Stourbridge Shed

Stourbridge Shed roundhouse

Locomotives used on the Severn Valley Branch in commercial service were mainly operated from the southern end of the line by locomotives based at Worcester, with its sub-shed Hartlebury, and from the northern end of the line by locomotives from Shrewsbury shed. Some local and through services on the Severn Valley and Tenbury branches were operated by engines stabled at Kidderminster Shed. Locomotives were also based at other sheds in the area including Stourbridge Shed. In particular, the daily Stourbridge – Tenbury Goods would regularly be a Stourbridge based loco.

Stourbridge Shed history

Stourbridge Shed, which formed part of the Wolverhampton District, was located in Amblecote, over a mile north of the present-day Stourbridge Junction station. Although it was officially named Stourbridge, many local railwaymen referred to it as 'Amblecote'.

The extract from the 1949 map below shows the area north of Stourbridge Junction station. Proceeding north, the Stourbridge Town branch curves away to the left leading to Stourbridge Town station and onwards (goods only) to Amblecote Goods Yard. The Stourbridge Branch then curves away to the right, the route to Birmingham still in use today. The former OWWOxford Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway line continues north over Stambermill Viaduct with the engine sheds to the left of the line beyond it.

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  OSOrdnance Survey Map of Stourbridge, 1949

The first locomotive depot at Stourbridge was a 4-road shed built by the GWRGreat Western Railway in 1870 and given the shed code STB. Additional land for a larger engine shed building was acquired in 1913 and ground works began in May 1914. Construction was put on hold after the outbreak of the First World War; when the 'New Shed' eventually opened on 8 February 1926 it became the last roundhouse to be built by the GWRGreat Western Railway. It housed a 65ft turntable with 28 storage and maintenance roads. The original shed building (thereafter known as the 'Old Shed') was officially closed at the same time but soon reverted to use housing steam railmotors and diesel railcars.

A more detailed view of Stourbridge Shed from the 1949 OSOrdnance Survey map can be seen below. It shows the relative size and position of the original 4-road shed and the 1926 roundhouse, although curiously it appears that none of the OSOrdnance Survey detailed maps from 1926 onwards were ever updated to show the layout of the rails running into the latter.

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  OSOrdnance Survey Map of Stourbridge, 1949

The turntable with its storage and maintenance roads occupied the entire width of the 1926 building and was accessed by the central door seen in the main picture (top right). The protruding extensions to the left and right (as seen) housed offices and the repair shop respectively.

At 31 December 1947 the Stourbridge locomotive allocation was 2 diesel railcars (nos 8 and 33) and 82 steam locomotives including future SVRSevern Valley Railway resident 4150 which is likely to have worked on the Severn Valley Branch. Future SVRSevern Valley Railway resident 2857 was also allocated to Stourbridge between 1947 and 1951, although that class would not have been allowed north of Bewdley.

The Stourbridge shed code became 84F under BRBritish Rail or British Railways(W) and finally 2C under BRBritish Rail or British Railways(LM) in September 1963.

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  Stourbridge-based ex-GWRGreat Western Railway Pannier 6424 arrives at Kidderminster with an auto train from Bewdley in 1963

The same month saw the closure of passenger services on the Severn Valley branch; the last BRBritish Rail or British Railways passenger train into Bridgnorth from the south on 8 September 1963 was hauled by Stourbridge-based ex-GWRGreat Western Railway pannier tanks numbers 9624 and 4665.

Kidderminster Shed closed on 10 August 1964, with the last 8 engines being transferred to Stourbridge 2 days earlier. The last 8 engines at Kidderminster were:

• CollettCharles Benjamin Collett, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1922-1941 5700 Class 0-6-0PT Nos 3601, 3607, 3619, 8718
• CollettCharles Benjamin Collett, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Great Western Railway 1922-1941 5101 Class 2-6-2T Nos 4147, 4153, 4173, 4175

Stourbridge MPDMotive Power Depot closed to steam on 11 July 1966, although the 'old' and 'new' sheds continued to host DMUs and diesel locomotives for a time.

On 22 February 1967 the SVRSevern Valley Railway's first locomotive, 3205, was hauled 'dead' from Devon to Stourbridge with three coaches, W3755/W3756 and W6562. A fourth coach, W7285, arrived at Stourbridge just over a week later. Over the next few weeks working parties at Stourbridge prepared 3205 to be steamed and loaded 6 tons of coal into the tender from ground level. On 25 March 1967 3205 and the four coaches worked through to Bridgnorth in steam, the footplate crew being Stourbridge Driver Cyril Williams, the SVRSevern Valley Railway's Driver John Hill and Gerry Carter as Fireman.

On 22 April 46443 worked from Newton Heath to Bridgnorth in steam. The journey included a stop at Stourbridge MPDMotive Power Depot for a change of BRBritish Rail or British Railways footplate crew and for the locomotive to take water.

On 15 September 1967 3205 worked to Taplow for a GWRGreat Western Railway open day. Stourbridge drivers Vic Adams and Gerry Young acted as pilotmen during the outward journey, with Stourbridge Driver Foxall and Fireman Cooper working the return journey.

Stourbridge MPDMotive Power Depot was formerly home to a 'breakdown train' whose rolling stock was acquired by Chris George and a group of SVRSevern Valley Railway members in early 1968. The five vehicles comprised steam crane GWR RS38 and two match trucks, plus Tool Van DW112 and Riding Van DW118 which came fully equipped with tools and equipment. The crane and trucks were collected from Bewdley by 46443 and delivered to Bridgnorth on 13 April 1968, with tool and riding vans being delivered by the same method on 4 May 1968.

The original water tank and water columns at Bridgnorth had been demolished by BRBritish Rail or British Railways before preservation began. The Severn Valley Society obtained the 'rail level' water columns from Stourbridge to provide the first watering facilities at Bridgnorth (apart from a simple hosepipe connected to a tap), although they were in turn replaced in 1972 by the platform water columns from Henley.

Both Stourbridge Shed buildings had been demolished by June 1969.

See also

Kidderminster Shed

Notes

References

Links