ISSUE Number 71 'Circuit Breaker'? - Railway Correspondence and Travel ...
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ISSUE Number 71
‘Circuit Breaker’?
WATFORD BRANCH NEWSLETTER Issue Date - 1st November 2020
From the Chairman
W elcome to another issue of the Watford Branch Newsletter, we are now well into autumn and would normally
be looking forward to the festive break over Christmas and the New Year, however, the way things are going it
could be more of a ‘Circuit Breaker’ or even full lockdown again due to the worsening Covid-19 situation.
Your committee hopes everyone is still remaining safe and well, and perhaps managed the odd ‘staycation’ or overseas
visit, hopefully, without the need to quarantine on returning home.
Although Covid-19 restrictions had been eased to a certain extent, we apparently approach a ‘second wave’
of the virus spreading. Different areas of the country now have different degrees of restrictions, the so-called ‘Tiers’,
several regions already in the most severe ‘Tier 3’ (though it seems a ‘Tier 4’ may also be introduced). Wales, Northern
Ireland, and parts of Scotland are more-or-less fully locked down and the London area is in ‘Tier 2’ with associated
restrictions. Even in the least restricted ‘Tier 1’ areas there is the ‘Rule of Six’, together with social-distancing and the
wearing of face coverings mandatory in many more situations; for the foreseeable future, things are most likely to
escalate as we move into the winter months [this has already happened, as we now go into a ‘Lockdown 2’].
Accordingly, we will be continuing to hold our monthly meetings virtually, via Zoom, as per usual on the first
Tuesday of each month. This has meant a considerable alteration to our original programme for the rest of the year
and probably beyond as well. Please look at the end of the newsletter for a provisional programme for next year.
3rd November’s scheduled presentation by Rob Freeman will go ahead as advertised as Rob is geared up for
Zoom, so ‘A Miscellany of Railtours in Great Britain from 1970 Onwards’ will be our subject then. December’s meeting
will be the traditional ‘Members’ Images’ (unless a speaker can be found), though you’ll have to supply your own
mince pies, sausage rolls and perhaps a festive drink!
If you are planning to join any of the Zoom meetings, there is now a new way of pre-registering for them,
directly on the RCTS website. You will need to be logged-in as a member to access the links, these are on the relevant
branch events page, such as this one on the Watford Branch page: https://rcts.org.uk/watford/events/ If you are
already a member but haven’t registered on the site it’s advisable to do so – if you run into any problems, please
contact David Jackman at: webmaster@rcts.org.uk If you are a non-member or visitor you are welcome to join the
meetings – please contact Rob Davidson at watford@rcts.org.uk for details.
You may notice that there is now a ‘donations are welcome’ link on the events pages of the branches too –
this takes you to a PayPal page where you can donate in units of £2.00 – you do not need to have a PayPal account
and other payment options are also available. Any donations go (eventually) to the branch concerned, via ‘Head
Office’, as it were, and will help to defray costs, some of which continue even though we cannot have physical
meetings, meaning the usual source of donations has dried-up.
The Society’s national AGM, due to be held last April in Coventry, was another casualty of the lockdown – this
was held as a virtual Zoom meeting on Saturday 24th October 2020, commencing at 14:00. I was able to attend this
meeting as were some other Watford Branch members, around eighty-eight members participated in the meeting.
The formal part of the meeting was followed by an excellent presentation by David Jackman, using photos from the
Society’s archives, taking us from Penzance to Wick and Thurso –‘A whistle-stop tour around the UK’!
Below is a summary of some of the salient points for those who did not make it to the 84th AGM on Saturday 24th
October, with thanks to David Couzens-Howard of the South Essex Branch: -
• This meeting was due to take place in April but was postponed because of COVID-19
• For the first time the meeting was virtual, via Zoom
A Charitable Incorporated Organisation registered with The Charities Commission. Registered number 1169995.
• There is now no Management Committee (MC); under the new arrangements, governance will be by a new
Board of Trustees , which replaces the MC, from 25th November 2020
• Following long service, two major figures are taking a well-earned retirement -
• Gordon Davies is standing down as Chairman. Callum MacLeod takes his place
• Bob Green is standing down as Secretary. Geoff Adams is the new one
• Fortunately, all of the other stalwarts, vital to keep RCTS running, are staying on
• John Day (Ipswich Branch) and David Elsdon (Hitchin Branch – our former Chairman at Watford) have been
awarded Honorary Life Membership, in recognition of their services to the Society
• The Railway Observer, currently in A5 format , will be relaunched in the larger B5 size, as from the January
2021 issue
• The next AGM is planned (provisionally) for 19th June 2021 at the Welcome Centre, Coventry
• A change has been made to Rule 3d, meaning that Branch AGMs can now be held virtually (by Zoom) if
circumstances dictate that they cannot go ahead physically, so it is most likely to apply to our Watford AGM
in January 2021
• Our local member James Milne has been co-opted onto the Board of Trustees as the twelfth member
The November issue of the ‘Railway Observer’ is available on the website, but please note that if you use Google
Chrome as your browser there has been a problem for a while with opening the RO in the ‘Pagesuite’ electronic format;
this now seems to have been resolved, so you should once again be able to read this as per normal.
If you are still concerned about joining Zoom meetings, the ‘Simple Guide’ can now be accessed from the
Society website home page, by clicking on the ‘Zoom’ logo.
There are now some ten branches conducting virtual meetings via Zoom, members and visitors from any
branch are welcome at these meetings. Details are available on the website, together with direct pre-registration links
for signed-in members (as outlined above) or contact email addresses to apply for an invitation for a pre-registration
online form for visitors and guests.
It was noted at the national AGM that there are already clashes of Zoom Meetings on some evenings, leading
to some awkward choices between subject matters having to be made; perhaps some form of co-ordinating meetings
so they don’t clash will need to be made, especially if more branches go down the virtual meeting route. There have
also been suggestions that national Zoom meetings could be held, open to everyone, but again, if these happen they
will need to fit into a co-ordinated schedule to avoid duplication – watch this space! This may mean that changes will
have to be made occasionally to branches ‘normal’ meeting nights, so please do keep an eye on the website for any
moves of dates – this will not apply of course once we are able to get back to physical meetings.
We have the usual mix of articles this month, again mainly from the same few members, please do get in touch
if you would like to contribute to future issues at watfordchair@rcts.org.uk – thanks in anticipation, and thanks to
those who have contributed this time once again.
Right: Another photo from Bernie Holland’s
‘Honeybourne Line’ presentation on 1st September 2020.
D316 on a coal train from Toton to Severn Tunnel Junction
passing Winchcombe on 24th May 1970, six years before
the derailment of a similar working at the same location.
Photo © Bill Potter, courtesy Kidderminster Railway
Museum.
Geoff Plumb, Chairman, RCTS Watford Branch
***********************************************************
Page | 2
Leaves on the line? No, it’s oil on the track! (Part 2) Following on from my article published in the RCTS Watford Branch Newsletter 69, I was astonished by the coincidence of seeing the following article published in Fuel Oil News for October 2020. Furthering the debate of oil on rail and knowing the writer of the article personally and professionally for around 20 years, I asked permission to reproduce the article in our newsletter; I am therefore grateful for James Spencer’s approval to reproduce the article in full hereunder. James Milne Oil Market Report: September 2020 The start of September was marked by some (albeit limited) debate in the UK around the safety and overall reasoning behind transporting large amounts of fuel by rail across the country. This followed the spectacular derailment and subsequent fire on a train carrying diesel from Wales (Milford Haven) to England (Theale). In the incident, 3 fully loaded rail cars (each carrying around 75,000 litres of diesel) were ruptured, causing a major fire that thankfully resulted in no casualties (and limited environmental damage) - but nonetheless, resulted in the evacuation of over 100 houses within a 1km radius of the crash site. To many non-industry observers, the fact that oil products are transported by rail at all, came as something of a surprise. The train that derailed was made up of 25 rail cars, carrying a total volume of 1,875,000 litres. That’s a great deal of diesel and who would have thought that a similar train takes the same route 2-3 times a day, to supply the rail- fed oil terminals of Westerleigh (for the supply of fuel into Bristol) and Theale (for Reading / West London). ‘Primary Transportation’ is the term used in the industry to describe the movement of oil that does not involve road transport (which is referred to as ‘Secondary Transportation’). When oil consumption is close to refineries or coastal import locations (such as the Thames estuary), then road transport (delivery by petrol tankers) is sufficient, because customers are close by and journey times short. However, when demand is inland and many miles from refineries or import locations, then it is far more efficient to send that product by one of the 3 forms of primary transportation: rail, pipeline, or barge. In the UK, pipeline freight is the dominant form of primary transport (more of that next month!), but the rail industry’s contribution to oil transportation is also pretty impressive. On average 9m tonnes of refined oil is transported across the UK per annum. That’s about 30m litres per day, with the main routes being the aforementioned supply-chain from Wales into South-West and Southern England, alongside the feeding of the Kingsbury (Birmingham) and Jarrow (Newcastle / Sunderland) depots from Immingham. Finally, Dalston (Carlisle) Oil Terminal is rail-fed from the Grangemouth Refinery in Scotland, whilst Jet Fuel is supplied to Heathrow via rail from import terminals on the Thames. There is understandable concern around the risks of such large volumes of fuel being transported above ground in the UK. However, the fact remains that rail transport is considerably more environmentally friendly than truck movements. The current daily rail throughput of 30m litres is delivered via a handful of diesel traction engines (no electric on freight routes), whereas moving the equivalent volume by truck would mean circa 825 individual petrol tanker movements. Furthermore, tanker drivers are (rightfully) limited to 11 hour shifts, meaning that a 4.5 hour outward journey is the furthest a driver can go before discharging, taking a break, and driving back. In those circumstances, rail transportation for distances beyond 5 hours makes considerably more sense and is invariably more economic. Rail freight rates in the UK sit around the £5-10 per tonne mark (around 0.60 pence per litre), which when you consider the hardware and hazards involved, is remarkable value. It means that in the case of the train that recently derailed in Wales, the cost to the fuel seller of moving the cargo was only around £11,500. That is until the 3 rail cars came off the track and 225,000 litres of diesel went up in flames. That would have cost the shipper more in the region of £200K and that’s just for the product… Page | 3
Looking across to mainland Europe, oil rail freight is on a much grander scale, as the great rail hubs of North-West
Europe act as conduits for oil transportation into the continental hinterland. In Germany alone, 41m tonnes (50bn
litres) of oil products travel through the country by rail - a volume 5 times that of the UK rail equivalent. Across the
pond, everything is even bigger still (of course!) when it comes to North American rail freight. Last year, 125m tonnes
of oil (circa 150bn litres) was transported by rail in the US - mostly shale oil, that without ready access to pipelines,
has to rely on rail cars to get their product to Gulf Coast refineries. And north of the border, Canada was setting its
own records, when in January of this year (pre-Covid of course), more oil (400,000 barrels per day ~ 60m litres) was
transported by rail than at any point in Canadian transport history.
Primary transportation by rail remains one of the most commercially effective and environmentally friendly ways of
shifting mass volumes across large distances. Because it involves the movement of large and concentrated volumes of
flammable liquid, it does make the risk of large-scale accidents a reality – as we saw in Wales last month and more
catastrophically in Quebec (Lac Megantic) in 2013. But the desire not to move product by road, is at the hub of why
primary transportation exists in the first place. Far better that the supply of oil is made up of (relatively) limited
transport movements, compared to multiple smaller traffic journeys, which would compound road congestion,
pollution, and the potential for even more accidents. Rail is only one part of the primary transportation jigsaw though,
so next month we will look at the rock and roll world of pipelines – it doesn’t get any more exciting than that!
James Spencer
Managing Director
Portland Fuel
www.portland-fuel.co.uk
Left: DBS liveried 60091 is working 6E55, the 13:00 from
Theale to Lindsey Oil Refinery empty tanks. Running just
one minute late the train is about to pass the foot-
crossing north of King's Sutton station at 15:35 on Friday
27th September 2013. Photo © Geoff Plumb.
Right: 66006 heads northwards through Lowdham
with 6E46, the 04:37 From Kingsbury Oil Terminal to
Lindsey Refinery empty oil tanks at 07:56, the train
running 27 minutes late. Tuesday 9th July 2013. Photo
© Geoff Plumb.
Thanks to James Milne and to James Spencer for
submitting this article.
****************************************************************************
Page | 4
Railway Exhibitions, Part 5, By Humphrey Gillott.
‘Railfest 200: 1804-2004’ at York.
Saturday 29th May 2004 - Sunday 6th June 2004.
I arrived at York by train on Thursday 27th May and spent the afternoon looking around the National Railway Museum.
In the evening, I went to the Security Office at the entrance to the sidings where locomotives were being marshalled
for the exhibition, and I asked if I could possibly have a look around; I was wearing my ‘Railway Chaplain’ Hi-Viz vest.
(I was going to help to ‘staff’ the Railway Mission portacabin on the first Saturday and Sunday).
I was given permission to proceed past the office and it was suggested that I should find John Pridmore, the Organiser
of the Event, to ask his permission. I met John and he gave me permission to have the run of the area; he had done an
amazing job in organising everything.
There were a few railwaymen about,
drivers and shunters, marshalling the
locomotives into place, but otherwise
I was pretty well on my own and had
‘the whole place to myself’. I wrote in
my photograph album that, “I may
never again have the opportunity to
witness such an incredible evening”.
Looking through my two full albums
of photographs, it has been quite
hard to make my choice of
photographs for this article. It really
was an amazing few days.
All photos Copyright © Humphrey Gillott.
Above: Class 47 No. D1748 Landore
Abertawe is about to move Class 04
2-8-0 No. 63601 and WD 2-10-0 No.
3672 Dame Vera Lynn into position on
Thursday 27th May 2004.
Right: 0-6-0 saddletank engine,
Matthew Murray (Manning Wardle ‘L’
Class No. 1601 of 1903) alongside GWR
4-4-0 No. 3440 City of Truro, on
Thursday 27th May 2004.
Page | 5
Left: From left to right: Class EM2 electric
locomotive No. 27000; Class 84 electric
locomotive No. 84001; Class 9F 2-10-0 No.
92203 Black Prince and ‘King Arthur’ Class
4-6-0 No. 30777 Sir Lamiel, with a 70B
(Feltham) shed plate, on Thursday 27th May
2004.
Right: K1 Class 2-6-0 No. 62005 Lord of the
Isles, with a 65J (Fort William; sub-shed
Mallaig) shed plate, on Thursday 27th May
2004.
Left: From left to right: Former GWR Pannier
Tank 0-6-0 No. 7754; WD 2-10-0 No. 3672
Dame Vera Lynn; Class 04 2-8-0 No. 63601;
Class B12 4-6-0 No. 61572; K1 Class 2-6-0 No.
62005 Lord of the Isles; ‘King Arthur’ Class
4-6-0 No. 30777 Sir Lamiel and the beautifully
restored Southern Region Horsebox, on Friday
28th May 2004.
Page | 6
Right: Ffestiniog Railway 0-4-0STT engine No. 2
Prince; ‘Britannia’ Class Pacific 4-6-2 No. 70013
Oliver Cromwell and Class 47 No. 47798 Prince
William, on Friday 28th May 2004.
Left: EWS Class 67 No. 67015 gently reverses
Eurostar power car No. 373 313 Entente Cordiale
into position on Friday 28th May 2004.
Right: At around
8.30pm on Friday
28th May 2004,
Flying Scotsman is
turned on the
triangle on the west
side of the East
Coast Main Line
between York
station and Holgate
Bridge, for correct
positioning at the
Exhibition to open
the show at 2pm on
the following day,
having been
brought from
Doncaster by West
Coast Railways Class
37 No. 37197
(having been recently bought from Ian Riley). No. 4472 had been failed the day before (Thursday) at Doncaster; she had been due
to haul a special on Saturday 29th May from Doncaster to York with eminent guests for ‘Railfest 200’ in the morning. GWR ‘Hall’
Hogwarts Castle hauled the train instead.
Page | 7
Above: Ex- GER 4-6-0, LNER Class B12/3 No. 61572 with a 32A (Norwich) shed plate.
Above Left: City of Truro giving rides with two passenger coaches, passes Flying Scotsman, which is being prepared for the Opening
Ceremony, on Saturday 29th May 2004. Above Right: The replica Pen-Y-Darren (of 1804) together
with a preserved electric locomotive, on Saturday 29th May 2004. The electric loco is Harton Colliery Company No. E4, one of eight
550v DC Bo-Bos built by Siemens-Schuckert and AEG, Siemens Works No. 457 of 1909.
Left: Very appropriately, EWS provided Class 66 No. 66200
for ‘Railfest 200’ together with a BRA ‘coil’ wagon. The blue
notice beside the front of the locomotive states that it is a
‘coal’ wagon. I imagined that a typist at EWS Doncaster
mistook the dictated word "Coil" for "Coal"; in the south
Yorkshire dialect, saying "Coal" sounds like "Coil".
Photograph taken on Saturday 29th May 2004.
Once again, thanks to Humphrey!
Page | 8
More 1990 West Coast Main Line scenes at Berkhamsted, by Rob Freeman
These shots were taken just before Christmas that year. I have chosen them as this location has just been opened up
again for photography as they have felled all the sycamore trees that were completely obscuring the view. This is the
site of the original Berkhamsted Station which was closed in 1875 when they quadrupled the track, but the street
building wasn’t demolished until 1935! Out
of shot to the right is the Crystal Palace pub
(now sadly closed) and the Grand Union
Canal. It is the spot where I did my very first
trainspotting as a 10 year-old back in 1961.
Back then there was a good view of the
semaphores each way to announce each
train and in the meantime there were the
coal barges to watch on the canal. Always
hoped for steam and saw examples of all the
main LMS classes, but the EE Type 4s and
Derby Sulzer Type 2s were taking over. Alas,
no camera back then!
Anyway, back to 1990……..
Above: On a dull day I got this lucky combination of newly re-liveried 86614 Frank Hornby and the unique thyristor control fitted
87101 Stephenson heading north on a container
train. The name may be long gone, but,
remarkably, 86614 is still with us today working
for Freightliner. However 87101 was the first 87
to go and was scrapped in 2002.
Right: From just outside the Crystal Palace pub,
we see 47829 heading the VSOE (as it then was)
stock towards London. No doubt a special for
Christmas shoppers heading to Harrods! The
former D1964 lasted until 2006.
Left: Then unnamed, but has since carried four
different ones, including being the first of the
class into Virgin livery and being named Mission
Impossible, 90002 heads north with an express.
A much better day for the weather!
Page | 9
Right: Once an all-day sight and taken for granted,
but since displaced here by the 350s, ‘Dusty Bins’
321 424+443 head a northbound local service. In
fact 443 didn’t stay here long: the batch 321 438-
448 soon moved on to join the 321/3s working the
Great Eastern lines out of Liverpool St.
Left and below: Showing different versions of
InterCity livery 87032 Kenilworth and 87028
Lord President head north on expresses.
87028 was later exported to Bulgaria and
87032 was scrapped in 2010.
All photos Copyright © Rob Freeman – and thanks to Rob once again! There is an addendum to this article later in
the newsletter.
********************************************************
Page | 10Steam locomotives now preserved,
photographed when working for British
Railways,
Part 4.
By Humphrey Gillott.
All photographs Copyright © Humphrey Gillott.
Right: Class O1 0-6-0 No. 31065 at Ashford (Kent) MPD (74A), in
the summer of 1962.
Above Left : Class J27 0-6-0 No. 65894 under the coaling tower at York MPD (50A), in September 1965.
Above Right: ‘Merchant Navy’ Pacific 4-6-2 No. 35027 Port Line at Waterloo, about to reverse out of the
station to Nine Elms shed for servicing, on Monday 22nd November 1965.
Left: Class 9F 2-10-0 No. 92212 re-starts a north-bound oil train away from Tyseley,
on Saturday 4th December 1965.
Above: B1 Class 4-6-0 No. 61306 at Wakefield MPD (56A), in July 1966.
Page | 11Right: Stanier Class 5 4-6-0 No. 45231 heads north towards Wigan
having picked up a goods train outside Springs Branch (Wigan) MPD
(8F), in May 1967.
Thanks again to Humphrey – we look forward to further
contributions to come!
********************************************************************
Another excellent local shot from Bernie Holland – thanks!
Below: 47790 Galloway Princess heads 1Z26 Chester to Wembley League Cup Final ‘Northern Belle’ on the up fast through
Carpenders Park at 13:07 on Sunday 26th February 2012. The train was tailed by 47832. The train was organised for Liverpool
fans (presumably, fairly wealthy ones!) and was booked to run from Liverpool Lime Street. Due to a derailment of the HOBC at
Winsford, it had to be diverted to start from Chester… Liverpool beat Cardiff City 3 -2 after a penalty shoot-out, the score being
2 -2 after extra time. Photo © Bernie Holland.
***************************************************************************
Page | 12‘World Steam’ Tour of Java, 1973, by Geoff Plumb – Part 3
All Photos Copyright © Geoff Plumb
There is a rudimentary railway map of Java with the first part of this article in Newsletter No. 69
The end of Part 2 left us at Jogjakarta for an overnight time. In front of it was 0-4-2skT (Skirt Tank) No. B22 17.
stay, and the following morning, Sunday 22nd July 1973, Fortunately, there was enough light under the roof to
dawned bright and clear; we found D52 045 still be able to take some photos of the occupants.
simmering and glinting in the early morning light at
Jogjakarta station. From Jogjakarta there was a branch
line to Pandak (Bantul), with another branch off to
Imagiri; the early morning branch train arrived back at
Jogjakarta with, remarkably, C24 01 in charge of the
mixed consist (1 coach + 1 wagon!), under a small black
cloud of its own making, after it got the signal to enter
the station area. Diesel No. BB201 05 was sitting in a
siding in the station area, while C24 03 was doing some
shunting.
Inside the impressive depot at Lempujangan, near
Jogjakarta, is 0-6-0T No. C15 07. This class were two cylinder
compounds built by Werkspoor and Hartmann between 1897
and 1900, this engine being one of the Werkspoor locos,
Works No. 17. It was in store awaiting preservation, one
other loco of the class was still active at the time, but we did
not see it! Sunday 22nd July 1973.
There were several classes of ‘Skirt Tanks’ in Java –
their water tanks ran below the running plate above
The sign by the bufferstops says 'Idle', as diesel No. BB201 05 and around the wheels at front and back, somewhat
presumably does just that alongside the station at akin to Well Tanks but with the tanks outside the
Jogjakarta. The engine was one of eleven A1A-A1A built by frames rather than between.
EMD in 1963/1964. Sunday 22nd July 1973.
Just east of Jogjakarta station is the river that divides
the conurbation, the Kali Code, and just to the east of
that is another station at Lempujangan, with a large
semi-roundhouse engine shed, a rather grand affair
that still survives to this day, in railway use as a
‘Material Storage Warehouse’, with just one siding
leading to the turntable.
This depot was obviously capable of quite
heavy repairs with various C24 Class 2-6-2Ts
undergoing maintenance. A rarity here was 2-4-0ST No.
B11 03, the sole survivor of a class built by Beyer
Peacock in 1884 that had been out of use for some C20 07 is a skirt tank, an 0-6-2skT (Hartmann No. 3501 of
time. It was supposedly a candidate for preservation, 1911), sub-shedded at Purwosari depot from Solo Balapan to
though whether it has survived I do not know! work the branch line to Baturetno. Here it sits half in the
Also supposedly awaiting preservation on the sunshine and half in the shade at Purwosari, on Sunday 22 nd
same track under the impressive roof at Lempujangan July 1973.
was C15 Class 0-6-0T, 2-cylinder compound No. C15 07,
from a class built by Werkspoor and Hartmann in 1890, We then continued to follow the main line in a north
only one other engine from this class was active at this easterly direction towards Purwosari, junction for a
Page | 13short branch westwards to Kartosuro and another long
branch southwards to Baturetno. Sitting outside at the
back of Purwosari depot was another Skirt Tank
0-6-0skT No. C17 04. It seemed to be in use, though
perhaps only as a stationary source of steam? C20 07,
another Skirt Tank, an 0-6-2skT, sub-shedded at
Purwosari depot from Solo Balapan to work the branch
line to Baturetno, was photographed half in the
sunshine and half in the shade at Purwosari.
In steam outside Solo Balapan depot in Surakarta is 0-4-2skT
(skirt tank) No. B22 10. This was built by Hartmann, No. 2558
of 1900. Sunday 22nd July 1973.
alongside the depot and station at Gundih. This engine
was a wood burner, and the cab was stuffed with logs,
though the loco was attached to a pipe and once again
probably providing power for the pumps to replenish
the depot water storage tanks.
Inside the shed at Gundih was 0-6-0T No. C19
08. It was nicely cleaned up and its original SJS
(Semerang Joana Stoomtram) number, 108, could still
be seen in brass numerals fixed to its chimney.
0-6-2skT, No. C20 10 (Hartmann No. 3504 of 1911), is inside
the shed at Solo Balapan (Surakarta), though this could
perhaps be more accurately described as a roof on stilts!
Sunday 22nd July 1973.
There didn’t seem to be a great deal happening at
Purwosari, so we moved on to the depot at Solo
Balapan (Surakarta), where we found another skirt
tank, this time an 0-4-2skT, No. B22 10 in steam outside
the shed. Also here was C17 02 and a 2-6-2T No. C24
08, certainly in steam as it produced a cloud of oily
black smoke when the fireman opened the burner
supply! The shed here could perhaps be more
accurately described as a roof on stilts, and contained
4-6-4T No. C28 57, together with 0-6-2skT No. C20 10.
B22 10 also got some attention to its fire, but it didn’t
look as though it was about to do anything.
Inside the shed at Gundih is 0-6-0T No. C19 08 (Hartmann No.
Back on board the bus and we headed for
2426 of 1899). It is nicely cleaned up and its original SJS
Gundih, on the line heading north from the main line at (Semerang Joana Stoomtram) number, 108, can still be seen
Surakarta and joining the northerly main line at in brass numerals fixed to its chimney. Sunday 22nd July 1973.
Gambringan. Here, we found B22 14 was also in steam
Page | 14Skirt Tank No. C20 03 was dumped in the yard but B22
07 was in steam and helping out with the shunting. A
couple of cows were grazing the rather sparse grass
around the tracks at the station. Purwodadi was part of
a network of secondary lines to the north of the
northerly main line, the other places with depots in
this area being Blora and Kudus, visited later.
Great excitement ensued as it became
apparent that B27 04 was about to work a train! We
took up the chase and were able to get lineside shots
at various places as much of the route was alongside
the roads. The train consisted of a couple of water
tanks either end of the engine, a rather beaten up old
While the local goats rest in the shade of the station roof,
0-4-2skT No. B22 14 shunts a water tank wagon around the bogie coach and a box van. It was working from
sidings at Gundih, on Sunday 22nd July 1973. B22 14 was built Purwodadi towards Kredenan, our first shots as it
by Hartmann in 1900, Works No. 2562. entered a wayside station loop. The track was in pretty
woeful condition, but then so was the road alongside!
Belying its earlier appearance, B22 14 had now leapt B27 04 passed a freight train here, hauled by diesel No.
into action! Watched by some of the local goats from D301 05.
the sanctuary of the shade of the station canopies, it More ‘action’ shots of B27 04 were garnered as
trundled a water tank alongside the station at Gundih, it trundled through the countryside on its roadside
though that seemed to be the sum total of its efforts. tramway at a gentle pace - no good being in a hurry in
A rarity then put in an appearance - another this part of the world! The train stopped again by a
class of skirt tank and the only one! C18 01 was an roadside Mosque or Temple, which had an impressive
0-6-0skT, superheated rebuild with piston valves from iron ‘onion’ type dome and made for a good photo,
Class C17. It arrived at its home station of Gundih with before continuing to Wirosari.
a short branch train, probably from Gambringan.
We moved on northwards to Purwodadi,
crossing the northerly main line at Gambringan, there
was a fairly sizeable depot at Purwodadi with an
allocation of about 20 engines, mainly Class B27
0-4-2Ts, with a very long wheelbase. Wood-burning
B27 09 was doing some shunting, topping and tailing
with classmate B27 12, around the yard. There were
several engines around the shed area and a huge pile
of logs for the locos.
0-4-2T No. B27 04 is working along the line from Purwodadi
to Kredenan, much of which is roadside and goes straight
through the villages. The engine has additional water tanks
both in front and behind it, one rather beaten up bogie coach
and some sort of brake van. There seem to be plenty of
passengers! The loco was built by Hartmann in 1912, Works
No. 3535. Sunday 22nd July 1973.
Wirosari seemed to be the largest place on this route,
with a fair sized station, also the junction for the line to
Blora. Here B27 04 came off the train to replenish its
Sixteen members of the B27 class were built in three batches water supplies and to do a spot of shunting. Getting
by Hartmann between 1912 and 1921. They were under way again and B27 04 had gained a bogie wagon
0-4-2Ts, more or less a tank engine version of the B52 0-4-0s. loaded with logs as it set out for another wayside loop,
B27 02 is standing by the pile of firewood at Purwodadi possibly at Pengkam. Onwards again and the train
depot, coupled to an auxiliary water tender. This loco was stopped, as did we, the train blocking a level-crossing
built in 1912, works No. 3533. Sunday 22nd July 1973. over the road. As usual, some of the local population
watched proceedings. Once the B27 had done a bit
Page | 15more shunting, it headed off towards Kredenan and we We now continued our journey towards Rembang, a
waved it goodbye, as we then made our way to Blora. fishing town on the northern coast of Java where we
were intending to stay for the night, before venturing
out to see the morning train from Kudus. By now the
sun had set and the terrors of travelling in the dark
were upon us once again, there being very little twilight
in the tropics. Once into Rembang, the next problem
here was the apparent lack of a hotel - we were well off
the tourist trail - and it took our crew some time to find
anything. When they did it didn’t look very promising,
dirty and run down but there didn’t seem to be an
alternative. I went in with Peter Benton to negotiate -
we secured our night’s accommodation for 11 people
for just under £2! (The bus driver and his mate decided
to sleep on the bus!). The place had perhaps once been
Having arrived at Wirosari from Purwodadi, B27 04 came off a Dutch colonial establishment and had obviously seen
its train to Kredenan to replenish its water supply at the better times – rooms were basic to say the least and
depot (though it still seems to have plenty of firewood!) and
the lavatorial facilities are best not gone into!
to do some shunting. Wirosari was a junction station, lines
The ‘hotel’ did not serve food (probably just as
leading from here to Kredenan and to Blora. B27 04 was built
by Hartmann in 1912, Works No. 3535. Sunday 22nd July well), so now we had to find somewhere to eat –
1973. eventually the crew found a ‘restaurant’ in a little back
street in what appeared to be a converted garage. Our
The depot at Blora, alongside the station, contained presence had inevitably attracted a crowd who
several members of the C12 Class 2-cylinder compound together with our crew (who had declined to eat with
2-6-0Ts, we recorded C12 37, C12 36 and C12 40 us!) solemnly watched us while we ate. The inevitable
outside the impressive shed, in the fading light as the ‘Bintang Baru’ beer appeared out of cupboards (at
evening wore on. The engines here were nicely looked- room temperature) while the ‘chef’ prepared what
after, their huge brass domes highly polished. Nothing turned out to be wonderful fresh crab omelettes and
was is steam though and there was no sign of any other goodies. We thoroughly enjoyed this while the
impending action, so it was time to move on. crowd gazed on, also the lizards that ran around the
walls! We duly paid up (I can’t remember how much)
and announced we would be back for breakfast the
following morning.
After a less than ideal night’s sleep we were up
early and back at the ‘restaurant’, where they duly
turned out fried eggs with newly baked bread which
was absolutely delicious - though once again our crew
would not eat anything - perhaps they had seen the
state of the kitchen! As before, we had a crowd of
locals to watch us enjoy our breakfast. I’m glad to say
we had no upset stomachs in the party at all!
We then set off in the bus to meet the train
coming from Kudus behind a B52 0-4-0 towards
The imposing loco shed at Blora is well up to date at the time, Rembang, the idea being to meet it en route then chase
having modified its ownership from PNKA to the newly it back to Rembang. Unfortunately, we had a puncture
changed PJKA. This was a three way junction in north-eastern in one of the tyres and a wheel had to be changed. This
Central Java, with lines running north west to Rembang, delayed us somewhat, but we met up with the train
south east to Tjepu and south west to Wirosari, all of them and left our mechanic in another local village to get the
fairly minor lines. Three members of the two-cylinder tyre sorted out. After we had chased the train and got
compound 2-6-0Ts of class C12 grace the shed, all nicely kept
our shots, we returned to pick up the mechanic and
with polished brass, though how often they moved is
found him about a mile from the village, bowling the
uncertain! All three locos, C12 37, C12 36 and C12 40 are
from the same batch of seven built by Hartmann in 1902, repaired tyre along the road. Quite remarkable!
works numbers 2733, 2732 and 2736, respectively. This was This was Monday, 23rd July 1973 and the train
the last batch of the forty three locos built, all by Hartmann we met up with was hauled by 0-4-0 No. B52 02, our
from 1893 to 1902. Sunday 22nd July 1973. first shots as it got away from a station stop over a river
bridge with the 07:18 train from Kudus, departing from
Page | 16Djuana at 08:49. This train was booked for a diesel from another bridge over yet another river, where the local
Semerang to Rembang, but apparently the usual kids were in the water, riding on the backs of their
practice was for the diesel to be taken off at Kudus to water buffaloes, which were as usual up to their
work back to Semerang, and its place taken by the B52, nostrils in the cooling water, quite oblivious to the
which then had to be thrashed to keep time! To see an passing of the train!
0-4-0 tender engine at work in 1973 was pretty
amazing, especially on the main train of the day. The
train consisted of a long wheelbase double-tank
wagon, two bogie coaches and a bogie van, traversing
pleasant countryside interspersed with rivers and
fishponds in this coastal area, and much of it running
alongside the road.
B52 Class 0-4-0 No. B52 02 with the 07:18 train from Kudus
to Rembang, somewhere between Djuana and Rembang on
the northern coast of Central Java. Some of the local kids play
with the water buffaloes to keep cool! Monday, 23rd July
1973. This engine was one of a batch built by Hartmann in
1908.
We managed some shots of the train alongside the
0-4-0 tender engines were not exactly commonplace at any road traffic – including our bus, Elteha No. 17, as well
time, but in the 1970s such beasts were rarer than hens' as a rival bus to the train, also travelling from Kudus to
teeth! PNKA B52 02 is at the head of the 07:18 train from
Blora via Rembang. The train looked pretty
Kudus to Rembang, seen here soon after leaving Djuana at
uncomfortable, but still preferable to the cramped
08:49 on Monday 23rd July 1973. This train was actually
booked to be worked by a diesel between Semerang and confines of the competing bus! Also photographed was
Rembang, but in practice the diesel came off at Kudus to a typical bullock cart on the road alongside the railway
work back to Semerang and its place taken by the B52. This - virtually a hut on wheels, complete with roof and
then had to be worked pretty hard to keep to the schedule! loaded with wooden beams. These were hanging over
the back of the cart, the hazard warning consisting of a
few leaves attached to a beam. Just the sort of thing
you would want to come across on an unlit road at
night!
Class B52 0-4-0 No. B52 02 is in charge of the 07:18 train from
Kudus to Rembang in northern Central Java, soon after
leaving Djuwana. The loco was built by Hartmann in 1908,
works No. 3314. Monday 23rd July 1973.
B52 Class 0-4-0 No. B52 02 is working the main train of the
We were able to chase the train quite easily, though day, the 07:18 from Kudus to Rembang along the roadside
the road was fairly busy, and one advantage of going to section of the line not far from Rembang, exact location not
meet the train in the opposite direction was that we known. The track can hardly be described as ‘permanent
were able to spot a few potential locations for our way’! Monday 23rd July 1973.
shots. One such spot was as the train approached
Page | 17The B52 and train were photographed at a few more
locations before entering the town area of Rembang,
then we let it go and retraced our steps back towards To be continued…
Djuana to pick up the mechanic and repaired tyre,
though he had been walking towards us, bowling the
tyre along, for some time when we met him! We then
continued towards Kudus and came across another
sugar estate line.
***********************************************************************
Some more from Rob Davidson, on various subjects
All Photos © Rob Davidson
Left: ROG 47815 Lost Boys 88-98, together with 47813, stand in
Honeybourne Siding with 5M56, 12:37 from Long Marston to Castle
Donnington EMDC ECS working with eleven ex-Anglia Mk.3 coaches.
12:44¼ on Thursday 23rd July 2020 - shame about the Buddleia!
Right: BR 94xx Class 0-6-0PT No. 9466 about to leave Toddington en route
for Wirksworth on the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway, at 16:35¾ on
Wednesday 30th September 2020 – lovely weather!. The engine was built
by Robert Stephenson & Hawthorn in 1951, Works No. 7617, though it didn't go into service until 29th February 1952, allocated to
Worcester (85A).
Left: Taken during a Christmas visit (remember those?) to the Czech
Republic and Austria, CD No. 380 006-7 stands in Platform 2 at Praha
Hlavni Nadrazi station at 09:11¼ on Monday 26th December 2016.
Above Right: CD No. 854 009-8 Erika at Praha Hlavni Nadrazi station,
Platform 1b, at 09:16½ on Monday 26th December 2016.
Left: ÖBB Railjet 80-90.738 at Vienna Station Platform 8, Monday 26th
December 2016.
Thanks to Rob!
Page | 18Glimpses whilst working abroad, by David Boot. Having enjoyed the Watford Branch Zoom meetings as a guest and been privileged to see copies of the newsletter, I have put together a short article showing some glimpses of railways captured whilst working abroad. I worked for Joseph Lucas Ltd who were mostly known for electrical car components. In November 1979 I was asked to join the Overseas Operations Dept. as a Project Manager. Most times it was just short monthly visits so spare time was often rare. However, there were some moments where I was able to go off and photograph railway related scenes. My first skirmish was to Argentina just before the Falklands war. In those days they were a bit touchy about where you could take photos. My first picture (below left) shows a diesel unit arriving at Belgrano Station in Buenos Aires. This was where I found out about the difficulty of taking pictures. I think I got away with it because I said that I knew the makers of the locomotive. It had a works plate on the chassis that stated it was constructed at the Metropolitan Cammell Carriage & Wagon Co. works in Smethwick just a mile away from where I lived in my youth. The second photo (below right) is taken at a level crossing where a vehicle ignored the warnings. Apparently even to today this is a regular occurrence. Fortunately, the barriers are set well back from the track. Above Left: Belgrano Station, Buenos Aires Above Right: Level crossing opposite River Plate FC The next project took me to South Africa where I was fortunate to discover that the General Manager’s PA was married to a fellow who was heavily involved in steam loco preservation. It happenened that whilst I was there that a special was running from Johannesburg to Magaliesburg and onto Die Moot on Saturday 24th March 1984. The first part of the journey to Magaliesburg was worked by 15F Class 4-8-2 No. 3153 Krugersdorp. A 19D Class 4-8-2 took the train on to Die Moot. I stayed at Magaliesburg, to enjoy a ‘fry up’ on a silver shovel followed by the pleasure of driving the 15F around the triangle in readiness for its return journey to Johannesburg. The state of the track on that triangle was to say the least dodgy, as it was more like a Disneyland Rocky Road ride in disrepair. Above Left:15F Class 4-8-2 No. 3153 Krugersdorp, North British No. 26040 of 1948. Above Right: The 19D arrives at Magaliesburg Following from South Africa I was then sent to New Zealand where I had four visits, one of six months duration. Having been there a couple of days I discovered that one of my team was the PR officer and Vice Chairman of the Page | 19
Glenbrook Vintage Railway [GVR]. He soon got me involved and on many weekends during my stay I spent time on
the GVR, in the workshops and out on the tracks as well as riding in the cab.
A brief history of the line up until my visit:
1922 The Waiuku Branch Railway officially opened between Paerata and Waiuku.
1948 New Zealand Railways withdraw passenger services on the Waiuku Branch Railway.
1967 The Waiuku Branch Railway is closed between Glenbrook and Waiuku.
1970 The Glenbrook Vintage Railway Charitable Trust Board is formed.
1970sRestoration of GVR’s inaugural fleet of steam locomotives and carriages begins.
Reclaiming the railway corridor from nature begins.
Creation of the Glenbrook Station heritage precinct begins.
1977 The Glenbrook Vintage Railway is officially opened for the 4.5km of track between Glenbrook and
Pukeoware.
1985 GVR restored steam locomotive JA1250 (along with KA945) haul the first steam train on the national
network since steam trains were banned by NZR.
In 1985 I was actual witness to the JA1250 with KA945 re-entering service. The picture below left shows the
two locomotives on shed with their assembled crews and waiting to go.
Picture above right is of GVR No. 1, a 4-6-4 tank built in Dunedin in 1910 as Wg480, later rebuilt as Ww480 in
1951 and in 1969 purchased from New Zealand Railways. It was fully overhauled by GVR workers, with myself
contributing in a small way during my stay.
In Auckland there is a rather splended Museum of Transport and Technology - MOTAT. I would imagine it has
changed somewhat since I last visited it in 1986 but I will share a couple of shots that may invoke some
memories of home.
Above Left: A GWR Signal Box ??? * Above Right: LT RLH 45 - someone must have travelled on this bus! **
Page | 20This really is only the tip of the iceberg where New Zealand is concerned. I have a rather strange story as
regards my visit to the other side of the World but I will save that for my impending video show as will those
of other countries.
© David Boot
* Details may be seen at: https://collection.motat.org.nz/objects/1911
** Details may be seen here: https://timebus.co.uk/rlh/fleet/rlh45/index.htm
*******************************************************************
An addendum to Rob Freeman’s article
Since Rob submitted his article seen earlier in the newsletter, he has been back to the same location and sent the photo below,
taken on 26th October 2020, at 15:36 :
Still a viable photospot, though the road signs are a pity – the trees are all on the far side of the line. Shadows obviously a
problem in the afternoon at this time of the year! Photo © Rob Freeman.
The by now traditional ‘3D’ shot to round things off!
66049 is stabled in the centre road at Bristol Temple Meads station with 6B99, the MO 12:26 St. Blazey to Cardiff Tidal scrap
train consisting of 5 SSA wagons. Alongside is Virgin Voyager No. 220 010 about to depart for Newcastle at 17:58 on
Monday 21st August 2006.
The photos are a ‘Cross Stereo Pair’, and thus when looked at correctly, form a 3D image. In order to view these images, sit well
back from your screen, look at the join between the two photos and then attempt to go ‘cross-eyed’, focusing your eyes just
beyond the end of your nose as it were. It takes some practice, but eventually the two images will merge in the middle and produce
the 3D image in the centre (you will still see images to the left and right of the 3D image). Once you have got it, yours eyes will
‘lock-on’ and you can look around inside the image. Enjoy, but don't strain your eyes! Once your eyes have ‘locked-on’, you can
hide the side images by holding your hands up a few inches in front of your face with a gap of a couple of inches between them.
Unfortunately, the technique used for producing the image cannot be used for moving trains! Photo © Geoff Plumb.
Page | 21Provisional programme of Watford Branch meetings from January to December 2021 – subject to
circumstances prevailing!
5th January WATFORD BRANCH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING. Yet another opportunity for you to volunteer as an officer of
the Committee of RCTS Watford Branch. This will be followed by ROB FREEMAN with: ‘Gems from the Casserley
Photo Collection’. While writing the sequel to ‘Steaming Through Berkhamsted’ for Mary Casserley,
granddaughter of H C Casserley and daughter of R M Casserley, Rob Freeman has been granted access to some
of the vast collection of photos taken by these two venerable photographers. This presentation will show some
of his interesting discoveries which Mary has given him permission to show us. There will be photos from around
the country, as well as those of local scenes. The period covered will be 1920s to early 1960s.
2nd February DAVE BOOT ‘Ramblings of a Head Station Master’, Overseas, 1940s Box Brownie British, followed by
modern digital.
2nd March STEVE BATTY ‘Northern Travels Past and Present’.
6th April ADRIAN WHITE travels from Stevenage for his show 'NEXT TRAIN GONE’ My personal photographic
reflections, taken here, there and everywhere! Featuring colour and some B&W shots of Steam, Diesel,
Electric & Bi-mode traction, both at home and abroad, set in their working environments and with the
people they serve and who operate them.
4th May JOHN JOLLY comes fresh from the Mangapps Railway to chat about his marvellous collection and how
he acquired it all. ‘Mangapps:- The First 30 years [and a few other things]’.
1st June BRIAN ARMAN our Society President visits Watford for the first time with ‘A Broad Gauge Journey
from Paddington to the West – Part 1’. Some lovely old photos here!
6th July Our very own chairman GEOFF PLUMB will be presenting another of his great series ‘THAT WAS THE
YEAR THAT WAS’ this time looking back at 1962. Nostalgia rules OK.
NO AUGUST MEETING
7th September JOHN DAY pays another visit, the last one being over 10 years ago, to present ‘The Route of The
Canadian and its Branches’ – Taking a look at the route from Toronto to just east of Vancouver and
north to Churchill, Manitoba.
5th October STEPHEN GAY visits for the eighth time to present his new talk ‘The East Coast Main Line from King’s
Cross to York’.
2nd November TO BE ADVISED
7th December MEMBERS’ SLIDES, WITH LIZZIE’S MINCE PIES & SAUSAGE ROLLS!
Rob Davidson, Branch Secretary
All of the above are subject to confirmation apart from the AGM in January, which will be by Zoom.
******************************************************
That’s it for another month or so until the next newsletter – in the meantime, if anyone would like to send in contributions, they
would be most welcome – it’s very good that the regulars continue to submit material (and many thanks for that!), but I’m sure
that many more members have recollections, reminiscences , stories of railway exploits, tales of shed bashes, trips and travels
that could be shared with all our members! Please don’t be shy, this is a medium where all can contribute articles freely – without
judgement, for everyone to enjoy in these fraught times! Anything you would like to be published, please submit to me at:
watfordchair@rcts.org.uk – I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks also to those who have sent in contributions for the first
time, we appreciate your efforts.
Geoff Plumb, Chairman, RCTS Watford Branch
A Charitable Incorporated Organisation registered with The Charities Commission. Registered number 1169995
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