Shelagh of Eskdale Preservation Society
The Shelagh of Eskdale Preservation Society was formed on April 8th
2010 with the intention of helping secure the future of Ravenglass &
Eskdale Railway heritage diesel locomotive “Shelagh of Eskdale” and ensuring its
survival in operational condition at the railway. The locomotive is owned by
the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway Company Ltd. and our aim is to assist the
owning company by providing voluntary manpower in order to keep the locomotive,
parts of which date back to 1881, in a serviceable condition and preserve its
role as a valuable asset to the company.
Sign up to our mailing list - http://www.srcf.ucam.org/mailman/listinfo/soeps-announce
Visit us on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=113700935314770
Our Fotopic gallery is available here – http://shelagh.fotopic.net
Who are we?
The Society was formed
by nine members, all of whom are volunteers at the Ravenglass & Eskdale
Railway. The society’s committee are, as follows –
Mr Richard Robinson Chairman
Mr Alex Tilsley Secretary
Mr Max Dutton Treasurer
Mr Tom Whitbread Archivist & Historian
Mr Eliot Andersen Photographer & Webmaster
Mr Will Tilston Society Press Officer
& Merchandising
The locomotive
The Shelagh of Eskdale is a 15” gauge diesel-mechanical
locomotive which has operated in its present form at the Ravenglass &
Eskdale Railway in Cumbria since 1969. The locomotive uses parts of the chassis
of Sir Arthur Heywood’s 0-6-0T steam locomotive Ella,
built at his workshops at the Duffield Bank Railway in Derbyshire. This engine
came to Ravenglass in 1917 and before long had been dismantled with the frames
reused in an early petrol locomotive – ICL No. 2, which utilised a Lanchester
car engine as a power unit. This was unsuccessful and written off after a
particularly bad collision in the late 1920s, and the parts then lay untouched
for nearly three decades, until the line’s chief engineer, Tom Jones, decided
to put them to use in a modern diesel locomotive. Due to the line’s uncertain
future at the time and lack of funding, the project was shelved until after the
preservation of the railway in 1960.
The railway’s business
was expanding during the 1960s, and even with three steam locomotives, there
was still a pressing need for additional motive power, so the completed part of
Tom Jones’ Diesel, as it was
affectionately known, were sent to Severn-Lamb of Stratford-on-Avon for
finalising into a 4-6-4 diesel-hydraulic engine. The engine ran at Ravenglass
in this form until 1998, when it was rebuilt with a more conventional
mechanical transmission system, and was still one of the main passenger diesel
locomotives until the introduction of the Douglas Ferreira
in 2005. Since then, the locomotive has become one of the regular engines on
permanent way and maintenance trains, a general-user machine, and has been
somewhat neglected, due to there being more pressing restoration projects
requiring attention.
The Technical
Bits
Incorporating the crank
webs and sliding centre-axle of the Heywood locomotive, Ella,
Shelagh of Eskdale was constructed in
1969 by Severn-Lamb of Stratford-on-Avon. Construction began in 1955 when
Heathcotes of Cleator Moor built the chassis. As the railway's future was in
doubt at the time, the diesel was not completed, despite the fact that both Quarryman and the Passenger Tractor
were ageing and wearing.
Ella was built in 1881 by
Sir Arthur Heywood for use on his Duffield Bank Railway. When he died, it,
along with Muriel (now River Irt)
went to the Gretna Munitions Factory and then came to Ravenglass. It was in use
on granite trains for several years until it was decided to convert it into an
internal combustion locomotive, creating ICL No. 2 in 1927. This ran on petrol
and the frames of Ella were extended to add pony
trucks at both ends, and a teak hut, much like the one on ICL No. 1, was fitted
on top. A Lanchester Model 38 touring car chassis was mounted on the frames,
and the engine and gearbox were retained, and the teak hut was constructed on
the top of this.
ICL No. 2 was reasonably
fast and could haul fairly heavy loads - a good investment for the company. In
1928, however, she collided with ICL No. 1 at Muncaster Mill, and the frame was
distorted. In the spring of the following year, she pushed a big-end through
the crank case. Finding spare parts was nearly impossible, and so was quickly
retired once the standard gauge line to Murthwaite was constructed.
When the new company
took over in 1960, the frames were still lying at Murthwaite. They sent the
chassis to Severn-Lamb to be completed, where David Curwen designed a twin-cab
diesel with a Ford 4D engine and Linde Hydrostatic transmission, creating a
diesel-hydraulic locomotive. These were upgraded in 1975 with a Perkins 6/354
engine, and replaced altogether in 1998, when it gained a Ford industrial
engine (from a Ford Transit Van!) with Spicer Compact Shuttle transmission,
making it a diesel-mechanical engine. This power unit was replaced with an
identical one in July 2008.
She visited both the
Liverpool and Gateshead Garden Festivals, and pulled the Royal Train for HM The
Queen at the former, and now carries a plaque to commemorate this. The engine
carries a two-tone Apple and Brunswick Green livery in the style of several
British Railways diesel-electric locomotives of the 1960s, but originally
carried a Royal Blue livery. In length, it measures 17’ 7”.
Who was
“Shelagh of Eskdale”?
Shelagh of Eskdale was
a mythical West Cumbrian heroine who fought against the occupying Romans two
millennia ago.
Why not visit the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway
website? http://www.ravenglass-railway.co.uk