Bluebell Railway
Goods Train Weekend
Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th April 2007
Photos on this page from the event, thanks to Derek Hayward, Andrew Strongitharm and David Warwick.
The Bluebell's Goods train weekend was a chance to see a wide variety of goods trains, as well as travelling the line on our vintage passenger trains.
The Steam locomotives in use over the weekend were:
55 Stepney, 32473, 672 Fenchurch, 1638, 80151 and 34028 Eddystone
We demonstrated how this was achieved with period British Railways road vehicles delivering and collecting parcels for conveyance by goods trains.
These photos, from James Young, show onward road collections or deliveries being made to:
The Cat Inn at West Hoathley, Gravetye Manor, Chailey Windmill and Barcombe Station.
Our greatful thanks to the relevant proprietors for joining in with the spirit of this event.
Saturday:
Two goods trains: one pre-grouping (i.e. pre-1923) and one pre-nationalisation (representing the period up to 1948).
A two-train passenger service also ran on both days, one conveying a Southern Railway milk tanker.
Sunday:
One much larger goods train, behing the U-class, 80151 and 32473 on the two passenger trains, and an all-Pullman Golden Arrow hauled by Eddystone.
Vintage Road Vehicles delivered consignments to and from the Bluebell Railway.
This included a barrel of Harveys Mild which was collected from the Lewes Brewery
on Saturday at 0930. Conveyed to Sheffield Park Station by a British Railways Mechanical
Horse. From there the beer was transported to Horsted Keynes on the goods train for
further shipment to The Cat Inn, at West Hoathly, by a further vintage road vehicle.
This was just one of a number of similar scenarios.
Last updated 2 January 2008 by Richard Salmon.