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‘A3’ No˙ 60095 Flamingo waits to take over the Down ‘Waverley’ from ‘Black Five’ No˙ 44883 at Carlisle Citadel on June 15 1959. T.G. HEPBURN/ RAIL ARCHIVE STEPHENSON Flamingo - were a constant, though as he recalls: “If one was just out of the works, we could expect it to be nicked. If the Haymarket men got their hands on it, we didn’t see it again for a good while! “There were two firemen in the Edinburgh link who didn’t fancy the work. One didn’t get on with his mate and preferred to go off fishing, while the other preferred to spend his time working in the corner shop in Carlisle that his wife owned - the railway was just a hobby for him - so I would swap turns with them both, a month at a time. “When one had finished on the Edinburgh jobs, the other was just coming on to them - so for a good eight weeks out of ten, I was able to fire on the Waverley passenger turns! “Our ‘A3s’ had all been converted to the double Kylchap blastpipe - but a good ‘V2’ over the Waverley banks was just as good as an ‘A3’. I used to rate the ‘V2s’ - terrific engines. We didn’t have any allocated to Canal, but we regularly got to work those allocated to St Margarets and Haymarket, though those from Dundee were the best-maintained of them all. Full set “We saw quite a few ‘A1s’ and ‘A2s’ as well over the Waverley, and also the rebuilt ‘P2s’ - Earl Marischal, Mons Meg, and Wolf of Badenoch. Once the ‘A4s’ were cascaded down off the East Coast Main Line, we would get to use them too - nearly every day - so I got to work all of the LNER ‘Pacifics’. “We had some interesting visitors to Canal as well in later years; I remember quite a few ‘Britannias’ and also a number of WDs which had worked down from Scotland on a variety of freights.” These were happy years for Gordon - but profound changes were already looming on the horizon. He recalls: “There had been rumours about closure flying around for years, but the final nail in the coffin was the opening of the big marshalling yard at Kingmoor, which meant that Canal’s yard work was transferred there, along with all the freight work from Upperby. “Until then, we had seven marshalling yards in Carlisle - our own, Dentonholme, the North Eastern yard at London Road, the Maryport & Carlisle yard at Currock, the Midland yard at Durranhill, I got to work all of the LNER ‘Pacifics’ North British ‘N15/1’ No. 69186 outside Inverurie Works awaiting redelivery to Edinburgh St Margarets shed (64A) following an extensive overhaul and repaint on June 25 1957. As a young fireman, Gordon Hodgson worked extensively on these 0-6-2Ts in the goods yards around Carlisle, and on trip freights between the yards. BRIAN MORRISON the LNWR yard at Upperby, and the Caledonian yard at Kingmoor. A lot of the work I did when I first started firing was trip working, transferring freight from one yard to another. “Once the closure of Canal was confirmed, a lot of the lads got paid off. BR was offering £300 a man for voluntary redundancy - a lot of money then. Many lads took up the offer because there was plenty of alternative employment in Carlisle at that time; they were building the M6 motorway, and also a new rocket-testing site at Spadeadam, on the Newcastle road by Gilsland. “I’ll admit, I gave some thought to taking the £300 severance - but I really enjoyed working on the railway, and to be honest, I thought that even driving a diesel was better than digging holes for the gas board! One of the good things though was that many of the lads who left did come back to the railway, filling the vacancies we then had for guards.” For Gordon, the sadness of Canal’s closure, on June 23 1963, was balanced by his transfer to Carlisle Kingmoor (12A) - a big shed (including fitters and labourers, there were more than 1,000 men employed), covering different routes, including the Caledonian (West Coast Main Line) over Beattock, the Glasgow & South Western route to Glasgow - and the Settle & Carlisle. SR ●● You can read the second instalment of Gordon Hodgson’s story in a forthcoming issue of Steam Railway. 88 • Issue 467 • May 19 - JUNE 15 2017
A FATHERS’ DAY to remember From the thrill of driving a steam locomotive to the simple pleasure of a good DVD, Steam Railway’s guide to Fathers’ Day gifts has got it covered ROGER McDERMAID Driving a steam locomotive was the dream of many a schoolboy. Although the days of steam have passed, it is still possible to enjoy the sight, sound and smell of a locomotive at work on preserved railways across the country. This Fathers’ Day, why not live the dream with a driving experience on the Bodmin & Wenford Railway or the East Lancashire Railway? Or, if the footplate isn’t your thing, take a relaxing ride in a quaint and quirky carriage through the dramatic countryside of Mid-Wales on the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway, or perhaps sample the delights of vintage road vehicles at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre. You can look the part too with a Flying Scotsman gentleman’s messenger bag from The Bradford Exchange, perfect whether you’re out on the lineside, working on the footplate or watching the scenery roll past your carriage window. Even in June, sometimes the weather can turn ‘British’, so while the rain may keep you at home, it certainly won’t dampen your spirits. The offerings available from GB Productions, covering the latest main line and preserved railway steam, can be enjoyed whatever the weather. What better way of rounding off a day of enjoying and indulging your hobby to the full? Whatever you do, have a great Fathers’ Day. the days of steam have passed, But it’s still possible to enjoy the sight, sound and smell of a locomotive at work 103 • Issue XXX • XXXXXXXX XX - XXXXXXX XX 20XX
Page 1 and 2: the world’s BIGGEST selling STEAM
Page 3 and 4: SUMMER STEAM GALA 1 ST - 2 ND JULY
Page 5 and 6: tary questions to explain T 3’ 4-
Page 7 and 8: GORDON HODGSON - PART ONE For almos
Page 9: GORDON HODGSON - PART ONE A3 ‘Pac

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