Tramways and Tramroads in the Forest of Dean

My wife and I take holidays in the Forest of Dean every year. We have been there almost every year since the year 2000 and I have become fascinated by the history of life and industry in the Forest. I have particularly been struck by the extent of tramways and tramroads in the Forest. We have enjoyed exploring a number of the different railway routes in the Forest and the complex network of tramways which supported the standard gauge railways which themselves had replaced much earlier tramways. I hope this thread will be of interest to some.

This is the first of a series of blog posts about the forest and its railways and tramways and focusses on Lydney Harbour and its transport links, particularly rail and tramway/tramroad. ...

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.com/2017/09/26/lydney-harbour

 

Parkend in the Forest of Dean is currently the terminus of a preservation line, the Dean Forest Railway (http://www.deanforestrailway.co.uk).

Historically, it was a small through station on the Severn and Wye Joint Railway with a short branch to transhipment wharfs that allowed tramways to transfer goods to the main line. Further back still it was the centre of some major forest industries which were heavily served by tramways. The first image on the blog below is a map of the tramways at Parkend in its prime as an industrial centre in the Forest.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.com/2017/09/29/parkend-forest-of-dean

 

Prior to the introduction of standard gauge railways in the Forest of Dean there was an extensive network of tramways or tramroads. These tramways were of a variety of gauges from 3ft 6in to 4ft. One of these was the Severn and Wye Tramroad. This post details the various branch and feeder tramways associated with this line. The tramway was replaced by the Severn and Wye Joint Railway. ...

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ys-and-sidings-of-the-severn-and-wye-tramroad

 

Another post. This one is centred on Parkend, and covers two significant lengths of tramroads.

To the West and South of Parkend there was an extensive network of privately owned narrow gauge tramways that were not part of the Severn and Wye owned system. These were known as the Dike’s and Oakwood Tramways.

In later years the Severn and Wye Joint Railway provided transhipment facilities at the Parkend wharf. The feeder tramway was the Oakwood tramway. Confusedly, the Oakwood branch of the Severn and Wye left the main line at Tufts junction south of Whitecroft, and followed the route of the Dike’s tramway as far as Princess Royal Colliery at Whitecroft/Bream.

Both Flour Mill and Princess Royal Collieries were served by this system, as were a whole series of quarries, ironworks and chemical factories. It is difficult to credit how extensive this system was when visiting the area today.

If you want to learn more, please click on the link below:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.com/2017/10/02/oakwood-and-dikes-tramways

 

Moseley Green Tramways

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.com/2017/09/27/moseley-green-tramways

 

This next post is about New Fancy Colliery in the Forest of Dean ....

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.com/2017/09/23/new-fancy-colliery-and-it-railways

 

In the last few weeks I have been looking at the route of the Forest of Dean Tramway which was a major innovation in its day. Haie Hill Tunnel which was built for it in the very early 19th Century was for a short while the longest tunnel in the world. It was also one of the earliest tunnels built.

The tramway linked significant industrial concerns in the Forest of Dean with the Severn Estuary at Bullo Pill. The owners of the tramway were also behind the first serious attempt to tunnel under the Estuary.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.com/2018/03/13/bullo-pill-and-the-forest-of-dean-tramway

 

A recent visit to the Forest of Dean promoted some reading and reflection on Cannop Colliery. This post is the result of those reflections:

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2018/08/31/cannop-colliery

 

Recently, I have begun researching some of the tramways/tramroads in the valleys of South Wales. The first of these that I looked at was the Penydarren Tramroad.

While I was looking at the website of the Industrial Railway Society (https://www.irsociety.co.uk) I came across a story which related to the Forest if Dean and, in particular, the Severn & Wye Railway & Canal Company.

The link below highlights the story of what appears to have been the research necessary before purchasing the first steam locomotive the Forest of Dean. It also pints to what could have been a far earlier introduction of steam traction into the Forest.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/02/08/a-first-steam-locomotive-for-the-severn-and-wye-tramway

 

The Guardian carried an article on 31st August 2019 about old rail routes being used as cycleways. It suggested the 10 best routes where old railway formations are in use as cycleways. Theirs is not the only list of routes which seeks to provide a "Top Ten."

I have pulled together a few examples in the linked post below. I'd like to add at least one which does not feature in the top ten lists, and that is the Forest of Dean.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/09/13/railways-and-cycleways-no-1-a-top-ten

 

The industrial history of the Forest of Dean is such that the intensity of activity was high throughout the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Innovation was rife and nowhere was this more true than in its transport infrastructure.

In, what history will ultimately regard as, a very short period of time, tramroads were built and became the dominant form of transport. They waned and were replaced by broad gauge railways which in turn lost out to what was the dominant but probably inferior standard-gauge. For a time, all were active in the Forest at once. ....

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/09/15/different-railway-gauges-in-operation-the-forest-of-dean

 

My wife and I stay in the Forest of Dean most years. September 2019 was no exception. We stayed in a cottage close to what were Cannop and Speech House Collieries which were both rail served when they were active collieries. I have already posted about Cannop Colliery as part of this series of posts. It seems appropriate that I post something about Speech House Colliery.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/09/14/speech-house-hill-colliery-and-railway

 

Another Forest of Dean Colliery. .... Flour Mill Colliery. ...

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2017/09/30/the-flour-mill-colliery

 

Yet another Forest colliery and its railways and tramways - Trafalgar Colliery

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/09/24/trafalgar-colliery-and-railway

 

I have recently encountered two small books, both of which are facsimile editions of much older books. The first is a 19th century guide to the Forest of Dean for early holiday makers. The second provides a guide to the various coal mines in the Forest. ...

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2019/10/05/two-pocket-books-about-the-forest-of-dean

 

The Bream Heritage Walk, the Oakwood Tramway and The Flour Mill Ltd

The Forest of Dean continues to be one of my favourites places. In 2020 we, once again, stayed there in the first week of September.

This post returns to two earlier themes from the Forest.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2020/09/0...k-the-oakwood-tramway-and-flour-mill-colliery

On 1st September 2020 we followed a sign-posted circular walk which started in the centre of the village of Bream on the Southwest side of the Forest. The route was planned with the support of the Big Lottery Heritage Fund and featured a series of different heritage locations around the village. ............. The walk took us first along the route of the China Bottom Branch of the Oakwood Tramway which was covered in an earlier post about the tramways in the Forest (http://rogerfarnworth.com/2017/10/02/oakwood-and-dikes-tramways).

 

This short addendum to my most recent post provides photographs with comments which were taken at the site of Flour Mill Colliery where The Flour Mill Ltd undertakes heavy engineering work maintaining and refurbishing steam locomotives.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2020/09/04/the-flour-mill-colliery-and-the-flour-mill-ltd-again

 

I’ve just discovered this thread, fascinating stuff. I really like these posts on off beat railways, especially the ones about the French narrow gauge

 

Darkhill Ironworks, Titanic Steelworks and associated railways and tramways. .....

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2020/09/12/the-forest-of-dean-milkwall-tramway-at-dark-hill