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Steam in the North East

Discussion in 'Photography' started by henrywinskill, Jun 30, 2022.

  1. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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    DSC_2545.jpg Aln Valley Railway
     
    Last edited: Jul 22, 2022
  2. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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  3. blink bonny

    blink bonny Member

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    Ashington Colliery, 15 Feb 1969. 10a-Ashington-Pit-Yard-15-Feb-69-fbook.jpg 14a-Ashington-Pit-Yard-15-Feb-69-fbook.jpg 15a-Ashington-Pit-Yard-15-Feb-69-fbook.jpg
     
  4. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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  5. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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  6. blink bonny

    blink bonny Member

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    Thanks Henry.

    After 11th August 68 I'd lost interest. The pit tankies were just part of the scenery, just like the pit was and they didn't even register with me, just something that had always been there. Then my mate told me that they were on the way out. Class 14s bought from BR were replacing them.

    I woke up to a beautiful day on Saturday 15th February 1969. Deep crisp snow everywhere, not a cloud in the sky and not a breath of wind, so I got myself up to the pit yard on my bike and took advantage of the good light.
     
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  7. blink bonny

    blink bonny Member

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    Raven Q6 63458 at Gateshead, passing the south end of King Edward Bridge on 17th June 1967, with the old Redheugh Bridge in the background.

    I was sitting on the wall alongside the track waiting for 4472 on the 'Hadrian Flyer', which we were expecting to take this same route and arrive at Newcastle via the High Level Bridge before going on to Carlisle behind a Deltic. Imagine our consternation when 4472 came into view and instead of passing us, turned left and onto the King Edward.

    This was also the last day of service for the North Tyneside 3rd rail electric service.
    273-Q6-63458-Gateshead-MPD-17-Jun-67-fbook.jpg
     
  8. Johnb

    Johnb Nat Pres stalwart

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    4468 crossing Monkwearmouth Bridge, Sunderland, July 1988

    2954s 4468 crossing Monkwearmouth bridge, Sunderland 16-07-88.jpg
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2022
  9. blink bonny

    blink bonny Member

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    J27 65834 passing the NCB internal passenger tankie station at Ashington with a train of empties bound for Linton Colliery on 3rd December 1966. 06-Worsdell-J27-65834,-Ashington-Colliery,-3-Dec-1966-fbook.jpg
     
  10. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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    Great stuff,keep them coming!
     
  11. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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  12. 46203

    46203 Member

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    Image 6-31. 60124 @ 51A Darlington 20.11.jpg

    'Prepping' an A1 at Darlington.
     
  13. blink bonny

    blink bonny Member

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    Many is the time we went into 51A on a Saturday trip out and passed Kenilworth standing on or near the turntable next to the gate on stand-by. Sadly, it was in my pre-camera days.
     
  14. Johnb

    Johnb Nat Pres stalwart

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    5305 & 2005 crossing King Edward Bridge, Newcastle, 26th July 1986

    2400s 5305-2005 King Edward Bridge, newcastle 26-07-86.jpg
     
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  15. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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  16. blink bonny

    blink bonny Member

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    Until an experimental arrival by 43140 in the winter of 1964/5 until June 65, any steam loco based at North & South Blyth (52F) had a number which started with a '6'. After the replacment of G5s in 1958/9 by DMUs for passenger traffic that lasted until October 1964 the allocation was used solely for the transport of coal from the numerous collieries that were served by the ex-Blyth & Tyne. In 1965 its allocation of locos hovered in the mid-40s.

    In the latter half of 1965 the allocation of Q6 0-8-0s dropped from 8 to zero, their passing going almost un-noticed by me, because they were still to be seen on my visits to Newcastle, working from the likes of Sunderland right until the end of local steam in September 1967. An influx of K1 2-6-0s filled the gap partly, with their Blyth allocation increasing from 2 to 6 during 1965, before bursting to no less than 12 and even 13 for a brief time in the summer of 66. Eventually the main workhorse (J27) numbers started to decline. J27 allocation fell from 32 at the end of 1965 to only 14 a year later.

    Enter the Ivatts.

    After the departure of 43140 in June 1965 there were none, until in November 1965 43101 & 43132 appeared. In August 1966 the Ivatt floodgates opened and another 7 appeared and then more, until the allocation of these 2-6-0s reached its peak of 13 in November 1966, almost equalling the dwindling number of 15 J27s. All of a sudden locos with numbers not starting with a '6' became commonplace for a precious few months.

    On a sunny Tuesday morning, 4th July 1967, I was out taking advantage of the lull (and free days off) between finishing my O Levels a week earlier and going back to school for a day to break up for the summer. 'A Whiter Shade of Pale ' was No 1, soon to be replaced by 'All You Need Is Love', which had just been released.

    Ivatt 4MT 43000 is taking a train of coal from Ashington colliery to Blyth Power Station. I read recently from someone who worked on the footplatge there that 43000 was a favourite amongst crews. It would 'steam on a candle'.

    Nothing remains in this photo apart from the sky and the LNER coach, which is preserved. Two months later 43000 was gone from the books. The pit closed in March 1988, ripping the guts out of what was once known as 'The Biggest Mining Village in the World' (Population 26,000 plus). It still hasn't recovered from that. Even by then the pit-heaps were landscaped out of existence in the mid-1970s. Blyth Power station, briefly in the 60s at 1.8GW capacity the biggest in the country until the opening of the 2GW Ferrybridge, closed at the turn of the century and the chimneys were blown down on one still and frosty morning in December 2003.

    I'm still here though. :)

    And I think that of all the photos I've taken of many different subject topics since then, well into 6 figures, that this is one of my favourites.
    35--Ivatt-4MT-43000-Ashington-Colliery-4-jul-67-fbook.jpg
     
    Last edited: Jul 26, 2022
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  17. 46203

    46203 Member

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    _DSC0570-Edit.jpg

    NYMR Spring Gala 2009 - where I (once again) bumped into Henry.
     
  18. henrywinskill

    henrywinskill Well-Known Member

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    What a great account.I left school in Blyth in 63 and shortly afterwards I got a young lady in the family way.Her father who worked on the railway very kindly got me a job on the coal stage at North Blyth.I lasted abut a year,(hard work for a teenager).No camera then,money went on nappies;)
     
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  19. Johnb

    Johnb Nat Pres stalwart

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    4771 Green Arrow leaving Darlington, July 1987

    2736s 4771 leaving Darlington 05-07-87.jpg
     
  20. osprey

    osprey Resident of Nat Pres

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    What some superb shots from all of you and a little bit of history to boot. It's always nice to have a bit of background to a photo. Well done everybody...keep em coming. And most of all, thank you for sharing..
     
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