1970s CIE mail train

[Noel]

 

[Gabhal Luimnigh]

Lovely scene, brings back memories of the tons of bags at the junction, there was a sorting office there and I don't know how they kept track of anything

[Rob]

Nice weathering!!

[jhb171achill]

Perfect for this setting. When compiling “Rails Through North Kerry”, I recall looking through some of Barry Carse’s images of mail trains.

Going back to Senior’s time, the mails were by far THE most important traffic, with the main line ones also carrying large numbers of passengers. Senior recalled seeing the down Cork mail leaving Kingsbridge with over fifteen bogies and a handful of six-wheelers for good measure.

By the “black’n’tan” era thus had dwindled to irrelevance in terms of passenger accommodation, and latterly had none.

This scene at Gort evokes those last days, and some of Barry’s photographs show this very thing - two bogie vehicles.

I personally recall seeing a mail train about forty years ago - dunno where it was going - with just a TPO & BR van.

I travelled on an up night mail from Sligo to Westland Row twice a decade before that. From memory, one had an old side-corridor brake standard or early CIE origin; whatever way it had been converted it rebuilt it only had two compartments. One contained a woman who got out at the first stop, Collooney; me in the other. I was the solitary passenger the whole way back to Dublin. Other than that, two TPOs and a tin van, I think.

At Athlone you had to change. This time, two TPOs and a BSGSV. No other passengers, as we rolled home through the dark, via Mullingar of course.

I’ve a recollection of seeing a mail train somewhere else with three or four tin vans in a row, and a couple of bogies of some sort.

You just never could tell what would turn up on a mail train…..

[Georgeconna]

Nice close coupling there Noel.

Love the Letter box opening on the coach side. Wonder how many people actually posted a letter into a train!

 

Edited November 16, 2023 by Georgeconna

[Noel]

1 hour ago, Georgeconna said:

Nice close coupling there Noel.

Cheers, that's down to kadee couplings and Keen systems sprung corridor connectors.

1 hour ago, Georgeconna said:

Love the Letter box opening on the coach side. Wonder how many people actually posted a letter into a train!

Yes I wondered that too. Suppose if you lived beside the station, but then there's the hassle of going outdoors at train arrival times. Perhaps it was used more by the station master and local post man.

[ttc0169]

Nice video and weathering….don’t forget the red tail lamp for the rear of the train

[murphaph]

I suspect regular use was made of the TPO's letter box for urgent letters.

[Gabhal Luimnigh]

We often used to head down to the station and drop off the letters at about 10.55pm, it would arrive at the destination the following morning

[Broithe]

At Ballybrophy, there would be a flurry of khaki dustcoats bursting into Lambe's, to avail of the rehydration facilities, with the necessary pints lined up on the bar and, as it was also the Post Office, some official duties could also be performed.

Edited November 16, 2023 by Broithe

[Mayner]

The most interesting aspect of Mail Train operation was the way trains divided at junctions like Athlone, Mullingar and Mallow almost until the end of Mail Train operation. The Galway Night Mails would set out with portions for Sligo and Westport which would be divided at the junctions on the out bound run to the provinces and re-combined on the return run to Dublin. The portions might include one or more 4w or bogie Luggage Vans, a TPO and a single coach when the Sligo and Westport Night Mails carried passengers.

Up to the late early 70s it wasn't feasible to take a day trip from Dublin to Westport and spend some meaningful time at the destination without taking the 'Night Mail' to get home due to the sparse nature of CIE passenger services.

An other train for Noel to model would be the short lived Newspaper Trains from Dublin to the Provinces that operated in the early 70s often a Bo Bo and a single Luggage Van.

The Wexford Newspaper train usually worked down during the early hours of the morning with a B141 and a Luggage van, before taking up summer season Wexford-Rosslare passenger services, before returning Loco and empty Luggage Van to Dublin.  For a short time before the withdrawl of the Wexford Newspaper train in the late 70s CIE operated a late evening Wexford-Dublin passenger train using the Wexford-Rosslare Harbour set returning as a newspaper and empty passenger service during the early morning.