A Wet Day

It's been a cold & wet day at Apedale, but despite this, a hard band of MRT members still managed to turn out and progress things at Apedale. More work has been done on the buildings, and yet more wiring has gone into the G class Simplex. It now has broadly the same functionality as the Starship Enterprise.

The continuous rain brought to mind a memorable Moseley event; this was the Tin Turtle event held at the Ffestiniog's Minffordd yard over May Day 2005. A Tin Turtle is a Motor Rail loco built for service in World War One; dependant on the type, these locos can carry a body which resembles (some say) a turtle.

The FR event brought together four of these charecterful locos. These were the FR's own Mary Ann - MR596, MR435 which had been repatriated from St Kitts a few years earlier, Leighton Buzzard's MR1377 , and the Moseley Railway Trust's MR1369. All the locos spent the weekend shuffling around Minffordd yard to a lesser or greater extent; Mary Ann did decide to explore aspects of parts of the trackwork which are normally frowned on for most locomotives. Despite the wet & cold weather, a good time was had by both visitors and participants. The photo was taken from the FR's cherrypicker, and shows MR1369 on the diamond, facing MR1377. Mary Ann is top right, MR435 bottom left. 280 years of railway history in one photo - not bad!

Interested? Contact us here and find out more. Who knows, one day you could be participating in this sort of thing!

Apedale Notes and News

It's been a while since we updated the World Wide Web on progress with the Moseley Railway Trust's project at Apedale. Hopefully, we'll be making more regular updates in the future, time permitting, so keep watching this space.

What's been happening at Apedale? The short answer is Plenty. The slightly longer answer begins here....

Trackwork now extends from the Red Shed (so called because it's a shed, and it's red) to the station site near the Apedale Heritage Centre. This will allow the operation of the MRT's locomotives, currently stored in the Red Shed. There's a long way to go yet, though. The next major issue to be tackled is to divert a footpath, which currently runs through the middle of the site, onto a new alignment. The new alignment will hopefully be easier and safer for all users of the path. A useful by-product is that it will be a great vantage point when trains start running - get the cameras ready!

Work has also continued on the former mine buildings. These need extensive clearing out and decoration to convert them to become the MRT's centre of operations. Amongst other things, an office has been created to hold the mountain of paperwork which any railway needs these days. We are also currently hosting the UK heats of the World's Worst Bricklayer Championships.

Through all of this, some work even occasionally gets done on locomotives and wagons. For example, the G Class Simplex (the yellow loco in the picture) has had its electrical system given a good seeing to, and it can now charge its own battery. Work has also started on the mechanically good but cosmetically disastrous Motor Rail 2197 (this is behind the G class in the picture); hopefully this will be finished in time for a planned outing to a certain Welsh railway in 2009.

As you can imagine, this all keeps a hard core of members pretty occupied. If you fancy lending a hand, we're on site most Saturdays from 10.00, and (from January 2008), also on the 2nd Sunday of each month. So, if you want to see more, come along - Apedale is just off the A34, north of Newcastle Under Lyme. Questions? Contact us here, and we'll do our best to help.

We cannot post this without mentioning the Heritage Centre which is invaded by MRT members keen to sample the latest tricks with oatcakes (aka The Tunstall Tortilla). Apparently it sells some other foodstuffs beyond oatcakes. We will investigate and let you know.

Keep checking this website (have you book marked it?), and we'll try to give you something new to read every couple of weeks (or more often if we have the time, the inclination or something interesting happens).

Moseley Railway Trust to rebuild unique Great War watertank wagon

The Moseley Railway Trust is pleased to announce that it has secured a PRISM grant to support the rebuilding of a unique narrow gauge railway wagon.

During World War One, 60cm gauge light railways were used to carry men and stores to the front line. One of the most pressing requirements was water for men, horses & locomotives. The "Class H" bogie tank wagons were built in 1917 and 1918 by Robert Hudson of Leeds and the Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Company. The wagons used a 1500 gallon water tank mounted on a steel underframe. After the end of the war, much of the equipment was disposed of for further industrial use. A small number of the watertank wagons eventually went to the Smiths Potato Estates Railway in Nocton, Lincolnshire. The Moseley Railway Trust managed to acquire the sole surviving artefact from these wagons, a tank section. The Trust has managed to also acquire two suitable bogies, which ended their days on a timber railway in Bulgaria; they were returned to the UK via the Frankfurt Feldbahn Museum. The PRISM grant will assist with the construction of a reproduction underframe, which, when combined with the restored tank and bogies, will result in a unique and authentic recreation of an unusual and historic railway wagon.



Gareth Roberts, the Moseley Railway Trust’s project manager said "The watertank wagon will be the perfect complement to the Moseley Railway Trust’s collection of historic narrow gauge equipment. In particular, the Trust has in its care Simplex locomotives, which would have worked with these wagons both at Nocton and during WW1. This project illustrates the Trust’s commitment to restoring historic narrow gauge railway equipment".

When completed, the watertank wagon will eventually be moved to the Moseley Railway Trust’s new site at Apedale, Newcastle-Under-Lyme. The Trust is continuing to develop the Apedale site, and donations are still being sought to allow this work to continue. The Trust plans to construct a major museum of narrow gauge industrial railways at Apedale, and the reconstructed watertank wagon will form a key exhibit in this museum when its opens.

Track Laying Commences on Moseley Railway Trust’s new railway at Apedale

On Saturday 17 March 2007, the development of the Moseley Railway Trust’s new site at Apedale, Staffordshire, passed a major milestone with the laying of the first track. Recent weeks have seen significant progress with groundworks to provide a trackbed, and work has now commenced on installing 2’0" gauge trackwork. The first set of points to be installed will ultimately form one end of the station run-round loop.
The station itself will be a reconstruction of the former North Staffordshire Railway building from nearby Silverdale station. Reconstruction of this station is being undertaken by a team from the Apedale Heritage Centre.

The Moseley Railway Trust (MRT) now expects to continue with tracklaying towards the goal of an operational 2’0" gauge passenger railway, upon which the Trust’s large collection of historic steam and diesel narrow gauge locomotives can be operated.

Further progress will now depend on successful fundraising. The MRT continues to appeal for funds to allow the development of the Apedale site. All donations, no matter how large or small, are gratefully received, and will allow the MRT to continue to work towards the development of Apedale into a museum site of national importance.

The MRT can be contacted at 11, Ashwood Road, Disley, Stockport, Cheshire SK12 2EL or visit www.mrt.org.uk

Porterbrook Leasing gives helping hand to Moseley Railway Trust

Porterbrook Leasing has donated two locomotive nameplates to the Moseley Railway Trust (MRT). These nameplates, removed from Class 87 and Class 90 electric locomotives, will be sold at auction to raise funds for the MRT.

The locomotive nameplates "Earl Marischal" from 87029 and "British Transport Police" from 90012 will be sold by the Sheffield Railwayana auction on 16 June 2007. Both nameplates are highly collectable relics which were fitted to the locomotives when they operated on the West Coast Mainline. The plate "Earl Marischal" will be particularly sought after, as the second plate from this locomotive has been claimed by the Railway Heritage Committee; therefore, the plate sold on the 16th June will be the only one ever to be available to the general public.

The Moseley Railway Trust (MRT) is a charitable trust dedicated to the preservation of the industrial narrow gauge railway. The MRT has recently secured a permanent site at Apedale, near Newcastle-Under-Lyme, and has embarked upon an ambitious development plan for the Apedale site. The MRT has also recently launched a major fundraising appeal in order to finance these development plans.

Phil Robinson, the MRT's chairman said "The Moseley Railway Trust is very grateful to Porterbrook for its generous donation of these two nameplates. The funds raised from the auction will help us with the construction of the new railway and museum at Apedale. We also wish to thank the Sheffield Railwayana Auctions team for their help".

The attached photograph shows Porterbrook’s Karen Jackson (left!!) presenting one of the nameplates to the MRT’s Phil Robinson (right!).

Moseley Railway Trust announces major fund-raising appeal

The Moseley Railway Trust is launching a major appeal to raise funds to implement its ambitious development plans for a railway and museum at Apedale, Staffordshire.

In 2006, the Moseley Railway Trust (MRT) reached agreement in 2006 to acquire land and buildings adjacent to the existing Apedale Heritage Centre, in Newcastle Under Lyme, Staffordshire. Planning permission has also been granted for what promises to be one of the most exciting development projects in the railway preservation world.

The MRT has a staged plan to develop the Apedale site; existing buildings will be converted to form workshops and amenity block. New buildings will form storage accommodation for the UK's largest collection of narrow gauge locomotives & wagons. A major museum project is planned, which will allow a rotating display of artefacts and larger exhibits. This will fulfil a major educational and interpretative role for the Trust's collections. A demonstration line will carry passengers, linking the existing Apedale site to the centre of the nearby Apedale country park.

Phil Robinson, MRT Chairman said "2006 was about laying the foundations for the Apedale development. Now we have to start laying real, concrete foundations. 2007 is the year when the real hard, physical work starts. We have a keen and willing volunteer labour force (although more are always welcome!). What is really needed now is funds and support".

The MRT estimates that the complete Apedale project will cost of the order of £250,000. Donations are sought from organisations and individuals who may be able to assist - be it monetary or with materials, equipment or other tangible support.

The reward at the end of the project will be a major asset to UK railway preservation, to the local area, and to the celebration of UK industrial heritage in general.

The MRT will acknowledge all support which will be gratefully appreciated.

The MRT can be contacted at 11, Ashwood Road, Disley, Stockport, Cheshire SK12 2EL or visit www.mrt.org.uk

Moseley Railway Trust wins go-ahead for new railway and museum

The Moseley Railway Trust is delighted to announce that it has secured planning consent for the development of its new site at the Apedale Heritage Centre, Newcastle Under Lyme.

At a planning meeting on 30th August, Newcastle Borough Council gave approval for the Moseley Railway Trust to start implementing its ambitious plans. These plans include:-

a.. A 2'0" gauge railway, just over a mile in length, from the Apedale Heritage Centre, running into the adjacent Country Park.
b.. Outline planning consent for a spacious new museum building, in which the Moseley Railway Trust's collection of narrow gauge locomotives, wagons and other artefacts will be put on display.
c.. A new storage building to house most of the Trust's collection of around 60 locomotives.
d.. Redevelopment of the existing mine buildings at Apedale to provide workshop and other facilities.

Phil Robinson, chairman of the Moseley Railway Trust said "It has always been the vision of the MRT to develop the UK's premier museum of narrow gauge railways. Gaining planning consent for Apedale is a significant step towards delivering this vision. The hard work now starts, as we have huge challenges in raising the funds to implement our plans, and to construct our railway and other projects".

The new 2'0" gauge railway will be built in phases with the initial phase consisting of about 500 metres from the Apedale Heritage Centre to Apedale Road. It is hoped that construction of this phase will be sufficiently advanced to permit a public open day during the summer of 2007. Full opening of the first phase for public operation, dependant on the HMRI approval, is anticipated around the end of 2007.

The Moseley Railway Trust have been on site for some months since securing a land purchase of the site at Apedale. Thus far, activities have been limited on the site, although a number of locomotives are stored at Apedale and several have been run there. Occasional opportunity has been taken to lay temporary track and run a loco and wagons for a few yards as seen in the pictures. Please note that visitors intending to come to Apedale should confirm what activities are taking place on site prior to a visit to avoid disappointment.