airfixfan

At the Donegal Railway Heritage Centre we have restored and returned Drumboe to Donegal Town. Tourism has all but died and our Museum has seen on average one visitor per day over the last 10 days. Please buy our new Lough Swilly book with all monies raised supporting railway preservation in County Donegal.

Number 173 Galteemore

Cattle traffic main reason why the Tralee and Dingle survived until 1953.

Have already booked to visit next month.

Narrow Gauge Steam 5 is out with articles on the Ballycastle Line and the Schull and Skibbereen. Published by Kelsey Publshing and also includes some rare colour photos of the Lough Swilly 2

See this photo of No 173

The last CDR rails remain to this day embedded in the pier at Killybegs

The RPSI Wednesday night talk tomorrow at 19.30 is on the history and restoration of CDR loco Drumboe.

The last Industrial steam locos built for use in Ireland were two Pecketts of a standard design built for Courtaulds at their plant in Carrickfergus. They were used until 1967 and scrapped in 1970. This type of Peckett is available in the UK as a kit.

Yes definitely leaving Greenisland at Carrick end of the station. Towards the end No 10 and No 55 got into a terrible condition and with the crib it is most likely No 55

The ITA had decided to repaint in UTA Black livery only the ex GNR locos they banned to retain after 1959. The four locos that survived on the Derry Road and the Dublin line in ex GNR Blue until 1965 had all been purchased from CIE in June 1963 CIE saw no need to apply new liveries to the ex GNR locos after 1959 The only ex GNR locos to retain their Blue livery under the UTA were 173 and both 58/59. Their poor condition by 1963 helps explain why the UTA bought 4 locos in better condition from CIE. Finally if you are interested in details of GNR coaches there was an excellent booklet by Steve Rafferty for the IRRS some years ago Get a copy

The Authorities discovered after they had approved the closure of the CDR that the road bridge over the river connecting Strabane to LIfford was too weak to carry replacement lorries and buses So for that reason for about Jan/Feb 1960 CDR kept running freight trains from Strabane to Stranorlar. The Letterkenny line over the river bridge to Lifford only was lifted as they were planned to convert this into a new road bridge as a temporary solution. This left Phoenix and Erne to.carry out the lifting on the Letterkenny branch.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery after your hospital.visit today for 2022!

Merry Xmas to all and thanks for a nice post closure photo of Killybegs

Superb CDR photos as always

They were built to last!

Very impressed JHB

Yes Killian

Love the Blue and Cream AEC set

Looks great David

Even though I have been to Kingscourt twice by rail but never behind a GM forgot it was in Co Cavan We can look forward to a new version of his unique photo style using bad captions with dodgy camera work as seen in some of his books of the 1970s? But he was photographing Irish railways since the 1960s! So who knows

My copy of Irish Railways the last 60 years ordered and expected on Saturday from Key Publishing website

Knew a 141 got as far as Strabane on a special. That is why I excluded Tyrone from my list of GM free Irish Counties. Did not know that a 141 made it to Foyle Road! Do not know but is on Key Publishing website now

The 2nd colour photo post closure of Strabane is very interesting. This ties in with some similar photos of Strabane Yard about the same time. Then a big shunt.took place putting most locos and rolling stock into what became their more familiar final settings in Strabane waiting for a visit to the USA that never took place!

Sorry Steve thought you meant the photo of it crossing over the Craigavon Bridge en route from Burtonport to Portrush on the sleeper! At least 1 A Class made it is far as St Johnston in the early 1960s but with a Crossley engine!