Locomotives bricked-up inside of tunnels.

[The_Train]

I won't lie, as much as it's unlikely that there are trains buried and hidden in unused tunnels, this sort of stuff fascinates me. I was riveted by the Nazi gold train hunt but ultimately disappointed when the failed to find anything.

I suppose the mail rail train was hidden in a tunnel for many years

 

[shredder1]

Falsgrave tunnel at Scarborough was used to store locos for a period when I visited in the late 60`s

http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/s/scalby/falsgrave_tunnel/index1.shtml

 

[sprinterguy]

Although... Didn’t a horse and cart fall into one of the piers on Ribblehead Viaduct and end up being left there? Not quite the same but maybe worth mentioning? Hic.

Not quite. I cannot remember which viaduct, unfortunately. I do remember reading about some radar-based investigations to see if there was any truth in the story. The investigation team found nothing at Glenfinnan but did get readings that suggest a horse and cart at the next viaduct along (or at least another of similar construction on the same line).

It's the Loch nan Uamh viaduct that incorporates the entombed horse and cart:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_nan_Uamh_Viaduct#Entombed_horse

In 1987, Professor Roland Paxton, from Heriot-Watt University, investigated the legend that a horse had fallen into a pier during construction of Glenfinnan Viaduct in 1898 or 1899. However, after inserting a fisheye camera into boreholes made into the only two piers large enough to accommodate a horse, no animal remains were found. In 1997, on the basis of local hearsay, Paxton investigated Loch nan Uamh viaduct using the same method but found only rubble as well. In 2001, he returned to Loch nan Uamh with the latest microwave scanning technology and found the remains of a horse and cart within the viaduct's central pylon.

 

[edwin_m]

The cutting heads of the Crossrail tunnel boring machines that worked their way inwards from both ends and met near Farringdon were just driven off to one side and abandoned. They couldn't reverse out because as soon as the segments are put in behind, the tunnel is smaller than the cutting head.

I think there was a railway gun kept in a tunnel in Kent during WW2. When required it would be moved to a nearby curve which gave it a reasonable arc of fire into France.

 

[gg1]

The cutting heads of the Crossrail tunnel boring machines that worked their way inwards from both ends and met near Farringdon were just driven off to one side and abandoned. They couldn't reverse out because as soon as the segments are put in behind, the tunnel is smaller than the cutting head.

The same is true of the channel tunnel, and most likely many other large tunnels constructed by a pair TBM starting from each end and meeting in the middle.

I think there was a railway gun kept in a tunnel in Kent during WW2. When required it would be moved to a nearby curve which gave it a reasonable arc of fire into France.

Heading slightly off topic, my dad one told me about a rumour of a huge number of surplus US army vehicles being buried underground somewhere in the vicinity of Castle Bromwich airfield in Birmingham just after the war as they had far more than they would ever need and burying them was the cheapest, easiest option.

 

[tomatwark]

Heading slightly off topic, my dad one told me about a rumour of a huge number of surplus US army vehicles being buried underground somewhere in the vicinity of Castle Bromwich airfield in Birmingham just after the war as they had far more than they would ever need and burying them was the cheapest, easiest option.

Along with the Spitfires

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/history...uadron-of-Spitfires-buried-in-Birmingham.html

 

[Iskra]

Just watching Walking Britains Lost Railways on My5 and the presenter has just claimed Lossiemouths wonderful beach was rumoured to be have been formed by sunken old railway carriages.

 

[Josie]

It is good to know that many of us remember our "Thomas" tales!
Actually, those stories must have started/encouraged many thousands of us over the years in our passion/obsession with railways. We owe the "Rev" for a lot!

Definitely. And despite the newer stories being a lot less railway focused, they're still captivating today's children, many of whom will visit railways because of it and will potentially pick up an interest that way.

Another good book is 'The Island of Sodor - Its People, History and Railways' by the Reverend and his brother.

I'm fascinated by all the lore and history surrounding the Sodor 'universe' - it seems to be on a par with Tolkein in some respects, including the constructed local language and stories of ancient semi-fictional battles fought by Norse warriors on the island. I've heard this book goes into some of it in detail, but I've not been able to find a copy for under £100. It is, of course, out of print.

 

[70014IronDuke]

I'm pretty sure a damp, leaky tunnel that is no longer properly maintained is the worst possible place to store an out of service steam locomotive.

I shouldn't say this in here too loudly, but that is exactly what we wanted the Ruskies to bel ... agh, <sounds of strangulation> ....

 

[Pigeon]

The same is true of the channel tunnel, and most likely many other large tunnels constructed by a pair TBM starting from each end and meeting in the middle.

IIRC when the 20th century tunnellers checked out the trial bores left by the 19th century tunnellers they found the remains of a 19th century machine still down the hole.

 

[Taunton]

Actually, those stories must have started/encouraged many thousands of us over the years in our passion/obsession with railways. We owe the "Rev" for a lot!

Actually the books were a significant breakthrough in literary style, for they were the first to give anthropomorphic (ie human) characters to machines, a fashion which has spread widely across literature, childrens' and otherwise. Rudyard Kipling is generally said to have been the first to do this with animals, in "The Jungle Book".

Reading of old 1950-era copies of the Railway Magazine, especially their little page-end filler accounts of unusual happenings, or Hamilton Ellis's books of that era, can suddenly give a moment of recognition, and a little insight to what must have been on the Reverend's bookshelf at the time.

 

[UP13]

I think the Rev also pioneered the concept of little books for little hands.

 

[30907]

It was standard practice to stable stock overnight in Kemptown Tunnel at Brighton to protect it from air raids during WW2.

Kemp Town was what I was thinking of, but of course the line was still open to freight until about 1970 (I was on a BR special just pre closure).

 

[randyrippley]

I've got a vague memory of a Southern loco trapped in an underground tunnel at Waterloo during the war.........
basically the story was it fell down an access shaft during a bombing raid and was too difficult / dangerous to get out.

Can anyone else remember?

 

[Darandio]

I'm fascinated by all the lore and history surrounding the Sodor 'universe' - it seems to be on a par with Tolkein in some respects, including the constructed local language and stories of ancient semi-fictional battles fought by Norse warriors on the island. I've heard this book goes into some of it in detail, but I've not been able to find a copy for under £100. It is, of course, out of print.

I agree. On seeing the original post about it last night I had a scan around, all were way out of my price range.

 

[Taunton]

I've got a vague memory of a Southern loco trapped in an underground tunnel at Waterloo during the war.........
basically the story was it fell down an access shaft during a bombing raid and was too difficult / dangerous to get out.

Close. It was an M7 which was shunting up to the Armstrong Lift which raised and lowered cars to the Waterloo & City line siding underneath, on some sidings situated where the old Eurostar terminal was later built. It went too far, and the lift table was at the bottom, so it fell down the shaft. Unreachable by crane, it had to come up over the next days in scrap pieces. I'm sure The Author (as he always styled himself on the title page) read the reports.

Did the Southern not have a big enough crane? Was it too embarrassing to ask to borrow the 200 tonner from Swindon?

 

[DavidGrain]

There is a persistent local legend that on the building of the Birmingham Wolverhampton New Road in the late 1920s that a steam roller fell down a sink hole or mine shaft and was buried. Having lived at various places along that road over the years and having experienced a mine shaft cave in which happened one night just a few hundred yards from where I was living at the time, I can believe it.

Just for interest there were four railways lines crossing that road.
The Stourbridge Line (still in use), A mineral line from a quarry to the canal (became a footbridge to allow children to get to a local school), South Staffs Line (will become part of the West Midlands Metro and may be reinstated as a freight line), Oxford Worcester and Wolverhampton line (now demolished and bridge abutments removed).

 

[Eyersey468]

I've heard a story of an engine on the Settle and Carlisle that got stuck on a turntable in high wind and ended up going round and round for ages, that must have been the inspiration for James getting stuck on one

 

[DavidGrain]

I found in a charity shop the complete Thomas stories in one book. Does not seem right somehow to have three pages of the little books printed on a single page.

 

[Merthyr Imp]

I've heard a story of an engine on the Settle and Carlisle that got stuck on a turntable in high wind and ended up going round and round for ages, that must have been the inspiration for James getting stuck on one

That was at Garsdale (previously known as Hawes Junction).

 

[Pigeon]

Actually the books were a significant breakthrough in literary style, for they were the first to give anthropomorphic (ie human) characters to machines, a fashion which has spread widely across literature, childrens' and otherwise. Rudyard Kipling is generally said to have been the first to do this with animals, in "The Jungle Book".

Kipling did it with machines too. Steam engines, no less. .007 is the story to check out.

With a michnai - ghignai - shtingal! Yah! Yah! Yah!

Or even the parts of machines, see The Ship That Found Herself.

 

[Merthyr Imp]

I'm fascinated by all the lore and history surrounding the Sodor 'universe' - it seems to be on a par with Tolkein in some respects, including the constructed local language and stories of ancient semi-fictional battles fought by Norse warriors on the island. I've heard this book goes into some of it in detail, but I've not been able to find a copy for under £100. It is, of course, out of print.

The best part of the book for me is the histories of the engines - as I said in an earlier posting up to no. 11 but also including the various narrow gauge engines.

Thomas himself of course is an LBSCR E2 class of the variety with extended side tanks, who 'somehow' made his way to the island in 1915. As his driver and fireman then married local girls they decided to stay there and Sir Topham Hatt, finding the LBSCR had written the engine off as 'lost on war service' was able to buy it for 'a nominal sum'.

 

[Steamysandy]

Not quite. I cannot remember which viaduct, unfortunately. I do remember reading about some radar-based investigations to see if there was any truth in the story. The investigation team found nothing at Glenfinnan but did get readings that suggest a horse and cart at the next viaduct along (or at least another of similar construction on the same line).

It was the viaduct at Loch Nan Jamb where the horse was found

 

[route101]

What about the tunnel that collapsed east of Dunbar ? i recall i few workers perished

 

[Steamysandy]

What about the tunnel that collapsed east of Dunbar ? i recall i few workers perished

That was Penmanshiel Tunnel which collapsed about 1979 burying 3 workmen as well as some contractors plant.A by pass was constructed around it and the ends were sealed and buried.
A monument was placed above the buried tunnel

 

[GusB]

It was the viaduct at Loch Nan Jamb where the horse was found

That was Penmanship Tunnel which collapsed about 1979 burying 3 workmen as well as some contractors plant.A by pass was constructed around it and the ends were sealed and buried.
A monument was placed above the buried tunnel

Autocorrect issues?

I'm assuming you mean Penmanshiel.

 

[infobleep]

Definitely. And despite the newer stories being a lot less railway focused, they're still captivating today's children, many of whom will visit railways because of it and will potentially pick up an interest that way.



I'm fascinated by all the lore and history surrounding the Sodor 'universe' - it seems to be on a par with Tolkein in some respects, including the constructed local language and stories of ancient semi-fictional battles fought by Norse warriors on the island. I've heard this book goes into some of it in detail, but I've not been able to find a copy for under £100. It is, of course, out of print.

Rev Awdury and his brother use to exchange letters about the Island and it's history.

To think he did all of this, whilst being a parish vicar.

 

[Taunton]

Kipling did it with machines too. Steam engines, no less. .007 is the story to check out.

.007 is straight prose, whereas Awdry did devise the accompanying illustrations, and the idea of faces on the locomotives. Awdry actually did the first illustrations himself, but he was no artist and the publisher arranged for a proper artist to redo them.

Gerry Fiennes, in his classic railway management book "I Tried to Run a Railway", writes that he originally called it "Yje Fat Controller", and asked Awdry who agreed, but Ian Allan, as Fiennes' publisher, rejected it.

 

[infobleep]

.007 is straight prose, whereas Awdry did devise the accompanying illustrations, and the idea of faces on the locomotives. Awdry actually did the first illustrations himself, but he was no artist and the publisher arranged for a proper artist to redo them.

Gerry Fiennes, in his classic railway management book "I Tried to Run a Railway", writes that he originally called it "Yje Fat Controller", and asked Awdry who agreed, but Ian Allan, as Fiennes' publisher, rejected it.

It is my understanding someone else did the original illustrators but Rev Awdury wasn't happy as they didn't look accurate enough for a steam engine, so he had them redone. If I've misremembered this, do correct me. Not got the biography to hand, as I'm on a train no less!

The originals are worth a lot as they have never been republished.

Rev Awdury started charging preserved railways to use his characters in the 80s as he felt they were making money off it. He then sold the stories on to a company After that he regretted it, as he felt it all went to commercial.

Thomas was popular in this books but his stories were the Railway Series and not Thomas the Tank Engine and friends.

Rev Awdury stopped at book 26 and had intended to title the next one Really Useful Engines. When his son Christopher took over, he did title it that, apparently unaware that it was the title his father had been thinking of using. The original book was stories Rev Awdury made up to tell his son when he was ill. Someone suggested he have them published. Well done that person.

If anyone can find them second hand, that is the 1960s audio recordings of the stories read by Jonny Morris and later William Rushton, they are worth getting hold of. I think they stop at book 14. At one stage DECCA issued them on LP. Buy I have some 7"s issued by another label.

Not aware of them having been reissued on CD. I'm guessing the current owners aren't interested and the original owners don't have rights to do so.

 

[scarby]

Falsgrave tunnel at Scarborough was used to store locos for a period when I visited in the late 60`s

http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/s/scalby/falsgrave_tunnel/index1.shtml

Nothing as far as I know was "stored" in the tunnel. It was a working tunnel even after the demise of the Whitby line, with daily weekday access needed to Gallows Close goods yard.

What was done on some busy holiday days was that the line leading up to the tunnel entrance on the station side was used to stable a locomotive.

On the subject of buried locomotives, 27043 is buried at Patersons tip, Mount Vernon, Glasgow. The disposal was done due to high asbestos content. A DMU and railbus are also buried there.

Simiilarly, at least one DMU vehicle from the Lockington rail crash was buried at a tip nearby.