The Lynton and Barnstaple Railway (L&B) opened as an independent railway in May 1898. It was a
single track
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
,
narrow gauge railway
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structur ...
and was slightly over long running through the rugged and picturesque area bordering
Exmoor
Exmoor is loosely defined as an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England. It is named after the River Exe, the source of which is situated in the centre of the area, two miles north-west of Simonsbath. ...
in North
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...
, England. Although opened after the
Light Railways Act 1896
The Light Railways Act 1896 (59 & 60 Vict. c.48) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
History
Before the Act each new railway line built in the country required a specific Act of Parliament to be ob ...
came into force, it was authorised and constructed prior to that act. Therefore, as with all other railways, it was authorised under its own
Act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...
and built to higher (and more costly) standards than similar railways of the time. In the United Kingdom it was notable as being the only narrow gauge line required to use main-line standard signalling. For a short period the line earned a modest return for shareholders, but for most of its life the L&B made a loss.
[G A Brown, J D C A Prideaux, & H G Radcliffe: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway'' published by David and Charles, First Edition 1964, ] In 1923, the L&B was taken over by the
Southern Railway, and eventually closed in September 1935.
The
Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Trust
The Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Trust (The Trust) is an educational charity supporting the rebuilding and operation of the railway by the Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Company, in North Devon, England.
Objects
Working closely with its subsidiar ...
was formed in 1979; and a short section was reopened to passengers in 2004. This was extended in 2006; and the following year plans were announced to open of track, linking the station at Woody Bay to both Lynton (at a new terminus on an extension to the original line, closer to the town) and Blackmoor Gate, and to a new station at
Wistlandpound Reservoir
Wistlandpound Reservoir is a reservoir in Devon, England owned by South West Water.
Completed in 1957, the earth embankment reservoir holds up to 1,550 megalitres (341 million gallons) and covers an area of 40 acres (16ha).
Situated close to E ...
. The present track is now
narrow gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...
.
History
Following the opening of the
Devon and Somerset Railway
The Devon and Somerset Railway (D&SR) was a cross-country line that connected Barnstaple in Devon, England, to the network of the Bristol and Exeter Railway (B&ER) near Taunton. It was opened in stages between 1871 and 1873 and closed in 1966. ...
to
Barnstaple
Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town in North Devon, England, at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool and won great wealth. Later it imported Irish wool, bu ...
, there were calls for an extension to serve the twin villages of
Lynton
Lynton is a town on the Exmoor coast in the North Devon district in the county of Devon, England, approximately north-east of Barnstaple and west of Minehead, and close to the confluence of the West Lyn and East Lyn rivers.
Governance
Lynton ...
and
Lynmouth
Lynmouth is a village in Devon, England, on the northern edge of Exmoor. The village straddles the confluence of the West Lyn and East Lyn rivers, in a gorge below Lynton, which was the only place to expand to once Lynmouth became as built ...
,
[L T Catchpole: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway 1895–1935'' published by The Oakwood Press. Eighth edition 2005. .] which were popular with holiday-makers.
Through the middle of the 19th century, several schemes were proposed, from established railway companies and independent developers. One scheme suggested electric power, while another proposed a line from
South Molton
South Molton is a town in Devon, England. It is part of the North Devon local government district. The town is on the River Mole. According to the 2001 census the civil parish of South Molton had a population of 4,093, increasing to 5,108 at the ...
.
None of these schemes offered sufficient prospects to encourage investment, and few got further than initial plans.
Due to the difficult terrain, one scheme suggested a
narrow gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...
, already in use by the and elsewhere, to ease construction. This scheme was supported by Sir
George Newnes
Sir George Newnes, 1st Baronet (13 March 1851 – 9 June 1910) was a British publisher and editor and a founding figure in popular journalism. Newnes also served as a Liberal Party Member of Parliament for two decades. His company, George Newnes ...
, publisher of
Titbits
''Tit-Bits from all the interesting Books and Newspapers of the World'', more commonly known as ''Tit-Bits'', was a British weekly magazine founded by George Newnes, a founding figure in popular journalism, on 22 October 1881.
History
In 1886 ...
and
The Strand Magazine
''The Strand Magazine'' was a monthly British magazine founded by George Newnes, composed of short fiction and general interest articles. It was published in the United Kingdom from January 1891 to March 1950, running to 711 issues, though the ...
who became chairman of the company. The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Bill was passed on 27 June 1895, and
James Szlumper
Sir James Weeks Szlumper JP DL (29 January 1834 – 27 October 1926) was an English civil engineer. He was Chief Engineer on a number of key railway engineering projects in the Victorian era.
Biography
Szlumper was born in Westminster to Albe ...
was the consulting engineer for the work.
The line opened on 11 May 1898 with public service commencing on 16 May, connecting with trains from Waterloo on the
Ilfracombe Branch Line at
Barnstaple Town.
The scheme did not meet with universal enthusiasm, and from the beginning, there were some who doubted the true intentions of the promoters. Although many of the sinuous curves and deviations were due to having to maintain a 1 in 50 gradient where there was no leeway (most observers being oblivious to the fact that a straighter shorter line would have made the gradient even steeper), several were due to resistance by local landowners along the route.
A guide published whilst the line was being built stated:
The L&B seldom attracted sufficient passengers to remain viable. The journey of nearly took on average an hour and a half. To satisfy several influential residents, the terminus at Lynton was some distance from the town itself, and from the cliff railway to Lynmouth.
Declining tourism during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, improved roads, increased car ownership further depleted the line's income until it was no longer economic.
A guidebook published in 1921 described the situation:
Despite numerous cost-saving measures and extra investment in the line, the Southern Railway was unable to reverse the trend, and closed the line.
The last train ran on 29 September 1935. An observer at the time wrote:
The Southern removed everything they could use elsewhere, and by 8 November, had lifted the track from Lynton to milepost 15⅓ – on the Barnstaple side of Woody Bay station. On 13 November an auction was held, although the railway failed to attract much interest. Most rolling stock, and every locomotive except for ''Lew'', was scrapped at Pilton. Some coaches were sectioned for use as garden sheds. Third class seats became garden furniture, and first class seats found their way into local snooker halls and Masonic lodges. In December,
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
ship breaker Sidney Castle won the tender to dismantle the railway. The remaining track was lifted by June 1936, and in September, surviving locomotive ''Lew'' was shipped to Brazil. The stations and
track bed
The track bed or trackbed is the groundwork onto which a railway track is laid. Trackbeds of disused railways are sometimes used for recreational paths or new light rail links.
According to Network Rail, the trackbed is the layers of ballast a ...
were auctioned in 1938.
The L&B had an exemplary safety record, and no members of the public were killed or injured during its 37-year existence, although accidents at
Braunton Road and
Chumhill did claim the lives of three track workers.
[Thomas Middlemass, ''Encyclopaedia of Narrow Gauge Railways of Great Britain and Ireland'', Guild Publishing, 1991, page 209.]
Route
The route of this diminutive railway and the scenery through which it passes, has been described many times, such as in a 1920s guide to the area:
(
*Note: ''Wooda Bay'' station was actually renamed ''Woody Bay'' in 1901. The geographical feature
Woody Bay after which the station was named was the subject of an attempt to develop it as a tourist resort to rival Lynmouth; a pier was even constructed. The developers felt that the spelling "Woody" was more attractive to tourists, and so changed it from the original "Wooda"; the station name was changed accordingly.)
As well as several foot- and cycle-routes which can still be followed today, the hostelry in
Parracombe
Parracombe is a rural settlement south-west of Lynton, in Devon, England. It is situated in the Heddon Valley, on Exmoor. The population at the 2011 census was 293.
A number Bronze Age barrows exist nearby, along with several other small ear ...
mentioned in the article remains a popular venue (although the geese are now singular).
Gradient profile
The L&B rises and falls several times along its length. Starting at above sea level, The first , through Barnstaple, and along the Yeo Valley stays relatively level. ''Collard Bridge'' marks the start of an climb, mainly at one in fifty, to Blackmoor Gate. A shallower down-gradient follows, of about , towards Parracombe Bank, and the start of another climb, of about , to Woody Bay – at , the highest railway station in southern England. The line then falls, again mostly at one in fifty (2%) – to Lynton & Lynmouth station, still above the sea, and hidden by the landscape from the town of Lynton.
The minimum radius on curves was .
Rolling stock
One of the most distinctive aspects of the L&B was its
rolling stock
The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can b ...
, with the locomotives appearing originally in a livery of plain lined Holly green, later on a black base, with chestnut under-frames, hauling passenger carriages coloured terracotta with off-white upper panels, and light grey goods wagons. The schemes were simplified as individual vehicles were repainted. With the take over by the Southern and arrival of Lew the livery was slowly changed to Maunsell Green for locos and passenger stock, and umber for the goods wagons. The loco headlamps which had been black under the L&B were re-painted red.
Locomotives
At least four contractors' locomotives were used for construction. Unusually, some of the temporary track was wider than the final gauge – the section around Parracombe Bank for example, spanning the Heddon valley, was built to gauge, with a locomotive known as ''Winnie''. A fifth locomotive – perhaps named ''Spondon'' – may also have been used, although little is known of either of these.
In 1900, ''Kilmarnock'' was sold by the L&B. It is believed to have been left behind by James Nuttall, as a result of the financial problems and litigation between railway and contractor.
The L&B used only
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when dea ...
-fired
steam
Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...
motive power. In 1896, the
Hunslet Engine Company
The Hunslet Engine Company is a locomotive-building company, founded in 1864 in Hunslet, England. It manufactured steam locomotives for over 100 years and currently manufactures diesel shunting locomotives. The company is part of Ed Murray & S ...
submitted two designs (a and a ), but eventually an order was placed for three s from
Manning Wardle
Manning Wardle was a steam locomotive manufacturer based in Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
Precursor companies
The city of Leeds was one of the earliest centres of locomotive building; Matthew Murray built the first commercially s ...
& Co of
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
. The locos were named after local rivers: ''
Yeo
Yeo is a Chinese, English, and Korean surname.
Origins
As an English surname, Yeo is a toponymic surname meaning "river", either for people who lived near one of the Rivers Yeo, or any river in general. The word comes from Old English , via sou ...
'', ''
Exe
Exe or EXE may refer to:
* .exe, a file extension
* exe., abbreviation for executive
Places
* River Exe, in England
* Exe Estuary, in England
* Exe Island, in Exeter, England
Transportation and vehicles
* Exe (locomotive), a British locomotive
...
'', and ''
Taw''. These were supplemented by a , ''
Lyn'', built by the
Baldwin Locomotive Works
The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railroad locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, in the early 20th century. The company was for decades t ...
of
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, USA, as the Company realised that three locos would be insufficient. Baldwin was selected as they could deliver the loco – based largely on standard components – more quickly than domestic suppliers,
[Thomas Middlemass, ''Encyclopaedia of Narrow Gauge Railways of Great Britain and Ireland'', Guild Publishing, 1991, page 212.] who had a backlog of orders, caused by a national engineering dispute over the 8 hour working day resulting in a lock-out by employers from July 1897 until January 1898. After construction by Baldwin, the loco was shipped across the Atlantic in parts, and re-assembled at Pilton by railway staff. It first steamed in July 1898. The Manning Wardles were delivered ahead of the lock-out, and ''Yeo'' and ''Taw'' were used in the final stages of construction. ''Exe'' was stored locally in a stable, where she received the unwelcome attention of thieves who stole various brass fittings and fixtures.
In 1923 the L&B was absorbed into the
Southern Railway, and began an upgrade programme. All locos & coaches were repainted in Southern Maunsell Green livery, the wagons were repainted in Southern Umber livery and track and buildings were improved. A fifth locomotive, ''
Lew'' was purchased in 1925, with improvements to the original Manning Wardle design.
Fate of ''Lew''
Although bought at the auction (it is believed by Barwicks of London) by December 1935, ''Lew'' was working for Sidney Castle, the dismantler of the railway. This work was completed by July 1936 and in September, ''Lew'' was moved by rail to
Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe).
The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
and loaded onto the S.S. ''Sabor'' destined for the state of
Pernambuco
Pernambuco () is a state of Brazil, located in the Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.6 million people as of 2020, making it seventh-most populous state of Brazil and with around 98,148 km², being the 19 ...
,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. Most of the relevant shipping records were destroyed in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Passenger stock
Sixteen passenger carriages were delivered for the opening. Built by the
Bristol Wagon & Carriage Works Co. Ltd., these comprised six different types, all long, wide, ( over steps) and high – large by narrow gauge standards – and certainly superior to any previous British narrow gauge stock.
The coaching stock was extremely solidly constructed, and offered levels of accommodation far in advance of anything else at the time – certainly compared to any other narrow gauge railway. Almost 70 years later, the design was used as the basis for a new rake of carriages built by the Ffestiniog – testament to the excellence of the original design.
The body for coach 17 was built in 1911, by local firm
Shapland and Petter, and mounted on a
steel
Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...
underframe
An underframe is a framework of wood or metal carrying the main body structure of a railway vehicle, such as a locomotive, carriage or wagon.
See also
* Chassis
* Headstock
* Locomotive bed
* Locomotive frame
* Undercarriage
Undercarriage is t ...
constructed by the railway in its own workshops at Pilton.
Marginally longer than the earlier coaches, it contained both smoking and non-smoking accommodation for first and third class passengers, as well as the brake van space.
Goods stock
The Southern Railway introduced several new items of goods stock, and also purchased two ex-War Department
travelling cranes for the line.
Goods-only trains were a rarity, and the usual practice was to attach goods wagons to any scheduled passenger services. Whilst the shunting of wagons at intermediate stations no doubt added to the interest of the tourist and occasional traveller, it also added marginally to the journey time.
The
open goods wagon
Open wagons (trucks in the UK) form a large group of railway goods wagons designed primarily for the transportation of bulk goods that are not moisture-retentive and can usually be tipped, dumped or shovelled. The International Union of Rai ...
s were originally delivered with a single top-hung side door on each side, but these proved inefficient, and all were eventually converted to side hung double doors. By 1907, most had been fitted with tarpaulin rails. The goods vans used the same underframe, and were fitted with double sliding doors on each side.
The bogie open doors were also originally top-hung, but converted by the railway at Pilton.
[G A Brown, J D C A Prideaux, & H G Radcliffe: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway'' published by the ]Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Trust
The Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Trust (The Trust) is an educational charity supporting the rebuilding and operation of the railway by the Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Company, in North Devon, England.
Objects
Working closely with its subsidiar ...
, Fourth edition, 2006 with additional material by G A Brown & P J M Rawstron.
Wagon No. 19 was originally used by the contractors. After the railway opened, it was modified and entered revenue service in 1900. At only it was used often in preference to an wagon as it reduced the overall weight of a train.
Van 23 – partially restored but now being prepared (2019) for service at Woody Bay – was built at Pilton by the L&B. Unlike all other L&B stock, its underframe was entirely made of wood.
The restored van will have a steel underframe clad in wood.
The travelling cranes were ex-WD stock, and fitted with outriggers, rated at with a
radius
In classical geometry, a radius ( : radii) of a circle or sphere is any of the line segments from its center to its perimeter, and in more modern usage, it is also their length. The name comes from the latin ''radius'', meaning ray but also the ...
, at . Intended as recovery cranes in the event of a derailment, neither saw much use. One crane, with its
match truck, was kept in the long
headshunt
A headshunt (or escape track in the United States) is a short length of track provided to release locomotives at terminal platforms, or to allow shunting to take place clear of main lines.
Terminal headshunt
A 'terminal headshunt' is a short ...
at Pilton, the other was put to use in Lynton goods yard.
The 1927
bogie
A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...
goods van
A covered goods wagon or van is a railway goods wagon which is designed for the transportation of moisture-susceptible goods and therefore fully enclosed by sides and a fixed roof. They are often referred to simply as covered wagons, and this is ...
s were originally fitted with heavy diagonal wooden cross braces at each end, but these were later replaced with single diagonal angle-iron braces.
Present
Eighty-five years after its closure, much of the line is still in evidence. The most spectacular evidence is Bridge 22 – the brick-built
Chelfham Viaduct
Chelfham Viaduct is a railway viaduct built in 1896–97 to carry the single track, narrow-gauge Lynton and Barnstaple Railway (L&B) across the Stoke Rivers valley. Designed by L&B engineer, FW Chanter, and containing over a quarter of a millio ...
. Fully restored in 2000, its eight wide arches reach above the
Stoke Rivers valley – the largest narrow-gauge railway structure in England.
[''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Magazine'' published by The L&BR Trust. Various editions]
The station at Lynton is now private residences, Blackmoor Gate is a restaurant and Barnstaple Town a school. Chelfham and Woody Bay both serve the new L&B.
Chelfham station is currently being restored, and open to visitors every weekend, while Woody Bay is the main centre of operations. Snapper Halt was purchased in 2010 and Bratton Fleming in 2020 by Exmoor Associates – a private company dedicated to securing trackbed for the restoration of the railway.
A short section of the line reopened to passengers in 2004. Bridge 67 was generously rebuilt as a gift by
Edmund Nuttall Ltd. – a firm descended from James Nuttall of Manchester, the main contractors for the original construction – allowing an extension to Killington Lane in 2006.
Work is progressing on the next section to be restored, towards
Parracombe
Parracombe is a rural settlement south-west of Lynton, in Devon, England. It is situated in the Heddon Valley, on Exmoor. The population at the 2011 census was 293.
A number Bronze Age barrows exist nearby, along with several other small ear ...
,
Blackmoor
Blackmore is a village in Essex, England.
Blackmore or Blackmoor may also refer to:
* Blackmore (name), a surname (including a list of people with the name)
* Blackmoor, Hampshire, a village in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England
...
and a new temporary Southern terminus at
Wistlandpound Reservoir
Wistlandpound Reservoir is a reservoir in Devon, England owned by South West Water.
Completed in 1957, the earth embankment reservoir holds up to 1,550 megalitres (341 million gallons) and covers an area of 40 acres (16ha).
Situated close to E ...
. A total of 7 planning applications were submitted to
Exmoor National Park Authority and
North Devon Council in February 2016, with approvals granted by March 2018. Restoration of Bridges 54 and 55 was completed in December 2019.
In November 2015 the Lynton & Barnstaple signed a twinning agreement with the
Walhalla Goldfields Railway
The Walhalla Goldfields Railway is a narrow gauge tourist railway located in the Thomson River and Stringers Creek valleys in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia, near the former gold-mining town and tourist destination of Walhalla.
History
...
in Victoria, Australia. This agreement came about due to the similar nature of the railways and to foster cooperation and volunteer exchanges. Like the L&B, the Moe-Walhalla railway was closed over 70 years ago and the work of restoration requires rebuilding the track bed and railway infrastructure.
Restoration
Unlike the
Welsh Highland Railway
The Welsh Highland Railway (WHR) or Rheilffordd Eryri is a long, restored narrow gauge heritage railway in the Welsh county of Gwynedd, operating from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, and passing through a number of popular tourist destinations in ...
, the track bed was sold off piecemeal – often reverting to the original owners, paying much less than they had sold it for originally. Although there has been minor development on parts of the route, and
Wistlandpound Reservoir
Wistlandpound Reservoir is a reservoir in Devon, England owned by South West Water.
Completed in 1957, the earth embankment reservoir holds up to 1,550 megalitres (341 million gallons) and covers an area of 40 acres (16ha).
Situated close to E ...
has flooded the track bed close to its midpoint, much is still in open countryside, with many sections identifiable.
The
Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Association (since 2000, a
charitable trust) was formed in 1979.
Woody Bay Station was purchased by the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Company in 1995 and, after much effort, a short section of railway reopened to passengers in 2004. This was extended to over a mile in 2006, with steam and diesel-hauled trains running between Woody Bay and the new, temporary terminus at
Killington Lane.
In 1995, the
Lynbarn Railway
The narrow gauge Lynbarn Railway opened in 1995 as a park ride at the Milky Way Adventure Park, a family-based theme park attraction near Clovelly in north Devon, England. It was built and operated by enthusiast volunteers working to revive t ...
– at the ''Milky Way'', a theme park near
Clovelly
Clovelly () is a privately-owned harbour village in the Torridge district of Devon, England. The settlement and surrounding land belongs to John Rous who inherited it from his mother in 1983. He belongs to the Hamlyn family who have managed th ...
, was created and operated by L&B volunteers. Profits from this funded the purchase, restoration and reopening of Woody Bay. The ''Lynbarn'' was handed over to the park in 2005, once Woody Bay had become established, and continues to operate as part of the attraction.
Little original rolling stock survives, but as well as the heritage coaches mentioned below, the largely restored Van 23 was on display at Woody Bay until being removed to the L&B restoration team in Essex in November 2013, for refurbishment and the fitting of brakes, underframe and couplers. The remains of several other coaches and Goods Van 4 are in storage awaiting reconstruction.
Coach 2, used as a summer house, is on display (unrestored) at the
National Railway Museum
The National Railway Museum is a museum in York forming part of the Science Museum Group. The museum tells the story of rail transport in Britain and its impact on society. It is the home of the national collection of historically significant r ...
York along with the nameplates of the original locomotives. Coach 15, recovered from Snapper Halt in 1959 and restored by the
Ffestiniog Railway
The Ffestiniog Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd Ffestiniog) is a heritage railway based on narrow-gauge, located in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a major tourist attraction located mainly within the Snowdonia National Park.
The railway is roughly long an ...
in North Wales, has been running there (now as FR Coach 14) for longer than it did on the L&B. Due to the Ffestiniog's smaller
loading gauge
A loading gauge is a diagram or physical structure that defines the maximum height and width dimensions in railway vehicles and their loads. Their purpose is to ensure that rail vehicles can pass safely through tunnels and under bridges, and ke ...
, the roof profile was altered so it can pass through
Garnedd tunnel. In September 2010, Coach 15 visited the L&B with the ''Lew'' replica loco, ''Lyd''.
The 1915
Kerr Stuart
Kerr, Stuart and Company Ltd was a locomotive manufacturer in Stoke-on-Trent, England.
History
It was founded in 1881 by James Kerr as "James Kerr & Company", and became "Kerr, Stuart & Company" from 1883 when John Stuart was taken on as a ...
"Joffre" class loco 2451 was bought from
Gloddfa Ganol
Gloddfa Ganol (also known as the Gloddfa Ganol Mountain Center) was a museum dedicated to the Welsh slate industry and narrow-gauge railways, situated in the Oakeley slate quarry in Blaenau Ffestiniog. It opened in 1974 and closed in 1998 follo ...
in 1983, and named ''Axe''. Restored to working order in 2008, ''Axe'' worked most passenger trains at Woody Bay until December 2013. An 0-4-0WT
Maffei named ''Sid'', owned by several L&B members, was also used on the L&B steam service until the end of 2013, when it was sold off to a railway museum line in Sweden. To replace "Sid", another privately owned loco, "Isaac" – a Bagnall 0-4-2T, No. 3023, built in 1953 for use in a South African Platinum mine – arrived at Woody Bay from
Boston Lodge
Boston Lodge is situated at Penrhyn Isa, Minffordd, Penrhyndeudraeth, on the A487 road about 1 mile SE across the Afon Glaslyn causeway from Porthmadog, Gwynedd in north-west Wales.
It has a station on the Ffestiniog Railway and is the loc ...
in December 2013, principally for use hauling the restored original L&B heritage coaches.
The Trust owns three industrial diesel locomotives, one of which ''Pilton'', can be used as backup for ''Axe'' and ''Isaac'', and another, ''Heddon Hall'', is often used for maintenance trains.
A number of other visiting diesel and steam locomotives have also seen service on the line.
Heritage coaches
Sixteen coaches were originally built for the L&B in 1898, and another was built by the railway in 1911. Although most were broken up when the railway closed, several parts have survived, and have been retrieved and stored by the railway preservationists.
Following a ten-year restoration, Coaches 7 and 17 returned to Woody Bay on 15 April 2013, to re-enter passenger-carrying service on 10 May 2013 after an absence of 78 years. Coach 16 followed in September 2013, and Coach 11 returned in April 2015. Coach 5 returned to service after restoration in August 2019, with Coach 1 the next to be restored. The initial rake of three heritage coaches, after an inaugural service over the Autumn Gala weekend in September 2013, entered regular service – hauled by "Isaac" – for the Santa Specials in December 2014.
Modern replicas
=Lyd
=
![Lyd at Boston Lodge June 2009](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Lyd_at_Boston_Lodge_June_2009.jpg)
A Lynton and Barnstaple Manning Wardle type replica, named ''
Lyd Lyd may refer to:
* LYD, the abbreviation for a Libyan dinar
* PKP class Lyd2
The PKP class Lyd2 (manufacturer designation L30H) is a narrow gauge diesel-hydraulic locomotive built by FAUR (former 23 August Works) in Romania, for use initially ...
'', is operational on the
Ffestiniog Railway
The Ffestiniog Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd Ffestiniog) is a heritage railway based on narrow-gauge, located in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a major tourist attraction located mainly within the Snowdonia National Park.
The railway is roughly long an ...
in North Wales.
![Lyd at Porthmadog Harbour Station](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Lyd_at_Porthmadog_Harbour_Station.jpg)
First Steamed in Spring 2010, ''Lyd'' visited Woody Bay in September 2010 – to mark the 75th Anniversary of the closure of the L&B. ''Lyd'' first moved under its own steam on 5 August 2010 and then underwent running-in trials before visiting the L&B in September 2010 with former L&B coach 15 and Ffestiniog Railway observation car 102.
=Lyn
=
A modern version of the Baldwin, ''Lyn'' – looking externally similar to the 1898 original, but employing several advanced steam technologies, including roller bearings, welded tanks,
Lempor The Lempor ejector is a steam locomotive exhaust system developed by noted Argentina, Argentine locomotive engineer Livio Dante Porta. The ejector's name is a portmanteau of the names of Porta and Belgian locomotive engineer Maurice Lemaître (mecha ...
exhaust system, and a high-pressure boiler – was completed in 2017. Its first public steaming took place on 8 July 2017 at
Alan Keef Ltd
Alan Keef Ltd is a British narrow gauge railway engineering company which manufactures, overhauls, and deals in narrow gauge locomotives, rolling stock and associated equipment.
The Limited Company was formed in 1975 at Cote, Bampton, Oxon, co ...
. Lyn was delivered to Woody Bay on 11 September 2017, and first ran there on 28 September.
=Yeo and Exe
=
A set of frames for a new ''Yeo'' were built by
Winson Engineering in 2000, and these are in storage, awaiting further funds to continue the construction. A new fundraising campaign was launched in 2019 to build replicas of both ''Yeo'' and ''Exe'', but it is unclear yet whether the Winson frames can be used for the new ''Yeo''.
Prospects
![L&B 762 near Woody Bay - Devon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/L%26B_762_near_Woody_Bay_-_Devon.jpg)
Restoring passenger services from Woody Bay was a major undertaking by the enthusiastic volunteers. Although much of the track bed survives intact, several obstacles – including
Wistlandpound Reservoir
Wistlandpound Reservoir is a reservoir in Devon, England owned by South West Water.
Completed in 1957, the earth embankment reservoir holds up to 1,550 megalitres (341 million gallons) and covers an area of 40 acres (16ha).
Situated close to E ...
– must be overcome if the greater part of the route is to be restored, fulfilling the hopes expressed in a card left at Barnstaple on the day after the line closed – ''Perchance it is not dead, but sleepeth''...
[JDCA Prideaux, The Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Remembered, David and Charles, 1989, p96. ]
In October 2007, the railway announced plans for reinstating enough trackbed to reopen of track, linking the station at Woody Bay to both Lynton (at a new terminus on an extension to the original line, closer to the town) and a new station at Wistlandpound. It is hoped that the extension, codenamed 'Phase 2a', will be complete by 2026.
''Exmoor Enterprise'', the working group leading the project, estimated that the full project being considered was likely to cost around £30 million, including the building of replica rolling stock, reconstructing original coaches and Van 4, as well as improving the line as an important local tourist attraction.
The railway's management predicts the scheme will generate over £70 million for the south west economy within five years.
Working closely with international engineering and design consultants
Arup, The L&B Trust held a series of public consultations during May and June 2012, providing information to local communities about plans for obtaining a
TWO
2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultur ...
, and the next phase of the reinstatement, south-west from Killington Lane to Blackmoor, then Wistlandpound, and north-east to Caffyns, and eventually to Lynton.
Longer-term plans foresee the reopening of the line towards Barnstaple.
See also
*
British narrow gauge railways
There were more than a thousand British narrow-gauge railways ranging from large, historically significant common carriers to small, short-lived industrial railways. Many notable events in British railway history happened on narrow-gauge railways ...
*
Rolling stock of the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway
*
Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Trust
*
Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Company Limited
* Other local railway attractions
**
Bideford and Instow Railway
The Bideford Railway Heritage Centre CIC (previously the Bideford and Instow Railway Group) in Devon, England, is responsible for the management of the Bideford station site.
The company is also responsible for Instow signal box which opens on ...
**
Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway
The Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway is a water-powered funicular railway joining the twin towns of Lynton and Lynmouth on the rugged coast of North Devon in southwest England.
Lynton and Lynmouth are separated by a high cliff, making it har ...
**
West Somerset Railway
The West Somerset Railway (WSR) is a heritage railway line in Somerset, England. The freehold of the line and stations is owned by Somerset County Council; the railway is leased to and operated by West Somerset Railway plc (WSR plc); which is ...
Notes
Further reading
Multi-media:
* ''The Little Train to Lynton'' – a two-part documentary first broadcast on
BBC2
BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...
in 1986. This programme has never been released on video or DVD.
* ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway'' – published by Oakwood Video Library, 1993.
* ''"Perchance"...it's awake! The Lynton & Barnstaple Reborn'' – published by Lynton Television/The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway, 2006.
* ''North Devon'' - first episode of series 3 of
Walking Britain's Lost Railways
''Walking Britain's Lost Railways'' is a British documentary television series presented by Rob Bell that first aired on Channel 5 on 21 September 2018. A second series premiered on Channel 5 on 9 February 2020. A third series premiered on Chann ...
, 2020.
Books:
* L T Catchpole: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway 1895–1935'' published by The Oakwood Press. Eighth edition 2005. .
* G A Brown, J D C A Prideaux, & H G Radcliffe: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway'' published by David and Charles, New Edition 1971,
** Third Edition, published by Atlantic in enlarged format, 1996.
* P Gower, B Gray & K Vingoe: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway – Yesterday and Today'' published by The Oakwood Press. First edition 1999.
* D. Hudson & E. Leslie: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway— An Anthology'' published by The Oakwood Press. First edition 1995.
* P Lane, E Leslie, T Nicholson: ''Flying the L&B'' published by the L&BR Trust 2007.
* C Leigh: ''Portrait of The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway'' published by Ian Allan. First Published 1983.
* V Mitchell, K Smith: ''Branch Line to Lynton'' published by Middleton Press. First Published 1992.
* J D C A Prideaux: ''Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Album'' published by David & Charles 1974
* J D C A Prideaux: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Remembered'' published by David & Charles 1989.
* J R Yeomans: ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway'' published by Bradford Barton. First Published 1979.
* S D Phillips in conjunction with M J Bishop: "The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Measured & Drawn" published by S D Publications. First published 2012.
Magazines:
* ''The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Magazine'' published three times a year by The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Trust. 1979 to date
Much has been written about the L&B since its closure in 1935, and this continues today. The railway regularly features in articles published by specialist railway, engineering, heritage and modelling magazines.
External links
* Lynton & Barnstaple Railway
Exmoor Associates – Lynton & Barnstaple Railway trackbed conservationProject responsible for E762; Lyn the Baldwin 2-4-2 locomotive and has now set about recreating two of the L&B's Manning Wardle 2-6-2 locomotives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynton And Barnstaple Railway
Barnstaple
Exmoor
Heritage railways in Devon
1 ft 11½ in gauge railways in England
Railway companies established in 1895
Railway lines opened in 1898
Railway companies disestablished in 1922
Railway lines closed in 1935
Railway lines opened in 2004
600 mm gauge railways in England
Lynton and Lynmouth
1895 establishments in England