Railway General Knowledge.

[Calthrop]

Thank you.

1935 was a decidedly bad year in the British Isles, for abandonments of lesser railways. The most notorious of such was probably the Lynton & Barnstaple; but the same fate befell a number of other minor lines that year.

Would anyone like to cite three other such abandonments in 1935, in Great Britain and / or Ireland? Private lines, or branches of big rail undertakings. I'm looking at closures-to-all-traffic, not passenger service withdrawals with freight continuing to run.

 

[steamybrian]

Closed in 1935 were...
Brill to Verney Junction
Ringwood to Christchurch
Selsey to Chichester (Selsey Tramway)

 

[martinsh]

Closed in 1935 were...
Brill to Verney Junction

You mean Brill to Quainton Road I presume ?

 

[steamybrian]

You mean Brill to Quainton Road I presume ?

Sorry.. you are correct.
Brill to Quainton Road.

Open floor if correct as I shall be away from the computer for the rest of the day..

 

[Calthrop]

With sorting-out re Brill: steamybrian is right -- as said, open floor.

Just for list-fillling -- other 1935 casualties in GB: Bishop's Castle Railway; and Glyn Valley Tramway (passenger service wihdrawn 1933, total abandonment '35).

 

[kevconnor]

In 1829 the Rainhill trails offered a prizefund to the winner, to the nearest thousand pounds how much would the prize fund be worth in 2015 prices.

 

[theageofthetra]

About 100x so around £50,000

 

[kevconnor]

About 100x so around £50,000

that is correct or to be exact £500 then and now £49,514.56

 

[theageofthetra]

Of the original Rev W Awdrey penned Railway Series how many were published after steam had ended on British Rail and what were their titles.

 

[HMS Ark Royal]

Of the original Rev W Awdrey penned Railway Series how many were published after steam had ended on British Rail and what were their titles.

*raises hand*

Are we talking about the end of main line steam as there was the Vale system that was BR owned

 

[theageofthetra]

Sorry main line steam.

 

[deltic1989]

Enterprising Engines (? Was released in August 1968 though I don't know the exact date, so weather it was before or after the 15 Guinea Special on the 11th I don't know)

Oliver the Western engine (Novenber 1969)

Duke the Lost Engine (September 1970)

Tramway Engines (October 1972)

That would make 3 confirmed but a probable 4, without the exact release date of Enterprising Engines it's hard to be more exact than that.

 

[theageofthetra]

Yes Enterprising Engines was a tricky one but the other three were correct so your floor. I always thought these last few books were more 'grown up' & the illustrations were supurb.

 

[HMS Ark Royal]

Late entry, but the correct answers are

Enterprising Engines (October 4th,1968)

Oliver the Western engine (November 15th, 1969)

Duke the Lost Engine (October 15th,1970)

Tramway Engines (October 15th,1972)

 

[deltic1989]

I will open the floor, as I don't have a suitable question prepared at present

 

[HMS Ark Royal]

In 1972, 73050 was obtained to provide a spot of sudden help - why was it obtained?

 

[Mvann]

Boiler failure at British sugar, so they plumbed the loco in to stop the sugar solidifying in the pipes.

 

[HMS Ark Royal]

Boiler failure at British sugar, so they plumbed the loco in to stop the sugar solidifying in the pipes.

That was quick...

The factory floor is yours

 

[krus_aragon]

Better quick than as slow as molasses in the case of British Sugar, I suppose.

A lovely little factoid / nugget of information, thank you.

 

[Mvann]

Which wine estate in South Africa has it's own train?

 

[Calthrop]

Stellenbosch & Spier Wine Farm.

 

[Mvann]

That is correct.

 

[Calthrop]

I take it that the floor is mine. There’s an English county which contains two villages, some couple-of-dozen-plus miles distant from each other, both with the name of Willaston.

Each of these two was at one time served by a railway station (in both cases, now long closed). One of these stations was called Willaston; the other – no doubt to avoid confusion – bore a completely different name. On which lines were the two stations; and what was the name of the one which was not called Willaston?

 

[DasLunatic]

Hadlow Road?

 

[Calthrop]

That was the name of "the one not called Willaston", correct. Could you also identify the lines / routes featuring that one, and "real Willaston"?

 

[DasLunatic]

Hadlow Road is on the Birkenhead Railway, and the other Willaston is on the Welsh Marches Line.

 

[Calthrop]

Hadlow Road is on the Birkenhead Railway

to be very fussily precise, on the abandoned Hooton -- West Kirby branch thereof; but extremes of nitpicking, not to be gone to !

and the other Willaston is on the Welsh Marches Line.

Yes -- last station before Crewe, on the section from Shrewsbury. DasLunatic, the floor's yours.

 

[DasLunatic]

Many thanks.

Besides in London, where else in the UK could one find Norwood Junction?

 

[Phil.]

Just north/east of March.

 

[Calthrop]

Can I suggest, not March, but near Newcastle-upon-Tyne: the line south of the Tyne running westward from Low Fell, had / has a junction called Norwood Junction -- northward-diverging point, for a kind of loop line.