For detailed information and history of the locomotives of the Southern Railway and its constituents, I nominate Donald L Bradley. His titles were published by the Railway Correspondence and Travel Society (RCTS) in the 60s (and possibly early 70s - I haven't checked).
I knew D L Bradley slightly - he was a local schoolteacher - and I have an autographed copy of one of his books.
I thought I knew quite a bit about railways, but the last two posts have taken me into uncharted territory.
Don't fret - some of us wallow in the distant past far too much, and would have trouble finding out what time the next train leaves. I don't think that's a problem for you.
There will have been a number of special workings today - steam and diesel - on UK heritage railways, so I'm keeping an eye on YouTube over the next day or so.
🚂
Some years ago I took advantage of Christmas Day to walk through a railway tunnel near where I then lived. On another occasion, I walked over a viaduct. Both were on lines that were then, and still are, quite busy.
On both occasions, I'll admit that I was quite anxious that despite the system not being supposed to be operating on Christmas Day, a train might unexpectedly appear.
I once had occasion to walk along a section of the Victoria line near Vauxhall.
A “hand-signalman” came along with what looked like a box of lightbulbs and an old fashion flat iron linked to each other by a curly flex. He proceeded to place these on the relevant rails, and when the lightbulbs didn’t light up he pronounced it safe to proceed. I confess, feeling nervous about it.
We walked along the southbound line attempting to identify possible features related to the construction of that section (constructed in waterlogged strata). The northbound line, however, was still running, and once or twice we felt the draught of an approaching train followed by the roar and clatter of its passing. Somewhat disconcerting!
My favourite railway author is James IC Boyd, though he’s somewhat niche, with virtually all his books dedicated to narrow gauge lines in North Wales (of which there were, and for that matter still are, more than enough to justify such a focus).
My favourite railway author is James IC Boyd, though he’s somewhat niche, with virtually all his books dedicated to narrow gauge lines in North Wales (of which there were, and for that matter still are, more than enough to justify such a focus).
That's a different field altogether. North Wales narrow gauge railways are a religion, full of small quirky steam gods that must be worshipped in strange places.
My favourite railway author is James IC Boyd, though he’s somewhat niche, with virtually all his books dedicated to narrow gauge lines in North Wales (of which there were, and for that matter still are, more than enough to justify such a focus).
Yes - *if it's in Boyd, it must be right*! - but he also wrote the classic history of the Isle of Man Railway, as well as a very detailed account of the long-gone Schull & Skibbereen Railway in West Cork. IIRC, he says that the Boyd family once had a caravan in a field in that part of Ireland.
My favourite railway author is James IC Boyd, though he’s somewhat niche, with virtually all his books dedicated to narrow gauge lines in North Wales (of which there were, and for that matter still are, more than enough to justify such a focus).
That's a different field altogether. North Wales narrow gauge railways are a religion, full of small quirky steam gods that must be worshipped in strange places.
This is a True Saying, and worthy of All to be believed.
Yes - *if it's in Boyd, it must be right*! - but he also wrote the classic history of the Isle of Man Railway, as well as a very detailed account of the long-gone Schull & Skibbereen Railway in West Cork.
Somebody I once worked with had initially trained for Institute of Transport qualifications with London Transport. As a recent graduate, arriving at Neasden, he was somewhat disconcerted when one of the PW staff demonstrated his party trick of jumping onto a live rail, walking along it and then jumping off again.
Provided no parts of his body were simultaneously touching both live rail and anything else at all, he was demonstrating a valid engineering principle, but my former colleague felt no inclination to emulate him, and nor did any other members of his work team.
Yes - *if it's in Boyd, it must be right*! - but he also wrote the classic history of the Isle of Man Railway, as well as a very detailed account of the long-gone Schull & Skibbereen Railway in West Cork.
Still narrow-gauge ...
Yes, although Mr Boyd did write a rather rambling account of his wanderings on broad-gauge lines in Ireland. Narrow-gauge was his speciality, of course.
My favourite railway author is James IC Boyd, though he’s somewhat niche, with virtually all his books dedicated to narrow gauge lines in North Wales (of which there were, and for that matter still are, more than enough to justify such a focus).
That's a different field altogether. North Wales narrow gauge railways are a religion, full of small quirky steam gods that must be worshipped in strange places.
Which reminds me that I myself have served certain of these Deities, as Maid Marian, Holy War, and Una, of the Hunslet persuasion. I may say that They were demanding mistresses, but rewarded the efforts of their Disciples and Acolytes with much Steam, and the Puissant Hauling of Passengers...
I am happy to say that They, and many other members of the same Pantheon, are still active today.
There is, of course, the matter of trams, which my wife and I both like. We have had many rides on the Lisbon system, which is narrow-gauge; sadly the system is but a shadow of what it once was, but some revival is happening. I had one short ride in Coimbra; I have seen but not ridden on Oporto (before it became a "living museum") and Sintra (both during its 1970s closure and more recently). Budapest is another favourite, and I can just about remember a ride on the old Sheffield system.
Yes, I like trams, too, and have enjoyed rides in Lisbon (before the system was so drastically pruned), Innsbruck, Ghent, Brussels, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Rotterdam, Bordeaux and Montpellier (both relatively recent systems) and the one UK system not far away from here, at Croydon.
The lovely little Sintra tramway which @Baptist Trainfan mentions was very much in existence when Mrs BF and I visited Lisbon, but alas! we arrived a few days after the line had closed for the winter.
I suppose I should also mention the horse trams in Douglas (Isle of Man) and the wonderful Manx Electric Railway, although the MER is more of an interurban - which used to be very common in the US - rather than what we in this country usually think of as an urban tramway. I've been to Blackpool, but never ridden the trams - they have some nice modern cars now, but lots of *heritage* cars to play with on special occasions!
I am pretty sure the last time I rode on a real tram (outside a museum, anyway) was in Glasgow. It would have been 1955, I think. They were the real thing, and not like these boring, quiet, comfortable, sleek, air conditioned tubes on wheels that are setting new records for the slowest possible travel between two points in a big town near here, with incomprehensible electronic ways of obtaining your ticket. Imagine having to use a portable telephone to buy your ticket before you could get on a real tram. Whatever will they think of next - electric cars?
The lovely little Sintra tramway which @Baptist Trainfan mentions was very much in existence when Mrs BF and I visited Lisbon, but alas! we arrived a few days after the line had closed for the winter.
It now runs all year round although with only two return trips per day in winter.
Yes, I remember Sheffield trams. As well as street running in the centre, there were also stretches of reserved track on the outskirts, which has always struck me as a very sensible way to arrange things. Glasgow had trams quite late too, though I never saw them. I've also a more distant memory as a very small child of riding on trams at Rhos-on-Sea next to Colwyn Bay which were open topped, and my mother and grandmother insisting we went up onto the top deck so as to ride in the open air and look at the sea.
Driving across Belgium in the 1960s there was what I suppose could be called an 'inter-urban' than ran for miles alongside the carriageway, with what would now count as vintage cars rather like the sort I associate with Portugal, but then were just a bit scruffy and run down. There's a modernised system that runs along almost the entire length of the Belgian coast.
There's a nice part of the Blackpool system at the Fleetwood end where it runs through the street, more like a traditional system than a seaside attraction.
The trams at Rhos-on-Sea were those of the Llandudno & Colwyn Bay Electric Railway, and the interurban you saw in Belgium would have been part of the Vicinal system, which once covered the entire country! The modernised coastal line is a surviving part of this, and other sections are still in use at Charleroi.
France had a fairly comprehensive network of "Chemins de Fer Economiques" or light railways although, like their British equivalents, they appeared on the scene fairlt late and closed early. Then there were the narrow-gauge lines such as the Reseau Breton (still partially extant albeit converted to standard gauge), the Cotes du Nord system, the Vivarais and Provence systems (the latter much modernised and in service) , and more ...
Glassgow trams were (are?) painted in the colours of the Irish Republic> There must be a story behind this. How did the livery get past the Rangers fans?
France had a fairly comprehensive network of "Chemins de Fer Economiques" or light railways although, like their British equivalents, they appeared on the scene fairlt late and closed early. Then there were the narrow-gauge lines such as the Reseau Breton (still partially extant albeit converted to standard gauge), the Cotes du Nord system, the Vivarais and Provence systems (the latter much modernised and in service) , and more ...
Most - but certainly not all - French secondary railways were narrow-gauge. Apart from the preserved lines, there are at least three still working:
Part of the le Blanc-Argent line, south of Orleans;
The Ligne de Cerdagne from Villefranche to la Tour de Carol, in the Pyrenees;
The CF de Provence from Digne to Nice
Lucky me! I've been on all three...
The system on Corsica is still very much in the land of the living, too, with a long main line from Bastia to Ajaccio, and a lengthy branch line from Ponte Leccia to Calvi:
Mention of J. I. C. Boyd reminds me that many of his books (and some others) have drawings by J. M. Lloyd. Of systems, track layouts and rolling stock.
'Jim' Lloyd was well-known in railway circles in the Manchester area - he also had the job of attempting to teach me woodwork at school. I wish I could say he was a good teacher, but he really wasn't as far as wood destroying was concerned. He was an English eccentric of the best kind, absolutely obsessed with railways, tramways and local history, and extremely knowledgeable about them. His best lessons were for the 'General Paper' as it was called, in which he spoke of such matters as the history of local government, sewage disposal and tramways - absorbing stuff and among the best lessons I had at that place. (Not that that's saying much)
His penmanship - as may be seen in the books to which he contributed - was of the first order. Indeed, he was no mean craftsman in wood, either.
He also published a book about the local history of Chorlton-cum-Hardy. I have a copy and it contains, among other things, the most beautifully executed family trees of the local gentry, including their coats of arms. It covered pretty much every aspect of the history of the place and included his beautifully drawn maps as well.
Glassgow trams were (are?) painted in the colours of the Irish Republic> There must be a story behind this. How did the livery get past the Rangers fans?
I don't know. But in earlier days there was a system in Glasgow where trams were colour-coded for their route or group of routes. So you got a red tram to such a place and a blue tram to another. Very inflexible - and it surprised me a bit when a few years back a similar system was introduced for some of my local buses. Needless to say, the buses often ran off their dedicated routes which made it all a tad pointless. Now we are to have Mr Burnham's universal yellow buses instead, which is much more rational.
It surprised me a bit when a few years back a similar system was introduced for some of my local buses. Needless to say, the buses often ran off their dedicated routes which made it all a tad pointless.
The Cambridge Park and Ride had this until recently and it worked well. They had one bus with the same logos but painted grey as a "substitute".
Green, Cream, Orange, and Yellow (in various combinations) were commonly used on Glasgow Corporation's immense fleet of trams, buses, and trolleybuses for many years, although I doubt if there was ever intended to be any connection with the flag of the Irish Republic!
I think I read somewhere that they were trying to make it more obvious as to which was a motorbus, and which was a trolleybus...but who knows? The Corporation seems to have enjoyed inventing various combinations of the four basic colours.
Back to railway liveries, and I always rather liked the carmine-and-cream (aka blood-and-custard) coach livery of early BR days - some were still running in these colours in the late 50s.
It was discontinued on the basis that it was difficult to keep clean, which is true enough - except that They then went and painted Western Region coaches in chocolate-and-cream (the former Great Way Round Western colours), which must have been equally difficult to keep clean...
I always rather liked the carmine-and-cream (aka blood-and-custard) coach livery of early BR days - some were still running in these colours in the late 50s.
Speaking of liveries, of which the above are rather pleasant, did you know that apparently for a while there was a Class 42 in Deutsche Bundesbahn livery? It seems that this is genuine, and there are at least two more images, e.g. on Flickr, where there is also an explanation as to how this came about.
Weird! But hey, why not - after all, Class 42 were an adapted version of the DB V200/Class 220!
Fast forward to about 9 minutes to see the train leave.
Other videos from Mongolia show an amazing variety of liveries! This little-known system seems to be quite well-maintained, and runs through some fine scenery.
ETA: The railways in Mongolia are Russian gauge (5 feet all but dammit), so presumably through coaches to China (which uses our Stephenson gauge) have to have their running gear exchanged at the border - this happens in parts of Europe, where countries meet Russia or former Soviet states.
Talking of liveries, Hamilton Ellis did a painting of a Victorian loco which was painted in Royal Stewart Tartan for a royal train ...
IIRC, he did speculate that perhaps the tartan was actually restricted to one or more parts, or panels, on the locomotive (a North Eastern Railway Crampton)...
Either way, it would have been quite a sight...the painting is reproduced in Some Classic Locomotives, but I've not yet found an online image.
As a member of the recently somewhat beleaguered Severn Valley Railway, worth noting that they thought by painting it purple they’d get a load of publicity, extra passengers and extra spend. AFAIAA, they were correct on all three counts and at the end of the year it went back out of purple.
O yes - no doubt it was a Good Idea (pleased to hear it produced good results!), but to my Eyes (used to seeing Engines in Proper Colours™) it looked awful...
My thoughts go out to the poor driver and fireman, as always when I see this sort of an image. Who thought it was a good idea to have them exposed to the elements?!
Yes, I know this was how it was done 'in the beginning'; after all, it hadn't been much different for horseriders and coach drivers and for hundreds of years, but the driving speed and the smoke and steam of a railway, that was an entirely new thing. - I'd be curious to investigate the advent of the cab roof. I think they first put up some sort of raised screen, then with tiny windows, then with a mini roof, etc.
Another fascinating story to look into at some point.
Comments
I knew D L Bradley slightly - he was a local schoolteacher - and I have an autographed copy of one of his books.
Don't fret - some of us wallow in the distant past far too much, and would have trouble finding out what time the next train leaves. I don't think that's a problem for you.
🚂
On both occasions, I'll admit that I was quite anxious that despite the system not being supposed to be operating on Christmas Day, a train might unexpectedly appear.
A “hand-signalman” came along with what looked like a box of lightbulbs and an old fashion flat iron linked to each other by a curly flex. He proceeded to place these on the relevant rails, and when the lightbulbs didn’t light up he pronounced it safe to proceed. I confess, feeling nervous about it.
We walked along the southbound line attempting to identify possible features related to the construction of that section (constructed in waterlogged strata). The northbound line, however, was still running, and once or twice we felt the draught of an approaching train followed by the roar and clatter of its passing. Somewhat disconcerting!
Fun fact: BR operated a horse-powered tramway right up until 1963! Meet the Nantlle Railway.
That's a different field altogether. North Wales narrow gauge railways are a religion, full of small quirky steam gods that must be worshipped in strange places.
Yes - *if it's in Boyd, it must be right*! - but he also wrote the classic history of the Isle of Man Railway, as well as a very detailed account of the long-gone Schull & Skibbereen Railway in West Cork. IIRC, he says that the Boyd family once had a caravan in a field in that part of Ireland.
This is a True Saying, and worthy of All to be believed.
Provided no parts of his body were simultaneously touching both live rail and anything else at all, he was demonstrating a valid engineering principle, but my former colleague felt no inclination to emulate him, and nor did any other members of his work team.
I believe that the centre rail is not, as I thought, neutral and earthed but held at a negative voltage. (I don't quite understand this).
Yes, although Mr Boyd did write a rather rambling account of his wanderings on broad-gauge lines in Ireland. Narrow-gauge was his speciality, of course.
Which reminds me that I myself have served certain of these Deities, as Maid Marian, Holy War, and Una, of the Hunslet persuasion. I may say that They were demanding mistresses, but rewarded the efforts of their Disciples and Acolytes with much Steam, and the Puissant Hauling of Passengers...
I am happy to say that They, and many other members of the same Pantheon, are still active today.
The lovely little Sintra tramway which @Baptist Trainfan mentions was very much in existence when Mrs BF and I visited Lisbon, but alas! we arrived a few days after the line had closed for the winter.
I suppose I should also mention the horse trams in Douglas (Isle of Man) and the wonderful Manx Electric Railway, although the MER is more of an interurban - which used to be very common in the US - rather than what we in this country usually think of as an urban tramway. I've been to Blackpool, but never ridden the trams - they have some nice modern cars now, but lots of *heritage* cars to play with on special occasions!
It now runs all year round although with only two return trips per day in winter.
https://visitsintra.travel/pt/descobrir/electrico-de-sintra
Driving across Belgium in the 1960s there was what I suppose could be called an 'inter-urban' than ran for miles alongside the carriageway, with what would now count as vintage cars rather like the sort I associate with Portugal, but then were just a bit scruffy and run down. There's a modernised system that runs along almost the entire length of the Belgian coast.
There's a nice part of the Blackpool system at the Fleetwood end where it runs through the street, more like a traditional system than a seaside attraction.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llandudno_and_Colwyn_Bay_Electric_Railway
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Company_of_Light_Railways
Most - but certainly not all - French secondary railways were narrow-gauge. Apart from the preserved lines, there are at least three still working:
Part of the le Blanc-Argent line, south of Orleans;
The Ligne de Cerdagne from Villefranche to la Tour de Carol, in the Pyrenees;
The CF de Provence from Digne to Nice
Lucky me! I've been on all three...
The system on Corsica is still very much in the land of the living, too, with a long main line from Bastia to Ajaccio, and a lengthy branch line from Ponte Leccia to Calvi:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemins_de_fer_de_la_Corse
'Jim' Lloyd was well-known in railway circles in the Manchester area - he also had the job of attempting to teach me woodwork at school. I wish I could say he was a good teacher, but he really wasn't as far as wood destroying was concerned. He was an English eccentric of the best kind, absolutely obsessed with railways, tramways and local history, and extremely knowledgeable about them. His best lessons were for the 'General Paper' as it was called, in which he spoke of such matters as the history of local government, sewage disposal and tramways - absorbing stuff and among the best lessons I had at that place. (Not that that's saying much)
His penmanship - as may be seen in the books to which he contributed - was of the first order. Indeed, he was no mean craftsman in wood, either.
He also published a book about the local history of Chorlton-cum-Hardy. I have a copy and it contains, among other things, the most beautifully executed family trees of the local gentry, including their coats of arms. It covered pretty much every aspect of the history of the place and included his beautifully drawn maps as well.
I don't know. But in earlier days there was a system in Glasgow where trams were colour-coded for their route or group of routes. So you got a red tram to such a place and a blue tram to another. Very inflexible - and it surprised me a bit when a few years back a similar system was introduced for some of my local buses. Needless to say, the buses often ran off their dedicated routes which made it all a tad pointless. Now we are to have Mr Burnham's universal yellow buses instead, which is much more rational.
The trolleybuses had a rather odd (IMHO) livery:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolleybuses_in_Glasgow#/media/File:British_Trolleybuses_-_Glasgow_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1205542.jpg
Back to railway liveries, and I always rather liked the carmine-and-cream (aka blood-and-custard) coach livery of early BR days - some were still running in these colours in the late 50s.
It was discontinued on the basis that it was difficult to keep clean, which is true enough - except that They then went and painted Western Region coaches in chocolate-and-cream (the former Great Way Round Western colours), which must have been equally difficult to keep clean...
Weird! But hey, why not - after all, Class 42 were an adapted version of the DB V200/Class 220!
However 80151 has been running on the Bluebell in an unusual livery (for filming an advert): https://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/pic2/wn/2023/80151_secretsanta_davidcable2855_3dec23h.jpg
Cadbury's livery for their own locos was redder: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/39/4d/7f/394d7fe7c835f96b7db58893410a9035.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zh5705SjiE&t=464s
Fast forward to about 9 minutes to see the train leave.
Other videos from Mongolia show an amazing variety of liveries! This little-known system seems to be quite well-maintained, and runs through some fine scenery.
IIRC, he did speculate that perhaps the tartan was actually restricted to one or more parts, or panels, on the locomotive (a North Eastern Railway Crampton)...
Either way, it would have been quite a sight...the painting is reproduced in Some Classic Locomotives, but I've not yet found an online image.
As a member of the recently somewhat beleaguered Severn Valley Railway, worth noting that they thought by painting it purple they’d get a load of publicity, extra passengers and extra spend. AFAIAA, they were correct on all three counts and at the end of the year it went back out of purple.
Trebles all round.
It was in a thread on either RMWeb or National Preservation in the last couple of weeks, but I can’t remember which or find it…
Yes, I know this was how it was done 'in the beginning'; after all, it hadn't been much different for horseriders and coach drivers and for hundreds of years, but the driving speed and the smoke and steam of a railway, that was an entirely new thing. - I'd be curious to investigate the advent of the cab roof. I think they first put up some sort of raised screen, then with tiny windows, then with a mini roof, etc.
Another fascinating story to look into at some point.