Features

The heritage sector has been in mourning following the death of one of its greatest benefactors, Sir William McAlpine, at the age of 82. Known by many in the preservation movement simply as ‘Mr Bill’, he was best known by the public for bringing Flying Scotsman home after it became marooned in California amidst fears…

Continue reading »

In the last days of BR steam there were some surprising workings, but in the days before mobile phones and the internet, reliable information could be hard to come by. Robert Anderson reports on one of the last passenger trains to be hauled by a Great Western pannier tank, which also involved an LNER Pacific…

Continue reading »

Heritage lines in the United States come in a variety of shapes and sizes, all with their own individual history. Andrew Rapacz reports on an excellent weekend of steam in Oregon. Mention Oregon in the USA to railway enthusiasts and you might draw a blank. Some may know that the Daylight, a Southern Pacific express…

Continue reading »

By Don Benn This time I am devoting the whole article to the engine of the moment, LMS Jubilee 5XP 4-6-0 No. 45699 Galatea. In the days just after its return to the main line it was an indifferent performer but for the last year it has been transformed into a top class locomotive, capable…

Continue reading »

The advent of digital photography provided many advantages for photographers over what had gone before and continued technical advances are creating new opportunities. John Titlow presents a selection of recent images recorded long after the sun had gone down. O Winston Link has to be the pioneer of nocturnal railway photography, how difficult it must…

Continue reading »

An early use of narrow gauge steam locomotives was as works shunters. Mark Smithers reports on a new-build project for an LNWR locomotive design which will be the first 18 inch gauge non-miniature steam locomotive completed in the UK since 1927. ALTHOUGH many enthusiasts associate the early history of specialist narrow gauge locomotive design with…

Continue reading »

Many villages have heritage centres, often sited at their long-closed railway stations. Hugh Dougherty visits a village heritage centre that demonstrates how it should be done. Village heritage centres can be a mixed bag, when it comes to portraying local railway history, and much depends on funding, who’s involved, how much prominence local railway heritage…

Continue reading »