Matt Ditch Photography

The buildings are the old Saw shed, Riverting shed, and supports for the lower aerial flight. The site closed in 1960.

Looking down the last traceable section of the waggonway. From here the route has been built on. But it would have run alongside what is today Chester Road. A bridge dating from 1855 which carried the waggonway over one of the access roads into Bishopwearmouth Cemetery survived into the 1960s. But, it was demolished when the entrance was remodelled. Remains of a stationary engine were also reported to have been found in the grounds of the nearby hospital.

Looking east from near the summit of Foxcover bank in the direction of the last photo. The trees towards the centre of the above image are the ones in the previous image. A short walk from the summit lies Hastings Hill, where a Prehistoric burial site dating from around 2,000BC was discovered. Some of the items excavated have been put on display in Sunderland Museum.

The site of Foxcover engine in March 2021. The waggonway would have run right to left at this location. The A19 cuts through the course of the waggonway near here. To follow the waggonway from here, you must cross the road bridge in the picture, then follow the power station access road for a short distance. The route of the waggonway will appear on the right as it heads through what is today known locally as "the black woods".

The trackbed running through Foxcover plantation/black woods. This shot is looking back up Foxcover bank towards Foxcover engine. A junction existed near here where a short line ran to Cummings Quarry.

The quarry can still be seen to this day, but there is no trace of the line that served it. If you are heading down the incline in the direction of Herrington the quarry can be seen on the right.

A section of "Fish bellied" rail found just off the trackbed of the waggonway. This type of track was laid on square stones instead of long wooden sleepers. Many early railways were built using this type of track.

The approximate site of Herrington Engine and coal depot, located at the foot of Foxcover bank. From here, the course of the waggonway has been lost under Herrington park. But the course can be picked up again on the western edge near the miner’s memorial.

The miner’s memorial sits roughly on the site of Herrington pit, which opened in 1874 and closed in 1985. The waggonway east from here closed in around 1870, but the section from here heading west remained open as part of the Lambton, Hetton & Joicey colliery railway and later National coal board. Trains from here travelled to Penshaw and then ran over the North Eastern Railways "Penshaw Branch".

The next major point of interest on the route is the Lambton engine works at Philadelphia. Today, a lot of the former buildings still stand. But, the area has been sold for redevelopment.

An old shed complete with its original shed doors. This can easily be seen from the footpath that now occupies the trackbed past the works site.

The locomotive erecting shop. This part of the works is private-land the picture was taken from the trackbed which passes alongside the works. Even after closure of the Lambton system in the mid 1980s the works remained open to repair locomotives from the other systems in the region. The last standard gauge locomotive to be worked on was Andrew Barclay diesel 615, which has survived into preservation and is currently based at the Aln Valley Railway near Alnwick.

Between the erecting shop and running sheds (pictured above) lay Newbottle Colliery/ Neasham main Colliery/ Dorothea pit. It was open from 1816 to 1956. Sadly, the above sheds were demolished in around 2017. They did not only house industrial engines and for a time during the 1970s A4 Pacific "Sir Nigel Gresley" was based here

In 1995 the remains of a wooden waggonway were discovered close to the site of Firebrick works, which was once part of the extensive colliery complex which occupied Elba park. The above sculpture shows what was discovered. The tracks have since been reburied to preserve them for future generations. Elba park was also the area where a number of lines branched off to serve other collieries and mines. There was the Lumley branch which served Lumley sixth pit, Lumley Colliery 2nd pit and 3rd pit. The Cocken branch also came off the Lumley branch and served, Eighth pit and George pit. It also had a connection with the Lumley waggonway.

Running south towards Fencehouses and Rainton was the lines that served Sherburn Collieries near Durham. But trains ceased running to these in 1914 when the collieries were sold. A section was kept open that linked with the Hetton section, allowing trains to and from Hetton and Philadelphia.

I will be doing follow-up parts on the Penshaw branch and the line to Lambton Staithes along with the Hetton Colliery railway over Warden law in the near future.

The two tunnels at Riverside park. The left-hand tunnel was from the Penshaw Branch, which replaced the Lambton Waggonway. The right hand came from the Hetton colliery railway.

Shortly after leaving Beckfoot, heading in the direction of Dalegarth the railway comes to “Gyhl force junction”. Here the line to Boot diverged from the line to the mines at Gyhl force. Today part of this section is still in use as part of the newer 15inch gauge railway.

The site of the junction today. The line to Boot follows the course of the dirt road. The line to Ghyl force went off to the right. The course of the line to Boot had a steep climb away from the junction that ran behind the cottages at Dalegarth. For a time the rebuilt 15inch gauge railway ran into the original Boot terminus, but the steep climbs proved too much for the engines. The below shot shows the course of the railway behind the cottages at Dalegarth looking towards Boot.

The trackbed curving away from the cottages towards Boot. It is still possible to see the sleeper indents in the grass. In a number of places, short sections of track have been relaid.

A farm bridge on the line has been rebuilt with a short section of track in it’s deck. This is looking back down the valley in the Ravenglass direction

And one of the short sections of reinstated track, I told you they were short!

The site of Boot station today. The raised, overgrown area on the right of the above image is the remains of the Platform. On the left of the image was the loading dock/wharf, which is where Iron Ore from the mines would have been loaded onto the trains for shipment to Ravenglass.

Another view of the platform, this time from on top of the loading dock/wharf. The station had a basic wooden shelter and a separate WC. The track layout is believed to have changed a few times. Initially it was two long sidings with a third shorter one in the middle. This was then changed to include a run round loop and siding, this layout can be seen below on the model of Boot station. The track layout changed again after passenger trains ceased with the removal of the run round loop and installation of a revised siding layout.

Model of the station in the museum at Ravenglass

The remains of the old Nab Gill mining offices still stand just east of the station site. The incline up to the Nab Gill mines was located on the other side of the building. (pictured below)

Looking up the incline

The first locomotive on the line was an 0-6-0 tank engine made by Manning Wardle of Leeds. The engine was named “Devon” and had the works number 545. It was joined a year later by an identical engine named “Nab Gill” (W/N 629). The second engine was ordered for the start of passenger trains. Both engines had heavy repairs at the Lowca engine works near Whiteheaven during the early 1890s. This work saw new smokeboxes fitted with more traditional smokebox doors, replacing the “Fish mouth” style doors that they were built with. The work also included fitting Westinghouse brake equipment. Towards the end of the line’s life, both engines had apparently been cannibalized to make one functional steam engine. This was the engine that derailed at Murthwaite and composed of the boiler from Nabb Gill and the tanks from Devon.

These tank engines were known as the “3FT Special” and were also built for railways in Russia and the Island of Malta. Unfortunately neither Nabb Gill or Devon survived into preservation.

The restored/rebuilt “Big Saloon” body in the railway museum at Ravenglass. The darker coloured sections are from the original body. When the original railway closed, the coaches were sold off to local farmers. The only one to survive is the “Big Saloon”. Parts of the original coach have been used to build a replica of the body, which is now on display in the railway museum at Ravenglass.

The railway also had a 4 wheel brake van/goods van which had a “bird cage” look out giving the guard a full view of the train. It is believed to have ended its days as a permanent way hut near Murthwaite. The railway also had a number of 4 wheel goods wagons. The remains of a wagon can also be seen in the railway museum.

The Down platform now houses the replica Orient Express from the 2017 film Murder on the Orient Express. The locomotive is based on an SNCF class 241P

Probable course of the wagonway from the drift mines nearest the main colliery building.

This part of the site is now a nature reserve. And there are no clear signs of its industrial past.

Malton Colliery brick on the site of the main buildings

Abutment from the wagonway over a small burn/stream

To acess the mines on the other side of the River Browney. The wagonway crossed under the Lanchester Valley Railway via a skewed bridge. The above photo shows the site of the skew bridge.

The other side abutment can be seen to the right of the standard gauge railway bridges abutment

The previous photograph was taken from the abutment pictured

After crossing the river, the wagonway ran right to left. The wagonway branched here with a line heading north to the mines in High Burnhopeside Plantation and Foxcover wood. A passing loop also existed here

The wagonway runs parrel to the Lanchester branch for a short distance before heading north to "Amy Drift"

After "Amy Drift" the wagonway begins running up hill to Manor House Bridge. Where is passes under the A691 "Durham Road". This is one of three similiar bridges on this road

A look under the bridge. Clearly showing the orignal arch. And the steep incline of the wagoway on the otherside

On the other side of the bridge looking up the steep incline to Manor house drift

Cable roller and wooden sleeper

Fenced off mine shaft at the base of the spoil heap from Manor house drift

Manor house drift site

The above structures are the remains of the hauler which would have brought the wagons up the incline. And presumably up from Manor house drift. The mine/drift was directly head. And, has now been filled in.

Reservoir?

May 1883 Station opens as Aldin Grange

19 June 1884 Station renamed Aldin Grange for Bearpark

1 May 1927 Station renamed Bearpark

1 May 1939 Station closes to regular traffic

26 April 1954 Last Miners' Gala excursion

1966 Closure to goods

1 September 1862 Opened

1 May 1939 Closed to passengers

30 September 1963 Closed completely

The Malton Colliery waggonway passed under this bridge via a skew bridge

1 September 1862 Opened

1 May 1939 Closed to passengers

5 July 1965 Closed completely

Downgraded to PWay hut.

1 September 1862 Opened

1 February 1916 Closed to passengers

30 March 1925 Reopened

1 May 1939 Closed to passengers

9 March 1964 Closed completely

The Lanchester Valley railway passed under the Stanhope & Tyne line here via a tunnel. The Tunnel has now been filled in. From here the railway carried on to Black Hill station.

Looking towards Rowlands Gill from the other side of the tunnel. As mentioned above the Colliery would have been on the left. As to be expected little trace of it remains. The Coke ovens were straight ahead from here.

The Tunnel as it is today, notice how the once bricked up entrance has had a hole smashed into it.

Looking into the tunnel. The cutting the tunnel opened out into has been filled in up to just below the hatch at the top of the arch. The Colliery was on the left-hand side of the tunnel.

Looking back out in the direction of the engine shed, which would have been dead ahead from here. Sadly there are no traces of it. From here we followed the course of the line towards Alexandra street and discovered a number of former “drift mine” entrances.

A short section of track has been relayed on the former trackbed and a pair of 21 ton wagons placed on top of it. The wagon closest to the camera is painted in National Coal Board livery and the furthest is painted in Consett Iron Co Livery, to reflect the two owners of the railway. These are located a short distance from the main car park.

Located a short walk from the wagons is the “Stoney Road Bridge” the bridge is the last of its type in the area and was built in 1884 the carry the “Stoney Road” over the railway. At one time the road was the main route between Rowlands Gill and Chopwell. It finally closed to traffic in 2002. The railway finally closed in 1961.

Kitson long boiler 0-6-0 Pannier tank “A.No.5” used to work the line. Lucky “A.No.5” was preserved at the nearby North Tyneside Railway. The below picture was taken during its visit to the Tanfield Railway and shows what a train on the line would have looked like. Sadly A.No.5 is now out of service requiring a new boiler.

The bridge abutments from Castle bank bridge, which once carried the line over Castle Hill Terrace.As mentioned above these abutments were extended when the railway was built to run alongside the pre-existing Tub-way. Following the railway from here may not seem obvious to begin with, but by crossing over the road and heading down a small lane you will quickly pick up the trail again. The small lane will come to an end in front of a row of cottages, with Haltwhistle burn running in front of them. It’s at this point that the railway first crossed the burn over Oakwell bridge. The remaining abutment pictured below. An engine shed existed between Oakwell bridge and Castle bank bridge.

To gain access to the trackbed one must cross the footbridge that links to the row of cottages, this bridge appears to have been constructed from narrow gauge rails . The path then swings behind the cottages before climbing to meet the trackbed as it comes away from the site of Oakwell bridge as the below image shows.

After a short walk the path reaches the site of South Tyne Colliery. And engine shed also existed on this section. The Colliery was opened sometime in the 1860s and lasted till the early 1930s. Today many of the old buildings still stand and are still in use. During my walk I spotted a Fowler 8726 - BS 8535 stored in an outbuilding, so thankfully there is steam in Haltwhistle burn.

The bricked up entrance to South Tyne drift mine. It was later used as an air shaft. A horse drawn tramway ran from here to Townfoot till the 1950s.

Continuing past the site of South Tyne Colliery the railway passed High Mill yard and crossed the burn on High Mill bridge. The orignal bridge was built from reclaimed tram track. A gate was fitted here to stop wandering farm animals.The above picture shows the trackbed looking towards the site of Lees Hall/ Herdmans Stone quarry (middle left of the picture). in the direction of Cawfields Quarry.

After passing over Foxhole bridge the next feature of interest on the trackbed is the Fell Chimney. The Chimney was once part of "The Fell drift/ East end pit". A steam powered pump and hauler existed here. The pump was used to pump water out of the mines and the hauler brought loaded coal tubs up from the mine. Some foundations also exist here from the other buildings.

From the Fell Chimney the burn starts to open up and the trackbed passes a number of lime kilns. The coal used to fire these Kilns came from the nearby Fell drift. A holiday home, now presumed abandoned was built towards the end of the burn at some point in the 1930s. The building looks vaguely like a station building and sat just off the track.

The railway then passed under the roman built "Military road" via a girder bridge, similar to others on the line. The bridge stretched from one side of the river side to the other. The railways steam loco "Vyrnwy" had reduced height fittings (cab/ chimney) to allow it to pass under this bridge. It would appear since the line closed that the bridge has been rebuilt and the headroom reduced. The route of the railway towards Cawfields can be picked up again by following the path from the burn onto the Military road and then crossing over and following the signs for Cawfields. Although it should be noted that this section can get extremely muddy!

From here the railway continues running along the side of the Burn. It skirts the edge of a Roman camp, the remains can be seen on Google Earth near the Milecastle Inn. The railway also crosses the route of the course of the "Vallum" and Hadrian's Wall before finally reaching Cawfields Quarry (pictured above). Quarrying here actually cut through the Roman Wall, the wall ends on top of the old quarry face above. The Quarry finally closed in October of 1952 and Today the quarry itself is mostly flooded and is the starting place for many walks.

Freshy cut stone from the quarry was fed into a stone crusher via an incline (hand/horse worked). After the stone had passed through the crusher it fell onto a conveyor belt that conveyed it into the screening plant. Wagons were placed under the hoppers and the crushed stone was loaded into them for the journey down the line to Townsfoot. A newer crushing plant was also constructed here in the 1930s which could fill road vehicles in addition to railway wagons.