I’ve just a few days down in west Somerset to enjoy a few days walking on Exmoor and also catch some of the action at the West Somerset Railway Spring Gala. I’ve probably told you before that my railway interest is really with narrow gauge but I do have a soft spot for the West Somerset Railway; it’s not all that far from home and it goes from somewhere to somewhere else through pretty scenery. This is 80104, built in Brighton in 1955 (so younger than me!) built for heavy, fast suburban work from a design of St Henry Fowler in 1927 and refined by Stanier and Fairburn. It went initially to the London, Tilbury and Southend line moving to Wales following electrification in 1961 and stayed there until being sent to Woodham Bros.’ Barry scrapyard in in 1965. Restoration took place in Swindon, Bitton and finally Swanage where it s now normally based (so my “home engine!0. She’s seen here in heavy rain coming into Blue Anchor, the first of three crossing points between behind and Bishop’s Lydeard. I keep looking at this and now wondering if I should have shot in landscape but then It would have included more “anoraks” leaning out of the windows and the lineside photographers in their high vis vests. I can recommend Blue Achor station as it has proper level crossing gates, it’s right on the sea front, it has a lovely very traditional GWR station and there’s a cracking cafe around 100 yds away; ideal to wait for the trains to pass!
The theme of the gala was “BR Standard Classes of Steam Locomotives” wherever that is!
This is “River Esk”, built by Paxman’s of Colchester and delivered on 12th December 1923 for the Ravengalss & Eskdale Railway in Cumbria. Originally opened in 1875, the RER had a 3′ gauge until its closure in 1913. At that time W J Bassett-Lowke, of model railway fame, and a group of fellow enthusiasts were looking for somewhere to lay an extensive 15″ narrow gauge railway. The RER was well suited to their requirements so it was purchased and re-opened in 1915 after conversion to 15″ gauge.
With the opening of granite quarries at Beckfoot in 1923, it was decided the railway needed a new locomotive for the anticipated mineral traffic. The engine would need to be capable of hauling 32 ton goods trains on grades of up to 1:34 and operating the heavy non-stop holiday passenger traffic in summer.
In 1922 the consulting engineer to the railway, Henry Greenly the leading model engineer of his day, drew up plans for a one-third scale model of a projected 2-8-2 main line goods locomotive. Deciding who should build the engine posed a problem. Bassett-Lowke had ceased making 15″ gauge locomotives in 1914 and had no intention of resuming. A shareholder in the RER was Sir Aubrey Brocklebank, Chairman of the Cunard Steamship Company. Cunard was a large customer of Paxman and Sir Aubrey asked Paxman if they were interested in building a ‘one off’ miniature locomotive. The Company agreed and the order, No 15074 (Works No 21104), was placed on 21st March 1923.
‘River Esk’ was the first 2-8-2 locomotive to run on a British railway. Greenly’s original designed was modified to incorporate Paxman-Lentz poppet valves and the Paxman patent valve gear then being introduced by the Company for locomotive use. Although Lentz valves had been fitted to locomotives on the continent some years previously, ‘River Esk’ was the first British locomotive to be fitted with them. The Lentz valves arrangement was not a success and in 1928 was replaced by more conventional Walschaerts gear.
