The LNER Encyclopedia

Pre NER Locomotives, I am interested in tracing the history of five pre NER locos 4 worked around North Northumberland and the fifth was involved in a derailment where the driver died.
The 4 locos are,
No63 an ex YN&B 2-4-0 similar to the 189 class but smaller reputedly built either by Stephenson or Tayleur formerly thought to carry the name Carlisle.
No73 an ex YN&B 2-4-0WT built by R & W Hawthorn worked the Alnwick branch till1882.
No75 a Stephenson 2-4-0 built 1845 known to have worked a Tweedmouth - Edinburgh service via Kelso & Galasheils for a number of years. Rebuilt at Gateshead 1863 as the forerunner of the 675 class. Last class member withdrawn 1890.
No149 aquired from Newcastle & North Shields railway an 0-4-2T was used at Tweedmouth as a shunter formerly carried the name Collingwood.


The fifth loco is No104 a York & Newcastle railway class 140 2-4-0 whos driver is reputed to be buried in a churchyard at Tweedmouth following an accident at Willington on the NER.

EDIT
Following a visit to the grave by Berwickspotter a number of inconsistencies to my original source were found the loco number was 184 and the location was Wellington Viaduct. i will post a full report when i have finished checking for the loco. Can any forum members advise on the location of Wellington viaduct it is probably on Tyneside but may have been filled in as an embankment.

Do you have the NERA North Eastern Record?
Vol 3 covers locos:

There's a drawing of No. 63 on Pg 11, Fig. 1.20.
Caption: "York, Newcastle & Berwick Railway No 63, built by Robert Stephenson & Co in 1849. It had T-shaped spokes on the leading wheels and tender wheels of a type usually found on rolling stock. The locomotive wheelsbase was 11ft 6in equally divided."
Credited: J.S. MacLean

Same page, Fig 1.20 shows No. 73 (same credit)
Caption: "York, Newcastle & Berwick Railway No. 73 had been built for the GNER by R & W Hawthorn as a 2-4-0 in September 1839 and was also rebuilt by them as this 2-4-0T in 1852.


Richard

Thanks Richard i will definitely get the book. I am also modifying post as i got a little confused and couldnt read my notes.

I've just looked at the drawings - no nameplates marked.
I can't see any more information re. the acknowledgments (eg. if they were published in a previous book).

Richard

Richard info taken from here im trying to expand on it. berwickspotter knows about the grave he is checking details for me.
http://www.steamindex.com/locotype/nerloco.htm

The only accident I can find referring to Willington is the Co. Durham one on October 23rd 1869. Some wagons ran away and collided with a passenger train at nearby Hunwick Station. The driver and fireman were killed and a number of passengers were seriously injured. Is that the accident you refer to?

52A when Gareth has checked the grave details i will forward them to you. Perhaps we can document this crash better.
Have you a map location for the above mentioned Willington.
Thanks for your help.

Willington was on the Durham to Bishop Aukland branch, NZ198351, Hunwick is the next station towards Bishop Aukland, about 1.75 miles beyond, NZ198326. Branch closed by the Marples/Beeching onholy alliance.

got information for george { 52D} and i have sent it to him
you will get a suprise to how much history is behind this chap going by what was on his headstone but i'll let 52D tell you guys as i've forwarded the info on to him

I intend to make a separate thread regarding the grave im in consultation with 52A and Berwick spotter. I will post when i have collated the Information. The Grave is occupied by a William Stephenson who drove the first train from Tweedmouth to Newcastle on the opening of the Newcastle & Berwick Railway later the YN&BR, NER, LNER and successors.

Im still interested in finding more out about the other locos in the original posting.

George Moffatt sent me berwickspotter's video for the forums:

William Stephenson's Grave (2.75MB size Windows Media Video file)


Richard

William Stephenson (see above post) was a driver on the Newcastle & Berwick Railway one of the NER constituent companies who had the honour of driving the first train from Tweedmouth to Newcastle on the opening of this line. I found out about him whilst researching early NER locos.
Berwickspotter then went to Tweedmouth Parish church to photograph the site of his grave. Apparently there are inconsistencies on the grave stone which myself and others are trying to find out.
I first talked to 52A on the possibile site of the accident and he came up with Willington near Witton Gilbert. We both thought it strange for a Tweedmouth man to be working on the Bishop Auckland branch. After further research it appears that the accident which cost William his life was not that Willington but the west side of We(i)llington? viaduct near Willington Quay.
The other inconsistency is the locomotive involved in his death. The grave stone records it as No184 but from my other source material i have it as a 140 class 2-4-0 No 104. This may be along with the site of the accident a stone masons typo. Apparently this class of engine were known to be hard on the permanent way and Harrison had issued a speed restriction on them.
52A has located a mention of the accident but not a full report.
Outstanding questions, can anyone find a report of this accident and can our learned friends identify the loco or find out what class No184 was.

Transcript of grave inscription courtesy Berwickspotter

to the memory of
WILLIAM STEPHENSON enginedriver
who lost his life on the 2nd day of march 1853 on the newcastle a tynemouth railway
by his engine no-184 running off the line of the rails over the embankment
at the west end of the wellington viaduct aged 32 years
he has left a widow a 2 children to lament his death
he opened the newcastle a berwick railway out in july 1847 by taking the first train of passengers from tweedmouth to newcastle
he was respected by all his fellow workman
and always obliging to his master.

mary ann stephenson { daughter}
of the above died october 27th 1852 aged 3 years

You've probably checked already, but there's nothing in Rolt's Red for Danger.

Richard

Nothing in any of the Trains in Trouble series or any of the locally orientated publications I have either. If there were no passengers or public fatalities there would not be the same level of reporting or investigation in those days.

The Railway Archive website mentions the 1853 accident, but does not give any detail; however there was another accident at exactly the same place a few years later : http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSum ... docID=2019