The Engine House

View of The Engine House from Highley Station (Wikimedia Commons)

The Engine House at Highley is the SVRSevern Valley Railway's main museum. It is situated approximately 200 yards from Highley Station, on the site of the former sidings of Highley Colliery.

Although closely associated with the SVRSevern Valley Railway, Kidderminster Railway Museum is a separate charitable organisation.

History

The Engine House was originally conceived as a simple storage building to house "out-of-ticket" engines under cover in order to reduce the damage done by the weather. However, for various reasons including attracting external funding, the project morphed into the visitor museum that stands today, whilst still achieving the original aim of storing locomotives. The "modern" architectural design of the building has attracted polarised comments, with land instability due to mining often being cited as the reason why a more traditional look could not be adopted.

The Engine House was scheduled to open in the summer of 2007. However Highley was one of the locations which suffered significant damage in the freak storms in June and July of that year. As a result, opening to the public was delayed until Good Friday, 21 March 2008; the day which also saw the resumption of services over the full length of the line.

An opening ceremony was held in summer 2009. However the SVRSevern Valley Railway’s patron H.R.H. The Duke of Gloucester was unable to attend due to illness, so The Lord Lieutenant of Shropshire carried out the official duties in his place. The Duke finally visited the Engine House on 21 October 2009, when he also carried out the opening ceremony for the new Highley footbridge.

There were over 120,000 visitors to the Engine House during the first 2 years of opening^[1].

Items on display and facilities

Steam locomotives currently on display while awaiting overhaul are:

GWR Mogul 7325 (footplate accessible, including the less able)
LMS Stanier Class 5 45110
LMS Ivatt Class 2 46443
LMS Jinty 47383
LMS Stanier 8F 48773
BR Riddles 4MT 80079
LMR 600 Gordon
Hunslet 686 The Lady Armaghdale

Carriages and goods wagons on display include:

Royal Coach 798 (Internal viewing may be available, ask staff for details)
Travelling Post Office (TPO) 80300 (interior accessible)
LNER 223162 Mineral Wagon

In 2015 a new display was introduced celebrating 50 years of the Severn Valley Railway. There are numerous other exhibits, video features and interactive items.

Facilities at The Engine House include the 'Flag & Whistle Food Stop' restaurant, a gift shop and an outdoor children's play area. The restaurant balcony and outdoor picnic areas overlook the line and give good views of trains leaving and arriving at Highley.

Entry to the Engine House is free with possession of a valid ‘Freedom of the line’ ticket; otherwise an admission fee is payable.