North East England - Steam Days Screenshots - Large Screenshots Possible

1911 - Shildon and a Fletcher 124 Class 0-6-0T

North East England during the steam era. A Fletcher 124 Class 0-6-0T Goods Engine at Shildon.




The 124 Class was small, with only 12 examples and was originally in the style of Fletcher's BTP 0-4-4T. However, during Wilson Worsdell's tenure, they gained both steel Worsdell boilers and side tanks to increase water capacity. One of the twelve did not receive side tanks but instead received a saddle tank. However, this was changed out for side tanks some time prior to grouping. Around 1903 eight of the twelve received Westinghouse brakes in order that they could haul fitted rolling stock and some went on to receive steam heating by 1910, probably for empty stock movements rather than hauling passenger trains. One exception was No.124, which was a long-term resident of Ferryhill shed and was called on to work the branch passenger train to Coxhoe. It would seem that prior to 1910 either the stock (6-wheelers?) lacked steam heating equipment or were carriages which had steam heating but were just run unheated. That cannot have been popular with passengers, though perhaps the porters at Ferryhill could provide heating earthenware bottles, as was th enorm prior to carriages receiving steam heating equipment.

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1911 - Shildon and a Fletcher 124 Class

Thanks Annie. Fletcher's usual laissez-faire attitude remained present in the 124 Class. Only twelve engines built at a single works across 1881 and 1882 yet some had axle springing above the running plate while others had it beneath the running plate. Some had 4ft 6in diameter wheels while others had 4ft 9in diameter wheels. A further difference was that some had the large brass numberplate on the bunker and others had it on the cab. Worsdell did nothing regarding any of those differences when reboilering them, though he used the same boiler as for the BTP on some and a shortened boiler from the 1001 Class on others. Worsdell also extended their range by adding the saddle tank for one and side tanks for the remainder. He also added the rear sandboxes for the rear axles, presumably to assist starting when running bunker first. The N.E.R. certainly believed in getting its value for money out of its assets, even from small classes such as this.
 
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Hello Frank, Very interesting the detail differences in the Fletcher 124 Class & amazing in 12 engines as well. I wonder if any were around into LNER days & then classified in J? maybe into 71.
Also the heated bottles for unheated carriages was new to me also. I do recollect the coaches to London had travel rugs to wrap round legs late 1940'era but long before .Nat Express when the large bus operators ran them. It is obvious railways were recycling long before modern trends. They could have been at the pioneering end of recycling. Nice one loco was allocated Coxhoe branch duty.
 
Hello Tailight98, The class was the J76 in LNER days but the last one in LNER service was scrapped in 1929. Five of them moved to former H&BR lines at Hull in 1925, with Alexandra Dock being their usual haunt. One was sold out to industry, becoming AJAX at the Milford Dock Company, lasting until 1940. I am digging deeper and it seems that the passenger service on the former Clarence Railway to Coxhoe ended in 1902. The RCTS says that No.124 received Westinghouse "by 1903" and that No.124 was hauling the Coxhoe branch passenger train twice a day "in the early years of the 20th century". So, presumably the Westinghouse pump and automatic train brake was applied prior to 1902, perhaps as early as 1900 if the locomotive hauled passenger coaches for a couple of years. They would have lacked heating (No.124 gaining steam heating in 1910) so the passengers would have had to rely on the old hot water bottles. I think that I saw one at York National Rail Museum. Around 12 to 18 inches long, flat base, arched shape along with the filling neck and stopper. Supposedly, they were usually under passengers' feet when hot and then shoved under the seats when they cooled, which may have been quite quickly on a winter's night. Luckily for Coxhoe passengers the trip was only a few minutes, so the hardier rmembers of the public may have done without.
 
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1910 - Ferryhill - 124 Class and the branch passenger train to Castle Eden

North East England during the steam era. Summer 1910 and number 124, the lead member of the Fletcher 0-60T "124" Class stands at Ferryhill station with the 10.54 am branch passenger service for Castle Eden on the Ferryhill to West Hartlepool line.



Things go awry on the railway today and this also applied to the railway in 1910. the Bradshaw's timetable for the Ferryhill to Hartlepool service shows the 10.54am as being a steam autocar service, so why is it in the hands of No.124, and with 6-w carriages to boot? The roster and the working timetable were aspirations, the expected provision of service, but events could conspire to render the expected provision unattainable for a number of reasons. I discovered during research that Starbeck shed did not receive a substitute steam autocar unit with BTP loco when its steam autocar was sent to works. This perhaps was due to there not being a "spare" steam autocar in stock to send across the N.E.R. to act as such a unit. Another reason may have been the unit rostered to work the 10.54 being unavailable due to a mechanical failure of some kind, such as a hot axle box on the attached carriage.

So, for my screenshot, I decided to utilise No.124 as the substitute service, with a rake of 6-w carriages kept at Ferryhill for strengthening and special duties. Fletcher built the class as a Goods engine (the NER at the time built "passenger engines", "goods engines" and "shunting engines"). The usual tank engine provision prior to 1881 was the saddle tank, but Fletcher had already broken with this in building his successful Bogie Tank Passenger 0-4-4T engine (BTP) which had a well tank beneath the coal bunker that extended from part way in the coal bunker to down between the frames. Twelve "124" Class were turned out of Darlington works between 1881 and 1882. The "124"s however had a restricted cab and bunker layout compared to the BTPs but it fell to Wilson Worsdell to do something about the lack of range when he began to reboiler the class in the 1890s.

At some point before 1903 eight of the class received Westinghouse automatic train brake in order that they could work fitted goods trains, though it also permitted them to work passenger trains (though not heat them). The mounting position varied between three different points, the front of the left side tank, the front of the right side tank, and a vertical post ahead of the right side tank. The lack of heating would not have been a problem in the summer, but No.124 is known to have worked the Coxhoe branch passenger trains "in the early years of the 20th century" (source - RCTS) and the twice-daily service (which ceased in 1902) would therefore have been unheated in the winter months. I now wonder if another loco with heating was rostered to the service during the winter or if the NER was not motivated to provide a loco with heating for a twice-daily service which was of only ten minutes duration?

One of the criticisms of many branch stations was that they were far from the places they served. however, Coxhoe's former Clarence Railway 1838 station was "slap bang" in the middle of the village, right by the Durham to Sedgefield road along which the village was built. The village seems to have grown to between 100 and 200 houses by 1896, so its population may have been in the hundreds rather than thousands. How many were able or willing to travel to Ferryhill station (and then on to other destinations, since Ferryhill town itself was a mile away up the hill from the junction station) probably remained few in number. The line was built to move coal, so passenger services seem to have never attracted much further attention from either the Clarence or its later successor, the North Eastern Railway. The low-platform single platform station seems to have been largely unchanged by 1902 at closure.

 
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No124 is becoming quite a celebrity & I wonder where it will turn up next. Amazing only two trains a day to Coxhoe which I guess were for workmen. I enjoy reading about 124 in fact almost feels like it is still up there in the NE. Thanks for all the research.
 
Thanks Taillight98. Here's where number 124 will turn up next, taking the grade up towards the junction between the lines to Spennymoor and Hartlepool.




Number 124 spent a long time allocated to Ferryhill shed. Her main duties were goods work, but her Westinghouse brake (and later steam heating fitting) would prove useful when summer and holiday demands for automatic train fitted locomotives escalated. I doubt that 124 hauled any excursions to holiday destinations but if a fitted O Class 0-4-4T (LNER G5) C Class 0-6-0 (LNER J21) was allocated to a summer Saturday excursion and her normal duty was a short distance passenger train then No. 124 may have stood in. Two of the 124 class were withdrawn before the grouping and the remainder were classified as J76 by the LNER but all were withdrawn by 1929.

Courtesy of the Disused stations website, the passenger train times in 1896 were 8.55am and 7.25pm departures from Ferryhill with 8.05am and 5.50pm departures from Coxhoe. Journey time was 10 minutes. I doubt that any passenger carriages were kept at Coxhoe, so there would have been an Empty Carriage Stock working to Coxhoe, arriving around 7.55am and departing around 7.40pm. In contrast, the Coxhoe Bridge station on the Ferryhill and Hartlepool branch a mile to the south-south east from Coxhoe station had six daily passenger trains, with a seventh as far as Castle Eden in the eastbound direction. It even had two passenger trains each way on Sundays.

 
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NER Fletcher 124 Class Goods Engine (LNER J76)

All built at Darlington.
All 4ft6in wheels, contrary to my earlier belief, but seven were later altered to 4ft9in wheels between 1906-11. Those altered were 124, 193, 197, 599, 602, 609 & 610.

124 - Aug 1881 - Feb 1926.
Worsdell boiler Dec 1896. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. Used shortened boiler ex-1001 Class taken from BTP No.255 Jun 1914. New boiler between 1919-21.
Westinghouse fitted by 1903 (possibly as early as 1900). Steam heating at both ends fitted 1910.
Ferryhill shed.

602 - Aug 1881 - Jan 1929.
Worsdell boiler Dec 1891. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. Used boiler taken ex-1001 Class No.1203 and shortened March 1911. New boiler between 1919-21.
Darlington shed? Hull Dairycoates from June 1922, New England from Nov 1925. Dairycoates Dec 1928.

609 - Aug 1881 - Jul 1911.
Worsdell boiler Mar 1895.
Stockton shed?

610 - Aug 1881 - May 1917.
Worsdell boiler Jul 1896. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902.
Tyne Dock shed?

1059 - Sep 1881 - Mar 1927.
Worsdell boiler Feb 1893. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. New boiler between 1911-20.
West Auckland shed. Hull Dairycoates from June 1922. New England from Nov 1925. Dairycoates from Mar 1927.

193 - Sep 1881 - Oct 1928.
Worsdell boiler Aug 1896. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. New boiler between 1911-20.
Darlington shed? Hull Dairycoates from June 1922. New England from Nov 1925. Dairycoates from Mar 1927.

197 - Dec 1881 - Dec 1927.
Worsdell boiler Oct 1897.Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. New boiler between 1911-20.
Westinghouse and steam heating at both ends fitted in 1908.
Neville Hill shed.

198 - Dec 1881 - Jan 1928.
Worsdell boiler Mar 1895. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. New boiler between 1911-20.
Westinghouse fitted in 1908. No steam heat.
Neville Hill shed.

599 - Jan 1882 - Jun 1926.
Worsdell boiler Apr 1900. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. New boiler between 1911-20.
Westinghouse fitted by 1903. Steam heating at both ends fitted 1910.
Tyne Dock shed? Ferryhill by Jun 1923.

598 - Feb 1882 - Nov 1926.
Worsdell boiler Feb 1900. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902. New boiler between 1911-20. (continued as AJAX with Milford Dock Co. Apr 1927-44)
Westinghouse fitted by 1903. No steam heat.
Tyne Dock shed? Hull Dairycoates by Jun 1922. New England Nov 1925. Dairycoates prior to withdrawal, date unknown.

171 - Feb 1882 - Oct 1927.
Worsdell boiler Mar 1899. Side tanks fitted, possibly 1897-1902.New boiler sometime between 1911-20.
Westinghouse fitted by 1903. Steam heating at both ends fitted 1910.
Darlington shed? Hull Alexandra Dock from Jun 1922. Darlington shed Mar 1926.

211 - Mar 1882 - Jul 1928.
Worsdell boiler Feb 1892. Saddle tank fitted approx 1897 until around 1919. Side tanks thereafter. Used boiler taken ex- BTP Class No.949 March 1912. New boiler between 1919-21.
 Westinghouse fitted in 1908. No steam heat equipment.
Neville Hill shed. Starbeck shed from Dec 1925.
 
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1910 - A NER 124 Class model with a reflect tweak

The NER 124 Class after a reflect tweak to the body texture. As shown by Kotangagirl on a GER loco in the UK pre-BR Blue screenshot thread.







 
Nicely done Frank. The reflect setting doesn't need to be that much to make a difference. Most of my engines have a setting somewhere between 1 and 3. For a really muted shine a setting of 0 works well. I've still got a few older legacy engines still to do, but it's definitely worth doing for the positive difference it makes in TRS19.
 
1912 - A NER E Class with B1 Drop Side Wagons

North East England during the steam era. Here, circa 1912, a N.E.R. E Class 0-6-0T hauls a short trip working on the northwestern side of Darlington.




The wagons are a new build for me by Paul Mace, since expanding the coverage of N.E.R. wagons is an ongoing project. These are low sided goods wagons with drop sides to diagram B1. This was a widespread pre-grouping type of wagon, though while most companies produced 3-plank versions the N.E.R. produced 2-plank ones. The L.N.E.R. absorbed so many low sided goods wagons from its constituents that it did not need to build any itself.

The locomotive is hauling a newly-built B1 carrying the latest company goods livery, with large N E letters, while behind it is a B1 carrying the pre-1911 livery with smaller N.E.R. lettering. The loaded B1 types are rather more worn and have a variety of tarp-covered loads.

The N.E.R. diagram B1 began as a 7 Ton type in 1895, being upgraded to 8 Ton with larger journals, possibly during the early 1900s. The company uprated the type even further from 1911 with oil-filled axle boxes superseding the previous grease type. At least 1,777 were built between 1895 and 1912, mostly rated at 8 Tons, with 250 remaining at 7 Ton by the grouping and at least 100 of the 10 Ton type. By 1940 the diagram B1s were down to 205 examples in N.E. Area stock and only 46 remained at nationalisation.

In 1920 the N.E.R. began to turn out the 12 Ton B15 2-plank drop side wagon and produced 300 by the grouping. Some 141 of that type survived at nationalisation. While the low sided drop side wagon fell out of favour the low sided wagon type was given new life with the development of the container flat. During the 1940s/50s some low sided wagons were used at times to carry container loads.
 
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Thank you for the investment, I have just purchased the B1 and C2 wagons from Paulz.
I will put up a picture soon on my North Yorkshire, Darlington York link.
Click Here
 
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I'm looking at those tarpaulins Frank and going WOW! Realistic tarpaulins are something that's been missing in Trainz for far too long. I had a go at making tarpaulins, but I'm not skilled enough at 3D modelling to do much more than something fairly basic.
 
Thanks Jack and thanks Annie. The Diagram B1 low sided drop side wagons have six different loads and tarps to give quite a bit of variety. In due course the later B15 wagons will have a similar variety. With a low side the loads would have been manhandled and loaded/unloaded by trolley if small enough and by crane if larger. With a drop side the crane would not have to raise the load as high as would have been required with a higher side five plank wagon. With many yard and shed cranes being manually cranked this would have been a significant reduction in the labour required to handle the loads.

If you recall from previous reference to N.E.R. Road Wagons if a single consignor could provide a load of two Tons for a single consignee then the company would provide a wagon. Certainly a B1 wagon would have been an option for a crated load if it would fit within the wagon. With the British weather a tarpaulin would have been required for any load which would deteriorate if left out in the rain. Sometimes, covered vans also required a tarp over the roof if it was known to leak. Some of the N.E.R. Diagram G2 vans had a roller roof hatch over the doors and in later years leaking was a known problem.
 
A couple of shots of the N.E.R. Diagram B1 drop side wagons showing the range of liveries and tarped loads.




Above, the N.E.R. pre-1911 liveried "Shildon" 8T Brake Van which was a design from the mid-19th century and was quite prolific across the Central Division prior to 1900. It then was withdrawn quite quickly as newer company types began to be drafted in. The first three wagons ahead of the brake van are in the pre-1911 freight grey livery, which had a rather blue-grey hue to it. Two of the wagons have the small crate tarped loads, one with a load of the same crates and the other with two different sizes of crate in the load. The next three are the post-1911 NER livery, which switched to the larger N E lettering. Two of these wagons have medium crate loads, again, one with two medium crates the same size and one with medium sized crates of different sizes. The remaining later NER liveried wagon has a tarped large crate load.




The above shot is from the other end of the wagon line and shows the early LNER livery, with large NE lettering and LNER freight grey. The tarped load is a large, tall crate load.

The Diagram B1 is available in three liveries, N.E.R. pre-1911 (8T) N.E.R. post-1911 (10T) and L.N.E.R. pre-1937 (10T). Each of those liveries is produced in ex-works, weathered and heavily weathered variants. The pre-1911 B1s have grease axle boxes with a single brake shoe acting on the left hand wheel on each side. The post 1911 B1s have oil-filled axle boxes and two brake shoes, which acted on two wheels but on one side only. The B1s were never fitted with either automatic train brake or through piping.
 
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I am so loving those tarpaulins Frank. Paul has done a wonderful job of those.
Seeing the N.E.R. pre-1911 8T brake van reminds me that I meant to ask Paul about buying a couple from him. I'm having to be careful with money at the moment as I'm having some repairs and jobs done around the house so I might have to leave those for later.
 
Hello Annie, money for repairs and jobs around the house have to come first. Securing shelter is the first survival priority anywhere.
Should the money situation ease in the new year then you can treat yourself.

If you do order the Shildon vans, which are rather old models now then I suggest that you ask Paul to use the NER timber effect freight grey I sent him recently.
The model I shot also has the tga for glass suitable for TRS2019.
Paul can probably also apply auto couplings to the models if you so wish.
FYI - the Shildons were never fitted with automatic train braking so 3-link couplings only.
I can dig out some specimen numbers for the vans if you want them.
 
Thank you very much Frank, - I shall certainly make sure to ask Paul about the TGA glass and the NER freight grey texture. With the Shildon vans having been so plainly built in the 19th century you can guess that I would want to add them to my collection.
And yes please I would like some specimen numbers as it's always nice to have details like that correct. Though no rush as it won't be until the new year until I start to think about buying anything for Trainz again.
 
1955 - A G5 0-4-4T with a train of Thompson Ordinary Carriages

North Eastern England during the steam era. Around 1955 a Wilson Worsdell G5 0-4-4T hauls a local passenger train between Darlington and Bishop Auckland. the train is a three-car formation of Thompson 52ft4in ordinary bogie stock. A Diagram 338 Lavatory Composite leads with a trailing Diagram 340 4-compartment Brake Third. Sandwiched in the middle is a Diagram 339 Ordinary Third. These were steel bodied coaches built in the post-war period by Thompson, though some of the later diagrams built by British Railways should actually be attributed to Peppercorn.





At the eastern end of Shildon yard




Three-quarter rear view of the train. The Brake Third is running "inside out", which was not all that unusual. The railway was not a perfect institution.

It was not typical to see a whole rake of these coaches together in one train, since ordinary passenger coaches tended to be changed out gradually. In some places they were seen together making up a complete train, particularly if it was a short one, but they were usually to be seen in trains running alongside the previous generation of Gresley steel bodied stock, earlier Gresley wooden bodied stock and even pre-grouping coaches. Steve Banks explains this better than I do in his articles online.

These coaches are built for my by Paul Mace of Paulztrainz. I have reskinned the livery in order for them to match the BR Mk1 stock available from the DLS. I had the originals commissioned back in 2014 so they were overdue for an update, which I am now progressing.
 
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