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Obtaining a copy of 'Industrial Steam Locomotives of Central England' published by the Warwickshire Railway Society in 1966 was quite an eye-opener for someone with only scant knowledge of industrial railways, pretty well limited to glimpsing industrial locos while passing by on the main line or during the course of a BR shed bash.
Still extant were ancient saddle tanks, ex main line tanks, firelesses, Sentinel locos, crane tanks and even a Beyer Garratt!
As well as collieries and power stations, Iron ore quarries, car factories, steelworks were amongst heavy industries where steam still worked in the late 1960s in Central England.
The WRS went on to publish similar booklets prompting visits to other areas.
Corby Ironstone Quarries operated by Stewarts & Lloyds had a quite extensive railway system with a big loco shed at Pen Green housing around twenty steam locos. Two powerful modern Robert Stephenson & Hawthorns 0-6-0ST are on a substantial ore working from Harringworth - note the double track line, it was a busy railway.
The steelworks at Corby had its own fleet of steam locos, which were more difficult to see and photograph, with casual visitors understandably discouraged (see 'Wissington Whiteout').
Corby Quarries had a goodly number of these earlier 0-6-0ST built by Manning, Wardle, Kitson and RSH used on lighter trains and duties.
Loco 'Holwell No. 30' climbs out of the quarry at Irchester on 31 January 1969 with four loaded wagons, as many as it could manage. It was 0-4-0ST Hawthorn, Leslie 3780/1932.
Austin Motor Co at Longbridge, outside Birmingham, had an internal railway with five steam, most of which were used daily. Nearest the camera is a Kitson 0-6-0ST, of Manning, Wardle design, and the second loco is a Hunslet 0-6-0ST.
I remember a cold, raw day - 16 December 1967 - for the Longbridge visit. It shows in this picture of 'Austin 3' 0-6-0ST Hunslet Engine Co. 1814/1937 exerting maximum effort to haul a coal train brought in by a BR Type 2 diesel, hidden in the shadows on the right. The line through the factory was part of the ex-Midland Railway Halesowen branch.
The works had two big Bagnall 0-6-0ST, powerful locos originally used by the Steel Company of Wales. Displaced by diesels, they were acquired by Austins. A load of Minis are being shunted to be railed away to car dealers.
Holwell Ironworks was near Melton Mowbray with about four or five steam. This is an Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST going about its business.
Stanton & Staveley Ltd ran Holwell and Stanton Ironworks which had several of these Barclay 0-4-0 crane tanks. The main work at Stanton was done by a fleet of diesels.
There were many collieries in the Midlands - one of my favourites to visit was Littleton in Staffordshire, where the connection from pit to BR's West Coast Main Line went under the M6 motorway. Here is my favourite loco there, 'Littleton No.5' Manning, Wardle 0-6-0ST 2018/1922. It is seen 'under the wires' in the exchange sidings at Penkridge.
Yates, Duxbury ran the Heap Bridge Paper Mills in Lancashire and I paid a visit one very damp Saturday morning in February 1970. Peckett 1370/1915 named 'MAY' was in steam. I noted that all the cab fittings were highly polished. There was also 'ANNIE' an older Peckett 1159/1908 as spare engine - though 'MAY' looked to be an older design.
An even older engine Andrew Barclay 945/1904 was jacked up under repair.
Also here under restoration was preserved ex Lancashire & Yorkshire 0-6-0ST 11456 purchased from the National Coal Board.
Being a Saturday there wasn't much activity. The factory was in two parts with the railway tunnelling under a road to connect the system. Several steep gradients were worked and there was a run of about one and a half miles to the exchange sidings alongside the river.
I was informed that a newer Barclay 2230 of 1947 was to come here from another paper mill, Cook & Nuttall at Horwich, but I don't think that happened, the loco going instead to Carnforth for preservation.
Yates, Duxbury was one of those places you wanted to visit again on a busier day, but never did.
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