L&YR railmotors
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The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) operated two classes of twenty steam railmotors in total.
Kerr Stuart railmotors[edit]
The first L&YR railmotors were two by Kerr Stuart, copies of a design that had already been supplied to the Taff Vale Railway. They were ordered by Hughes in 1904.[1]
The locomotive units had transverse boilers of a type similar to the Yorkshire steam wagon, where a single central firebox fed extremely short fire-tubes to a smokebox at each side. Like the Yorkshire, these then returned to a central smokebox and chimney. The outside cylinders were rear-mounted and drove only the leading axle, without coupling rods. The locomotive units were dispatched separately to Newton Heath, where their semi-trailers were attached.[1]
Their coaches were semi-trailers, with reversible seats for 48 passengers and electric lighting.[ii] There were also a luggage compartment and a driving compartment for use in reverse. Folding steps were provided at each of the two doors on each side.[3] They were built by Bristol Wagon & Carriage Works[1]
| L&YR No. | Works No. | Delivery Date | Withdrawn | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lot 54 | ||||
| 1 | 904 | 7 June 1905 | 1909 | |
| 2 | 905 | 28 June 1905 | 1909 | |
Service[edit]
Both railmotors worked the Bury-Holcombe Brook line at first. In 1906 they briefly worked at Southport, then between Burnley and Colne for their remaining years. They were both withdrawn in 1909.[1]
Hughes railmotors[edit]
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Hughes designed a further class of railmotors that were then built at Horwich and Newton Heath, in four batches over five years. They were of the "0-4-0T locomotive + semi-trailer type", with conventional locomotive boilers.[1][3]
No 15, works number 983, was the 1,000th locomotive to be built at Horwich.[1]
Service[edit]
All were inherited by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923, who numbered the locomotives 10600-17 and gave the trailers separate numbers in the coaching stock series. These were the only self-propelled vehicles numbered in the LMS locomotive series rather than the coaching stock series. The first was withdrawn in 1927, and only one survived by nationalisation in 1948. That railmotor, LMS No. 10617, was withdrawn in 1948 and given the British Railways internal number 50617, but got withdrawn in March of the same year. None was preserved.
The best-remembered of these railmotors was the 'Altcar Bob' service from Southport to Barton railway station (also known as 'Downholland') (before 1926, it ran to Altcar and Hillhouse) and the 'Horwich Jerk' service from Horwich to Blackrod. The latter became the last part of the L&Y System which made use of Hughes Railmotors.[5]
| L&YR No. | Works No. | Service Date | LMS No. | Withdrawn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lot 54 | ||||
| 3 | 951 | 3 May 1906 | 10600 | 28 June 1947 |
| 4 | 952 | 17 May 1906 | 10601 | 20 February 1934 |
| 5 | 953 | 25 May 1906 | 10602 | August 1927 |
| 6 | 954 | 1 June 1906 | 10603 | May 1927 |
| 7 | 955 | 7 June 1906 | 10604 | 5 October 1929 |
| 8 | 956 | 22 May 1906 | 10605 | June 1929 |
| Lot 57 | ||||
| 9 | 977 | 12 January 1907 | 10606 | November 1943 |
| 10 | 978 | 19 January 1907 | 10607 | 27 November 1934 |
| 11 | 979 | 6 February 1907 | 10608 | November 1935 |
| 12 | 980 | 16 February 1907 | 10609 | June 1937 |
| 13 | 981 | 2 March 1907 | 10610 | August 1937 |
| 14 | 982 | 9 March 1907 | 10611 | October 1931 |
| 15 | 983 | 23 March 1907 | 10612 | 21 December 1934 |
| Lot 63 | ||||
| 1 | 1069 | 10 December 1909 | 10613 | 16 December 1931 |
| 2 | 1070 | 17 December 1909 | 10614 | June 1937 |
| 16 | 1071 | 24 December 1909 | 10615 | September 1928 |
| Lot 69 | ||||
| 17 | 1172 | December 1911 | 10616 | 8 November 1933 |
| 18 | 1173 | December 1911 | 10617 | 6 March 1948 |
See also[edit]
Notes and references[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ^ These were also listed at 10+1⁄2 inches in some sources.
- ^ The L&YR had experimented with electric lighting with steam locomotive dynamos from 1885 and, under the electrically-minded Henry Hoy, with wheel-driven dynamos on coaches from 1901 to 1905. However Aspinall had rejected these as too expensive and electric lighting would not become standard until 1914. Like many railways, this had only been in reaction to the 1913 Ais Gill rail accident.[2]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g Marshall, John (1972). The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway. Vol. 3: Locomotives and Rolling Stock. Newton Abbott: David & Charles. pp. 170–171. ISBN 0-7153-5320-9.
- ^ Marshall 1972, p. 120
- ^ a b Marshall 1972, p. 155
- ^ Marshall 1972, p. 150
- ^ Lost Railways of Lancashire, G Suggitt Countryside Books 2003
- ^ Marshall 1972, pp. 263–264
Further reading[edit]
- Essery and Jenkinson An Illustrated History of LMS Locomotives Volume 2. Absorbed Pre-Group Classes Western and Central Divisions.