jhb171achill

I’ve up-pinged a few more of Senior’s photos. I will down-ping them onto this page over the next week. Second pic, we’re doing a track inspection on the Harcourt St line in 1940. The mammon the bike was the Dublin Area District Engineer, Mr Joe Nugent, under whose tutelage a newly-qualified jhb171Senior was placed, in the GSR’s Westland Row Civil Engineers Office. He reported directly to the famous P T Somerville-Large. I WELL remember my fathers battered brown case, in which all important documents were carried throughout his entire working life. It’s on the seat of the rail bicycle, and it’ll crop up again during the week in other pics. First person to spot it wins the chance to buy me a feed’o’Guinness once Internment is over. In the first pic we’ve a brief view of 801 at Inchicore in 1940, when still only a few months old, not a great pic, but I like it.

611 is at Downpatrick - forgot to mention it; ITG owned. Basically, the ITG’s operational base is now, de facto, at Downpatrick, with their diesels featuring occasionally on public trains. 616 and 601 are at the ITG’s long-term restoration base at Carrick-on-Suir. The ITG has two “C”s as well - one (C231) restored and more-or-less operational at Downpatrick and the other under restoration at Carrick-on-Suir. The ITG also own several unrestored diesels at Carrick, and Moyasta, Co Clare - all in storage. 617 is indeed operational at Downpatrick and is often used to shunt or on PW trains.

What way is it rust protected, or how efficiently?

Its locked up in the shed.

In rural areas, cattle & goods often “kept things going” long after passenger traffic had as good as vanished - and possibly never amounted to much, anyway. Many rural lines on both gauges had one mixed per day plus one or two passenger services. This could have a branch set of two six-wheelers or just one bogie, or maybe a bogie and a 6-wheeler. But for the modeller, the 10-15 wagons on the back are the shunting point of interest. After 1930, by which time road transport was developing, just a few examples off the top of my head - these aren’t absolutely cast in stone, of course, but were absolutely typical. These are just random examples I know of. Foynes - one 6w brake 3rd (plus wagons) Achill - bogie compo + 6w brake Clifden - 6w compo + 6w brake 3rd Castlegregory - 1 or 2 coaches including brake Dingle - 2-3 coaches inc brake Arigna - 1 brake compo Loughrea, Ballinrobe - 2 x 6w, then (Loughrea) one brake standard Drimoleague - Skibbereen - 2 x 6w Belturbet - (GN) 2 x 6w, then 1 or 2 non-corridor bogies; (C & L) 1 coach & a brake van ......and so on.

The situation at Downpatrick is as follows. Owned outright by DCDR; E421, E432 Steam Nos. 1 & 3, GSWR No. 90. Owned by a DCDR member: G613 Owned by ITG: G617, A39, B146. Within the RPSI: Everything wholly RPSI-owned, except GNR Loco 85. In the case of this, the actual loco is owned by the Ulster Folk & Transport Museum, but the tender is the RPSI’s. I have not included rolling stock. Both own the majority of their rolling stock, but the RPSI’s State Saloon remains the property of IE. The GSWR coach in Mullingar shed (No. 813) was never RPSI-owned, but is owned by a group of RPSI members and friends (11 in all). Nothing was ever owned by the IRRS, though in the 1960s there was talk of CIE giving them 184. It never happened, as the IRRS is a historical society, not a loco or coach preservation group. 131 was always owned by CIE / IE, even when at Mallow. It only changed ownership to the RPSI when it went to Whitehead.

I suspect the result would have been exactly the same, as the main problems were external matters which neither could influence.

Senior’s taxi. He used GNR Saloon No 50 as a “runabout” in the 1954-7 period for doing engineering inspections of the GNR’s Western District - territory this vehicle would rarely have seen otherwise. Here he’s out on a bit of a shpin... he was inspecting Enniskillen - Dundalk that day. I have the date somewhere - it’s in either 1956 or 57. The coach would be hitched up to a loco, but the pic is back to front thanks to a printer a few years ago. The loco is 197, which is why he took a pic: more often than not he got an 0.6.0. No. 197 was regularly based in Enniskillen at that time. He had a set of steps which were used to get up and down from the end gangway to the track, when inspecting.

Yes, the local authority issue is exactly as above - however - when there is a local sportsman or politician to be honoured in a rural location, they'll get it done by hook or by crook. The lack of enthusiasm in local authorities is principally driven by the inescapable facts that in rural Ireland, "everybody" thinks a heritage railway would be a great idea, bit NOBODY is prepared to PAY for it; this, of course, introduces the local councillors who are influenced by their voters. As long as there's a need to fix the bend in the road, refurb the GAA pitch, make a statute to the only famous person the town has ever had, house the homeless (very correctly so), and provide two new classrooms for the local school, no man-on-the-street would be remotely in favour of spendîng a solitary red cent on a heritage railway. European grants..... no longer available in the north, and much more restricted now in the south as it is deemed one of the wealthy rather than poor EU countries. Given our lack of population, mining industries and coal-based industry and the like, there isn't the same knowledge out there in the public domain as in Britain. Britain is twice the size of Ireland but has ten times the population, and an industrial past. Sadly, public interest in railway heritage will never be anything but a small fraction of what prevails in Britain. C'est la vie!

The van, as Galteemore says, is a "palvan", always visible in a good train as they were slightly taller than other vans. That GSWR ballast wagon is the same as the ones that ended up at Downpatrick or Whitehead. Each has one, the Whitehead one now restored and on display in the museum. I'd guess there were still maybe half a dozen still about at the time I took the pic.

In the 1970s there were still a few grey wagons about - possibly a quarter of the four-wheeled fleet. A few still had pre-1963 stencilled “flying snails”. So it’s flying snail time: The “H” Van is in the Crossmolina Siding at Ballina, 1976. The GSWR ballast wagon is at Port Laoise PW the same year or possibly 1977/8. The GSWR guards van, believed the last in use, is out of use at Rock Street, Tralee, at the same time. The cattle truck is one in a line, withdrawn the previous year, awaiting scrapping in Cork goods yard in 1976.

The RPSI, as a registered museum, is not allowed to randomly lend out listed artefacts unless the likes of the Downpatrick & Co Down Railway, in other words, a properly accredited museum. Even if they wanted to, they can't lend to local interest groups or informal committees. This is NOT to do down such groups; they do amazing local community work - it is simply a reality of life. I was on the RPSI's management committee at the time and I recall several informal conversations. But the deal was always - and always HAD to be - if someone on Mullingar builds a proper museum, staffs it and insures it, we are open to offers. Sadly, such a thing was never close to happening; the same is true of the absolutely disgraceful shambles that the local authority in Tralee has made of the T & D line. There just isn't the interest here. This sounds defeatist, but it's true. It's probably the hardest and most consistent lesson that over 25 years in the running of the RPSI and DCDR has taught me.

I was involved with the RPSI then, and while there had been talk of "Lough Erne" being borrowed, it never hardened into a serious discussion at the Board, let alone happening. However, at the same time, ANOTHER potential preservation scheme which never even got off the ground, asked if the loco could be lent to them as a static exhibit. That, too, never hardened into a serious enquiry.

A combination of vandalism including a fire which destroyed coaching stock, financial issues and the retirement of the last steam driver in Galway.

Yes!! They had three laminates, if I remember rightly, one of which was indeed "lopsided"! They had, of course, beautifully restored E428, which is now at Dunsandle Halt on the erstwhile Loughrea branch.

They also had a Sugar Co. diesel engine, which got destroyed by vandals in a fire. They also had a very nice, but unrestored, 1905-era side corridor 50ft bogie. It was destroyed too.

Irishrail201, ping me when Internment has ended, and I'll put you in touch with a gentleman who has a great collection of T & D tickets. He's been collecting for some seventy years!

Excellent info!

Fancy a trip on the Achill line?

Castlegregory Junction 1939, two weeks before the branch closed and the main line became goods only. A daily goods train would pass through until 1947, and thereafter just the monthly cattle train until the main line closed in 1953. On the left the branch train (which Senior travelled on) has come to a halt. It awaits the onward train from Dingle to Tralee, which will come in from behind (!) the photographer; the picture is looking towards Tralee. The train has from left, passenger brake van, cattle truck, two covered vans, 1st / 3rd composite, and loco. This is one of Senior’s earlier photos. Sadly, during his earliest travels e.g. Harcourt St to Bray in DSER days, he didn’t have a camera.....!

He didn't believe the ship was what "they" said it was for????? What sort of deluded conspiracy theorist idiot was he? I hope they lock him up and throw away the key! My opinion of conspiracy theorists is, let us say, very exceptionally low......

This is a bit easier. A few locomotives for this evening. First two, Dundalk 1988/9. Next, the evening (without looking it up, about 17:20?) Rosslare - Limerick, one very hot summer evening in 1977, I think. What on earth they put on three bogies and a van (and, indeed, when I first travelled that line in 1976, FIVE bogies, I will never know. There were never more than one carriage could have accommodated, as the timetable on that line has not been an actual “service” for sixty or seventy years, so few use it....even then. I reckon there were about 25 passengers that night. Without my notes to hand, I think that was taken at Bridgetown but could be Campile. I’ve no recollection of taking pics at W Bridge that evening. E434 is on Kingsbridge pilot in 1977. 123 is at Inchicore in 1986. E405, also Inchicore, 1986. I think I took that pic the same day.

No No No It is SALLINS, junction for the Tullow branch. The shed was on the down side, just before the branch diverged to Naas. I was there twice. The other time there was no loco, but a couple of empty corrugated trucks sitting there.

No No and no! Answer will follow soon..... one more chance!

No, not Midland land!