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  3. BRITISH RAILWAY MISCELLANY

BRITISH RAILWAY LOCOMOTIVE DEPOTS, WORKS AND STABLING POINTS.

Photographs in this gallery are of locomotive depots, both steam and diesel, stabling points and scrapyards. Some of these pictures were taken by me and others have been bought and are part of my collection. These pictures are published for pleasure/information/research purposes only and are not for sale or copy under any circumstances. Information in captions has been researched as thoroughly as possible but its accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
PLEASE NOTE : IMPORTANT MESSAGE : Please be aware that I do not sell copies of ANY of my pictures, DO NOT email copies to viewers or allow re-posting on other sites. Neither do I wish to enter into correspondence with any individual or group regarding my pictures or their captions. All comments reflect my personal opinions and I am not prepared to discuss these with anyone or to spend the rest of my life answering inane questions. I apologise for this disclaimer but I'm afraid it has been forced upon me. I have no wish to offend anyone and I hope you will continue to enjoy my pictures at your leisure.
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LEEDS HOLBECK LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (55A/HO) - Leeds supported a number of depots in the steam era and Holbeck was the Midland Railway's contribution. Opened in 1868, it hung on right till the end of steam operations, one of the last to close in October 1967. This view is from the 1970's, the depot much rationalised, with locomotives of Classes 25, 31, 45 and 47 on view. I recall trying to bunk the depot at about this time and having a dog set on me!
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LEEDS HOLBECK LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (55A/HO) - Leeds supported a number of depots in the steam era and Holbeck was the Midland Railway's contribution. Opened in 1868, it hung on right till the end of steam operations, one of the last to close in October 1967. This view is from the 1970's, the depot much rationalised, with locomotives of Classes 25, 31, 45 and 47 on view. I recall trying to bunk the depot at about this time and having a dog set on me!

  • KINGS CROSS LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (34A) - Known to all as 'Top Shed', it was very much the 'creme de la creme', playing home to most of the LNER's express engines at one time or another. It consisted of two buildings, one of 8 roads and the other of 7, and was located just off the northwestern end of the station. Access was rather awkward and required locos to run through Belle Isle tunnel before going on/off shed. In March 1959, the allocation was 107 engines, with about half of them being tank engines for shunting or local passenger work. The shed closed to steam in June 1963, a victim of diesels and the Clean Air Acts, and diesel maintenance was transferred to the new depot at Finsbury Park. Here we see a view from 1952 with nearly new Class L1 2-6-4T's Nos.67727 and 67797 sandwiched by Class V2 No.60826 and a Class N2 0-6-2T.
  • KINGS CROSS LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (34A) - Known to all as 'Top Shed', it was very much the 'creme de la creme', playing home to most of the LNER's express engines at one time or another. It consisted of two buildings, one of 8 roads and the other of 7, and was located just off the northwestern end of the station. Access was rather awkward and required locos to run through Belle Isle tunnel before going on/off shed. In March 1959, the allocation was 107 engines, with about half of them being tank engines for shunting or local passenger work. This picture shows 4472 FLYING SCOTSMAN' posing beside the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway's No.7 TYPHOON, built to a design loosly based on that of it's larger companion. This picture was taken on May 19th, 1927, when TYPHOON was brand new and yet to be delivered to the RHDR. FLYING SCOTSMAN was just 4 years old! The shed closed to steam in June 1963, a victim of diesels and the Clean Air Acts, and diesel maintenance was transferred to the new depot at Finsbury Park.
  • KIPPS LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (65E) - This shed was located to the north side of the Kipps branch ajust north of the town of Coatbridge. It was a double ended three road shed approached from both east and west and had a modern coaling tower. It was built by the North British Railway in 1860 and closed to steam in January 1963, diesels then taking over the depot. In 1959, the allocation was 51 engines, mainly shunting tanks and small goods engines but a few larger tanks fir local passenger services. Here, in 1958, we see Class J83 0-6-0T No.68445 heading a line of similar locos except for the third loco, which is an ex-GNR Class N2 0-6-2T, of which the depot had two, Nos.69518 and 69596 - a long way from home!
  • KIPPS LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (65E) - This shed was located to the north side of the Kipps branch ajust north of the town of Coatbridge. It was a double ended three road shed approached from both east and west and had a modern coaling tower. It was built by the North British Railway in 1860 and closed to steam in January 1963, diesels then taking over the depot. In 1959, the allocation was 51 engines, mainly shunting tanks and small goods engines but a few larger tanks fir local passenger services. In this shot from 1958, we see a Class 08 diesel shunter flanked by Class J83 0-6-0T No.68444 and Class J36 0-6-0 No.65214.
  • KITTYBREWSTER (61A) - I'm not 100% sure of this but I think it must be. Taken in about 1960 because these are Class 21 locos with no yellow ends and they all look new. Class 20 on the right and some of the numerous small shunters from that era.
  • KNOTTINGLEY DIESEL DEPOT (KY) - This depot was built specifically to provide engines for the merry-go-round trains that served the many nearby coal-fired power stations. It was certainly one of the most difficult depots to get round in the country - I think I managed it once! Here it is seen on August 23rd, 1999, with 60068 CHARLES DARWIN parked outside and 66073 and 66120 in the doorways.
  • KNOTTINGLEY TMD (55G/KY) - The depot here is a relative newcomer to the railway and opened in 1967 to maintain the locomotives and hopper wagons for a planned 75 merry-go-round trains a day, expected to use the Wakefield and Goole line. In 1980, the depot received Class 56's, which were to become a staple locomotive on coal traffic in the area until the Class 66 locomotives appeared in 1998. In 2016, the depot's allocation consisted of DB Cargo UK Class 60 and 66 locomotives. Of the three power stations the depot was built to serve, Ferrybridge was closed in March 2016, while Eggborough was officially decommissioned in February 2018. However, the depot remained busy with gypsum and biomass traffic, particularly for the remaining Power Station at Drax, with workings from the Humber ports at Hull and Immingham. The depot was closed in March 2020 after the decline in railway hauled power station traffic. In early 2021, the office complex at the depot, which was built in the 1990,s, in the left side of this view, was demolished. Seen here in August 1992 with 56030 in the shed, 56075 to the right, 56076, 56098 and 56120 all in a row.
  • LANGWITH JUNCTION LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (40E/41J) - Buried deep with heart of the Nottinghamshire coalfield between Mansfield and Worksop, you wouldn't find many Pacifics based here! In April 1959, the allocation was 71 engines, of which only 2 were for passenger work! Coal trains were the depot's daily bread and the allocation reflected this. The depot closed in February 1966, diesel servicing having already been transferred to a new depot at nearby Shirebrook. Here in June 1958 we see Class O2 No.63986 of Retford Thrumpton Depot with what may be a Class K3 behind it.
  • LEEDS HOLBECK LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (55A/HO) - Leeds supported a number of depots in the steam era and Holbeck was the Midland Railway's contribution. Opened in 1868, it hung on right till the end of steam operations, one of the last to close in October 1967. This view is from the 1970's, the depot much rationalised, with locomotives of Classes 25, 31, 45 and 47 on view. I recall trying to bunk the depot at about this time and having a dog set on me!
  • LEICESTER MIDLAND LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (15C/15A) - The first loco depot built by the Midland Railway at Leicester opened in 1840 but by 1945 this had been replaced by a concrete-built polygonal roundhouse shed with a flat roof on the same site. It had a large allocation on 75 engines in November 1945, consisting mainly of shunting and local passenger tank engines and small goods locos. It hung on well to steam, only closing in June 1966 although diesels continued to be based there but in much reduced facilities. The site is still in use as the headquarters of UKRail. Seen here in 1938 is Fowler LMS Class 4P 2-6-4T No.2330, based here, with a sister engine behind it.
  • LIVERPOOL EDGE HILL MPD (8A) - 2 Stanier 8F's and a 'Jinty' 0-6-0T are seen sometime in the 1960's.
  • LOCHGORM LOCOMOTIVE WORKS, INVERNESS - 41 locomotives were built here in the Highland Railway Works at Lochgorm between 1869 and 1905. Thereafter, it mainly undertook repair work as seen here with Drummond Class W 0-4-4T No.55053 on the left and a line if Black 5's on the right.
  • LOCH TAY (63B) - 80126 - Riddles BR Class 4 2-6-4T - built 10/55 by Brighton Works - 11/66 withdrawn from 63A Perth South, where it had been allocated from new - seen here peeking out of Loch Tay locoshed, 11/62. The depot closed in September 1965 and did the branch line due to a landslip in Glen Ogle.
  • LOSTOCK HALL LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (10D) - Lostock Hall was a large depot near Preston mainly concerned with providing engines for goods traffic and shunting. It was a large, 8 track dead-end shed and one of the last to operate steam locos, closing in August 1968. In this shot, shortly before steam ended, we see Ivatt 4MT No.43046, based here, alongside a row of diesel shunters including Class 02 No. D2863, which outlived the steam loco by only one year.
  • LOUGHBOROUGH BRUSH FALCON WORKS - Steam (?) Railcar outside the Brush factory in the 1920's (?). It looks rather similar to the LNER diesel electric cars but I can't imagine it's one of them - not a clue!
  • MANCHESTER LONGSIGHT (9A/LG) - Large Manchester MPD, seen here in September 1960, a little menagerie! - 2 Crabs and a Duck! 42854 and 42923 flank an LNWR Class G2 0-8-0, better known as a 'Duck 8'.
  • MARCH LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (31B/MR) - 'Back end of March Diesel Depot and Old Hundred, Feb 82'. Class 37 stabled on the Old Hundred, a row of engines behind the 'A' Shed and an 08 behind the generator houses. Surprisingly, this building is the only one that remains today.
  • MARCH LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (31B/MR) - 'Front of March Diesel Depot, 1982'. I guess this is taken in the middle of the day when everything tended to be quite quiet. Note a Stratford Class 47 on the right with two Class 40's. These would have worked Speedlink trains down in the night, one possibly the Petfood. They tended not to be used on the Speedlink feeders to the east due to lack of crew knowledge further east, mostly being sent to Peterborough or very often down the Wisbech Branch. Note also the DMU in front of the chimney, a rare sight on depot.
  • MARCH LOCOMOTIVE DEPOT (31B/MR) - a shot across the Shed Yard showing the breakdown crane, a Class 03 shunter and a Class K1 2-6-0 in May 1960. This is of course a view of the steam shed, closed and replaced by a modern diesel depot nearer the station. Although closed, the steam shed remained in used for a number of years and was home to the Class B12 and J15 belonging to the M&GN Society for some years. The tracks and inspection pits remained in place until the depot closed entirely.
  • MARKET HARBROUGH MOTIVE POWER DEPOT (15F) - 1961 - home here to a couple of 4F's and a couple of 8F's. This is about all there was of it. I remember seeing 18000 in store here when I was a boy. The depot is seen here in 1961 and closed in 1965.
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