Model Railway Forum

Part 1 The Billingsley Plateway ...

Highley, and the area immediately around, it has a long industrial history and the remains of numerous railways and tramways can be seen today. At the end of the 18th century coal mines and a blast furnace were opened in Billingsley. The linked article looks at the Plateway which first served Billingsley.

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/02/11/ra ... th-part-1/

Railways Around Bridgnorth again. .....

South of Bridgnorth in the valley of the River Severn were a series of collieries and associated sidings:

Alveley Sidings and Alveley Colliery with a private railway/aerial ropeway;
Highley Station;
Highley Colliery & Sidings;
The Billingsley Railway & Collery; and
Kinlet Colliery and Sidings.

These locations were all within the Wyre Forest Coalfield. All were connected to the GWR Severn Valley Railway (SVR). This next article looks at each of these locations in turn:

http://rogerfarnworth.com/2023/02/13/ra ... rth-part-2

Reverend Farnsworth, I do enjoy reading your excellent research when i have the time to sit in one place long enough, but it requires close attention and a block of time. This may be a bit of a reach, but is it at all possible you might compile your superb articles into an audible download, perhaps read by yourself? That way I could multitask. I am always astonished at the depth of research that you pour into each article, and wish I had more time to go through them.

On a little different subject, I have a question, and you might. be the man to know the riddle: Stephenson's Rocket. Since almost everything had to be forged from ore or cut from a tree, how then did water get from its tender to the boiler? I understand that they had some sort of one way valve that was an established bit of mechanical engineering, but what of the hose? Creating a water tight, pressure resistant tube is not something that one could buy off the shelf, in 1827.

I have poured over the literature and examined photographs of the extant rocket until my eyes hurt, but cannot see evidence of a hose.

It did become evident that they were pretty good at making pumps, and one surmises that the all important pressure gauge was something that could be purchased, ready made. From whom or where there is no clue.

Thank in advance for any light you can shed on the subjects.

Thank you for the kind comments.

I will have a think about this.