25th December 2019

Happy Christmas Day

Greetings from the Fireside
Mike Roach

After a drizzly and windy Christmas Eve here in Cornwall its a delight to pull up the drawbridge, sit by the fireside, and send Season's Greetings to all Cornwall Railway Society website viewers. In the days of steam it was always a pleasure to enter a station waiting room with a coal fire burning away when you had walked to the station in the rain or were just changing trains on a cold day. The pictures attached show a genuine Great Western waiting room unchanged in more than 70 years and decorated for Christmas. Happy Christmas to all viewers who I am sure would join me in thanking Keith and Roger for updating the site with new information and photographs every single day of the year. Long may it continue.

Regards and Best Wishes,  Mike.
​If it weren't to all the good people supplying pictures and articles then the web site would all the poorer.  Many thanks to One and All.

Early Christmas Morning  Long Rock
Roger Salter

Many Thanks Roger 
'Wishing you a Happy Christmas'

Christmas Morning sunshine at Long Rock
Mark Lynam

I hope you're having a good Christmas so far. Here are a few photos from this morning of the traditional Xmas line up at Longrock Depot
802104,007,006,112 at the Eastern end. Copyright Mark Lynam

A panoramic view of 802104,007,006,112 and 008. Copyright Mark Lynam

From the Western end only 9-cars 802112 & 802104 are visible. Copyright Mark Lynam

221131 between the shed and sidings. Copyright Mark Lynam

And sprinters at the station. 150266,216 and 244 right under the roof I think. With Class 158s 765 and 763. Copyright Mark Lynam

Many thanks Mark   'Wishing you a Happy Christmas'

Past and Present
The Millpool Coach
Roger Winnen

This coach was located in a field at Millpool near Germoe, Penzance by the late Jon Wood a member of The Cornwall Railway Society who had a passion for ancient and modern coaches in 2006 and purchased by John and Lizzie Stroud of St Germans. Its a GWR Brake Third of 1896 and has now been beautifully restored by them to a very high standard.
Photographs are by kind permission of John & Lizzie Stroud

060810a The Millpool Coach at Millpool nr Germoe before removal from the site. 10th August 2006. Copyright Roger Winnen

060810b Surveying the scene at Millpool with the present owners John & Lizzie Stroud. Copyright Roger Winnen

191216e The Millpool Coach at St Germans which was recovered at Millpool Nr Germoe in West Cornwall. Copyright Roger Winnen

191216f The beautiful restoration inside of the Millpool Coach taken on 16th December 2019. Copyright Roger Winnen

191216g Luxury at its best at St Germans. Copyright Roger Winnen

191216i Plenty of pots and pans ideal for the family holiday. Copyright Roger Winnen

191216z Restored to a very high standard. Copyright Roger Winnen

Class 142 run down
Recollections by
Craig Munday

My first recollections of withdrawn locos hark back to the small scrap line at Laira containing a few faded blue and windowless Western & Hymek locos in the early 70s. It seemed rather sad as a six year old standing there watching these dead former front line locos with sister Western class locos powering by on the mainline. Diesel hydraulics gave way to diesel electric culls, and I recall many a scrap line at Swindon hosting a wide range of classes from far away from the WR. Classes 20, 25s, 27s, 31s, 40, 45, & 46s all sat among the fire weed and buddliea silently awaiting their fate. Some locos, like the class 46s, actually did see reinstatement in 1983/84. 

Then the class 47s and 50s were next. A solemn line of class 50s in "modern" liveries stood against the estuary at Laira, again, whilst fellow locos raced by on class one services. Crewe was another mass graveyard also containing older AC electric locos for the smelting pot. 

It must make me sound old, but here we are now seeing second generation DMUs, HSTs and locos (class 56/60s) being scrapped. The class 142s or Skippers were less than welcome additions to the Cornish fleet in 1985. The bus seats were hard and fixed wheels caused torturous squealing as the units ran on the branchline's tight curves. They were not to last though. Here are some pictures to illustrate the piece. 

               Kind regards,  Craig.  Many thanks to you Craig.

Farewell to the 142's 142024 seen behind Par signalbox. Copyright Craig Munday

142016 rests in Truro yd. Copyright Craig Munday

142s At Par one on a Newquay service and one spare. Copyright Craig Munday.

142025 at St Dennis Junction, the signal box has gone and the track singled. Copyright Craig Munday

An unknown Hymek at Laira - is one those being photographed Craig? Copyright Craig Munday.

A further note added by Karl Hewlet, for which many thanks.  I believe this loco to be D7089, Hymeks at this time were rare at Laira and the loco was brought down in 1974 to be renumbered TDB968008 although I don't believe this was carried.  This loco was put into the departmental sector as a coaching stock pre heating unit and was scrapped in 1976.

Copyright Craig Munday.

Karl Hewlett again adds valuable comment :- This next image and caption for the Westerns.  I believe this image was also taken at Laira because comparing the Hymek and the Western images it seems to be the same location plus D7089 is coupled or buffered up to a Western in Craig's image.  With that said I am fairly confident in saying the Westerns were also taken at Laira, the locos noted as being next to D7089 were D1006 'Western Stalwart' and D1050 'Western Ruler'; Ruler being next to the Hymek..

40's on the scrap line at Crewe, 18th August 1985. Copyright Craig Munday.

Class 40's on the scrap line at Crewe. 18th August 1985. Copyright Craig Munday.

On the scrap line at Laira. Copyright Craig Munday.

On to Crewe and the class 40's, the first picture shows a disk front version with a solitary right hand side disk displayed and is most likely to be 40028, 40183 is the loco next to it with an extra large blue star emblem on the secondmans side only.  In the second class 40 image the two disk fronted loco's with all the disks showing bar one are 40088 and 40115.

Regard,
Karl (Friends Of Penmere Station).
          Thank you Karl for your valuable up-dates on the above pictures.

And finally a collection of current classes at Swindon Works. Copyright Craig Munday.