WW1 Horse shunting…
The Horses at War event is in full swing this weekend and provided an opportunity to recreate scenes of shunting WDLR waggons using horse power.
Below: These scenes have had some post-production fiddling as the camera has been playing up intolerably and either overexposing or turning itself off after each image (and only sometimes saving the capture). However, a few shots were salvageable, and despite the hail, these give a good idea of horse shunting at a WDLR depot ‘somewhere in France’ (apart from the Colliery bit of course!).
Below: The F waggon was also used for the demonstration.
Below: Elsewhere across site the horses at war theme continues, with numerous vehicles being displayed as well as a WW1 encampment and various passenger carrying and commercial vehicles at work on the site roads. The weather hasn’t been kind today, but tomorrow’s forecast is much better.
Its great to see horses being used for shunting / hauling purposes – a part of railway history which is generally forgotten! Well done!
Hi Alex, Hope you are well. I am one of the Engineers at Middleton Railway working with Steve Roberts on the cosmetic restoration of an Isles steam Crane. do you know anything about the whereabouts of another Isles Crane This is a comment made in an article in National Preservation.
According the IRS crane man Alex Betteney, the Isles one was sold to the Northamptonshire Ironstone Railway Trust Hunsbury Hill in November 1992 but be-leaved to be on a private site, as never been seen on the railway. The Grafton Steam Crane they have no record of it ever been on the Mid Hants so most likely got scrapped. This is the best I can do for now. I see there is only one other Isles steam crane listed surviving and is on the Middleton Railway.
GWR Man., Mar 14, 2015