hull barnsley (1 Ergebnisse)

Folio ledger, lined paper, approx. 200pp. Label of the West Yorkshire Printing Co., booksellers, printers, publishers, stationers, Wakefield. Titled in MS. on initial blank; details of works on 'Railway 1' occupying 10pp; works on 'Railway 2' occupying 12pp later in the volume; all other leaves blank. Orig. unlettered half maroon morocco, dark green cloth sides; a little rubbed. A fascinating volume of manuscript notes made during the construction of the Hull, Barnsley & West Riding Joint Railway, July 1881-April 1882. The notes, presumably by one of the line's engineers, focus on the excavation of several cuttings, noting the rate of progress of the excavators, the use of steam navvies, the numbers of men (and boys), wagons and horses employed, and the amount and properties of the soil and rock excavated. The notes are illustrated in places with neat pen-&-ink line diagrams, showing longitudinal and cross sections of the cuttings, and the position of the steam excavator. There are also a couple of small diagrams showing rail alignments. Figures provided show that works continued steadily, albeit with occasional problems. In one place the writer notes, 'Lucas + Aird [the contractors] very disorganised', and in another, 'Steam navvy is very old, + when received on works was in very bad condition requiring several weeks for repair'. On some parts of the project, where rock was encountered, 'blasting' was required, but for soil and loose shale no blasting was required, 'the bucket cutting through everything'. A note dated 27 Sep. 1881, regarding the South Kirkby tunnel, records the contractor spending 'about £50 per week in explosions for headings'. The two main engineers on the line were William Shelford and Steven Best. This detailed schedule of work was likely made by one of them or someone from their offices. The line was finally opened in 1885, connecting the collieries around Barnsley with the docks at Hull. Despite the name, the line never quite reached the town of Barnsley, stopping just East of it in Cudworth. It was taken over by the North Eastern Railway in 1922, which was itself absorbed into the LNER in 1923. Much of the line was closed during the 1950s and 60s.