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| Bluebell Railway line extension http://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=34845 |
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| Author: | tomgears [ Mon Apr 08, 2013 8:46 am ] |
| Post subject: | Bluebell Railway line extension |
Last Thursday I visited the Bluebell Railway. They have recently opened a new extension which is about 3 miles, one remarkable part is they had to excavate a huge cut, my estimate about 200 yards long which was filled with years of the town's garbage. It's been said many times that the UK leads the world in railway preservation. The story of the extension is worth a read. http://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/blueb ... tprog.html |
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| Author: | Les Beckman [ Mon Apr 08, 2013 11:25 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
tomgears wrote: They have recently opened a new extension which is about 3 miles, one remarkable part is they had to excavate a huge cut, my estimate about 200 yards long which was filled with years of the town's garbage. Tom - This reminds me of another rail preservation story (on a much smaller scale) where garbage was involved. Some years ago, when travelling one cold day through Forrest, Illinois, I passed what appeared to be a turntable. I eventually made my way over to it and confirmed that that was exactly what it was. The table was surrounded by young trees (if it had been summer, I probably wouldn't have even noticed it). But what also was "interesting" was that the locals had apparently been using the pit as a garbage dump. What a mess! I wondered if the garbage might have been a reason why the railroad (NS by this time) had never gone in there and bothered to scrap it. The table was originally Wabash and had once serviced (from photos I saw later) a rather large roundhouse. Anyway, a number of years went by and on a subsequent visit, I found that someone (local historical society maybe?) had gone in there and cleaned everything up. The turntable sat out in the open again, the garbage all removed. Some other nearby structures (a hotel and the local joint TP&W/Wabash depot) were apparently also being worked on. Eventually, an N&W (ex-NKP #442) bay window caboose was brought in and a n.g. railroad (live steam?) laid down. Today, the efforts continue with the depot apparently being currently worked on. The turntable remains, although it could certainly use some primer and a good coat of paint. But, in any event, in this case, the garbage may have been a reason for the tables current existance. The Bluebell Railway has done a wonderful job with their line extension. Another reason to head over there to see all those wonderful English "goodies". Les |
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| Author: | p51 [ Tue Apr 09, 2013 2:17 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
Les Beckman wrote: Some years ago, when travelling one cold day through Forrest, Illinois, I passed what appeared to be a turntable. I eventually made my way over to it and confirmed that that was exactly what it was. The table was surrounded by young trees (if it had been summer, I probably wouldn't have even noticed it). But what also was "interesting" was that the locals had apparently been using the pit as a garbage dump. Wow, I had no idea that was there. Recent photos are hard to find but I found one here: http://bridgehunter.com/photos/24/49/244972-L.jpg |
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| Author: | christensenge [ Tue Apr 09, 2013 3:16 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
The culmination of 40 years of railway preservation effort ... those Bluebell "chaps" deserve a lot or credit. They are truly a "class act". I won't miss the bus ride from East Grinstead to Kingscote one bit. Best Regards, Glenn |
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| Author: | Bruce Duensing [ Wed Apr 10, 2013 10:49 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
Two amazing stories in one thread. |
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| Author: | Les Beckman [ Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:40 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
Bruce - The one amazing story (in Forrest, Illinois) continues. While passing through there today on the way to Bloomington, Illinois, I was surprised to see work being done on the depot. As I have read on the local groups website, the original depot burned to the ground in 1893. A second depot was built and that one burned exactly a year later. A third station was then built, and is the one surviving today. What amazed me in my quick drive by today is that the turret on the corner has been rebuilt! I am not sure on which of the three stations this turret was originally on, but I think (not 100% sure) that the "L" section (on the old TP&W side) has been removed. I had no time, and no camera with me, to take a photo today. But this group continues to amaze me with their work. A photo would certainly be welcome. Les |
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| Author: | Rob Gardner [ Wed Mar 05, 2014 10:58 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
Do What Is The NG or live steam railroad in Forest, Illinois around the turntable? Rob Gardner |
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| Author: | weekendrailroader [ Thu Mar 06, 2014 2:36 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
Here's the Illinois group's website: http://www.forrestil.org/RRP.html |
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| Author: | Les Beckman [ Thu Mar 06, 2014 10:58 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
weekendrailroader wrote: Here's the Illinois group's website: http://www.forrestil.org/RRP.html Drew - Thanks for posting this. I am not sure that the "turret" replicated on the current depot is exactly as the one shown on the station photo on the website, but it is probably close. Also, the drawing for the "Forrest Railroad Park" seems to have some differences on it as compared to what is there today. For instance, note that the plan shows an "historic depot" and the station with the new "turret" is much larger and in the original location. Les |
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| Author: | J3a-614 [ Thu Mar 06, 2014 9:13 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Bluebell Railway line extension |
The Bluebell excavation can only be described as HUGE! Some videos that can only hint at what was done: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dl38F1teNFI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUUSDBG5adE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMLEbIQ5ZzA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dyJU7KySig A great hats-off to the people of the Bluebell!! |
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