Chasewater Railway Museum Bits & Pieces 73 – Dec 1976
The Railway Preservation Society Newsletter
Chasewater News – Part 2
Outline Planning Permission has been granted for an engine shed between the platform and the crossing. Anyone knowing the whereabouts of a suitable building which could be obtained cheaply or be donated is urged to contact the Hon. Sec. Also needed are sources of cheap, good condition crossing timbers and sleepers, the latter preferably concrete.
Whilst on the subject of wants it is interesting to note that a small group of members have been trying to purchase another locomotive for the line, but have been outbid on three successive occasions. The locos in question were the Bagnall 0-4-0ST at Northampton Power Station, the Hudswell Clarke 0-4-0ST at Carlisle Power Station and most recently, a Robert Stephenson & Hawthorn 0-4-0ST at Leicester Power Station. With the current prices being paid for locos it may be that we need more cash. Any offers of help should be directed to the Hon. Editor. We have several more locos in the pipeline, all of which are in, or near to, working order. We really want an 0-6-0ST or Tank, but these are few and far between and so a four-coupled is more likely.
Littleton Colliery. A successful open day was held here on November 20th, many RPS members being in attendance. The Austerity No.7 performed in its usual vociferous style. Thanks are due to Messrs. Matthews and Worgan of the National Coal Board.
Austerity No.7 at Littleton
Winter Work Programme. This is largely centered on the long awaited completion of the platform and installation of a lever frame. Associated trackwork. Manly involving packing, is already in hand. Other projects are the dismantling of ‘Asbestos’, general maintenance and tidying up and when the weather improves, a start on re-panelling the TPO. Once again more help is needed and no offers refused, don’t be shy, we don’t bite!
The loco shed siding is also due for laying before Easter, involving construction of another point.
Museum Exhibits. Despite the break-in several interesting items have been added, notably a Cannock Chase colliery bridge plate – many thanks to Mr. Clift of Chase Terrace for this unique item.
Cannock Wood with Asbestos at Chasewater
E1 Locomotive – ‘Cannock Wood’
The E1 locomotive came into the possession of the Railway Preservation Society in 1964. Had it not been for the RPS the locomotive would probably have been scrapped at that time.
From that time until the present, it has received a couple of coates of paint and a tidy up sufficient for a Boiler Inspector to shake his head in dismay at the firebox.
Its future depends on you! As some of you will recall, the AGM of 1975 gave the Committee permission to sell the E1 as a last resort to raise cash for the purchase of the British Railways section of track and land.
The Walsall Metropolitan Council, it would appear, will be unlikely to supply the cash for the purchase of land and track, although this has not been confirmed.
Two verbal offers have been received for the E1 and a written offer is being obtained by the Committee from the interested parties. The locomotive is likely to bring in £3,500 which is probably about a third of the cost of the land and track.
Notice of Meeting
A meeting will be held at Chasewater at 2.30pm on the 22-1-1977.
The meeting will be for the purpose of bringing interested parties together with a view to the following:
1. To set up a restoration fund to purchase the E1 from the RPS at current price. The fund should be a separate body from the RPS.
2. After purchasing the Locomotive, raise the cash to restore it.
3. Operate the Locomotive at Chasewater.
It should be noted that only a few months are available to raise the first £3,500. If we have the ability to do that, we have the ability to restore and operate it.
If we are not able to raise the purchase price, the Locomotive will be better off elsewhere, where it can be restored and operated.
Remember
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway.
Built 1877 Brighton Works.
No.110.
Name: ‘Burgundy’
100th engine built at Brighton Works under Stroudley.
Sold 1926 to Cannock & Rugeley Collieries Ltd.
Name: ‘Cannock Wood’
No.9
Sold 1964 to the Railway Preservation Society.
1877 – 1977 Centenary
No other locomotive of this type survives.
Happy 100th birthday ‘Cannock Wood’
A.W.Haywood – Chairman RPS
The following is from the East Somerset Railway website:
Withdrawn for a second time in 1963, the engine was sold to the Railway Preservation Society and stored at Hednesford until 1970, when it was moved to the Chasewater railway. There it remained until sold to three members of the East Somerset Railway, finally arriving at Cranmore in September 1978.
A general overhaul was commenced in 1986 and it returned to active service in 1993, painted in green livery and numbered 110. It pulled it first train in service on Sunday 24th October of that year. In 1996, No. 110 could be found transporting visitors to the Festival of the Sea on Bristol’s Harbour Railway. Unfortunately, firebox problems resulted in No. 110 being prematurely withdrawn from traffic in 1997.
During 2000, work commenced on stripping the locomotive down to assess the extent of the firebox problems, after which the locomotive will be rebuilt. Current progress on this project can be found on the <a href=”http://www.railwayweb.com/clf”>Cranmore Loco Fund website</a>.
In 2012, B110 was sold to the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, in return for LMS Ivatt Class 2 no. 46447 moving to the ESR. The railway plans to restore the engine and run it as No. W2 Yarmouth, which was an identity previously worn by one of the Isle of Wight-based E1s.
Chasewater Railway Museum 