Old Marley Hill, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, NE16 5ET
The Tanfield Railway is a 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge heritage railway in Gateshead and County Durham, England. Running on part of a former colliery wooden waggonway, later a steam railway, it operates preserved industrial steam locomotives.
 |
| Old Work Shed (Ken Fitzpatrick) |
The railway operates a passenger service every Sunday, plus other days, as well as occasional demonstration coal, goods & mixed trains. The line runs 3 miles (4.8 km) between a southern terminus at East Tanfield, Durham, to a northern terminus at Sunniside, Gateshead. Another station, Andrews House, is situated near the Marley Hill engine shed. A halt also serves the historic site of the Causey Arch. The railway claims to be "the world's oldest railway
The Tanfield Waggonway was built by the Grand Allies from about 1720 to transport coal more reliably & cheaply from inland collieries of County Durham, to the staiths on the River Tyne at Redheugh. From here the coal was transported in keels downriver to South Shields, then transferred to colliers (bulk coal carrying ships) for the voyage down the North Sea coast to south east England.
Many older shorter coal waggonways existed to the north of the present heritage line, in the Whickham & Lobley Hill areas, but the Tanfield Waggonway was a much longer and heavily engineered route which gave the Grand Allies market dominance all year round. (Although supply to SE England was still subject to North Sea winters.) The Tanfield route was in continuous use from 1725 until final closure in 1964.
The Tanfield Waggonway was built by the Grand Allies from about 1720 to transport coal more reliably & cheaply from inland collieries of County Durham, to the staiths on the River Tyne at Redheugh. From here the coal was transported in keels downriver to South Shields, then transferred to colliers (bulk coal carrying ships) for the voyage down the North Sea coast to south east England.
Many older shorter coal waggonways existed to the north of the present heritage line, in the Whickham & Lobley Hill areas, but the Tanfield Waggonway was a much longer and heavily engineered route which gave the Grand Allies market dominance all year round. (Although supply to SE England was still subject to North Sea winters.) The Tanfield route was in continuous use from 1725 until final closure in 1964.
 |
| St Andrews Platform (Ken Fitzpatrick) |
The route and structures of the oldest section of the now preserved part of the line, between Sunniside and Causey, dates from 1725, and is thus the world's oldest railway still in operation. (The Middleton Railway makes an alternative claim to be the oldest railway, as the first railway granted powers under the first railway Act of Parliament in 1758. The Causey to East Tanfield section was built in 1839.
The Marley Hill engine shed was built by 1854, and was in industrial use until 1970. The shed is on the Bowes Railway, whereas locos used on the Tanfield branch were stabled at the nearby Bowes Bridge MPD (a sub-shed of Gateshead), the coaling ramp and turntable pit of which are still visible adjacent to the track between Andrews House and Sunniside. A winding engine occupied the Bowes Bridge site from 1840-81, a locomotive shed from 1881-1962.
The headshunt by Marley Hill signal box is the point where the west-east Bowes Railway crossed the south-north Tanfield branch. When the Tanfield Railway began running trains in 1977 a curve was installed to allow Marley Hill locos & trains onto the Tanfield Branch. Marley Hill engine shed is the oldest in the world still used for its original function. As collieries on the NCB line closed in the 1960s, coal was brought by road to adjacent drops for onward rail transport, and the shed saw further use servicing other local colliery locomotives.
Originally a wooden railed horse drawn waggonway, conversion to a steel railed railway began in 1837, and by 1840 was complete as far as Tanfield Moor Colliery, using stationary steam engines, gravity inclines & horses. In 1881, while operated by the North Eastern Railway steam locomotives replaced the stationary steam engines and horses. Although primarily a coal railway, it did carry some passengers.
The railway closed when the last colliery on the line at East Tanfield ceased production in 1964.
The current preserved line passes near to Causey Arch, the oldest surviving railway bridge in the world. It was built to carry a new branch from the route of the now preserved line, to a site known as Dawson's Drift. Built between 1725 and 1727, at 150 ft long (46 m) and 80 ft high (24 m), it was the largest single-span bridge in Britain, and remained so for 30 years.
Tanfield Railway host numerous events through out the year here are few pictures of the Great War Weekend, March 2018.
More pictures of Tanfield Railway can be found HERE
Great War Weekend 2016 HERE
Great War Weekend 2017 HERE
Great War Weekend 2018 HERE
Tanfield Railway website can be found HERE
The Marley Hill engine shed was built by 1854, and was in industrial use until 1970. The shed is on the Bowes Railway, whereas locos used on the Tanfield branch were stabled at the nearby Bowes Bridge MPD (a sub-shed of Gateshead), the coaling ramp and turntable pit of which are still visible adjacent to the track between Andrews House and Sunniside. A winding engine occupied the Bowes Bridge site from 1840-81, a locomotive shed from 1881-1962.
The headshunt by Marley Hill signal box is the point where the west-east Bowes Railway crossed the south-north Tanfield branch. When the Tanfield Railway began running trains in 1977 a curve was installed to allow Marley Hill locos & trains onto the Tanfield Branch. Marley Hill engine shed is the oldest in the world still used for its original function. As collieries on the NCB line closed in the 1960s, coal was brought by road to adjacent drops for onward rail transport, and the shed saw further use servicing other local colliery locomotives.
Originally a wooden railed horse drawn waggonway, conversion to a steel railed railway began in 1837, and by 1840 was complete as far as Tanfield Moor Colliery, using stationary steam engines, gravity inclines & horses. In 1881, while operated by the North Eastern Railway steam locomotives replaced the stationary steam engines and horses. Although primarily a coal railway, it did carry some passengers.
The railway closed when the last colliery on the line at East Tanfield ceased production in 1964.
 |
| View of yard (Ken Fitzpatrick) |
The current preserved line passes near to Causey Arch, the oldest surviving railway bridge in the world. It was built to carry a new branch from the route of the now preserved line, to a site known as Dawson's Drift. Built between 1725 and 1727, at 150 ft long (46 m) and 80 ft high (24 m), it was the largest single-span bridge in Britain, and remained so for 30 years.
Tanfield Railway host numerous events through out the year here are few pictures of the Great War Weekend, March 2018.
 |
| March 2017 |
 |
| March 2017 |
 |
| March 2018 |
More pictures of Tanfield Railway can be found HERE
Great War Weekend 2016 HERE
Great War Weekend 2017 HERE
Great War Weekend 2018 HERE
Tanfield Railway website can be found HERE
No comments:
Post a Comment