The locomotive was moved to Thornaby where it joined the two re-purchased Seaham Harbour engines (Works No 21 & … One, 172L, became Townsend Hook, after the first chairman of the company, and the other, William Finlay. Inside the narrow shed, at the back, stood the rusting vertical-boiler machine. Betchworth railway station Betchworth railway station serves the village of Betchworth in Surrey, England.It is on the North Downs Line, 27 miles 17 chains measured from London Charing Cross via Redhill.All trains serving it are operated by Great Western Railway. [10] The batteries of kilns were sited appropriately in relation to the positions of the quarries (at a higher level) and the standard-gauge works railway that descended by means of a steep switchback arrangement to the sidings at Betchworth station, which was adjacent to the works. Road vehicles now took over, as did the preservation movement, much aided by a sympathetic Major Taylerson. Moreover, in winter months, particularly following prolonged heavy rain, the quarries would have been unworkable without railed transport. The interest in the preservation of industrial steam locomotives accompanied the wane in steam traction on railways, not just in Great Britain, where mainline steam ended in 1968, but also elsewhere, such as in France around 1970 and, more recently, in both eastern and western Europe. Whether you are into riding your Trials bikes through the stunning woodland just set back from Surrey’s famous Boxhill or peacefully fishing on a pretty little lake, we can cater for you! It had been christened “Coffeepot” by the men at the quarry, although it never carried that name. [27]Townsend Hook, donated to the Amberley Working Museum in 2002, is currently undergoing restoration to working order by apprentices at Eastleigh College. It is on the North Downs Line, 27 miles 17 chains measured from London Charing Cross via Redhill. 17. About the reserve. 3 at work. Originally, the Grey Chalk was quar-ried and used in production of grey lime. 1. Setting off down the gradient, Smith told us to be ready to jump off in case he lost control or Baxter decided to leave the rails, suggesting that such events were not unknown or perhaps infrequent. Betchworth Quarry is a stunning chalk downland site set within the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and part of the North Downs. 5. the standard-gauge works railway that descended by means of a steep switchback arrangement to the sid-ings at Betchworth station, which was adjacent to the works (Figure 1). Baxter was fitted with a handbrake that had, on occasion, seized up in cold weather, causing the locomotive to run away on the grade leading to the sidings at Betchworth station. This followed efforts earlier in the decade that led to the preservation and restoration of the Welsh Talyllyn and Festiniog railways and growing appreciation of the aesthetics of fast-disappearing 19th-century locomotives, no doubt also brought to public attention by cartoonist Rowland Emett’s narrow-gauge Far Tottering and Oystercreek Railway at the 1951 Festival of Britain Exhibition. Collection Objects. Though this operation ceased by 1910, the gantry is one of the most prominent surviving features of the former quarry workings. It is perhaps less than ironic that in the same month and year, September 1958, Robert C. Post and the author independently and on two different continents were seriously engaged in “tracking down various sorts of devices that Lewis Mumford had dubbed paleotechnic, especially steam locomotives.”[4]. This article has focused mainly on the working habitat of industrial locomotives from one site that are now preserved in museums and, in one case, on a preserved working railway. The station’s two platforms see regular trains along the North Downs Line, with one train departing in each direction approximately every two hours. ABC Railway Guide Ratings. Rate this station. Second impression 1985. Since Fletcher, Jennings provided three of the locomotives employed at Betchworth, all of which have survived, its history and products deserve a brief review. [25] Through the generosity of Major Taylerson, Townsend Hook found a new home two years later at Brockham, where it became the first and principal exhibit at Brockham Museum. Betchworth railway station is a very small unstaffed station on the Redhill - Guildford Line in Betchworth, Surrey. For a discussion of industrial railways, see Michael J. T. Lewis, “The Railway in Industry,” The History and Practice of Britain’s Railways: A New Research Agenda, ed. For a recent photo of Baxter, go to the site of the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society . Its 19-inch gauge rope-worked line that once connected with the standard gauge was still in position, although out of use for several years. David Gwyn, “Tredegar, Newcastle, Baltimore: The Swivel Truck as a Paradigm of Technology Transfer,” Technology and Culture 45 (2004): 778–94. Grey or Middle Chalk outcrops to the west of the Betchworth site. Yet, at that time, as we were later informed, there was still hope that the locomotive would be rebuilt for further use. On 11 June 2005, at an auction of railwayana in Sheffield, a nameplate and a builder’s plate from Townsend Hook fetched 2,600 pounds sterling. 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