- Carmarthen and Cardigan Railway
The Carmarthen and Cardigan Railway was a
broad gauge railway fromCarmarthen ,Carmarthenshire , toNewcastle Emlyn ,Wales . Part of the route is now used by theTeifi Valley Railway .Despite the name, the line never reached Cardigan. It became the
Whitland and Cardigan branch of theGreat Western Railway , which took a more westerly route which actually reached there.Chronology
* 1854 Railway authorised from Carmarthen to
Newcastle Emlyn byAct of Parliament
* 1860 Open temporarily from Carmarthen toConwil , operated by theSouth Wales Railway
* 1861 Line reopened, now operated by Carmarthen and Cardigan Railway
* 1864 Railway extended from Conwil to Pencader then Llandyssil
* 1872 Line converted tostandard gauge (although parts were already mixed gauge)
* 1881 Company sold to theGreat Western Railway
* 1895 Line extended to terminus at Newcastle Emlyntations
In order, North to South:
*
Newcastle Emlyn
*Henllan
*Pentrecourt platform
*Llandyssil
*Pencader - junction withManchester and Milford Railway
**Pencader Tunnel
*Llanpumsaint
*Conwil
*Llanfan Cerig
*Bronwydd
*Carmarthen - junction withSouth Wales Railway , still openBroad gauge locomotives
harp, Stewart 4-4-0Ts
* "Heron" (1861 - 1872)
* "Magpie" (1861 - 1872)The first two locomotives for the Carmarthen and Cardigan Railway were
4-4-0 locomotives with straight side tanks, built bySharp Stewart and Company in 1861.After the line was converted to standard gauge in 1872, they were sold to the South Devon Railway and
Cornwall Railway respectively, although the locomotives for both these railways were worked as a common pool. They were both rebuilt with saddle tanks.In 1876 they became the property of the
Great Western Railway and carried the numbers 2134 and 2135. "Magpie" was withdrawn in 1889 but "Heron" lasted until the gauge conversion. It worked the last broad gauge train from Tavistock toPlymouth Millbay railway station on20 May 1892 before pulling the empty carriages toSwindon railway works for dismantling.The locomotives were named after birds. "See
Heron andMagpie ."Rothwell 4-4-0STs
* "Etna" (1864 - 1868)
* "Hecla" (1864 - 1872)Two more locomotives were built by
Rothwell and Company in 1864, this time with saddle tanks rather than side tanks."Etna" was sold to the South Devon Railway in 1868, and "Hecla" followed when the gauge was converted in 1872. They received the numbers 2132 and 2133; at some time "Etna" received a new saddle tank and its name was lost. They both survived until the end of the broad gauge in 1892.
The locomotives were named after volcanoes. "See
Mount Etna andHekla ."tandard gauge locomotives
Four standard gauge locomotives were operated by the Carmarthen and Cardigan Railway, three of them secondhand from the Great Western Railway.
References
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*External links
* [http://www.railscot.co.uk/Carmarthen_and_Cardigan_Railway/frame.htm Carmarthen and Cardigan Railway at railscot.co.uk]
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