North East England - Steam Days Screenshots - Large Screenshots Possible

[borderreiver]

North East England during the age of steam.
In my Prototype Talk thread titled "Keeping the Balance" I referred to J.B. Dawson's three articles, "Recollections of Country Station Life" for the North Eastern Railway Association's "Express" magazine back in 1982, when he was 70.
The station was Eastgate on the Wearhead extension from Stanhope to Wearhead, extending the NER's Weardale Branch, which began at Wear Valley Junction to the west of Bishop Auckland.

This line forms part of my County Durham route but had zero work done on it until this week.
So, while it is a work in progress I have decided to do some screenshots based upon what I have read of J.B. Dawson's articles and various NERA reference publications.

The screenshot is pre-grouping and uses information from the 1926 Carriage Roster, which is the oldest one so far discovered, and therefore the closest to NER practise, despite being 3 years after the grouping.

At 6.48 am, the first up branch passsenger train of the day, the 6.30 am from Wearhead stands at Eastgate bound for Stanhope, Wolsingham, Wear Valley Junction, Bishop Auckland and Darlington.
This was the start of Stationmaster Dawson's day. he was the father of J.B. Dawson and became Stationmaster at Eastgate in 1905. he would stay there in post until retirement in 1932.

The 3-set behind the Worsdell O Class 0-4-4T passenger loco is set No. 162, a Darlington Link B one (Sets 155 - 163 in the roster). It is listed as being YC (3-4) and 2 YB(5). This provided 24 First and 140 Third seats.
In this set on the morning the YC is provided by an old arc roof Diagam 64 (13 built 1901-02) rather than a "matching" elliptical roof Diagram 146 (14 built 1907).
Sets were not ordinarily modernised as a unit but carriages were inserted and removed as maintenance and repairs required.
Switching out a YB(5) to Diagram 151 would not be especially difficult since 26 were built and the 6-inch wider Diagram 133 which followed in 1908 ran to 12 carriages.
If by some twist of fate a YB(5) was not available then there were around 54 Diagram 53 Arc roof YBT(4) to draw on, though risking the ire of the traffic staff.

It is not a Monday, since Mondays Only, set 162 was strengthened by a WT until arrival at Darlington at 8.20 am.
WT means that either a 49ft Third (YT) or a 52ft Third (XT) would suffice.
On a Monday, as J.B. Dawson explained, the first train out of Wearhead had good connections at Bishop Auckland (8.03 am) for Tyneside and Wearside, so any weekend visitors could get themselves to their desks at a reasonable time (Darlington arrive 8.20 am, Durham arrive 8.35 am, Newcastle 9.11 am and Sunderland 9.40 am).
Of course I am relying on J.B. Dawson's recollections to justify that strengthening carriage, since the reason for it is not mentioned in the roster!

 

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A closer shot of the train.

 

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At 7.28 am the first down branch passenger train of the day prepares to depart Eastgate station for the terminus at Wearhead.
This is set No. 161, which starts its day at Stanhope, departing as empty stock for Wear Valley Junction at 5.40 am, which it reached at 6.10 am.
The next 26 minutes were spent repositioning the set and loco for the down turn with the furious loading of newspapers and mails (the 5.40 am down train from Darlington to Crook departed Wear Valley Junction at 6.27 am hauling Darlington Link-A set No. 151 (made up of 3 carriages XBC(2-3), XCG (3-4) and XB(4) with 36 First and 110 Third seats).

A Worsdell O Class 0-4-4T stands at the train's head and is likely to be from Stanhope's small shed.
The branch train is a matching set of 49ft ordinary elliptical roof carriages.

J.B. Dawson remembered that this train meant a busy spell for the Stationmaster and staff, since the Stationmaster's newspaper sale business meant many newspapers had to be labelled, stamped and swiftly despatched to the post office to make the morning delivery. The Porter would also be sent to make hand deliveries (of what J.B. Dawson did not elaborate - since he later said that the second down passenger train of the day brought parcels). perhaps those hand deliveries were of some type of premium rate parcel, or maybe invoices?

 

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At 8.15 am there is a minute to go before the 8.0 am from Wearhead departs for Wear Valley Junction.
This is the second up branch passenger train and was important for the dale's schoolchildren who went to school at Wolsingham.
the set is No.161 which formed the first down branch passenger train and the same loco, the O Class 0-4-4T of Stanhope shed.
While Wearhead had a turntable at the southeast corner of the station site, I think that the crew did not use the 13 minutes between arrival and departure to do more than run around the train.

While J.B. Dawson recalled there being "extra coaches attached, some of which were reserved for schoolgirls", the 1926 carriage roster does not reflect that.
The only morning strengthener in the roster is the MO WT attached to set 162 on the first up branch passenger departure of the day.
Would a country branch terminus Stationmaster have the authority to hold on to one, or even two 49ft carriages for strengthening without official permission?
I doubt it from reading the Mortimer's Turnips E-Book by the NERA.

 

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The world evolves. By the time of the 1932 carriage roster there were changes afoot.
Several of them apply to the second up branch passenger train from Wearhead at 8.0 am.
First of the changes is that the set is now No.192, one of Darlington's Link C sets. (How the mighty are fallen, from Link B to Link C)
However, at least Wearhead still had a passenger service.
The Amble branch and several others had lost theirs in economies during 1931 and the service was not provided by a Sentinel or Clayton Steam railcar.
Having written that, Wearhead and mid-upper Weardale was a very different proposition to Amble and a longer, quieter, harder route for a motor bus to travel, especially in winter.

Second is that the composition is now down to two carriages, BC(2-3) and BT(5), providing 12 First and 80 Third seats.
Third is that daily there is a strengthening Third attached
Perhaps that strengthener is because of the schoolchildren, or rather, with the set now providing only 80 Third seats it is just not enough to service the morning's traffic demand and, if any First Class passengers are travelling they would not tolerate Third Class passengers in the form of schoolchildren invading their compartment.
I believe that J.B. Dawson remembered the strengthening (especially the reserving of compartments for the girls!) but not the train length reduction.
J.B. was 11 in January 1923 at the time of the grouping but by May 1932 had just turned 21 (born May 1911) so spent his teenage years in the mid-late 1920s.

I am not sure what Diagram the BC(2-3) was, as the NER Diagram 147 had only three examples (1908-10) yet there were six Darlington Link C sets.
I will have to delve in to the Carriage Register.

Oh, I forgot to mention, in 1932, the first up branch passenger train, while also just a Darlington Link C 2-set, still got that strengthening MO WT, so the LNER still hoped to take those weekend visitors to Weardale back to their workplaces or homes come Monday morning.

 

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I have looked at the NER Carriage Register, which is available from the NERA. It was a typed NER document for 1906 but had handwritten updates to 1912.
Unfortunately, we do not have a similar document for the period 1913-22, but some carriages are identified for that period in the NER carriage drawings books from the NERA and (for corridor stock) from Isinglass on the drawings available there.

J.B. Dawson mentioned that when the LNER began to shorten the branch passenger trains the carriages which arrived to form the sets were older clerestory roof examples. Given that the 1932 Carriage Roster book no longer specified whether the carriages are 49ft or 52ft long then I have included 52ft types in my search. Perhaps being almost 30 years old was sufficient reason to cascade the type to Link C work.

Darlington Link C required six BC (2-3) carriages for daily use, so there may well have been a seventh maintenance spare "in the system". The carriage roster has set 194 "cancelled", so perhaps the rolling stock for that duty was kept at Darlington as the maintenance and spare set.

Diagrams: - 49ft BC (2-3) Five in the register by 1912.

D115 was an arc roof design.
Two were built in 1906. No. 3 and No. 593.

D147 was an elliptical roof design with toplights.
One built in 1908. No. 648, and two built in 1909, No. 834 and 1968.

That is the sum total of 49ft stock built to BC (2-3) up to 1912.

Diagrams: - 52ft BC (2-3) Twenty in stock on the register to 1911, then nineteen in 1912.

D75 was a clerestory roof design.
Four were built. One in 1902 (the year before the diagram drawing! No. 1403. Three were built in 1903, Nos. 3167, 3168 and 3169.

D75A was a clerestory roof design
Seventeen were built* Seven built in 1904, Nos. 3393 - 3399, Nine built in 1905, Nos. 3547 - 3555.
* - The NER Carriage Register lists twenty "Diagram 75" in stock between 1906 and 1911, dropping to nineteen in 1912 due to the conversion of 3393 to Diagram 195. I therefore presume that seventeen were of the 75A style, though probably they were never identified as 75A when in traffic, just 75.

No. 3393 was built as Diagram 75, but on conversion that was struck through and handwritten entry changes it to Diagram 195. That had one of the First Class compartments converted to a (wide) Third Class one (In other words lost curtains and the First Class seating) but I expect that wherever it was allocated after its 1912 conversion the regular Third Class passengers made a bee-line for it due to the extra ten inches of legroom.

There were more than enough Diagram 75 carriages available to supply the Darlington Link C sets.

While the compartments were no different between the Diagram 75 and Diagram 75A, the van arrangement did differ. Where the 75 had a set of double doors and a separate guard's door the 75A had just a set of double doors each side, with one of the double doors on each side having the Guard's droplight, located in the same position as on the 75. A similar change happened about this time to the BT (3) type.
Probably driven by the requirement to make economies in carriage building.

Darlington Link C required six BT (5) carriages for daily use, so, like the BC (2-3) there may have been a seventh maintenance spare "in the system".

Diagrams: - 49ft BT (5) Thirty-nine in stock on the register by 1912.

D104 was an arc roof design.
Two built, both in 1906, Nos. 1878 and 3640.

D133 was an elliptical roof design with toplights.
Eleven built in 1908, Nos. 309, 416, 775, 821, 1058, 1071, 1460, 1500, 1503, 1908 and 1909.

D150 was an elliptical roof design with toplights.
Twenty-six built in 1907, split between a batch of twenty-two in the first half of the year with electric lighting and a batch of four in the second half of they year with gas lighting.
With the build for 1907 being listed in two halves (presumably up to June 1907 and from July 1907) it can be deduced which is which. The Diagram book lists "Built May 1907 with Electric Lighting" and "Built July 1907 with Gas Lighting". The third note, "Built Mar 1908 with gas lighting 8' 6" wide" may in fact be Diagram 133 since the carriage register shows a typewritten entry 150 for 1908 but it is struck through and 133 handwritten instead. Just when that change was implemented in the register is unknown. The twenty six of May 1907 were Nos. 31, 117, 695, 803,1085, 1156, 1707, 1712, 1886, 1916, 2245, and 3677 - 3687. The four of July 1907 were Nos. 248, 810, 1142 and 1879.

The 133 and 150 differ in van door arrangements, similar to that seen with the 52ft Diagram 75 BC (2-3), though this time it is the 133 which has just one set of double doors, with one door each side having the guard's droplight, while the 150 has a separate guard's door with a set of double doors towards the end of the carriage. The 150s were built before the 133s and why this variation led to a new Diagram number from further back in the sequence and not (like the Diagram 75) issuing "150A"! When I also consider that the 52ft Diagram 18 BT (3) had van door and guard's ducket variations without any diagram change at all It makes me think that there were multiple people making decisions about carriage diagram drawing numbers!!

In any event, there were more than enough 49ft BT (5) carriages to fill Darlington Link C IF they were not clerestories. However, with J.B. Dawson saying that he recalled they were clerestories I have to look at the 52ft BT (5) type.

Diagrams: - 52ft BT (5) Ninety-eight in 1912.

D77 was a clerestory design.
Eighty-seven built. Eleven built in 1902 (the year before the diagram drawing), Nos. 203, 345, 521, 597, 710, 732, 766, 1055, 1391, 1400and 1568. Forty-two built in 1903, Nos. 171, 347, 541, 743, 1040, 1060, 1567, 1575, 1577, 1580, 1706, 1715, 1812, 1818, 1852, 1857, and 3114 - 3139. Thirty-four built in 1904, Nos. 3374 - 3391, and 3425 - 3440.

D161 was an elliptical roof design with toplights.
Nine built. Two were built in 1907, Nos. 3698 & 3699. Two were built in 1910, Nos. 1999 and 2003. Five were built in 1912, Nos. 470, 487, 492, 856 and 3571.

There were sufficient 52ft Diagram 77 BT (5) carriages to fill Darlington Link C.

 

[robd]

That's so detailed and interesting! How can the average Trainzer keep up with all the rolling stock details? I think Paulz is going to be kept busy .... and certainly in profit!

Rob.

 

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The Express articles by J.B. Dawson were an accidental discovery but have unexpectedly filled in some gaps in my knowledge. Research never really stops since no-one ever knows everything about everything. The old fellow must have gone from us for quite some time now, but I expect that he'd be tickled that his stuff was still being read forty-plus years after he wrote it. Of course the notion of a computer video train simulator would be well outside of his experience or imagination.

I guess that the average Trainzer, or most Trainzers will run something that looks right to them and can "fit" in the timeframe they are operating in.
However, for some of us, who I do not think of as either "better" or "righter" compared to other Trainzers, who want to run something which would likely have run at the place and time setting of the screenshot then I try to hold myself to a standard where the train I am running could have been seen by a real-life photographer of the day in real life of the time.

I believe that it is seriously underestimated among the UK modelling community, not just the UK Trainz community just how much variety there was in the rolling stock operating for much of the 20th century. That around two-thirds of passenger rolling stock in use at the outbreak of WWII was still of pre-grouping origin amazed me when I learned about it. At nationalisation the proportion was about half. Pre-grouping open wagons were still running around in pre-grouping liveries as late as the early 1930s.

J.B. Dawson's article reminded me that during WWI open wagons were made common user, which meant that he recalled wagons arriving at Eastgate, a small country station, in the liveries of pre-grouping companies, and this in the late 1920s/early 1930s. Of course a GER, LSWR, GNR, Furness Railway, Midland, L&Y, NBR, North Staffs, GWR or Taff Railway wagon did not likely bring a load from the locality of its owner but just how long it had been since it had actually been on home metals would likely have been difficult to ascertain. He mentioned having a Taff Railway wagon with a broken sheet rail for several weeks until a replacement could be sent from what had been the Taff Railway workshops! "Good Lord Dai, you will never guess where old number 156 has turned up needing a new sheet bar." If you have a station yard, even a small one, set in the 1920s you can justify having literally any pre-grouping or big four unfitted open wagon in the yard.

Of course, we should not forget that over much of the country in the steam era coal was the absolute king in terms of tonnage moved, wagons built, trains run and revenue earned. For the North Eastern Railway, the passenger business was almost a hobby in comparison to coal traffic. Having said that, J.B. Dawson stated that the daily outbound traffic from Eastgate (when including the three private sidings allocated to the station) amounted to 50 wagons a day. Most of that was stone. Gannister from the station, roadstone from Greenfoot Quarry, Lead ore and flourspar from a siding at Blackey's Isle (which was supplied by aerial ropeway from Rookhope), and limestone from a siding at Billings Shield. Those 50 wagons were "small potatoes" compared to the output, for example of the Shildon collieries, but for a small country branch line in rural west Durham it was welcome traffic for the company.

 

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While I have models of the 49ft Diag 147 BC(2-3) I do not have the 49ft Diag 115 BC(2-3).
When it comes to the 52ft BC(2-3) I do not have either the Diag 75 BC(2-3) or the 52ft Diag "75A" style of BC(2-3).
Likewise for the BT(5), while I have a model of the 49ft Diag 150 BT(5) and 52ft Diag 77 BT(5) I do not have models of either the 49ft Diag 133 BT(5) or 52ft Diag 161 BT(5).
I could "cheat" a bit since I do have models of the 52ft Diag 27 BCL(2-3) Lav Compo!

I would have to work my way through the 1932 Carriage Roster to try and get an idea of just how many BC(2-3) and BT(5) combinations were in use across the NE Area.
The BC(2-3) was a useful carriage for shorter sets on lines with lower traffic demand where First Class demand was low, but the company still needed to offer it for when a First Class passenger did travel.

 

[robd]

....I guess that the average Trainzer, or most Trainzers will run something that looks right to them and can "fit" in the timeframe they are operating in.
However, for some of us, who I do not think of as either "better" or "righter" compared to other Trainzers, who want to run something which would likely have run at the place and time setting of the screenshot then I try to hold myself to a standard where the train I am running could have been seen by a real-life photographer of the day in real life of the time.

Wow, that's some task! Good luck!

Rob.

 

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I have just recalled that J.B. Dawson also mentioned that while Westgate station, the next one along towards Wearhead, the branch terminus had a single platform but it also had a run around loop. Passenger trains could not pass each other there but the train crew had to take care not to arrive at Westgate station with more than 24 wagons, since if they did the loco would not be able to run around its train while at Westgate in order to shunt the two sidings which comprised Westgate's yard.

That requirement might have tested them if they could not drop off enough wagons at Eastgate due to the capacity limitations there. J.B. wrote elsewhere about 80 empty wagons being in sidings two miles west of Eastgate, which makes me think that he was referring to the double-ended siding at the southern end of the Heights Quarry Incline. If it was not in daily use for traffic from Heights Quarry then using it would not have interfered with its original purpose.

According to page 181 of Appendix B to the Working Timetable for March 1922, "Cambokeels East Siding" and "Cambokeels West Siding" are the official names of the turnouts at each end of the loop. The table says that there were two ground frames controlled by tablet.

The sidings at Blackey's Isle and Billings Shield, being private owner would likely not have been amenable to the railway company using their track for storage.

An Eastgate porter was required to supervise the labelling and working of Blackey's Isle and Billings Shield (I believe that if Cambokeels and Greenfoot Quarry ground frames were tablet controlled then it was likley the same for Blackey's Isle and Billing Shield PO sidings).

The 3rd private siding, that of Greenfoot Quarry was closer to Stanhope than Eastgate but it was allocated to Eastgate for charging purposes. While it was also within the Stanhope - Westgate token section for Eastgate its working was supervised by station staff from Stanhope. When the branch passenger train which arrived at Wearhead at 9 a.m. released its loco, there was a period of two and a half hours before it was required for the 11 am return journey in the up direction. The loco would be utilised in that period to do goods work. It took a 6-W Birdcage type brake van allocated to Wearhead and then ran to Stanhope, picking up loaded wagons en-route and returning to Wearhead with empties. Whilst it was doing that another goods train was permitted to enter the single track section from the Stanhope end to work Greenfoot Quarry. This train would then return to Stanhope without needing to proceed through the section. I would like to read the working instructions for that operation. Again according to the 1922 Working Instructions the quarry turnout connection was controlled by tablet.

Given that Heights Quarry still operates today, I do not know when or why the siding on the branch fell out of use. What I do know from the NERA Express Magazine is that during WWI increased demand for ganister and limestone for steel production meant that Ministry of Munitons took over four quarries in Weardale. One of them was Heights Quarry and The Heights Quarry Incline was built by German PoWs between October 1916 and June 1917. The incline was meant to avoid having to take production out through the restrictive route via the inclines at Bishopseat and Boltlaw on the Rookhope & Middlehope Railway to Parkhead. At some point after WWI Heights closed, since a photo from 1967 in the NERA archive is captioned it was re-opened in 1945 and an aerial ropeway constructed to replace the incline (which had already been lifted?). A photo in 1967 shows the incline trackbed and the aerial ropeway, but this is the same year that the Eastgate Cement Works opened and I have my doubts that the aerial ropeway was in use, at least not for delivery to a railhead or siding, perhaps for road transport.

 

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Eastgate Station in Weardale on the 1895 Wearhead Extension.
It is the summer of 1926, so J.B. Dawson was 15 years of age and his father had six years remaining in the job as Stationmaster.
The second down branch passenger train has arrived and will depart for Wearhead at 8.45 a.m.
This train brought few passengers but did bring the morning's parcels delivery.
The train also brought back the traincrew which took the second branch train down to Stanhope.
They swapped over with the crew which had brought the down branch passenger train to Stanhope.
This was so the train crew on the branch would end up back at their home depot at the end of the day, consequently saving on lodging overnight.
The set is No. 159, which started its day in Saltburn at 5.05 a.m. but it is not being hauled by a G5 0-4-4T.
Today, Wear Valley shed has turned out a J21 0-6-0, which often happened when a G5 had to be serviced or repaired.
The loco, when it arrives at Wearhead and is released from the branch passenger train will then have until 11.33 am to do other work, for which a 6-wheel Diagram V3 "birdcage" 20T brake van was kept at Wearhead.
The lead BT(5) has been turned out in the brand new LNER livery for carriages but the C (3-4) and trailing BT (5) are still carrying crimson lake.
There were a lot of carriages to repaint and the process took years.
In BR days, this was the same.
Steve Banks has shots on his site dated to 1958/1959 where the occasional carriage turns up in LNER teak livery, not having yet made it in to BR carmine, let alone maroon livery!



Thanks for the tip about the station building Lewisner.

 

[borderreiver]

The J21 0-6-0 on goods duty from Wearhead to Stanhope between branch passenger turns.

J.B. Dawson recollected that during the 2 and a half hours between arrival at Wearhead on the second down branch passenger train and the departure of the third up branch passenger train of the day, the loco would do a freight run to Stanhope. On this run it would pick up loaded wagons from the two private sidings at Billing Shield and Blackey's Isle. Above I have the J21 backing down on to empties in the cattle dock siding. To get the two empty coal wagons from the main siding end meant the loco towing them with a rope from the main line of the branch down in to the cattle dock siding.

This was skilled work requiring deft handling of the loco and wagons. Originally, rope shunting was permitted using the train, but an inexperienced porter almost caused a passenger carriage to be pulled over onto its side when the tow rope was attached between the carriage and the wagon(s) being towed! After that only the loco was permitted to rope shunt. There is no way to do that in Trainz so here that operation has taken place "off camera".

This would be the way a horsebox or fitted cattle wagon was attached to the passenger train, which was a regular occurrence during the summer on Saturday mornings with the agricultural show season in full flow. It could also happen on Monday mornings in connection with the livestock auction at Tow Law. That would be the excuse for a late arrival at Wolsingham school on a Monday. "Miss the train was late as cattle wagons had to be attached to the train at Eastgate." This also means that I have to look at having a couple of fitted cattle wagons built. J.B. was only 11 at the time of the grouping, so he is recollecting about LNER days. He knows about prize cattle vans and passenger trains but he specifically refers to "attaching a fittted cattle wagon or horse box to the passenger train", not "a prize cattle van".

In any event, the rope shunting and exiting the sidings with the emptiy wagons meant that the train would have been uncoupled beyond the road overbridge at the west end of the station.

With the empties attached, the J21 has drawn forward and it is the last chance for the Eastgate porter who had to label the loaded wagons and supervise the working of the two private sidings to check all is right. J.B. did not mention how the porter got to and from the sidings but I imagine that he rode with the guard for the Up journey after the wagons were attached to the train. If walking along the track, it was a quarter mile walk to Blackey's Isle, which involved crossing one bridge over a beck, but Billing Shield meant crossing the steel girder bridge over the river Wear.

The 6-W NER 20T diagram V3 brake van brings up the rear of the train as it heads out to Stanhope. It might seem like a long time between 9 am and 11.30 am but in that time there is a lot to do. The loco has to run several miles from Wearhead, collect around 12 loaded wagons from each of two private sidings, collect wagons from Eastgate, get to Stanhope, drop off the wagons, bring out empties, drop them off at Eastgate, Blackeys Isle and Billing Shield as required and then get to Wearhead. I have shown the J21 as having turned the loco at Wearhead for the freight trip to Stanhope. If it did not turn at either Wearhead or Stanhope, then it may have had to do so upon return to Wearhead. this departure from Eastgate towards Stanhope can't really be much later than 10 am or else the J21 crew will struggle to get back to Wearhead in time.

J.B. mentioned that the Up pickup goods train, which ran later in the day than this freight run, did not normally stop at Eastgate.

 

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The day's work continues at Eastgate station on the Weardale branch's Wearhead extension.

Around thirty minutes after departing Eastgate for Stanhope, the J21 is back, bringing empties for Eastgate station, Blackey's Isle PO siding and Billing Shield PO siding.
Stationmaster Dawson's coal business is down to two grades of domestic coal with the removal of the two empties earlier in the morning but more is coming.

The J21 drops off five empty open wagons for Eastgate.
They are meant to be loaded at the cattle dock but there is no time to indulge in rope shunting.
That will have to be done by the down branch pickup goods train in the afternoon.

Under way again, but not for long, as Blackey's Isle PO siding's east turnout is only a quarter mile to the west of Eastgate station.
While the loco has passed the eastern ground frame, that will remain locked as the empties need to be dropped off using the western turnout.
The middle of the train is on the bridge over the Rookhope Burn but the River Wear is quite close by to the south.
Eastgate village can be seen beyond the J21.

The western groundframe has been unlocked with the tablet and while the siding gate is unlocked and the turnout set for the siding, the J21 has drawn the twelve empties for Blackey's forward.
That has taken the J21 across the bridge spanning the River Wear and the eastern turnout for Billing Shield PO siding is actually beneath the loco.

Placing the empties in to the siding.
The western ground frame for Blackey's Isle can be seen on the left of the screenshot.
Blackey's Isle was supplied by aerial ropeway from Rookhope, which was three miles to the north and at a much greater altitude.
Rookhope had been rail connected since 1846 but the line had to negotiate the Bolt's Law incline to reach the Stanhope & Tyne route at Parkhead.
Bolt's Law was the highest point in England for a standard gauge line at 510m.
The line was closed in 1923, though the rails remained in situ until WWII.
With the closure of the Rookhope & Weatherhill Railway and the Rookhope & Middlehope Railway the aerial ropeway was the means to get lead ore and flourspar down to the Wearhead extension.

Time is ticking by.
The empties are placed, the turnout switched, the ground frame locked out and the J21 has coupled up to the remainder of the train, ready to move off and proceed to Billing Shield PO siding.

Crossing the bridge over the River Wear heading towards Billing Shield and Westgate.

The empties have been dropped off at Billing Shield, which was supplied by tub line from a quarry up the hill and not far from where the later cement works would quarry its stone.
The turnout at the west ground frame has been set, the tablet has locked the ground frame and the J21 is coupled up to the Brake Van.
Next stop is Wearhead but there will be no break there as the loco has to drop off the brake van and then couple up to the head of the third up branch passenger train.

 

[borderreiver]

The J21 at the head of the third up branch passenger train, the 11.30 a.m. from Wearhead made up of set No. 159, which arrived at the branch terminus at 9.0 am.

Running between the bridge over the Rookhope Burn and the road overbridge at the west end of Eastgate station.
This depicts a weekday, as the 1926 carriage roster has two Thirds attached to this train at Wearhead on a Saturday.
One Saturday strengtherning Third was removed at 1.18 p.m. upon arrival at Darlington with the other staying with the set for the remainder of the day.
That means one Saturday strengthener which was attached at Wearhead is at Darlington but the other will end its day at Saltburn.

Standing at Eastgate station waiting for its 11.46 a.m. departure to Stanhope.
The loco crew's first working was the 5.40 a.m. empty stock working from Stanhope to Wear valley Junction, hauling set No. 161.
However, they would have booked on some time before that, since the shed's G5 0-4-4T had to be checked over and lubricated prior to departure.
Their arrival at Stanhope at 11.52 a.m. probably marks the end of their working branch trains for the day, because if they take the train all the way to Wear Valley Junction the next down branch passenger train bound for Stanhope does not depart Wear Valley Junction until 3.57 p.m. While that length of working day may have been acceptable when the branch opened, industrial relations had moved on, meaning that twelve hour working days for footplate crew were frowned upon.

The 11.46 a.m. gets away from Eastgate, passing the main goods yard siding.

 

[borderreiver]

I am back in Eastgate after a spell in-game spent in W Yorkshire.
1932. The year in which J.B. Dawson's father died and the end of Dawson's residence in Weardale.
Changes are evident since 1926.
The LNER has implemented economy measures since 1928, meaning that neither the J21 engine nor ordinary carriages carry lined livery.
The measures extend to the branch trains, which are now 2-carriage Darlington Composite C sets made up by pairing a 5-compartment Diagram 75 Van Composite having two First and three Third Class compartments with Diagram 77 5-compartment Van Third. As I mentioned previously, it is this train shortening which brought about the requirement for a strengthening Third for the morning second Up branch train carrying schoolchildren to Wolsingham.
There is no such demand on a weekday with the third down branch passenger train of the day, which will leave Eastgate at 12.46 pm and that departure will then permit the Stationmaster, porters and clerks to have lunch.

The J21 arriving at Eastgate.
Another change happening at this time on the NE Area of the LNER was the abandonment of Westinghouse brakes in favour of the vacuum brake.

The J21 stands at Eastgate awaiting departure time.
It is doubtful that more than a handful of passengers either disembarked or joined the train.
The Motor Omnibus has been in Weardale for around a decade at this point and, like many other places, is making inroads to the branch passenger receipts.

On its way to Westgate-in-Weardale, St John's Chapel and Wearhead stations, the train crosses the river Wear.

 

[borderreiver]

The working day of Eastgate station in Weardale continues.
J.B. Dawson mentioned that once the 12.46 down branch passenger train cleared the section (by arriving at Westgate-in-Weardale station) the daily down pick up goods was allowed in to the section.
Here it is, at 1 p.m. as it approaches Eastgate station.

The pick up goods arrives at Eastgate. Today it is in the hands of a J21 0-6-0 but she is not the same as the J21 which hauled the preceding down branch passenger train. No. 1301 is a humbler member of the class, being only saturated and not fitted with automatic train brake. Another detail difference is that she has brake gear inside her driving wheels.
She also retains the Ramsbottom safety vales in their trumpet, though they will shortly be replaced by the Ross Pop type and the cab top whistles will also be removed, replaced by a single item mounted on the boiler top.

The first task at Eastgate is to detach the 15 Ton Diagram G4 Road Van and two coal wagons for the Station Master's landsale business.

Shunting the covered Diagram G4 Road Wagon and the coal wagons in to the main siding.
The porter assigned the goods work for today will now have a busy ten to fifteen minutes unloading small consignments inbound for Eastgate and loading outbound small consignments.
When a customer had a consignment of two tons or more bound for one destination they would be sent a wagon. If their consignment was less than two tons it would be handled by the daily road wagon.
This system is about to undergo change, with the LNER seeking to make economies.
Some Road Wagon routes would be cancelled, replaced by deliveries to larger goods sheds within a district and onward delivery by a motor lorry on a circuit covering smaller goods sheds as well as customers.
Just how this affected Eastgate is unclear to me.
Perhaps the station may have lost its daily Road Wagon, with a daily motor lorry out of Stanhope Goods shed replacing it.
With Eastgate also handling goods for Rookhope it might be that Eastgate kept its Road Van, unless Rookhope was also served by a Stanhope-based motor lorry allocated to deliver to goods sheds at Eastgate, Westgate and St John's Chapel. If there was a carter working out of Eastgate that change may have been the end of his delivery work to Rookhope and a reduction in the porter workload.
Given that this change was after J.B. Dawson left Eastgate it is a topic on which he is silent.
It is possible that Wearhead, as the branch terminus, retained a daily 15 Ton Road Wagon, or at least a 12 Ton covered van accomplishing the same function.

After rope shunting a horse box and unfitted cattle van in to the second siding, the J21 recovers the G4 Road Wagon.
While I cannot simulate rope shunting in trainz I can speculate about the rope.
I believe that it needed to be around twenty metres long, about sixty-six feet, would have been wire and if not carried on the loco would have been the bane of the goods porter's life.
A twenty metre long wire rope capable of towing thirty tons would have been heavy, requiring two men to handle it.
I expect the loco Fireman had to assist the goods Porter, who already had his hands full with the road Wagon, but the pick up goods must not be delayed, so a very busy time for him.
In earlier days, working the Road Wagon might have fallen to J.B. Dawson to help with but he would not have been allowed to assist with the rope shunting due to the dangers.
The Station Master would not have allowed the rope to lie outside, so there may have been a set of brackets or hooks at the goods shed on which to hang it.
While it may have been coated with tar or even tallow, abrasion would have worn it off.
Rags, oil, grease, tallow or tar would have had to be kept to maintain it and after use may have required a stiff brush to clean debris off it.
Breaking a wire as a consequence of neglect would likely have led to a stern letter from the District Goods office at Darlington.
I am only forty-two years late in being able to ask J.B. Dawson about that rope.

With all the work for the station done, and paperwork complete the J21 departs Eastgate.
That is the end of the day's regular goods work for Eastgate, since the pick up goods did not normally stop at Eastgate on the return leg.
The phrase "normally" used by J.B. Dawson indicates that there must have been circumstances in which it did, likley to pick up loaded wagons from the second siding by the dock and place them at the head of the train.
As I mentioned before, Westgate had a limit of 25 wagons in order to allow the loco to run around its train to work the goods yard. Today the trailing load departing Eastgate is well within that limit.

The J21 passing the western turnout of the Blackey's Isle PO siding.

 

[borderreiver]

Class J21 Number 1301 returns from Wearhead with the pick up goods, with its destination being Wear Valley Junction, where any loaded wagons will be collected and taken on to Darlington.
J.B. Dawson did not mention when the Up pick up goods ran, but with an up branch passenger train leaving Wearhead at 3.52 p.m. and a down branch passenger train crossing with that at Stanhope I think that the Up pick up goods was probably away from Wearhead by 3 p.m. in order to guarantee that it could reach Stanhope ahead of either branch passenger train. However, it is possible that it would have to recess in to the goods station at Stanhope to let the 3.52 p.m. Up branch passenger in to the single track section to Wolsingham.

I am building the station at Stanhope and the DEM has revealed that while the limit of 25 wagons applied at Westgate-in-Weardale it may have been the same for Stanhope passenger station with perhaps one or even two wagons less at Stanhope goods. I will have to work that station in order to figure out how the goods would recess.

This train in-game was the first departure from the newly built Westgate-in-Weardale station.

 

[borderreiver]

The 3.52 p.m. from Wearhead, hauled by J21 No. 102 arrives at Eastgate station on the fourth up branch passenger train of the day.
There is a Diagram 14 Third Class strengthener attached at the rear, as required by the 1932 Carriage Roster, though whether there was sufficient passenger business to justify it is a question to be answered.
Schoolchildren bound for Wolsingham school justified the morning strengthener but they will be returning home to upper Weardale in the other direction on the next down branch passenger service.
The strengthener will go on to Darlington when this set joins the one from Tow Law at Wear Valley Junction.
Once at Darlington it will be removed (SX).

The view from the footplate as the train gets away from Eastgate.

 

[robd]

Good shots borderreiver, I like the footplate views, a refreshing change from the usual three quarters on views most people post!

Rob.