January 24th 2025

24/1/2025

NINETEEN SIXTY FOUR – PART 26
Day Trip to Crumlin
Michael L. Roach

In the last part I described a half day trip by car to do some railway photography in North Cornwall around Halwill Junction Station without actually visiting the station. Two weeks later I made a completely different type of photographic trip by train and lasting more than 24 hours. This was not the longest such trip I made as six months earlier I had made a 30-hour day trip to Yorkshire and Lancashire using a cheap excursion ticket for Plymouth Argyle fans to watch an away match at Rotherham.

On Friday 10 April 1964 I left home about 11.30pm to walk to Plymouth Station where I bought a cheap day return to Bristol Temple Meads for 32 shillings (£1.60). My train was the 8.55pm Penzance to Paddington sleeping car train which was scheduled to leave Plymouth at midnight. Arrival at Temple Meads was at 3.33am some four minutes early. I then had to wait 2½ hours for my next train which was the first train of the day to South Wales at 6.05am. I never enjoyed BTM in the middle of the night but it was OK while the refreshment room was open. I think it was then open 23 hours a day from memory. At Newport I changed into the first daytime train north at 7.03am alighting at Pontypool Road at 7.20am.

The objective on Saturday 11 April 1964 was to travel the 42 mile route to Neath via Nelson, Quakers Yard, Aberdare and Hirwaun which had several lines connecting to it where it was possible to change for places like Rhymney, Dowlais, Merthyr, Caerphilly and Pontypridd. The line had a relatively good passenger service and carried many freight trains. I would spend more than ten hours on the line in total working my way westwards before travelling the full length on return. This was a line which saw a wonderful variety of steam engines of many different classes and sizes. This is best illustrated by my return trip from Neath to Pontypool Road aboard the 2.55pm from Swansea High Street from Neath at 3.26pm when I passed the following steam engines: 4157 (at Rhigos Pond); 3807 (Aberdare on a freight train); 9488 (Quakers Yard); 6144 (at Crumlin); and 4668 (at Hafodyrynys). Although I had travelled the line before I was here to pay my last respects because closure to passengers, and some of the line completely had been agreed. Closure came two months later but I would be at another line that closed that day. My journey home from Pontypool Road was at 7.03pm on a train which had through coaches from Glasgow and Manchester to Plymouth, due 12.36am.

Six miles west of Pontypool Road the line crossed a deep and wide valley on the magnificent Crumlin Viaduct. This was built between 1853 and 1857 of cast and wrought iron in the years before the invention of the Bessemer Process and mild steel. There were just five large all cast/wrought iron viaducts in Britain. By “all” I mean with cast or wrought iron piers as well as spans. There were many more with wrought iron spans on stone or brick piers and even more which I would consider as bridges because they spanned rivers rather than valleys. Of the five viaducts listed below just two remain and none carry trains. Three were demolished after the lines they were on closed completely:- Crumlin, Belah and Deepdale, with the last two being located high in The Pennines on the South Durham & Lancashire Union Railway between Barnard Castle and Tebay on the WCML. The two remaining extant examples are at Meldon on Dartmoor, near Okehampton and Bennerley, near Ilkeston in Derbyshire. Meldon, in particular, is in a magnificent setting and well-worth visiting together with the advantage of the Meldon Dam and Okehampton Station being close by. Wikipedia tells us that the Crumlin Viaduct was the least expensive bridge of its size ever constructed. It cost £62,000 to build which equals £5.95 million today – a real bargain.

The five large all-metal viaducts were:

It will be noted that Crumlin was not only the oldest, it was also the longest and the highest, and was quite jaw dropping to see perhaps because of its height in an urban area. Because of concerns over its structural integrity the number of tracks had been long ago reduced from two to one and an 8mph speed restriction imposed. It was magnificent when viewed from any angle and any level. I caught the 7.38am from Pontypool Road to Crumlin High Level Station at the far (west) end of the viaduct; then walked one mile east across the valley photographing the viaduct from various positions finally ending up at Hafodyrynys Platform to travel on westwards thus getting two trips across the viaduct in quick succession, plus another one later that day.

Interestingly as the Crumlin Viaduct was being built of cast and wrought iron Henry Bessemer was inventing and patenting his process for the mass production of steel which would soon become the metal of choice for bridge spans; and yet in France Gustave Eifel was building the magnificent Garabit Viaduct of wrought iron between 1882 and 1884; i.e later than any of the viaducts listed earlier and long after steel had been invented. Garabit has a total length of 565 metres and a height of 404 feet.

My train leaves Crumlin High Level Station for Aberdare where it terminated, behind 0-6-2T no. 6659. Note the platform edging slabs which have been removed because of frost damage 15 months earlier in the severe winter of 1962-63 – they would not be replaced with the line proposed for closure. Copyright Michael L. Roach.

Crumlin Viaduct as seen looking north from the closed Crumlin (Low Level) Station on the Western Valleys Branch. The station was then still intact apart from the removal of some platform edging slabs. The picture was taken at 8.20am on the morning of Saturday 11 April 1964. It was a dull start to the day. Copyright Michael L. Roach.

Looking west along the axis of the viaduct showing a close-up view of a pier showing the arrangement of the 14 cast iron columns in 3 rows of 4 with an extra one at the outside of the centre-line. These outside ones have a pronounced rake on them. Note also the diagonal ties and struts both in the vertical and horizontal planes. Each lift was 5.2 metres (17 feet) high; so there is more than 15 metres (50 feet) of columns shown here. The object sat on the cross-member is believed to be a cat or dog. Copyright Michael L. Roach.

A general view along the north side of the viaduct. The person admiring the structure was not known to the photographer, but with a duffle bag has got to be a railway enthusiast. Note the mineral wagons on the line below the viaduct and the fact that the farthest spans are on a curve. Copyright Michael L. Roach.

It is 8.36am and two men tend to their pigeons in a motley collection of buildings believed to have been swept away long ago. The railway across the viaduct had been single for many years with an 8 mph speed restriction. For comparison the Garabit Viaduct has a speed limit of 10 km/h (6.2 mph). Copyright Michael L. Roach.

Many thanks Michael - some very impressive structures there, a great record.

For more of Michaels articles, please click here.

57306 Seen passing through Truro last evening
Jonathan Harbage

Here is a photo of 57306 going through Truro on 23/01/35 to Penzance from Plymouth, for wheel work to be done at Long rock depot. Sorry it’s slightly out of focus. Jonathan Harbage

Many Thanks Jonathan

Oxford '59'
Alan Peters

On long term hire to Colas Rail 59003 'Yeoman Highlander' seen at Hinksey Yard (Oxford) in a brief spell of sunshine on 22/01/25. Copyright Alan Peters

Many thanks, Alan, an unsual perspective

Memories of Cattybrook
Craig Munday

Phil Smith’s picture of 37422 at Cattybrook near Patchway tunnel reminded me of my time as a MOM in Bristol. Covering such a huge area, urban and rural, you became almost immune to odd and bizarre incidents to attend. One day, however, even I was bemused at the lineside search I was asked to undertake.

The Shift Manager in Bristol Panel called enquiring if I could carry out a line search between the two tunnels on the Down Tunnel line as a Driver had lost his trousers! The story was that a Driver on a Sprinter had departed Bristol Temple Meads with a hot drink on the drivers desk which spilled all over lap as the unit passed through the junctions at Filton or Patchway Jn. He took his trousers off (presumably while stopped at Patchway) and attempted to dry them out by hanging them out the window. The back draught from the single bore tunnel must have whipped the trousers from his grip, and he arrived at Cardiff in his pants! I’m not sure how they protected his modesty at Cardiff, the mind boggles.

After a quick line blockage between trains, I scoured the area to no avail. Rather than Wallace and Gromit’s Wrong Trousers, this was a case of No Trousers.