East Cornwall Mineral Railway
Encyclopedia
The East Cornwall Mineral Railway was a narrow gauge industrial railway
opened in 1872 to serve the iron ore and stone quarries around Callington in Cornwall
.
The line was 7½ miles long running from Kelly Bray
to Calstock
, where an rope-worked incline
ran down to the quay on the River Tamar
. There were several branches serving copper, tin and arsenic mines and quarries.
An Act of Parliament
in 1883 authorised the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway
to take over the line. The purchase was completed in 1894. The line was rebuilt to standard gauge, although for the period 1894 to 1908 it was dual gauge
d.
Industrial railway
An industrial railway is a type of railway that is not available for public transportation and is used exclusively to serve a particular industrial, logistics or military site...
opened in 1872 to serve the iron ore and stone quarries around Callington in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
.
The line was 7½ miles long running from Kelly Bray
Kelly Bray
Kelly Bray is a village in east Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated one mile north of Callington immediately east of Kit Hill in a former mining area. Kelly Bray is first recorded ca...
to Calstock
Calstock
Calstock is civil parish and a large village in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, on the border with Devon. The village is situated on the River Tamar south west of Tavistock and north of Plymouth....
, where an rope-worked incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...
ran down to the quay on the River Tamar
River Tamar
The Tamar is a river in South West England, that forms most of the border between Devon and Cornwall . It is one of several British rivers whose ancient name is assumed to be derived from a prehistoric river word apparently meaning "dark flowing" and which it shares with the River Thames.The...
. There were several branches serving copper, tin and arsenic mines and quarries.
An Act of Parliament
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
in 1883 authorised the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway
Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway
The Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway in England was built by an independent company but operated by the London and South Western Railway as part of its main line to give it independent access to Plymouth. It ran from to Devonport Junction, just west of Plymouth North Road...
to take over the line. The purchase was completed in 1894. The line was rebuilt to standard gauge, although for the period 1894 to 1908 it was dual gauge
Dual gauge
A dual-gauge or mixed-gauge railway has railway track that allows trains of different gauges to use the same track. Generally, a dual-gauge railway consists of three rails, rather than the standard two rails. The two outer rails give the wider gauge, while one of the outer rails and the inner rail...
d.
Locomotives
| Number | Builder | Type | Date | Works number | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Neilson & Co. Neilson and Company Neilson and Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Glasgow, Scotland.The company was started in 1836 at McAlpine Street by Walter Neilson and James Mitchell to manufacture marine and stationary engines... |
0-4-0 0-4-0 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-4-0 represents one of the simplest possible types, that with two axles and four coupled wheels, all of which are driven... ST |
1871 | 1660 | Probably scrapped in 1907 |
| 2 | Neilson &Co. | 0-4-0ST | 1871 | 1661 | Converted to a standard gauge Standard gauge The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge... 0-4-2ST around 1907. Sold in 1912 and worked on the Selsey Tramway West Sussex Railway The West Sussex Railway opened in 1897 as the Hundred of Manhood and Selsey Tramway, so named to save having to build the railway to regulations that normally covered railways, later changing its name to the WSR. It closed on 19th January 1935 in the face of intensive road bus competition... until scrapped in 1927 |