|
 Our
first picture will be of interest to many readers in this area. It
shows the Marquess of Londonderry cutting the first sod on Febuary
8, 1853, of the Londonderry Seaham and Sunderland railway, which
would connect Seaham Harbour with the Port of Sunderland as well as
with Durham and Hartlepool. The railway was to proceed from a
junction with the South Hetton Colliery Railway at the Harbour, west
of the Seaham Hall gardens, then crossing the parkland to couple up
with the Durham and Sunderland line at Ryhope.
Two bridges - at Seaham and Ryhope Denes - would be required and the
computed cost of the whole track was £50,000. And so we see the
first sod being cut, but some differences arose with the N.E.R. and
the completion of the six or seven miles of track was not fully
effected for passengers until July 2, 1855.
Access to the Sunderland Docks was now available both to the
Londonderry Collieries and to South Hetton and Murton. The
Sunderland passenger station waa at Hendon Burn with intermediate
stations at Ryhope and Seaham Colliery. Its advantages soon became
evident; in fact, coal transport began as early as August, 1854. At
the cutting of the first sod on Febuary 8, 1853, the Marquess made
the following speech:
“Last Project”
“Urged on by the same principle (the formation of the Harbour)
namely that I should not have to seek a trade, for that, if I made a
harbour, the trade would come to me, I conceived a prospect of
constructing the railway we are about to commence this day. I knew
that the trade of many of the collieries, to the southward of us in
the great country must pass, sooner or later, our little half-way
house of Seaham on their way to Sunderland; and I thought if we
could get them to stop on the road, we should be safe to obtain a
large addition to our present trade.”
Engagements were formed with the South Hetton and Haswell Colliery
Companies to carry their coal over the line as soon as completed,
either to ship in the first instance, at Seaham or, if not, to send
them on to Sunderland. The trade is therefore secured before the
railway is commenced. This is my project and the simple history of
it…”
“If I live to see this last project successfully accomplished, I
shall cheerfully lay my head upon my pillow and resign life,
conscious that, so far as concerns those who interests providence
has committed to my care, I have, to the fullest extent of my means,
discharged the duty which had developed upon me”
The line remained the property of the Londonderry family until its
purchase on October 6, 1906, by the N.E.R., which linked it with its
line at Hartlepool. Later it became part of the L.N.E.R. and so it
remained until taken over by British Railways.
The Cost
We saw a week or two ago how engine works were established at Seaham
by the Londonderry family and how the line was carried on by the
able administration of the Marchioness, Lady Frances Anne after her
husband’s death. Thanks to the kindness of Mr E. Saunders, of
Sunderland, we are able to add a good deal to our own researches and
with relevant illustrations.
Most privately-owned lines were generally for mineral transport
only, but the Londonderry Railway between Seaham and Sunderland soon
became a fully-equipped goods and passenger service with a full
complement of trains and rolling stock of all descriptions. We must
remember too, that the first railway from Rainton to Seaham was, in
fact, ropeworked, as we have already seen, for the carriage of coal
to the Docks.
By 1852 the increase in his coal commitments encouraged the Marquess
to prepare a scheme whereby the larger dock accommodation at
Sunderland could also be used. So the building of the railway began
in 1853, at an estimated cost of £50,000, but eventually rose to
approximately £100,000 by such additions as stations and signal
cabins, etc.
Royal Visitors
 Works
for the building and maintenance of locomotives, wagons and
machinery were built at Seaham Harbour and the fleet of coal
steamers employed by the Marquess was repaired there. In fact, as we
have described, steam and petrol cars were built in the time of
Messrs Hardy and Allison, managers, and general engineering work was
undertaken for the public.
The works became one of the sights of the area and attracted many
visitors, including the Prince and Princess of Wales (Edward and
Alexandra), Prince Christian, the Duke and Duchess of Albany, the
Prince and Princess of Teck, the Duke of Cambridge and many other
royal and noble visitors as guests of the Marquess and Marchioness.
The railway extended seven miles in all, of which six miles was
double line. At the beginning of the century there were 13
locomotives, 4 being side-tank engines; one, saddle-tank; and 8,
tender engines.
Our pictures show some in use at this period. The locomotives were
painted green, picked out with orange yellow lines, and the initials
“L.R.,” with a coronet in between on a specially-designed side
plate. This device also may be seen on the Ryhope Dene Bridge. The
rolling stock for passenger service was painted lake red with gold
lines and there were three first-class, two second-class and
thirteen third-class carriages, with four break vans.
The goods and mineral stock numbered 2,862 vehicles. In the year
1899 first-class passengers numbered 7,666; second-class, 4,685; and
third class, 520,015. There were 140 season tickets. The total
income for that year for all services was £37,812; 869,351 tons of
coal were carried over the line that year, as well as many tons of
general goods and livestock. Goods for the stations “foreign” to
this line were loaded in N.E.R. stock and so the Londonderry rolling
stock was rarely seen off its local sytem.
The railway was mostly laid with 82lb rails of doubleheaded pattern
the remainder being 90lb bull-headed rails. For the lighter rails
sleepers measured nine feet by nine inches by four-and-a-half
inches; for heavier rails, the measures were nine feet by 12 inches
by five inches. During 1899 passenger trains covered, in all, 45,564
miles and mineral and goods trains, 151,009 miles.
Take-Over
In 1900 the N.E.R. promoted a Bill for the building of the
Hartlepool and Seaham Harbour Railway to connect with the
Londonderry lines. By 1894 the N.E.R. had already running powers
over the latter railway. However, both the Marquess and the Seaham
Harbour Docks Company opposed the Bill on the grounds that the
projected railway would interfere with one which the Marquess was
already authorized to construct from Easington Colliery to the
Londonderry Railway.
To avoid prolonged Parliamentary and legal conflict, the N.E.R. now
proposed to purchase the Londonderry Railway outright, including all
plant, rolling stock and machinery, with such exceptions as the
wagon works at Seaham, engineering stock belonging to the mineral
side, and coal depots at Seaham and Ryhope. It gave many varied
assurances, exceptions and permissions relating to engineers, loads,
sidings, junctions, communications with collieries, maintenance and
liberties, favourable to the vendors.
The Act received Royal assent on July 30, 1900, and on the following
October 6, the N.E.R. paid over £400,000 and took possession of the
railway. Finally, the line became merged with the L.N.E.R. and
remained so until taken over by British Railways. Our pictures cover
much of the history of this line and will be of general interest.
|
