The Great British Railfanning Trip: Going Great Western, Part II

This post describing our recent trip to England is Part VIII and follows the previous post, which covers the first part of our visit to Didcot Railway Centre, here. It's submitted by our official West Country correspondent Zach Ehlers.

When we left off in the last post, the branch line train was coming across the level crossing at the Didcot Railway Centre. Did everyone submit their guesses for the motive power of the train?

The answer is not what you may expect. This gem is 'Captain Baxter,' built by Fletcher Jennings in 1877. This engine spent its entire working life at the Dorking Greystone Lime Company, roughly 20 miles south of London. It was then preserved at the Bluebell Railway in 1960. The engine has been on loan to Didcot for the season, and this appearance makes it the fourth Bluebell engine we've seen under steam on our travels.

The branch line demonstration line has the distinction of being fully signaled. There are two signal boxes, which can communicate and despatch trains via Absolute Block Signalling (more about this shortly). As part of the festivities for the signaling center, tours were being offered of the signaling system along the branch line. Here we see some of the point rodding for controlling the signals as well as the crossing gates seen in the previous photo.

Our tour guide is seen here explaining the facing point lock on this set of points (switch in American terminology). Facing point locks have been required over routes traversed by passenger trains in the UK almost as long as railways have been around, The intention is to lock the points so they do not accidentally move while the train is passing, causing a derailment.

The contraption on the right in this photo is an early semaphore signal utilized by the GWR in the mid 1800's. This was one of the first signals to display a "positive proceed" indication. It is showing a stop indication with the red bar. Proceed would be a white hoop. Previous incarnations of signaling only displayed a signal if the train was required to stop, and the absence of a signal meant proceed (Egad!). A few accidents induced by a lack of stop signal brought about the relatively more fail safe method.

Following the branch line signaling tour, we had an appointment to see a Lady. If you've been keeping tabs, I mentioned earlier that the GWR utilized no less than nine different classes of 4-6-0. Of those, we have so far seen four, a pair of Castles, a Hall, a Modified Hall, and a Manor. Two will not be seen in this series, an example of the first 4 cylinder engines (the Stars) and the largest (the Kings). Three don't exist anymore, or at least they didn't. All three "missing links" in the GWR 4-6-0 evolution are currently being built/rebuilt in one form or another in the UK. This engine is the first we see, No. 2999 'Lady of Legend'. The Saints were GJ Churchward's first foray into the 4-6-0. They were constructed beginning in 1902 when it was apparent that the GWR was going to need something larger than a 4-4-0 for express passenger workings. Eventually, 77 examples were built. These engines were extremely successful, and pretty well set the pattern for GWR locomotive development for the next 40 years. Unfortunately, none were preserved when the last were withdrawn by BR in 1953. This is no obstruction to preservationists in the UK however. As mentioned in a previous entry, the Hall class was an evolution of the Saint class (the first Hall even being a direct conversion from No. 2925 Saint Martin). It stands to reason then that a Hall could be transformed into a Saint, and that is indeed what has happened. No. 4942 'Maindy Hall' was another engine rescued from Barry Island. Due to the fact that there are 11 Halls in preservation, it was decided in the 1970's to transform 'Maindy Hall' into a Saint. Most of the work is completed at this time, and it is expected to be in steam within the next year.

Photo by Les Summers

And here is the obligatory group photo of the American tourists shot in front of 'Lady of Legend'. L-R is Pete Grandson, Zach Ehlers, Greg Kepka, and Frank Hicks. Les Summers and his wife Barbara had previously visited the USA and IRM, and were kind enough to arrange for us to see 'Lady of Legend'. We were shown the engine and the workshop in general by Pete Grandson, who is one of the gentlemen who oversees the shop.

Moving on into the workshop, we see here the second new build GWR 4-6-0. This is No. 1014 'County of Glamorgan.' The Counties were built in 1946 by Frederick Hawksworth, then the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the GWR. These engines departed from typical GWR practice by utilizing an London Midland Scottish Railway designed boiler, which was first produced at Swindon as part of an order of LMS 8F 2-8-0's built for the War Department during WWII. These 30 engines became the most modern 4-6-0 built by the GWR, but none were preserved. This engine is being constructed as a combination of the frames of Modified Hall No. 7927 'Willington Hall', and the boiler of LMS 8F 48518. This project will require significant work to reach completion; currently there is no timetable for operation. For curatorial sake, the 3rd GWR 4-6-0 new build is No. 6880 'Betton Grange', of the Grange class. The Grange is being built at the Llangollen Railway, not part of our agenda for this trip.

Upon completing our tour of the workshops, we wandered toward the main event occurring at Didcot on this weekend, the opening of the signaling center. On display in this new exhibition was a pretty complete evolution of signaling in the UK with plenty of interactive displays. This mechanism shown is a miniature version of the apparatus found in a typical signal box. This forms the previously mentioned absolute block signaling. The levers at the bottom control all the points and signals in block which the signalman controls. Above all the levers are the bell block mechanisms, which allow the signalman to communicate via bell and electrical signals with the boxes on either side of his block for accepting and relaying authority for trains to occupy the blocks. Above that is the model board, indicating the layout of this signal box's block. Since this is a junction, as indicated on the board, there are three bell block mechanisms, one for each box beyond the authority of this box. The layout is indeed a real location, in this case Cowley Bridge Junction, near Exeter in the far southwest corner of England.

If you thought Cowley Bridge Junction was complicated, here is something worse. This is the model board for the east approaches to Bristol Temple Meads station. This display is set up to show all timetabled movements moving across the board indicator lights on an accelerated clock for a typical day (for what year I failed to notate). This box would have had multiple levermen on duty at any given time to accommodate all the necessary movements.

The most modern signaling apparatus on display in the signaling center is this push button panel from Swindon. These panels are a variant of CTC, which replaced individual signal boxes over much of the western region in the 1960's and 1970's. This panel is fully interactive, allowing visitors to path individual scheduled trains through the infrastructure of the board. We were unable to get an exact measurement, but we estimated that this panel controlled 20+ miles of railway.

Let's step outside and take a ride on the branch line with 'Captain Baxter'. We made a point of riding in each carriage for each leg of the branchline trip. The brake 3rd as noted previously is a four wheeled carriage. This was the only time in the trip that we rode such a carriage (forsaking the opportunity at the Bluebell for the Metropolitan Railway carriages). I can speak from experience that the ride quality is not much better than that on our own Vera Cruz 19!

At the far end of the branch line is a transfer shed to the third demonstration line at the centre, the broad gauge line. Brunel originally chose a 7'-¼" gauge for his Great Western, citing superior riding qualities at high speeds. Much of the GWR was built to this gauge, but eventually they relented to the standard "narrow" gauge being adopted elsewhere in the UK of 4' 8-½". The last broad gauge lines of the GWR disappeared in 1892. The GWS has chosen to replicate this unique gauge as a part of the general history of the GWR, and they have two engines specially built to operate on it. The first is this engine, 'Iron Duke'. It was constructed in 1985 as part of the 150th anniversary of the GWR using components from a pair of Austerity industrial tank engines.

The second engine is 'Fire Fly', a replica of a 2-2-2 class of engines built by Daniel Gooch in the 1840's. This replica was completed in 2005. Unfortunately at the time of our visit, both engines are out of their boiler tickets. It is unknown when either will be steamed again.

Here's 'Captain Baxter' and train departing for another trip on the branch line. It is nice to see another train that is over a century old, especially with an engine from the 1870's.

And here comes yet another local train from Oxford to Didcot. Gee, they sure run on a frequent timetable out here!

Then we stepped into the visitor's center/museum. Like the Bluebell, this little museum has a number of great displays. Here is a typical GWR Station Master and Office. He looks happy for some reason. It must be the pride of working for the Great Western Railway.

For most of the day we had seen a sign pointing to a used bookstore. We finally figured out where exactly it was, hidden out of the way. The store proper is in the luggage van seen in this shot, but also noteworthy is the engine, 5205 class No. 5227. These engines were built specifically for short haul coal traffic out of the Welsh coal fields. This example was built in 1934 and lasted until 1965 in regular operation. At that time it became yet another engine to enter the Barry Scrapyard. It managed to stay there until 1990, and became part of the final 10 engines to leave the island. Components of this engine are being used on another GWR new build (Churchward "Night Owl" 2-8-0 No. 4709) while the boiler is to be used on a new-build County class 4-4-0 (not to be confused with the new-build Hawksworth "County" 4-6-0 mentioned above).

Adjacent to the used bookstore and 5227 is the "Railmotor Shed," a building specifically meant to house the GWR railmotor and trailer. Since both are out in the yard, there are two other carriages in their place. One such carriage is 190, a typical GWR Autocoach. As mentioned previously, these were meant to be control trailers for specially equipped engines. 190 was a typical Collett diagram built in 1933. The end facing the us in the photo is the cab end. Visible in the left window is the vacuum brake stand, and above the windows is the signal gong.

By this point in the day operations had wound down, and both service engines were shunted next to the coaling tower. Visible above the cylinder on 4144 is "STJ". As with "DID" in No. 5900, this is the engine's shed allocation. In this instance "STJ" is Severn Tunnel Junction near Bristol.

It was then time to exit the Railway Centre. I had mentioned in the previous section that there was one entrance to the Centre besides rail, and this is it, in the middle of the Didcot Parkway Station. Literally everything not rail bound goes through these doors.

But there was little time to contemplate the implications of those doors, as our train had arrived. We made our way to the Slough station, where we could transfer to the Windsor Branch. The Windsor Branch is only 2-¾ miles long, and very specifically serves Windsor Castle. Those are Class 387 Electrostars which brought us from Didcot.

Upon arriving at the Windsor & Eton Central station, we found another GWR engine. This is a replica of GWR's Achilles class of 1891, No. 3041 'The Queen'. None of these engines survived past 1916, well before the preservation movement took hold. So this engine was commissioned in 1982 for display at Windsor & Eton Central. Fun fact: The one large driving wheel is not a driving wheel at all on this engine, in fact it doesn't touch the rail or exist above the running plate! Parts from a tender originally paired with this replica have since gone on to provide components for the tender of previously seen LB&SCR Atlantic 'Beachy Head'.

Then there was time to take in Windsor Castle itself. Some of this castle dates back to the 11th and 12th centuries. Most recently it was the site of the Royal Wedding, and this was very much in evidence at the time of our visit.

Upon returning to Paddington in the evening, we were greeted with Class 43 No. W43002 'Sir Kenneth Grange'. W43002 was the first production unit from 1975, and in 2016 it was painted in the original British Railways Intercity livery. The unit is named very appropriately for Sir Kenneth Grange, the industrial designer who was responsible for the stylings of the HST in the 1970's.

To close this day on the Great Western Railway, it is appropriate to take a moment to mention this man, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. He was born in 1809, and by the time of his passing in 1859, he had accrued an impressive roll of engineering feats, from bridges and tunnels to steamships and railways. Indeed, he was the brainchild behind the Great Western and many of his engineering choices would shape the character of the railway for years to come. It is fitting that this statue resides in Paddington as a tribute to man who built God's Wonderful Railway.

Click here for Part IX of our trip.