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Sunday, 28 March 2021

IRS Puzzles

Does anyone recognize this loco?
Is it BH 704 of 1882, Weardale Steel Coal & Coke No.19?
If so, can anyone comment on its history?

These mystery photos are courtesy of the Industrial Railway Society.

Is this somewhere in Weardale?   What's the loco?   What's the work?

5 comments:

Matt Ditch said...

The narrow gauge one is a Black Hawthorn named "Little Nut" I believe it worked at Boltsburn mine in Weardale. There was a similar engine "No.1" which worked at Groove rake.

Alex Tyson said...

'Little Nut was actually built in 1913 by R & W Hawthorn Leslie & Co. at their Forth Banks works.

Derek said...

I suspect you're both right, but I don't know. There is a "Little Nut" at Boltsburn on p406 of Industrial Railways & Locos of County Durham (Mountford & Holroyde, IRS 2006) - this loco has an enclosed cab & is HL HL 3029 of 1913. The photo on this blog looks like Victorian / Edwardian workers, plus the cab makes it look earlier than 1913. Perhaps the name was transferred from the earlier BH to a replacement HL. Alternatively, HL 3029 didn't last too long - perhaps it was a rebuild of the BH. Anyone got any details of a BH at Boltsburn?

Peter said...

No.2 was the Hawthorn Leslie that worked Boltsburn Mine at Rookhope. There is a copy of the works photo in T.E Rounthwaite's "The Railways of Weardale" (a 1965 paperback) in the same livery; the engine probably was fitted with a proper cab pretty soon after this photo. No.1 was a Black Hawthorn that was dimensionally similar and probably built to the same drawings save for being 2'6" gauge unlike No2's 1'10" gauge. (Hawthorn Leslie apparently took over Black Hawthorns drawings etc.) Both survived until the 1930s though No.2 probably last worked in 1919 when only six years old. The location could be a tip at the former Low Fulwood mine - View map: Durham XXIII.3 (Stanhope) - Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, 1841-1952 (nls.uk)

Michael Denholm said...

Standard gauge 0-6-0ST No. 19 was certainly a 'Weardale' locomotive. Black Hawthorn Works No. 704 of 1882 was new to the Weardale Steel, Coal & Coke Co., and was allocated to their Heights Quarry.The locomotive was transfered to the Company's Tudhoe Iron Works near Spennymoor in 1899; back to Heights in 1907, Tudhoe again a year later, returning to Heights in 1909 after re-building. It was put into store there in 1922, and transferred to Easington Coal Co., (a WSC&C subsifiary) during 1943. The locomotive became National Coal Board property in 1947. By April 1950 the locomotive was at Blackhall Colliery, only to return to Easington a year later.No. 19 was scrapped during 1958.