ERNIE's Irish Railway Archive, photos , Working Timetables etc from ca 1900 to the 2000's

[Colonel]

Lovely stuff! Details everywhere, while that colour slide is a gem.

[Irishswissernie]

4 views from the latest negative acquisitions. There were no captions or information on the sleeves so dates might be slightly wrong but I think I have got the locations right.

26J092 SLNC Enniskillen , Lough Melvin  Sept 1957.

26J107 CDRJC Castlefin Probaly 'Drumboe'  ca1957.

26J122 CIE Kilgarvan 130 ca1957.

26J071 L&LSR 52 Graving Dock, ca1953.

 

Edited June 7 by Irishswissernie

[Galteemore]

Lovely Ernie. Can’t be Lough Gill though as it was at Dundalk from May 57 on (it also had onion shaped smokebox lubricators which are not on this engine). It’s either Enniskillen or Sir Henry 

Edited June 7 by Galteemore

[Irishswissernie]

7 minutes ago, Galteemore said:

Can’t be Lough Gill though as it was at Dundalk from May 57 on (it also had onion shaped smokebox lubricators which are not on this engine)

Thanks, Title amended. This one actually appears on page 56 in "Railways in Ulster's Lakeland" Photographer was (said to be!) Dr Gerald Siviour and that was the info in the caption. 

[Colonel]

Fairly sure it is one of the two Sligo tanks built after the war. The rounded cab roof is the give away and in the background you can see one of the earlier Large Tanks for comparison.

 Either way, found myself dribbling again - Sligo, Swilly and Donegal all in the same post!

Magic.

Edited June 8 by Colonel

[Irishswissernie]

Yes its Lough Melvin on the cattle train . Its the one on the right in the distance which the photographer stated was Lough Gill but David has pointed out it can't be as it was at Dundalk.

Edited June 8 by Irishswissernie

[Irishswissernie]

I have quite a few Hill of Howth negs to upload. A bit of a niche subject for modellers, I think I can remember a tram or trams on the old Cyril Fry layout. Pity the tramway didn't have a steam worked goods service like Fintona but it would have been uneconomic partly because of the short distance from Howth and Sutton stations but also the steep gradients on the line would have been impractical for a steam worked service..

Here are 3 views I will upload the rest today so if you want to see these just go on the flickr photostream. In total there are 48 views including colour  grouped together in the GNRI Album at the end of Page 13 and continuing on page 14.

I have a pile of Fintona ones to go on as well.

26J168 Hill of Howth Sutton station yard No 4 6 Sept 1957.

26J172 Hill of Howth Sutton Depot.

26J174 Hill of Howth  Sutton Cross No. 2 entering  loop Dec 1958.

 

 

Edited June 12 by Irishswissernie

[Mol_PMB]

Lovely to see - thanks Ernie!

On a couple of recent visits to Ireland I've stayed in the Marine Hotel (just behind the trees on the right of the image at Sutton Cross) so it's great to see how it looked all those years ago. I've also walked much of the tramway route.

[Andy Cundick]

On 7/6/2026 at 7:41 AM, Irishswissernie said:

4 views from the latest negative acquisitions. There were no captions or information on the sleeves so dates might be slightly wrong but I think I have got the locations right.

26J092 SLNC Enniskillen , Lough Melvin  Sept 1957.

26J107 CDRJC Castlefin Probaly 'Drumboe'  ca1957.

26J122 CIE Kilgarvan 130 ca1957.

26J071 L&LSR 52 Graving Dock, ca1953.

 

Definitely Drumboe the plain smokebox is the givaway Andy 

[Irishswissernie]

RM Casserley negs today from 1955.

CIE 1955-04-20  Westport RMC83492 Cas25181.

CIE 1955-04-26 Macmine Junction, RMC83674 Cas25200.

CIE 1955-04-23  Tipperary. RMC26078 RMC 83566.

CIE 1955-04-21 Loughrea 12m RMC83520 Cas25192.

 

[leslie10646]

Great to see the shot of Macmine Jct - a place which saw CIE steam until very late on.

You could model it very well with a couple of J15s, an AEC set and an A Class, a few coaches, a dozen wagons .......

I only had steam through it once in pre-RPSI days - on the famous RBAI Railway Society tour in 1963 with No.151 - we were already a couple off hours late by then!

[Colonel]

Nice, small buildings for Macmine, but the station at Tipperary is enormous. Interesting to see the slide chairs on the point at Westport.

 

[Horsetan]

22 hours ago, leslie10646 said:

Great to see the shot of Macmine Jct - a place which saw CIE steam until very late on.

You could model it very well with a couple of J15s, an AEC set and an A Class, a few coaches, a dozen wagons .......

I think someone has already modelled Macmine in OO before...

34 minutes ago, Colonel said:

.... Interesting to see the slide chairs on the point at Westport.

...and that there was still a starter signal retained for the Down line to Westport Quay. 

[Irishswissernie]

Typical! You find a nice quiet seat with a lovely view; I can surf the net uninterrupted by an irritating husband and now it sounds like a helicopter ruining the peace and solitude.!!!

NYMR 14 June , Madame and 20166.

[Irishswissernie]

GNRI 1954-07-14 Bundoran Junction 10.59 Clones - Derry PPs 12 Mck042.

GMK070 GNRI 1955-xx Corridor Brake 1st 363 .127.

GMK048 GNRI 1961-04-29  Amiens St VS207.

GMK084 CIE 1955-xx Brake Compo 866 234.

 

[Paul 34F]

A wonderful shot of Bundoran Junction.  It would make an interesting layout, due to the arrangement accessing the Bundoran line, plus the associated shunting and splitting of trains.

Paul

[Horsetan]

4 hours ago, Paul 34F said:

A wonderful shot of Bundoran Junction.  It would make an interesting layout, due to the arrangement accessing the Bundoran line...

I wonder why it was arranged that way?

[Paul 34F]

On 22/6/2026 at 1:34 PM, Horsetan said:

I wonder why it was arranged that way?

My personal view is, the original junction was double track.  The bridge was constructed for double track and what became the siding, opposite the Bundoran platform, actually terminated under the bridge.  I wonder if there was a platform under the vegetation adjacent the siding?

The arrangement is an example of cost cutting.  The service demands don’t require a double junction and the simple solution is the removal of one point, moving a facing point lock, and adding a buffer stop.  
The result, trains to Bundoran from Enniskillen diverge right to then go left.  Which to those unaware of the actual situation will look very odd!

Paul

[Irishswissernie]

Added some poor ca 1953/4 Tralee & Dingle negs to Flickr.

26J054 T&D Annascaul ca1953.

26J063 T&D Annascaul ca1953.

26J062 T&D Annascaul ca1953.

26J059 T&D Hurst Nelson 48T built 1905 Tralee ca 1954.

26J058 T&D 68T Tralee 1954.

26J061 T&D Tralee yard ca 1953.

 

 

[Patrick Davey]

Lovely T&D shots - am in Kerry at the moment so nice to see these.  Still a good few remnants to see around the former T&D routes.

Great view of the train approaching Bundoran Junction too.

Thanks Ernie!

Edited 9 hours ago by Patrick Davey

[Irishswissernie]

It was your photos of Glenagalt today that reminded me that I hadn't uploaded them, Thanks!

[Mayner]

5 hours ago, Paul 34F said:

My personal view is, the original junction was double track.  The bridge was constructed for double track and what became the siding, opposite the Bundoran platform, actually terminated under the bridge.  I wonder if there was a platform under the vegetation adjacent the siding?

The arrangement is an example of cost cutting.  The service demands don’t require a double junction and the simple solution is the removal of one point, moving a facing point lock, and adding a buffer stop.  
The result, trains to Bundoran from Enniskillen diverge right to then go left.  Which to those unaware of the actual situation will look very odd!

Paul

I think at one stage the Board of Trade imposed a requirement to form junctions between two single lines as a double junction, with 3 turnouts (points) and a diamond crossing rather than a single turnout. There was a similar arrangement at Morebath Junction (between the GWR Branstaple Branch and Exe Valley line) in Devon though no station at the actual junction, signal diagram appeared in the Railway Modeller during early 1970s.

Apparently the Junction between the Bundoran Branch and 'main line" was originally laid out as a double junction and simplified at some stage before the 1954 photo, there is a  photo of a train with a similar consist possibly hauled by a J Class approaching the junction during the inter War era in HC Casserley's Irish Railways in the Heyday of Steam & speculation in a review in 5'3" that the origonal junction was still in place!

Photos in "Railways in Ulster's Lakeland" Colourpoint, Anthony Burges 2005 indicate that the junction was simplified before closure to a single facing turnout for trains travelling towards Omagh/Bundoran, the diamond crossing and connection to the loop removed. There are some interesting photos and commentary on life at Bundoran Junction before the closure of the "Irish North".  Interestingly there only appears to have been a single Bundoran Branch platform although the avoiding line between the North and West Junctions which allowed trains from the Omagh direction to run onto the branch without reversing appeared to be double track. Hopefully Ernie will dig out some photos showing the North and West Junctions one of Ireland's rare triangular junctions.

[Irishswissernie]

4 views of Cork Albert Quay  ex CBSCR, The first view appears to have a Park Royal as the centre coach.

CBSC 1958-06-05 Cork, Albert Quay. Railcar2631 + 2 6whl coaches on rear. PFF079.

CBSC 1957- + Cork Albert Quay AEC2603 PFF177.

CBSC 1959 ca  Cork, Albert Quay. PFF400.

CBSC 1957 - + Cork Albert Quay Train shed. PFF181.

 

 

[Westcorkrailway]

Don’t think I’ve seen a photo as good as that detailing the Intirior of the station 

 

I also note one of photo shows a railcar that seems to have had wasp striping on the roof, but painted over since? 

Edited 7 hours ago by Westcorkrailway

[Irishswissernie]

Bundoran  Junctions. West and North

 West Junction. 174 GNRI 1956-06-07 Bundoran Jc. 10.30 Bundoran-Enniskillen 46, van, van 782, Brake compo 2, 3rd 484. coprints174

171 GNRI 1956-06-07 Bundoran Jc. 43 TC 10.50 Omagh-Pettigo coprint171  North Junction , 2 leads off the Omagh bound track no cross overs.

There is a trackplan Page 79 , in Fermanaghs Railways plus some better photos by NW Sprinks of the junctions.

 

Edited 4 hours ago by Irishswissernie

[Mol_PMB]

29 minutes ago, Irishswissernie said:

4 views of Cork Albert Quay  ex CBSCR, The first view appears to have a Park Royal as the centre coach.

CBSC 1958-06-05 Cork, Albert Quay. Railcar2631 + 2 6whl coaches on rear. PFF079.

CBSC 1957- + Cork Albert Quay AEC2603 PFF177.

CBSC 1959 ca  Cork, Albert Quay. PFF400.

CBSC 1957 - + Cork Albert Quay Train shed. PFF181.

 

 

Lovely - many thanks Ernie, lots to enjoy there! Nice shots of the railcars as well as the wagons and carriages in the adjacent sidings. Note the Pullman car.

The railcars with striped roof domes were 2625 and 2638, and the one in the photo above is most likely 2625.