Wednesday 2nd August, and my final ever trainspotting visit to Mill Road, more than four years after the first. The steam gods did their best during this 2½ hour evening sojourn, and managed to conjure up Nos. 70008 Black Prince and 70011 Hotspur on Down Clacton trains and No. 70007 Coeur-de-Lion also on a Down express, heading for a destination that for no obvious reason I didn’t record. Perhaps I was overwhelmed by the fact that I realised this was to be one of the very last Brits I would enter in my Ilford logs.

It was diesel business as usual three days later, on 29th July, although I did log during my 1½ hours from midmorning to noon, No. 70011 Hotspur heading to Norwich, and Nos. 70001 Lord Hurcomb, 70006 Robert Burns and 70035 Rudyard Kipling on Clacton trains.

Named trains were the Up ‘Broadsman’ in the capable hands of Type 4 D203 and the Down ‘Day Continental’ hauled by D5554, while brand-new D6720 was heading to Clacton for a spell beside the sea. Returning briefly to steam, I noted, running light, B1 No. 61156, which was to

Anyway, there was still time for an unexpected treat on the Up line, thanks to B1 No. 61254 coming through on ‘The Norfolkman,’ usually a Type 3 diesel working, although

11th August 1962 • The distinctive elevated Stratford Southern signal box dominates the background as L1 class No. 67737 approaches Stratford Low Level station, the 2-6-4T was just three weeks from withdrawal. Geoff Courtney, who logged this engine hauling electric stock at Ilford on 30th June 1961, remembers many hours trainspotting at Stratford main line station in the mid-1950s to early 1960s, and frequently dashing down to the Low Level station when a train was heard approaching. Photo: A. E. Bennett © Transport Treasury

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normal service was soon resumed when the next named Liverpool Street-bound express to go into my log was ‘The Day Continental’ with D6718 in charge.

That was to be the final named express I was to record at my home station, but I am not bringing the curtain down until highlighting two other steam engines recorded that evening: J15 No. 65460 on an Up freight and classmate No. 65462, which was running light on the Down line and which was to be the very last steam locomotive to enter my Ilford logs. These two 0-6-0s were built by the GER up the road at Stratford Works in February and March 1912, respectively, and both were to be withdrawn from Stratford (30A) 11 days apart in September 1962 after an admirable half a century in service. How appropriate is that for an end to my Ilford memories?

Left: Geoff’s final log of Down trains at his home station of Ilford, dated 2nd August 1961.

The N7 class 0-6-2 tank engines were a constant sight for steam era Eastern Region London-based trainspotters, and one of the earlier members of the class, No. 69618, is seen here on the Liverpool Street turntable, with one of the crew keeping an eye on the photographer, Dr Ian Allen. This locomotive was logged on an Up goods train at Ilford on 8th July 1961.

Photo: Dr. Ian C. Allen © Transport Treasury

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Above: 1951 • The Eastern Region’s London terminus of Liverpool Street is a hive of activity as Britannia No. 70001 Lord Hurcomb brings in ‘The Hook Continental’. In addition to boat trains such as this, among the workings of No. 70001 in the early 1960s were Norwich and Clacton expresses, as logged by Geoff Courtney at Ilford. Photo: Roy Edgar Vincent © Transport Treasury Below: 16th June 1951 • No. 70006 Robert Burns has Liverpool Street within its sights as it passes Stratford with the Up ‘East Anglian’ from Norwich, at which time it was just two months old. Ten years later, on 29th July 1961, the Pacific was logged at Ilford on a slightly less demanding Clacton turn. Photo: Roy Edgar Vincent © Transport Treasury

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Above: 28th February 1959 • Standard No. 70010 Owen Glendower has just a mile to run before it reaches its Liverpool Street destination with a Clacton train. The 1951-built Pacific was logged at Ilford on 8th July 1961 heading for Norwich with the line’s flagship ‘Broadsman’ express. Photo: R. C. Riley © Transport Treasury Below: 7th May 1963 • D6711, a Type 3 (later Class 37) diesel that entered Geoff Courtney’s Ilford logs heading the Up ‘Norfolkman’ on 5th April 1961, awaits its next turn of duty at Liverpool Street. Photo: Dr. Ian C. Allen © Transport Treasury

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THE HEADSHUNT In future issues our aim is to bring you many differing articles about the LNER, its constituent companies and the Eastern and North Eastern regions of British Railways. We hope to have gone some way to achieving this in previous issues.

Eastern Times welcomes constructive comment from readers either by way of additional information on subjects already published or suggestions for new topics that you would like to see addressed. The size and diversity of the LNER, due to it being comprised of many different companies, each with their differing ways of operating, shows the complexity of the subject and we will endeavour to be as accurate as possible but would appreciate any comments to the contrary.

We want to use this final page – The Headshunt – as your platform for comment and discussion so please feel free to send your comments to: tteasterntimes@gmail.com or write to Eastern Times, Transport Treasury Publishing Ltd., 16 Highworth Close, High Wycombe HP13 7PJ.

EASTERN TIMES

GRESLEY N2

I have only recently discovered Eastern Times. I am particularly interested in the history of the transition from steam to diesel traction and I’m looking forward to further episodes of Geoff Courtney’s Trainspotting Odyssey.

Good morning Peter I was interested to read David Cullen’s article in ET No. 6 about the N2s.

Although a small point, for the sake of historical accuracy, it should perhaps be noted that Nigel Gresley was Locomotive Engineer of the Great Northern Railway, not Chief Mechanical Engineer when the N2s were introduced. There has been some speculation over the years as to why the GNR did not adopt the title, which was widely used by other railways, but it was only introduced with the coming of the LNER. As is well known, there were a number of possible contenders from the various pregrouping companies for the post of LNER CME to which Gresley was ultimately appointed.

In issue 4 Geoff Courtney gave details of some 1958 summer observations at Ilford where I can provide a bit more information from my own research. D5504 on 24th June and D5500 on 19th August were both working the 12.45 pm from Norwich, another source records both working 8.30am Liverpool Street-Norwich on the same dates. The 8.30am Liverpool Street-Norwich was frequently a Brush Type 2 in the summer 1958 timetable. The 12.45pm from Norwich called at Shenfield at 3.1pm so would have passed Ilford about 25 minutes before the Down Broadsman. However, my research suggests that the Brush Type 2s almost completely disappeared from the Great Eastern Main Line during winter 1958/59, and this is supported by Geoff Courtney not mentioning any Brush Type 2s in issue 5.

Mention is made in the article to the Gresley Society Trust’s N2 No. 1744 (69523). The loco, which is the oldest in existence to the design of Sir Nigel Gresley, is coming towards the end of its most comprehensive (and expensive) overhaul in the preservation era. Hopefully, she will be running again on the North Norfolk Railway later in 2025. The Trust are currently fund raising to help pay for the overhaul and more details can be found on our website (www.gresley.org).

Another interesting article in issue 4 was Paul King’s A Day to Remember about excursion trains to Cleethorpes. I can add a bit more about the Cudworth trains in 1962, when they arrived at Cleethorpes hauled by Brush Type 2s based at Darnall. The departure times from Cudworth were 9.25am, 9.45am and 10.5am. The trains were booked to run up the Midland Main Line to Swinton and, after a reversal, to take the curve onto the Great Central near Mexborough. In summer 1962 a large fleet of Darnall’s Brush Type 2s were working off Mexborough shed, and available at weekends for excursion traffic. The locos arriving at Cleethorpes on the Cudworth trains may have worked only from Swinton, not throughout. Mexborough probably also provided the locomotives for the Bolton-on-Dearne, Penistone and Conisbrough excursions.

Kind regards, Philip Benham MBE FCILT Chairman, The Gresley Society Trust Class N2/2 No. 69535 at Kings Cross on 22nd February 1959. Photo: J.E. Bell © Transport Treasury

Charlotte Claxton January 2025

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EASTERN TIMES • ISSUE 7

9th September 1959 • Class N2 No. 67628 pictured after arrival at Helensburgh station with a train from Bridgeton via Glasgow Queen Street.

Photo: Hugh Davies © The Transport Treasury.

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