Bicton Woodland Railway
Encyclopedia
The Bicton Woodland Railway is a narrow gauge railway running in gardens in the grounds of Bicton House
near Budleigh Salterton
in Devon
.
The line was built in 1962 as a tourist attraction for visitors to the house. Most of the rolling stock was acquired from the Royal Arsenal Railway
, Woolwich
, with two locomotives, Woolwich and Carnegie coming from that source, as well as seven goods wagons which were reduced to their frames and converted to passenger carriages. It opened to passengers in 1963. Originally locomotives and carriages had royal blue
livery.
Additional rolling stock
was acquired from the RAF Fauld
railway and the internal railway of the LNWR
Wolverton works.
In 1998 the Bicton Gardens were put up for sale and the railway put into hiatus. The new owners sold the line's existing stock and in 2000 took delivery of a 5.5-tonne diesel-powered replica tank engine. The line's original equipment was purchased by the Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills
museum at Waltham Abbey
.
Bicton House, Devon
Bicton House is a late 18th or early 19th century country house, which stands on the campus of Bicton College, Bicton, near Exmouth, East Devon. It is a Grade II* listed building....
near Budleigh Salterton
Budleigh Salterton
Budleigh Salterton is a small town on the south coast of Devon, England 15 miles south of Exeter. It is situated within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designated East Devon AONB.- Features :...
in Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
.
The line was built in 1962 as a tourist attraction for visitors to the house. Most of the rolling stock was acquired from the Royal Arsenal Railway
Royal Arsenal Railway
The Royal Arsenal Railway was a private military railway. It ran inside the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, south east London.The earliest parts of this railway system proper were constructed to standard gauge from 1859 onwards as a to replace an ad hoc arrangement of individual plateways...
, Woolwich
Woolwich
Woolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...
, with two locomotives, Woolwich and Carnegie coming from that source, as well as seven goods wagons which were reduced to their frames and converted to passenger carriages. It opened to passengers in 1963. Originally locomotives and carriages had royal blue
Royal blue
Royal blue describes both a bright shade and a dark shade of azure blue. It is said to have been invented by millers in Rode, Somerset, a consortium of which won a competition to make a dress for the British queen, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz....
livery.
Additional rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
was acquired from the RAF Fauld
RAF Fauld Explosion
The RAF Fauld explosion was a military accident which occurred at 11:11am on Monday, 27 November 1944 at the RAF Fauld underground munitions storage depot...
railway and the internal railway of the LNWR
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
Wolverton works.
In 1998 the Bicton Gardens were put up for sale and the railway put into hiatus. The new owners sold the line's existing stock and in 2000 took delivery of a 5.5-tonne diesel-powered replica tank engine. The line's original equipment was purchased by the Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills
Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills
The Royal Gunpowder Mills, Waltham Abbey, an Anchor Point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage, , set in of parkland and containing 21 buildings of major historical importance, mixes history, science, and attractive surroundings...
museum at Waltham Abbey
Waltham Abbey, Essex
Waltham Abbey is a market town of about 20,400 people in the south west of the county of Essex, in the East of England region. It is about 24 km north of London on the Greenwich Meridian and lies between the River Lea in the west and Epping Forest in the east. It takes its name from The Abbey...
.
Locomotives
| Number | Name | Builder | Type | Date | Works number | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Woolwich | Avonside Engine Company Avonside Engine Company The Avonside Engine Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Avon Street, St. Philip's, Bristol, England between 1864 and 1934. However the business originated with an earlier enterprise Henry Stothert and Company.-Origins:... |
0-4-0T | 1916 | 1748 | ex-Royal Arsenal Railway Royal Arsenal Railway The Royal Arsenal Railway was a private military railway. It ran inside the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, south east London.The earliest parts of this railway system proper were constructed to standard gauge from 1859 onwards as a to replace an ad hoc arrangement of individual plateways... . Now at the Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills The Royal Gunpowder Mills, Waltham Abbey, an Anchor Point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage, , set in of parkland and containing 21 buildings of major historical importance, mixes history, science, and attractive surroundings... |
| 2 | Bicton | Ruston and Hornsby | 4wDM | 1942 | 213839 | Built for the War Department storage depot at Lion Brickworks, Scalford Scalford Scalford is a village and civil parish in the Melton borough of Leicestershire, England. It lies 4 miles to the north of Melton Mowbray at the southern end of the Vale of Belvoir.... |
| 3 | Carnegie | Hunslet Hunslet Engine Company The Hunslet Engine Company is a British locomotive-building company founded in 1864 at Jack Lane, Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England by John Towlerton Leather, a civil engineering contractor, who appointed James Campbell as his Works Manager.In 1871, James Campbell bought the company for... |
0-4-4-0DM | 1954 | 4524 | ex-Royal Arsenal Railway Royal Arsenal Railway The Royal Arsenal Railway was a private military railway. It ran inside the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, south east London.The earliest parts of this railway system proper were constructed to standard gauge from 1859 onwards as a to replace an ad hoc arrangement of individual plateways... . Now at the Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills The Royal Gunpowder Mills, Waltham Abbey, an Anchor Point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage, , set in of parkland and containing 21 buildings of major historical importance, mixes history, science, and attractive surroundings... |
| 4 | Sir Walter Raleigh | Alan Keef Alan Keef Alan Keef Ltd is a British narrow gauge railway engineer which manufactures, overhauls and deals in narrow gauge locomotives, rolling stock and associated equipment.... |
0-4-0 | 2000 | Custom built. First driven by Pete Cuffley in 2000. |