East Somerset Railway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The East Somerset Railway currently operates a 2.5 mile (4 km) preserved railway on standard gauge between Cranmore and Mendip Vale. Prior to the Beeching Axe, the line ran from Witham to Wells, where it met the Cheddar Valley line and Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway.
Contents |
[edit] History
| East Somerset Railway | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The line was built in 1855 as a broad gauge line. The line was originally between Witham railway station and Shepton Mallet and this line opened on 9 November 1858. It was later extended to Wells: this part of the line was opened on 1 March 1862. The East Somerset Railway was bought by the Great Western Railway in 1874.
In 1878, the GWR joined the East Somerset line with the Cheddar Valley line to Wells, which had been built by the Bristol and Exeter Railway, by obtaining running rights over a section of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway and running its trains through the S&DJR Wells station at Priory Road, though GWR trains did not stop at Priory Road until 1934. At this stage, the main traffic became the through trains from Yatton to Witham and the East Somerset Railway station in Wells closed, with Wells (Tucker Street) becoming the station for the city on the line. The Yatton to Witham service remained in use with the GWR and later BR until passenger service finally ceased in 1963 as a result of the Beeching Axe.
[edit] Preservation
Today the railway plays host to a variety of preserved diesel and steam locomotives.
The East Somerset Railway only operates the line between Cranmore, Cranmore West, Merryfield Lane Halt and Mendip Vale. The section between Cranmore and the mainline is used for heavy quarry traffic to the nearby Merehead Quarry.
On 25 March 2007 the East Somerset Railway announced that it had received a £7,500 grant from Shepton 21 Group, a local organistation, set up to regenerate the area around Shepton Mallet. The money will be spent on conducting a feasibility study into extending the line towards Shepton Mallet, with a possible new terminus at Cannards Grave, on the outskirts of Shepton Mallet.
[edit] Events
The railway hosts several events throughout the year
- "Spring into steam"
- "Mendip steam dream"
- Santa Special trains
- "The way we were" days
[edit] Locomotives
[edit] Operational steam
- GWR 0-6-0ST Port Talbot No. 813 - Great Western Green
- Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST No.1719 - Austerity Blue
- Duro USA Tank No.30075 - BR Black
- BR 2-10-0 Class 9F no. 92203 "Black Prince" - visiting for for Quarry Weekend
- 2-8-0 USA S160 5197 - visiting for for Quarry Weekend
- 4-6-0 GWR 4936 Kinlet Hall - visiting for for Quarry Weekend
- 2-4-0 SR 30587 Beattie Well Tank - visiting for for Quarry Weekend
[edit] Undergoing overhaul
- LB&SCR E1 Class No.110
- GWR 5600 Class No.5637 - BR Black on loan from the Swindon and Cricklade Railway
[edit] Awaiting overhaul
- Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST No.1398
- Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST No.705
[edit] Operational diesel
- Sentinel 0-4-0DH No. DH199 Cattewater - Red
- Sentinel 0-6-0DH No. DH39 - Blue
- Class 50 No. 50049 - visiting for Quarry weekend
- Class 37 No. 37906 - visiting for Quarry weekend
- Class 14 No. D9526 - visiting for Quarry weekend
[edit] Just overhauled
- Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST No.1719 - Austerity Blue
