Blue skies and blue locomotive today, as Peckett 0-4-0ST ‘Kilmersdon’ is at work on passenger trains for the first services of 2015. The SS Great Britain and New Cut branches are in operation, come down to the docks for a ride!
It’s the first BHR operating weekend of the year, with 3 days of steam-hauled train rides planned.
Saturday 4th April
Sunday 5th April
Monday 6th April.
Visiting Bristol-built Peckett 0-4-0st ‘Kilmersdon’ will be providing motive power.
‘Kilmersdon’ was built by Peckett in 1929 and numbered 1788. It worked at the NCB’s Kilmersdon Colliery in Somerset and now belongs to the Somerset and Dorset Railway Trust.
She has previously visited the BHR and worked photo charters, and was a former stablemate of ‘Portbury’ and ‘Henbury’ at Radstock.
Paul Jarman has posted this image on Beamish Transport Online, it is the work of Dave Hewitt and shows Portbury with a rather lovely wooden-bodied coach and Tram 196 in operation on Valentine’s Day.
Joseph Stuart captured this footage:
Paul Jarman of Beamish Transport Online has posted updates on Portbury’s arrival at Beamish. Shunted off the lorry siding by departing hire loco ‘John Howe’ (An Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST), Portbury was in steam the next day and immediately put to work shunting the yard at Rowley station.
These photos appear here with Paul’s permission
‘Portbury’ has departed Bristol and is now on her way North to Beamish!
The Xmas steam up event was a success, with all tickets selling out. Rich Skuse and Zoe Robinson were among the lucky people to try their hand at driving ‘Portbury’ and the Steam Crane.
Rich has kindly allowed these photos to be reproduced here!
In May 2014, a shunting move to get rolling stock out of the Smeaton Road shed and into the rebuilt ‘Barn’ saw Fox, Walker and Sons No.242 (NCB No.3) out in the open air. This loco had new bearings fitted before the rebuild of M Shed in 2006, so is a rolling chassis and can be moved around.
The photos also give an indication as to the condition of the loco, and the scale of any restoration that might take place.
These pictures were taken by Michelle Scoplin of the Create Centre and appear here with her kind permission.
After the preservation project at Radstock closed, and before she was brought to L Shed for restoration, Portbury was stored in a warehouse at Avonmouth Docks. Some restoration work had been undertaken at Radstock, and the loco was re-assembled before delivery back to Avonmouth. It was to be another 10 years until she returned to steam.
The photographs on this page (Unless otherwise stated) were taken by Kevin Hughes and purchased from the Rail Correspondance and Travel Society’s website. They appear here for research purposes only and may not be used for profit or gain without permission.
At the Foxfield Railway’s 2008 gala, Portbury paid a visit and was given the chance to attack the famous 1-in-19 to 1-in-26 Foxfield Bank, the climb away from Foxfield Colliery itself.
Youtube user ‘Pennysteam’ was there to capture the event (If you like railway videos, be sure to subscribe to pennysteam as their footage is spectacular)
Part 1:
Part 2, Portbury ascends the gradient again at around 5.20:
With just 3 operating weekends left in the season, here are a few photos from today’s workings. The weather was good for the most part, with only one trainload of passengers getting the full ‘goods’ experience during a heavy shower!
Coming off the pit with steam to spare
There was a march organised for Saturday evening to raise awareness for cancer on the dockside
Ominous clouds
Newly-repainted Thekla in the distance
Raising steam at M Shed
The day’s work done
Note the new sleepers installed when this section of track was relaid
Coaling up
Larry empties the last of the coal into 34’s bunker
Creeping back to the shed
Ready for another day
Here’s a bonus .gif of Portbury heading to the shed after a hard day’s work.
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