The Engines of Avonmouth

Posted on November 13, 2014 by corwinb

Port of Bristol Authority Avonmouth Shed, Avonsides S4, S5 and Pecketts S11 and another present, 21/7/63 – Railphotoprints.com

The Avonmouth Docks system utilised a large motive power stud, mainly consisting of locomotives constructed in Bristol by Avonside or Peckett. In 1939, there were some 28 steam locomotives in the fleet.

The steam fleet included (But was not limited to):

S1 ‘Hudson’ (Avonside 1724 of 1915) – 0-6-0ST
S2 ‘William’ (Avonside 1725 of 1915) – 0-6-0ST
S3 ‘Portbury’ (Avonside 1764 of 1917) – 0-6-0ST
S4 ‘Percy’ (Avonside 1800 of 1918) – 0-6-0ST
S5 ‘Brian’ (Avonside 1799 of 1918) – 0-6-0ST
S6 ‘Fyffe’ (Peckett 1721 of 1926) – 0-6-0ST
S7 ‘Ashton’ (Peckett 1878 of 1934) – 0-6-0ST
S8 ‘Westbury’ (Peckett 1877 of 1934) – 0-6-0ST
S9 ‘Henbury’ (Peckett 1940 of 1937) – 0-6-0ST
S10 ‘Hallen’ (Peckett 2035 of 1943) – 0-6-0ST
S11 ‘Bristol’ (Peckett 2036 of 1943) – 0-6-0ST
S12 ‘Clifton’ (Peckett 2037 of 1943) – 0-6-0ST
S13 ‘Redland’ (Peckett 2038 of 1943) – 0-6-0ST

‘Lionel” (Peckett No.466 of 1889) – 0-6-0ST

‘Henry’ (Peckett 1264 of 1913) – 0-6-0ST

‘Strathcona’ (Peckett No. 1243 of 1910) – 0-6-0ST

‘Hudson’ (Avonside Engine 1724 of 1915) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth Docks 13/8/49

‘William’ (Avonside Engine 1725 of 1915) at PBA, Avonmouth 5/4/58

No. S3 ‘Portbury’ (Avonside Engine 1764 of 1917) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

‘Percy’ (Avonside Engine 1800 of 1918) at PBA, Avonmouth 5/4/58

No. S4 ‘Percy’ (Avonside Engine 1800 of 1918) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

‘Brian’ (Avonside Engine 1799 of 1918) at PBA, Avonmouth 5/4/58

No. S5 ‘Brian’ (Avonside Engine 1799 of 1918) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

‘Fyffe’ (Peckett 1721 of 1926) at PBA, Avonmouth 5/4/58

‘Ashton’ (Peckett 1878 of 1934) at PBA, Avonmouth (side view) 5/4/58

No. S7 ‘Ashton’ (Peckett 1878 of 1934) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

‘Westbury’ (Peckett 1877 of 1934) at PBA, Avonmouth (side view) 5/4/58

‘Westbury’ (Peckett 1877 of 1934) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth Docks (side view) 13/8/49

No. S8 ‘Westbury’ (Peckett 1877 of 1934) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

‘Hallen’ (Peckett 2035 of 1943) at PBA, Avonmouth 5/4/58

No. S10 ‘Hallen’ (Peckett 2035 of 1943) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63 (Courtesy RCTS/Jack Faithfull)

No. S11 ‘Bristol’ (Peckett 2036 of 1943) on an RCTS rail tour at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

No. S11 ‘Bristol’ (Peckett 2036 of 1943) on an RCTS railtour at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

‘Clifton’ (Peckett 2037 of 1943) at PBA, Avonmouth 5/4/58

No. S12 ‘Clifton’ (Peckett 2037 of 1943) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth 21/7/63

Peckett S12 ‘Clifton’ (Copyright Geoff Plumb)

No. S13 ‘Redland’ (Peckett 2038 of 1943) at the Port of Bristol Authority, Avonmouth (side view) 21/7/63

The ‘S’ prefix was added to the loco numbers by the early 1960s as diesel traction was introduced, as well as the addition of the distinctive red and white striped bufferbeams.

At first a small batch of Hudswell Clarke diesels were purchased, of which D1171 ‘Western Pride’ (Later sold to Western Fuel Co., now preserved) was one. Another, No.23 ‘Merlin’ is preserved at the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway in Yorkshire, although currently out of use awaiting overhaul.

ex-PBA No.23 ‘Merlin’ (D.2003) on the KWVR (Helena via Wikipedia)

In 1965 a fleet of Sentinel shunters came to the port. Finished in smart blue livery, they were direct replacements for the steam locos, which were withdrawn shortly afterward.

PBA 34 on the dockside,1973 (Courtesy John Stanford)

Sentinel 0-6-0 No. PBA 39 and PBA 40 at Avonmouth docks 14/5/82 (Courtesy Kevin Hughes/RCTS)

The Sentinels worked right up until the closure of the Avonmouth Docks Railway system in 1983.

Sentinel PBA 39 is now preserved on the nearby East Somerset Railway, and has recently been restored to its original PBA livery. Also on the East Somerset Railway is PBA 42, also known as ‘Eric’, which went on to work for La Farge in Westbury, before being preserved in 2007, and is currently awaiting restoration.

PBA 39 on the ESR (T. Dalton)

The photographs on this page (Unless otherwise stated) were taken by Jack Faithfull 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.

Helston Railway Collects Rail

Posted on November 8, 2014 by corwinb

Some of the surplus track lifted during the remodelling of both ends of the line was collected by the volunteers at the Helston Railway in Cornwall.

This line is based at Trevarno, and they operate two Ruston diesel shunters very similar to the one based on the BHR.

The below photos appear here reposted from the Helston Railway’s Facebook Page.

9777_743296595759010_3467428887069112942_n

10176260_743296665759003_3977943754199794527_n

10395857_743296639092339_4815477101822888127_n

10425402_742315839190419_5568267644217683214_n

10646638_743128075775862_4024791371352500320_n

10689787_743296975758972_3641606239173344765_n

TBT – Portbury takes on Foxfield Bank, 2008

Posted on October 16, 2014 by corwinb

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:

Autumn Sun (and rain!)

Posted on October 11, 2014 by corwinb

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.

Portbury’s Twin Needs Your Help!

Posted on October 1, 2014 by corwinb

Based just a few miles away at the Avon Valley Railway is an almost identical loco to the BHR’s own ‘Portbury’, Avonside No.1798.

An appeal has been launched to get this locomotive restored and back in steam. It was the first steam loco on-site at Bitton in 1973, and worked there right up until it needed a heavy overhaul in the mid 1980s.

Built in 1918 at the same Bristol works as ‘Portbury’, it was delivered to the Imperial Smelting Works in Avonmouth, where it laboured away its whole working life.

ISC Ltd. No.2 at work in Avonmouth (Photo copyright Gordon Edgar)

The above photo appears here with the kind permission of Gordon Edgar, please take a look at his flickr site for more great railway images

When restored at the Avon Valley Railway, the loco received a plain black livery and was named ‘Edwin Hulse’ after a founder member of the railway.

En route to Bitton

The first steam-hauled trains at Bitton

A lot has changed since 1974, but this loco has seen it all!

How you can help

You can help by sponsoring one of the major parts listed in this brochure (download link) or by joining the 1798 Club whereby you covenant to donate £17.98 each month by standing order for up to 24 months. Whether you sponsor a specific item or donate monthly, you will automatically become members of the 1798 Club and be entitled to a range of benefits.

Every penny received from sponsorship or donation is spent on restoring this important engine.

Further details can be obtained by downloading the leaflet.

Please take a look at the official website for more details.

BHR in Heritage Railway Magazine!

Posted on September 26, 2014 by corwinb

Make sure to get your hands on a copy of this month’s Heritage Railway Magazine! The BHR has a feature from Juliet Eden, who took the fantastic photos showing both Portbury and Henbury in service.

All change at Butterfly Junction

Posted on February 16, 2014 by corwinb

The track gangs (Usually a team of no more than 6 people) have been extremely busy in modifying the layout at Butterfly Junction.

This was the view today – the line through the station has been lifted, as has the loop, and the sleepers from the Ashton Meadows Spur have been recovered.

Perhaps aptly, the station information board is rather lopsided.

In the shadow of the tobacco bond warehouses, the crane lifts the last few remaining rails from the station area.

Larry the loader assists

The foreground is where the spur to Ashton Meadows used to run – this is planned to form part of the Metrobus route

Just around the corner, the new shed and yard is taking shape. Compare these photos to those taken in January, another set of points has been laid on the approach to the Barn, which is already half assembled.

Henbury’s Christmas Holiday – More Photos and Videos

Posted on January 14, 2014 by corwinb

Here are a few more pics and vids from Henbury’s trip to Midsomer Norton.

The following are from the Somerset and Dorset Railway’s web site:

This video was posted by YouTube user Steam trains by XxBec3509

Portbury in Preservation

Posted on November 24, 2013 by corwinb

Avonside No. 1764 ‘Portbury’ was built in 1917 for the war effort, destined to work at the Portbury shipyards. The end of the war in 1918 meant the shipyard never actually built a vessel.
She eventually moved into the fleet of shunters based in Avonmouth and worked there until replaced by diesels.

Here are a few photos from across the internet of her life in preservation.

In the early 1970s, all three of the BHR’s steam locomotives were to be found at Radstock station in Somerset. This was part of a preservation effort to save and operate a section of the Somerset and Dorset Railway.

Here she is outside the shed, looking rather forlorn.

Source: http://www.geoffspages.co.uk/raildiary/radstock.htm

and another pic inside the shed next to 7F 53808

Portbury sharing space in Radstock Shed

Unfortunately, the project at Radstock was unsuccessful and the Somerset and Dorset Railway Heritage Trust relocated to Washford on the West Somerset Railway.
‘Henbury’, ‘Portbury’ and No. 242 found their way to the Bristol Harbour Railway, opened in 1978.

‘Portbury’s restoration was completed in Bristol and she was in brought into operation on the BHR.
Here she is in lined blue livery back in 1992.

Original source:
http://www.geolocation.ws/v/W/File%3APortbury%202.jpg/-/en

and in operation in 1996

Source: http://bit.ly/1erjN1L

After another overhaul, she emerged in 2001 in a livery akin to the one she first wore, the initials ‘I W & D’ stand for ‘Inland Waterways and Docks’.

Source: http://www.bristoljpg.co.uk/2004/portbury.jpg

Now, in 2013, this livery has been adapted to more accurately represent her 1917 condition – note the lack of nameplate (She was not named ‘Portbury’ until her time at Avonmouth Docks) and the black wheels.

Bristol Harbour Festival 2013

Posted on August 5, 2013 by corwinb

Harbour Festival is always busy down at Bristol Docks. I was volunteering on the Sunday (Saturday had seen torrential downpours, we were lucky on Sunday).

A couple of views from 8am before the crowds arrived.

The ever faithful ‘Henbury’ was on duty today.

As steam was raised outside the shed, I was tasked with polishing up some of the brasswork, including climbing up on the saddle tank to do the whistles, safety valve cover and chimney cap.

Then Driver Bob eases her over the pit for oiling.

The harbour area was packed full of interesting vessels and activities, and the museum’s own fleet was out in force.

The main challenge of the day was traversing the extremely busy area on the wharf. Trains proceeded along this section at a snail’s pace. Museum volunteers in high-vis made sure members of the public didn’t stray on to the running line.

Services were between M Shed and the SS Great Britain halt. The rain did eventually come, thankfully only toward the end of the day.
‘Henbury’s fire was dropped and she backed into the shed after another day’s work.

Bristol Harbour Railway Blog

An unofficial blog site about the BHR and industrial railways in Bristol

Tag Archives: railway