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1863-project · 11 months

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Happy Mallard Day!

Most people in my country will be celebrating tomorrow, July 4th. I’m a bit unusual for an American in that I’m always more excited for July 3rd, because a remarkable feat of engineering history happened that day in 1938 (in multiple senses of the word). Today I’m going to tell the story of a locomotive named for a duck.

(Image: 4468 Mallard, a streamlined 4-6-2 Pacific locomotive, sitting pretty in York, England, United Kingdom. She is painted bright blue with red wheel spokes.)

The story begins well before July 3rd, 1938, of course - mechanical engineer Sir Nigel Gresley was well established in his position as the CME of the London and North Eastern Railway by that date. In 1923, his most famous creation, a 4-6-2 Pacific A1 numbered 4472, took to the rails for the first time. Originally numbered 1472, within a year of running between London to Edinburgh she received her more familiar 4472 after the LNER finally settled on a company-wide numbering scheme - and the name she’d be best known under, Flying Scotsman. She became the company’s flagship locomotive and solidified Gresley’s ability to design Pacifics in the mind of the public.

Her most important contribution to what I’m about to get into the meat of here, though, occurred on November 30th, 1934. On that date, pulling a light testing train behind her, Flying Scotsman hit 100 mph, becoming the first locomotive to hit that speed whilst being officially measured. Other locomotives may have reached 100 mph before, most notably GWR 3700 City of Truro and NYC 999, but this was the first time the speed was officially recorded, and so Scotsman got her name into the record books.

Dating back to the 19th century, railroads in Great Britain competed against each other in what was known as the Race to the North, in which they actively attempted to outdo each other and get passengers from the south, usually London, up to various destinations in Scotland. Nobody ever actually said they were racing, of course, but in retrospect it was pretty obvious what was going on as the railroads introduced faster and faster services. By the 1930s, the railroads had been consolidated into four companies - the Big Four (the Great Western, the Southern, the London, Midland and Scottish, and the heroes of this story, the London and North Eastern). The LMS controlled the West Coast Main Line, and the LNER controlled the East Coast Main Line. (This is important.) In 1927, the LNER started running the named train Flying Scotsman non-stop from London to Edinburgh, utilizing corridor tenders to perform crew changes at speed without stopping. Not to be outdone, the LMS beat them to the punch, running non-stop services between London and Glasgow and London and Edinburgh on their own, and it was officially on. Although speeds were still within a reasonable range at this point, both railroads knew they needed to go faster, and Sir Nigel Gresley looked to Germany.

In Germany, a new streamlined service called the Flying Hamburger had been introduced. This was a diesel train set that ran between Hamburg and Berlin at remarkably high speeds - it had an average speed of 77 mph and could hit around 99-100 mph at its maximum. For regular service, this was impressive, and Gresley wondered if the same could be done using steam power. He knew streamlining was the key, but the LNER knew that the diesels in Germany didn’t have the same passenger capacity as their steam locomotives could pull in carriages, so he needed to get creative. He looked to Bugatti for inspiration; their racecars, in their resplendent blue, were but one thing the car company was working on - they were making streamlined railcars, as well. Gresley took note of their designs, and his new locomotives would eventually pay homage by being colored Bugatti blue.

(Image: a Bugatti Type 54 racecar, painted in a vivid blue.)

By the time Flying Scotsman hit 100 mph in 1934 and another Gresley Pacific locomotive, A3 2750 Papyrus, managed to hit a whopping 108 mph without streamlining, the LNER knew that Gresley was capable of the task, and they allowed him to design a streamlined locomotive. Gresley set to work making improvements to his A3 design, and the first four A4s were born.

(Image: an unidentified A4 Pacific locomotive.)

The A4s were fast, hitting 112 mph on the inaugural run of the Silver Jubilee service between London and Newcastle in 1935. Gresley, of course, was not satisfied - he knew he could still improve his design, and at any rate, his competition over at the LMS was going to be trying to catch him. He went back to the drawing board to make the A4s even better.

As this was going on, the LMS was indeed playing catchup, and they introduced their beautiful Coronation class locomotives, designed to pull the Coronation Scot starting in 1937. The first several of them were streamlined in gorgeous, bright casings, and they caused a stir, taking the British speed record back at 114 mph in an attempt by 6220 Coronation that ended with a sudden braking and a whole lot of kitchenware being flung every which way in the dining car. Engineer/driver T.J. Clark and fireman C. Lewis kept her under control, but the passengers were not amused, and speed records were shelved for the time being...until, once again, Germany entered the fray.

Back in 1936, a German locomotive, the DRG Class 05, set a land speed record for steam, hitting 124.5 mph. Gresley was aware of this and had it in the back of his mind as he improved his A4s. He experimented with giving some of them a Kylchap exhaust system, an innovation developed by French locomotive designer André Chapelon after the work of Finnish engineer Kyösti Kylälä. Chapelon’s work went woefully under-acknowledged, but Gresley paid attention and appreciated his work, and it would pay off. Wind tunnel tests proved a bit frustrating at first until a fortuitous accidental thumbprint helped to move the smoke up and over the locomotive instead of in the crew’s faces, and the stage was set.

4468 Mallard rolled off the line at Doncaster Works on March 3rd, 1938, her name derived from Gresley’s love of breeding waterfowl. Indeed, many of her sibling locomotives were also named for birds, like 4464 Bittern, 4467 Wild Swan, 4902 Seagull, and 4903 Peregrine, but the duck was about to steal the show. Mallard spent the next few months getting used to working and being broken in so she wasn’t brand new, and on the day she turned four months old, it was time to make history.

Mallard’s driver that day was a 61-year-old grandfather named Joe Duddington. As a locomotive engineer, he was experienced and knew how to take calculated risks, and so he’d been assigned to pilot her. With him on the footplate was fireman Tommy Bray and his massive tattooed arms, ready to keep Mallard fed as they drove into the history books. They were performing a “brake test” that day, or so the LNER told most people, passengers included, but Joe and Tommy knew what was actually going on. In the cab with them was an LNER official, Inspector Jenkins, and attached to the train behind the tender was a dynamometer car, there to record Mallard’s speed throughout her run. Since this was an alleged “brake test” the dynamometer car didn’t raise any eyebrows right away. Gresley himself unfortunately wasn’t in the best health that day and was unable to be present himself, but there were enough LNER officials on hand to see to it that everything ran smoothly. Mallard was fitted with a stink bomb of sorts of aniseed in case the big end bearing for the middle of her three cylinders overheated, as the A4s had previously had difficulty with this, and she set out heading northwards. The return trip was where everything was going to get serious.

Upon turning around to return south to King’s Cross, passengers were finally informed of what was going to happen and were given the opportunity to disembark and take another train if they were worried, especially given what had happened during the LMS record attempt a year prior. Everyone agreed to stay on board. Joe Duddington turned his hat backwards, a reference to George Formby’s character in the film No Limit, and opened the throttle.

Mallard slid back onto the main line, headed towards Grantham, where the speed-up was to begin. Unfortunately, work on the track limited her to only 15 mph at this stage, and Joe Duddington got her through the Grantham station at only 24 mph instead of the 60-70 mph she should have been at. Nevertheless, she began to build up more and more speed as she climbed up Stoke Bank, and Duddington had her at a solid 85 mph at the summit.

“Once over the top, I gave Mallard her head, and she just jumped to it like a live thing,” Duddington recounted later in an interview. Her speed rapidly increased, and she was soon hitting 110 mph, at which point he told her, “Go on, old girl, we can do better than this!” Mallard responded, and by the time she was flying through a village called Little Bytham, a blur of blue paint and pumping rods and flying ash, she had well exceeded the LMS record and was even with the German DRG Class 05. The needle in the dynamometer car tipped up higher and higher and surpassed the Class 05 by slipping up to 125 mph...then, for about a quarter of a mile, reached even higher, at 126 mph. She’d done it.

Mallard had to slow down soon after because of a junction, but Joe Duddington and Tommy Bray were sure she could have gone faster had they not had to slow for construction - they believed she was capable of 130. The big end bearing did overheat, and Mallard was detached from the train at Peterborough and brought back to Doncaster to be fixed up, but not before one of the most famous photos in railroad history was taken:

(Image: the crew poses in front of Mallard, a 4-6-2 Pacific locomotive numbered 4468, immediately after setting the speed record. L-R: Tommy Bray [fireman], Joe Duddington [driver/engineer], Inspector Jenkins, Henry Croucher [guard/conductor]. Joe Duddington has turned his hat around to face the correct way again after having it on backwards during the record run. Photo credit: National Railway Museum.)

Joe Duddington actually stayed on a bit past his retirement age to help free up soldiers for the war effort. When he finally retired, on his final day of work, he drove Mallard one last time.

Sir Nigel Gresley himself never accepted the brief stint at 126 mph, instead saying his locomotive set the speed record at 125 mph. But history has accepted the 126 mph as the true top speed, given that Mallard was possibly capable of even more, and today she has plaques on her streamlined cladding to commemorate her feat. A second record attempt was planned to see if she could go even faster, but World War II broke out and the idea was scrapped.

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Tommy Bray eventually got on the throttle himself, fulfilling his own dreams. Both men are honored in a cemetery in Doncaster with a new memorial headstone for Duddington featuring Mallard on it.

As for Mallard herself, she continued working until April 25th, 1963, at which point she’d clocked nearly a million and a half miles in service. She was pulled for preservation for obvious reasons, and today she lives at the National Railway Museum in York, along with her dynamometer car that recorded her history-setting run. Five of her A4 siblings also survive, and a few of them are operational to this day, including the one named for her designer, Sir Nigel Gresley. Of all of his ‘birds,’ the one that flew fastest was the humble duck.

For more on Mallard and her creator Gresley, here are a few resources:

Mallard: How the Blue Streak Broke the World Speed Record by Don Hale is a great book on the subject that I enjoyed thoroughly. It does have a Kindle edition if you’d prefer an ebook variation, as well, and most major book retailers carry it on their websites.

The National Railway Museum, Mallard’s retirement home, has a 3D experience/ride of sorts that simulates what it was like to be running with her that day, the video of which is online here. Note the music, which mirrors her three cylinders pumping away. The video isn’t able to be embedded, but you can watch it here. There’s also a child-friendly version, too.

Lastly, the appropriately named prog rock band Big Big Train did a song about Mallard called East Coast Racer, which regularly moves me to tears because this locomotive means so much to me and they tell her story so lovingly.

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I actually recommend checking out the live version, too, because they show the photo of the crew at the end and every single time I start sobbing.

If you want to visit the old girl herself, she’s at the National Railway Museum in York in the UK, and they have a ton of amazing resources and incredible locomotives and rolling stock in their collection. I’d highly recommend checking them out if you can!

Happy Mallard Day, everyone. Fly far, fly fast, make history.

#LNER Mallard #LNER 4468 Mallard #LNER #LNER A4 #I like trains #I spent literal hours on this whoops #but she's really important to me

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cerenemuxse · 4 months

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The engines as different basis (EoSR but built different) - 1

(Tender engines as tank engines, vice versa)

From No. 1 - 6 (Thomas, Edward, Emily, Henry, Gordon, James)

NWR 1 Thomas (formerly LBSCR 307, SR 2307)

Class: London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway (LBSCR) Class C3 Horsham Goods

Previous Owners: London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway; Southern Railway; British Railways (Southern Region)

Built: August 1906

Real-life Withdrawal: May 1949 (never received a BR number)

Designer: Douglas Earle Marsh

Builder: Brighton Works

Bio:

Thomas is the first tender engine purchased by the NWR, after the withdrawals of the original NWR 1 - 6 (the last one being in 1925). The NWR had believed that they wouldn't need any tender engine power until the withdrawal of NWR 1 in 1925.

NWR 2 Edward (formerly W&SR 5)

Class: Dublin, Wicklow and Wexford Railway (DW&WR) 52 class; North Western Railway (NWR) Class S-W52

Previous Owners: Wellsworth & Suddery Railway

Built: 1893

Real-life Withdrawal: n/a

Designer: William Wakefield

Builder: Sharp, Stewart and Company (Glasgow, Scotland)

Bio:

Edward was commissioned by the Wellsworth and Suddery Railway. His design was altered so that he could run on standard gauge rails. When the merger occured, he was passed down to the NWR, along with Emily, and the NWR attempted to rebuild him so he could handle the new jobs. This did not work out, resulting in Edward having poor steaming issues. He was swapped with Emily, working lighter and fewer jobs.

NWR 3 Emily (formerly GNR 1009 and W&SR 6)

Class: Great Northern Railway (GNR) Class H1 Stirling Tank; North Western Railway (NWR) Class S-S1 Stirling Tank

Basis (Inspiration): GNR Stirling Single A3, GNR G1, and B&ER 4-2-4 tank engines

Previous Owners: Great Northern Railway; Wellsworth and Suddery Railway

Built: 1882

Real-life Withdrawal: n/a

Designer: Patrick Stirling

Builder: Doncaster Works

Bio:

Emily is an experimental tank engine version of the GNR A1, A2, and A3 Stirling Singles, with a wheel config of 4-2-4T. While she did perform decently, she did not perform as they expected so she was withdrawn. The Wellsworth and Suddery Railway took interest in Emily. They purchased her from the GNR before she could be sold to a scrapyard. She worked welled on the W&SR, able to be passed down to the NWR in 1915, along with Edward. She ended up replacing Edward on the express passenger service when the latter's rebuilds proved to worsen his performance.

NWR 4 Henry

Class: North Eastern Railway (NER) Class F; North Western Railway (NWR) Class S-S5 (4-6-4T) Black Five Tank

Basis (Inspiration): NER Class D (pre-1935); LNER Class A2 (pre-1935); LMS Class 5MT Black Fives (post-1935); LMS 4MT 2-6-4T (two-cylinder) (post-1935)

Previous Owners: Unknown

Built: 1920

Real-life Withdrawal: n/a

Designer: Vincent Raven; Henry Stanier

Builder: Unknown

Bio:

Henry was built from stolen duplicates of Vincent Raven's plans of a 4-6-2T, which were derived from the NER Class D (4-4-4T). Unfortunately, these duplicate plans were the discarded designs due to uneven weights on the chassis and the use of a Schmidt boiler. He was under-powered and a hazard to operate. Sir Louis Topham Hatt I was swindled to buy Henry in 1922 when promised that Henry would be the next best thing for railways. This was when the NWR believed that they wouldn't need tender engines to run the railway. After the Flying Kipper crash, Henry was rebuilt into a new class of his own, the LMS Class 5MT Black Five Tank.

NWR 5 Gordon

Class: Great Northern Railway (GNR) Class B1; North Western Railway (NWR) Class S-G1

Basis (Inspiration): GNR Gresley Class A1, GNR Gresley Class A3, and GNR Gresley Class N2

Previous Owners: Great Northern Railway

Built: 1920 - 1923

Real-life Withdrawal: n/a

Designer: Nigel Gresley

Builder: Doncaster Works

Bio:

Gordon is an experimental tank version of the GNR Gresley A1s, in hopes of surpassing the capabilities of the Gresley N2s. This did not work out but served as a basis for the LNER V1s. He was sold off to the NWR, replacing Emily on heavy passenger duty, which was the express service for the NWR.

NWR 6 James (formerly L&YR 506, LMS 11546)

Class: Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) Class 24; NWR Class S-A25

Previous Owners: L&YR, LNWR, LMS

Built: 1919

Real-life Withdrawal: 1959 (BR number would've been 51546)

Designer: John Audley Frederick Aspinall

Builder: Horwich Works

Bio:

James was bought as he was originally built in 1925. However, Sir Bertram Topham Hatt II ordered for James to be rebuilt into a 2-6-2T. This took well over a few months until they finally came up with a decent design. Unfortunately, James' great performance came at the cost of James' loosing his memories.

#eosr but built different #ttte thomas #ttte edward #ttte emily #ttte henry #ttte gordon #ttte james #her train of thoughts #''what if'' AUs are so fun #ttte #ttte au

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stephensmithuk · 11 months

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The Empty House

Published in 1903, this was the first Holmes short story for a decade. Doyle had previously released - in a serial format - The Hound of the Baskervilles, which was set before "The Final Problem".

ACD had become Sir Arthur Conan Doyle by this point, honoured in the 1902 Coronation Honours, arguably for a pro-Boer War short work he wrote. That's what he believed in any event.

This is the first story in The Return of Sherlock Holmes and the second that we've covered - we did "The Second Stain" previously because Baring-Gould's chronology puts it quite early.

Park Lane, as I might have mentioned previously, is a highly desirable street and is the equivalent of Park Place on the London Monopoly board.

"Honourable" is the courtesy title used for the younger sons of earls; it's also used by most members of the House of Commons. Insert joke about politicians here.

Carstairs is a village in South Lanarkshire Scotland. It is best known in British railway circles as a major junction and the place where the London to Edinburgh & Glasgow sleeper is split up, a section for each destination.

Expanding bullets were also known as dum-dum bullets after the Indian city of Dum Dum where some of them were made. The hollow point is a more modern version. The nastier injuries that they cause led to their banning from use in warfare in the 1899 Hague Convention, but they remain legal for law enforcement use, it being argued there is less risk of harm to bystanders as the bullet will not pass through.

Baritsu is possibly a typo for Bartitsu, a martial art invented by Edward William Barton-Wright, an engineer who had spent three years living in Japan. Combining elements of boxing, cane fighting, jujitsu and Frence kickboxing, it faded into obscurity during the 20th century before making something of a small comeback in the 21st.

Mecca, then under Ottoman rule, is closed to non-Muslims and the Ahmadiyya movement (seen as heretics). Holmes likely followed some other Westerners by getting in disguised as a Muslim.

The "Khalifa" was Abdallahi ibn Muhammad, a figure who tried to set up an Islamic caliphate in Sudan and the surrounding area at this time (1893). He faced an Anglo-Egyptian invasion in 1896-1899, lost and then engaged in a final stand at the Battle of Umm Diwaykarat in October 1899. To make use of a famous phrase, the other side had Maxim guns and he did not; the battle was massively one-sided, resulting in his death.

The "Jew's harp" is a mouth harp. It's probably from Siberia.

"Journeys end in lovers' meetings" is from Twelfth Night.

A shikari is a big game hunter.

Charasiab was an 1879 battle between the British and Indian Army on one side, with Afghans on the other. The British used Gatling guns for the first time in anger and won, capturing Kabul shortly after.

Despatches refers to the fact that Moran's conduct in the battle was sufficiently brave or high quality to warrant a mention in the official report sent to London and usually published in The London Gazette, the official government journal of record. This still exists and is used to formally announce honours etc. like Arthur Conan Doyle's knighthood. Simply put, it is an official commendation - not a gallantry medal, but one may well follow.

The Scotland Yard Museum, historically known as the Black Museum and now the Crime Museum, is a collection of criminal artefacts used for teaching purposes. Located in the basement of the current New Scotland Yard (the third to use that name) it is not open to the public - only police officers are generally allowed in and need an appointment. The Metropolitan Police has a public museum in Sidcup, but this is also appointment only.

#letters from watson #sherlock holmes #history #factoids #the empty house #EMPT

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scotianostra · 15 days

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Footballer John Harley died on this May 15th 1960.

Harley was born in Glasgow, in 1886. By 1906 he had become a railway engineer working in Springburn. Scotland has a fine tradition for producing Engineers, and they plied their trade throughout the world.

By 1906 aged 20 Johnny Harley was a railway engineer working in Springburn, in that year he moved to South America to work on railways along the Río de la Plata. Initially he worked in Argentina where he worked for the Bahía Blanca and North Western Railway and the Buenos Aires Western Railway.

On arriving in Uruguay in 1909 Harley worked for the Central Uruguay Railway. He worked for the railway for 37 years until his retirement. During this time he also played football for teams in Argentina (Club Ferro Carril Oeste) and Uruguay (Peñarol), becoming known as Juan Harley or El Yoni. Peñarol managed the team when they won their first two league titles in 1918 and 1920. Harley's time with Peñarol as a player and manager is considered significant for the fact that he changed the Uruguayan style of football from a focus on long ball to a game that featured short passing. This style of play is considered to have contributed to Peñarol and Uruguay achieving their success up to the 1920s.

El Yoni went on to win 17 caps for the Uruguay national team, he also managed the team for a year.

Johnny Harley is buried at the Montevideo British Cemetery.

Read more about him and the Scottish influence in Uruguayan football here https://www.scottishfootballmuseum.org.uk/news/scottish-influence-in-shaping-uruguayan-football/

#scotland #scottish #history #sporting history #uruguay #football #south america

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nj-ayuk1 · 4 months

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NJ Ayuk Chimes in on Principles and Energy Policy

Although the oil and natural gas industry is often painted as greedy, it has the potential to create immense good for the world’s most disadvantaged people — as long as leaders adhere to a few moral principles, according to NJ Ayuk, executive chairman of the African Energy Chamber.

Speaking before a crowd of students at the 9th Annual Cambridge Africa Together Conference at the prestige Jesus College, University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, Ayuk explained how he planned to fight for social justice throughout his legal career, but the promise of expanded electricity to his home continent, where some 600 million people lack access to electricity, moved him to get involved with the industry.

“The energy sector is going to be the most amazing sector. It is going to change Africa. Energy is life. Energy is power. Energy is everything,” he said. “If a crazy human rights activist like me can be doing energy today, I’ll say it this way: Those making energy decisions are not the chosen geologists or energy scientists. Whether it is renewables, whether it is oil or natural gas, we need you to get involved, whether on the policy side, whether on the finance side, whether on the engineering side. It’s really important.”

As the bestselling author, most recently of the prescriptive A Just Transition: Making Energy Poverty History With an Energy Mix, NJ Ayuk uses his position and influence to urge other countries to invest in Africa’s energy infrastructure. A lawyer by training, Ayuk was born in Cameroon and studied the law in the United States, where he found inspiration and mentorship from Black Americans who spearheaded the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.

NJ Ayuk: ‘For Africa, Gas Is Not Green’

One of Ayuk’s predominant themes is the mistreatment that Africa has repeatedly suffered as the result of one-sided energy deals. Too many times, the continent’s natural resources have been mined to benefit Western countries while leaving Africans poor and starving.

Now, as the world confronts the realities of climate change and the need for more sustainable forms of energy, many of the countries that continue to rely on greenhouse gases have asked Africa to keep its oil and natural gas resources unused.

He explained to the rapt student audience that two months after all the pledges that came out of the Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Glasgow, “Norway gave out 52 new oil and gas licenses. The United Kingdom opened their first coal mines in 30 years. They opened the North Sea up for drilling. Germany opened coal mines. The U.S. opened federal lands for drilling. But they told everybody in Africa to do nothing,” NJ Ayuk said. “‘You have to leave it in the ground.’ They consulted a witch doctor who told him that natural gas is green and we can finance it for Europe, but African gas is not green, so we cannot finance it, and we must leave it in the ground.”

He argued instead for fairer rules, pointing out that Western countries should be required to transition away from nonrenewable sources of energy sooner than African countries, which have contributed less than 3% of total greenhouse gases.

“I think this kind of treatment of poor people is not something that we need to accept,” he said during his fireside chat in Cambridge. “I say this as somebody who has a good life. I don't need to do this, but I think your generation and everybody here, you need to be able to stand up for something and have a principle. We need to be able to really address these issues, and even in the polarized world, but be able to say that we need some fairness here. South Africa, Africa’s most industrialized country, lives with eight to 10 hours a day in the dark. They call it load shedding, the Nigerians call it blackouts. It happens all over.”

Students Can Use Idealism To Push for Equity, Says NJ Ayuk

To combat energy poverty, NJ Ayuk urged students to use their idealism to push for fairer treatment of Africans in the energy sector. Not only is it the right thing to do for the continent and the world, he said, it’s also a lucrative field.

“There's going to be a lot of entrepreneurs and a lot of money. Think about it,” he said. “To get to net zero, you’re going to spend about $80 trillion to $100 trillion to get there. That's a lot of money for you guys to miss out on, thinking that you don't want to be part of that. It's going to affect you anyway. We don't have the luxury to say ‘You have to be only in oil or gas.’ Heck, I want to see more Africans involved in the renewable energy space.”

NJ Ayuk shared, “One of my greatest heroes in history is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He talked about the arc of a moral universe. It is long and it bends toward justice. But surely it doesn't bend by itself. It's everyday people that get up, that move it, that shake it, whether left or right, and you keep shaking it.

“You keep shaking it and you make it bend toward justice because you are going to be that greatest generation and you are really going to change the world. As a 43-year-old, I still believe I can change the world and I'm not giving up hope.”

#njayuk #energypolicy #energylawyer #energy #cameroon #southafrica

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the-railways-of-seidrey · 1 year

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The Black Wolf

The Black Wolf was the flagship train from London to Gunnigrind. Launched in 1931 with the allocation of Royal Scot class locomotives, the about 650 mile journey taking around 16 hours, departing from their termini at 6:00 PM, and arriving at 10:00 AM the next morning.

The Black Wolf was a beast of a train, usually consisting of fourteen coaches (up until the BR days, this often included one of the LMS ex-Pullman dining cars, one rake usually had 216, the other having 219). The usual makeup had a brake coach, the dinner, two first class sleepers, two third class sleepers, three composite corridor coaches, and a third brake (later composite brake), then another first and third sleeper, a composite coach, and finally another third (later composite) brake. These final four coaches were to take up the Ben Fisag Branch.

Starting in 1933, Princess Royal class pacifics occasionally headed the train, and the Turbomotive was a common sight. In 1935 when Gunnigrind had 6204 allocated to its shed, and 6202 and 6204 largely took over The Black Wolf from the Royal Scots, although as the shed lacked a spare Pacific, they could not tighten the timetable in case of loco failures.

This changes in 1937 with the arrival of Coronation Class 6225, and so the schedule was tightened by a whole hour!

The second world war put a pause on named trains, however a similar train ran, carrying troops and people fleeing the London blitz.

In December 1947, Coronation class 6526 arrived in the island, and so the train became an almost exclusively Duchess hauled affair, although when BR 10001 arrived in July 1948, her and her LMS twin were trialled on the service, and were a regular sight doubleheading until 1949.

Also in 1949, 6202, now 46202, while climbing the bank out of Gunnigrind with the southbound Black Wolf, experienced a catastriphic turbine failure, leading to her rebuild.

On October 8, 1952, 46202, with the northbound Black Wolf, collided with an out of control stone train coming from the Ben Fisag Branch, resulting in the near destruction of both the engine hauling the goods train, 42724, and 46202, which were both written off, as well as the death of seven on the Black Wolf: both the driver and fireman, a guard, two cooks and two passengers in the dining car.

In 1954 71000 was constructed and allocated to Gunnigrind, and at first was incapable of hauling The Black Wolf satisfactorily due to design and construction flaws, which were able to be rectified at the small works in Gunnigrind that had been constructed by the LMS to repair experimental engines that were being tested on Seidrey.

In the late 1950s, Class 40s began to be allocated to The Black Wolf, and started to displace the steam locomotives from the service. However, the Class 40s had to doublehead the train to keep to time and to not overheat their engines while climbing the numerous gradients.

Because of displacement by diesel and the looming ban on near all LMS express steam traction south of Crewe due to electrification, the final steam hauled Black Wolf departed London Euston on the evening of 31 August 1964.

In 1961 the LMS sleeping cars were finally replaced by BR Mark 1s, and the train mostly stayed that way, due to utilizing composite coaches and there being no direct Mark 2 replacement.

Starting in 1966 The Black Wolf has an engine change at Crewe to an electric locomotive.

Also in 1966 the final four carriages of the consist were dropped, as the Ben Fisag Branch closed. Later the same year, Motorail service was introduced.

The Class 40s didn't last long on The Black Wolf, as they were found to be somewhat underpowered for the service. They were replaced by Class 50s in 1967, which were much more satisfactory.

In 1974, the engine change to electric traction was moved to Glasgow. Although most Class 50s has been moved to the Western Region, three had stayed behind to haul the Black Wolf

In 1977, the full brake and all the chair coaches were dropped, except for the brake composite, which was finally replaced by a mark 2 brake second open to be used solely as a lounge, leaving the train to consist merely of six coaches, not counting the Motorail flats. In 1979 the mark 1 sleepers were replaced by mark 3s.

The Black Wolf continued on in this form until its discontinuation in 1989, bringing to an end the saga of the longest distance individual train in Britain, The Black Wolf.

On June 4th, 1996, The Black Wolf name was revived, as a six to eight car segment of the Caledonian Sleeper to Gunnigrind, hauled by Class 47s until 2001, then Class 67s until 2016, when they started using Class 73/9s, which they use through the present day.

#lore

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walkonandtwo · 1 year

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St. Marie, Montana: Past, Present, Future

By: Ryan Gamboa

Posted at 5:59 PM, Jan 30, 2023

and last updated 8:27 AM, Jan 31, 2023

Spectral, uncanny, abandoned. Only those who reside or visited St. Marie, Montana would know the feeling.

For those that occupy the dilapidated Glasgow Air Force Base, home would be a better description. “I had a friend come visit and she said that it was so quiet here that you could hear the worms pass gas… we’ve always enjoyed our life here.”

When the snow flies, an estimated 250 people reside in St. Marie. Around the Ides of March, 500 flock and there is no “Beware” sign.

Elinor Lindsay, a resident of 33 years lives on the base year-round.

“Your friend’s, kind of, become your family, because you're usually not going to be stationed where your family is.” The wife of a retired United States airman, originates from Long Island, New York. Spending time stationed throughout the south and southern Great Plains, moving to St. Marie was perfect, for the pair.

“It was marketed to military veterans.” she explained.

A once thriving and prominent military base – sits as a curiosity to those who hear the stories.

It’s tough to know what an important role the base played in the Soviet Cold War. Much of the history, vanished, along with the service members who were stationed there. Historian for the 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Troy Hallsell, has a brief understanding of its placement during World War II.

“The Army Corps of Engineers came in to build Malmstrom Air Force Base. It also built smaller bases in Cut Bank, Lewistown, and Glasgow.”

The United States Air Force was founded in 1947, almost exactly two years after the end of the second world war. The Glasgow site was an Army Air Base, a bomber training site along with other bases in Cut Bank and Lewistown. “The bombers would take off from their respective locations… if their destination was Cleveland that day, they would take off, form up and fly to their destination and turn around… and land back at their bases,” Hallsell said. The combination of Cutbank, Lewistown, Great Falls, and Glasgow helped support the B-17 bomber training mission that lasted in Montana for under a year time period. Between the heyday of the Glasgow Base, the United States was going through a transitional period of enemies; between the Korean War and the Vietnam Conflict. Command Historian, Brian Laslie from the United States Air Force Academy explains, “The Western powers versus the Soviet Union. The United States, Britain, France, and Canada versus the Soviet Union. We end up with that that bipolar world, with the United States and the Soviet Union.”

MTN NewsSt. Marie, Montana

A new threat was ahead for the allies, especially from the north. From the bases inception in 1957 to is decommission in the late 1960’s, St. Marie was imperative to fending off a Soviet Attack. “The alarm goes out. They would launch from Glasgow across the border, heading into Canada, and they would intercept Soviet bombers as they came across the poles.” Laslie said. As the Cold War clash progressed the 476 Fighter Group and 13th Fighter Interceptor Squadron was disbanded from Glasgow Air Force Base. The 13th Fighter Interceptor Squadron flew F101 and F101B Voodoo aircraft, single or double seater planes. The Air Force then commissioned a bombardment wing, which equipped B-52 bombers and KC-135 refuelers. What the Air Force would call “detach and disperse” which places bombing fleets at numerous bases rather than at one.

“If there was a World War three scenario in Fairchild (Washington state) was destroyed. Not all of its bombers would be destroyed, right? There would still be 15 at Glasgow. 15 at another base or 15 at another base.” Glasgow Air Force base had a short tenure in its commission. Leta Godwin, Historian at the Valley County Museum gave a tour of the dilapidated homes on the west side of the base. “This is one of the old houses for the military people. Some live in fourplexes and duplexes around. Some of them have sold and people live in them, and others are just, abandoned.” The base was built to last, even in its disarray. Laslie explained that many of the airmen station at Glasgow were high ranking officers. The homes and amenities were top of the line. If an attack from the Soviets over the poles were to carry out, it would surely be a one-way mission. The Air Force wanted to ensure that those risking their life for the betterment of their country, had a comfortable set up.

Residents of St. Marie and surrounding areas have speculated the current use of the airfield. Some say its home to “nukes,” others say, “aliens,” and the more plausible reason, testing and training for aircraft unreleased to the public.

What we do know, is that Boeing purchased the airfield and is operated 24/7 by MARCO, Montana Aviation Research Company. Guarding restricted areas throughout the property and keeping trespassers from advancing past posted markers. “There was a couple times they allowed people to come, and they were practicing parachuting and stuff.” Elinor Lindsay said.

For those that reside on the property, the term, “ghost town” doesn’t take away from the fact that St. Marie is home.

“You know someone who can remember Glasgow Air Force Base as a child, to them, you know, ‘Hey, I lived on Glasgow Air Force Base. This was something for me. It's always been home.’” Laslie said

Lindsay adding laughing, “As long as my house lasts as long as I do, that’s all I can ask for.”

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olko71 · 1 year

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New Post has been published on All about business online

New Post has been published on http://yaroreviews.info/2023/01/strike-daily-how-saturday-7-januarys-train-strikes-will-affect-you

Strike daily: How Saturday 7 January's train strikes will affect you

By Zoe Conway

Employment correspondent

Saturday sees yet another day of disruption for rail passengers, with workers in the RMT union continuing their latest 48-hour walkout.

The advice is once again to avoid taking trains if possible, with only one in five services expected to run.

Strike action from driving examiners also continues in some parts of the country.

You can read more or watch this report about why people are taking strike action, and below you can find information on how it could affect you.

Train strikes across England, Scotland and Wales

Workers from the UK’s largest rail union, the RMT, are striking on Saturday. It’s the fourth day of action from the union this week after walkouts on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.

Together with the strike by train drivers’ union Aslef on Thursday, it means rail services have now been disrupted for five days in a row.

Saturday’s action means some areas will, once again, have no trains at all.

Services that do operate, will typically run between 07:30 and 18:30 GMT on the days of the strike.

It you must travel by rail:

Make sure you check your train-operating company’s website before setting out

Be prepared for no services early in the morning or late at night

Allow extra time for your journey

Sunday is the only strike-free day on the railways this week, but there may still be some knock-on disruption to services. That’s because carriages, engines and staff may not be in the right place at the start of the day.

Rail services are not expected to get back to normal until Monday 9 January.

As things stand there are no more major rail strikes scheduled, although both the RMT and Aslef unions have warned there could be further action.

The unions are expected to meet rail employers and the rail minister on Monday to try to find a way forward.

Upcoming strike action

DEC 29 DEC 30 DEC 31 JAN 1 JAN 2 JAN 3 JAN 4 JAN 5 JAN 6 JAN 7 JAN 8 JAN 9 JAN 10 JAN 11 JAN 12 JAN 13 JAN 14 JAN 15 JAN 16 JAN 17 JAN 18 JAN 19 JAN 20 JAN 21 JAN 22

THU 29 DEC

Rail disruption continues

Staff at West Midlands Trains (WMT) and Great Western Railway (GWR) are on strike until midday

This includes staff working in ticket offices, station management and guards

Border Force strikes

Some Border Force staff are striking in England, Wales and Scotland meaning delays are likely for people arriving in the UK

Birmingham, Cardiff, Gatwick, Glasgow, Heathrow and Manchester airports, and the port of Newhaven, will be affected

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in the East Midlands, West Midlands, east of England and parts of London

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

FRI 30 DEC

Possible road disruption

Some National Highways traffic officers are on strike in the West Midlands and south-west England

The strike involves control centre staff and traffic officers who deal with the aftermath of accidents

Border Force strikes

Some Border Force staff are striking in England, Wales and Scotland meaning delays are likely for people arriving in the UK

Birmingham, Cardiff, Gatwick, Glasgow, Heathrow and Manchester airports, and the port of Newhaven, will be affected

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in the East Midlands, West Midlands, east of England and parts of London

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

SAT 31 DEC

Possible road disruption

Some National Highways traffic officers are on strike in the West Midlands and south-west England

The strike involves control centre staff and traffic officers who deal with the aftermath of accidents

Bus drivers on strike

Bus drivers in London are taking industrial action

The routes affected are mostly in south and west London

Border Force strikes

Some Border Force staff are striking in England, Wales and Scotland meaning delays are likely for people arriving in the UK

Birmingham, Cardiff, Gatwick, Glasgow, Heathrow and Manchester airports, and the port of Newhaven, will be affected

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in the East Midlands, West Midlands, east of England and parts of London

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

SUN 1 JAN

There are currently no national strikes planned for this date

MON 2 JAN

There are currently no national strikes planned for this date

TUE 3 JAN

Rail disruption continues

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) are on strike

The RMT strike will affect services in England, Scotland and Wales and people are being advised to avoid travelling if possible

Read more: What are the train strikes about?

Possible road disruption

Some National Highways traffic officers across England are on strike

The strike involves control centre staff and traffic officers who deal with the aftermath of accidents

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in the East Midlands, West Midlands, east of England and parts of London

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

WED 4 JAN

Rail disruption continues

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) are on strike

The RMT strike will affect services in England, Scotland and Wales and people are being advised to avoid travelling if possible

Read more: What are the train strikes about?

Bus drivers on strike

Bus drivers in London are taking industrial action

The routes affected are mostly in south and west London

Possible road disruption

Some National Highways traffic officers across England are on strike

The strike involves control centre staff and traffic officers who deal with the aftermath of accidents

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in London, south-east and south-west England and Wales

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

THU 5 JAN

Rail disruption continues

Train drivers across 15 rail companies represented by the Aslef union are on strike

The rail companies affected are: Avanti West Coast, Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Great Western Railway, Greater Anglia, Great Northern/Thameslink, London North Eastern Railway, Northern Trains, Southeastern, Southern/Gatwick Express, South Western Railway, SWR Island Line, TransPennine Express and West Midlands Trains

Read more: What are the train strikes about?

Bus drivers on strike

Bus drivers in London are taking industrial action

The routes affected are mostly in south and west London

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in London, south-east and south-west England and Wales

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

FRI 6 JAN

Rail disruption continues

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) are on strike

The RMT strike will affect services in England, Scotland and Wales and people are being advised to avoid travelling if possible

Read more: What are the train strikes about?

Possible road disruption

Some National Highways traffic officers are on strike in the East Midlands and eastern England

The strike involves control centre staff and traffic officers who deal with the aftermath of accidents

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in London, south-east and south-west England and Wales

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

SAT 7 JAN

Rail disruption continues

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) are on strike

The RMT strike will affect services in England, Scotland and Wales and people are being advised to avoid travelling if possible

Read more: What are the train strikes about?

Possible road disruption

Some National Highways traffic officers are on strike in the East Midlands and eastern England

The strike involves control centre staff and traffic officers who deal with the aftermath of accidents

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in London, south-east and south-west England and Wales

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

SUN 8 JAN

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in London, south-east and south-west England and Wales

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

MON 9 JAN

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in London, south-east and south-west England and Wales

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

TUE 10 JAN

Bus drivers on strike

Bus drivers in London are taking industrial action

The routes affected are mostly in south and west London

Teachers in Scotland

Some primary school teachers in Scotland are on strike

Members of the NASUWT union are taking action as part of an ongoing dispute over pay

Read more: Which schools will teachers’ strikes affect?

Driving test centre strikes

Some driving examiners are on strike in London, south-east and south-west England and Wales

The industrial action will not affect theory tests but might have an impact on practical exams

WED 11 JAN

Ambulance staff on strike

Ambulance staff in London, Yorkshire, the North West, North East and South West of England are on strike

The strike affects non-life threatening calls only and people are advised to use the 999 service in an emergency

Read more: Why are ambulance staff striking?

Teachers in Scotland

Some secondary school teachers in Scotland are on strike

Members of the NASUWT union are taking action as part of an ongoing dispute over pay

Read more: Which schools will teachers’ strikes affect?

THU 12 JAN

Bus drivers on strike

Bus drivers in London are taking industrial action

The routes affected are mostly in south and west London

FRI 13 JAN

There are currently no national strikes planned for this date

SAT 14 JAN

There are currently no national strikes planned for this date

SUN 15 JAN

There are currently no national strikes planned for this date

MON 16 JAN

Bus drivers on strike

Bus drivers in London are taking industrial action

The routes affected are mostly in south and west London

Teachers in Scotland

Teachers in Glasgow and East Lothian are on strike

Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) are taking action as part of an ongoing dispute over pay

Read more: Which schools will teachers’ strikes affect?

TUE 17 JAN

Teachers in Scotland

Teachers in Perth and Kinross and North Ayrshire are on strike

Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) are taking action as part of an ongoing dispute over pay

Read more: Which schools will teachers’ strikes affect?

WED 18 JAN

Nurses in England on strike

Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) are taking industrial action over pay

Life-preserving treatment must be provided, and all nurses in intensive and emergency care are expected to work

Teachers in Scotland

Teachers in Orkney and Fife are on strike

Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) are taking action as part of an ongoing dispute over pay

Read more: Which schools will teachers’ strikes affect?

THU 19 JAN

Nurses in England on strike

Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) are taking industrial action over pay

Life-preserving treatment must be provided, and all nurses in intensive and emergency care are expected to work

Bus drivers on strike

Bus drivers in London are taking industrial action

The routes affected are mostly in south and west London

Teachers in Scotland

Teachers in Moray and North Lanarkshire are on strike

Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) are taking action as part of an ongoing dispute over pay

Read more: Which schools will teachers’ strikes affect?

FRI 20 JAN

Teachers in Scotland

Teachers in Angus and East Dunbartonshire are on strike

Members of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) are taking action as part of an ongoing dispute over pay

Read more: Which schools will teachers’ strikes affect?

SAT 21 JAN

There are currently no national strikes planned for this date

SUN 22 JAN

There are currently no national strikes planned for this date

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Driving tests

Strike action by driving examiners is continuing at test centres in London, south-east England, south-west England and Wales.

The action by members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union means some practical tests will not take place, although theory tests should go ahead.

If your driving test is due to take place on Saturday, you can check here whether your test centre is affected.

However, not all examiners are members of the PCS union so your test may go ahead as planned.

Unless you are told your test is definitely cancelled, you should still turn up.

The strike by driving examiners is scheduled to continue until Tuesday 10 January.

If your test is cancelled because of the strike, the DVSA will automatically rebook your test for you.

Other action

Strikes by some National Highways workers in the East Midlands and eastern England continue on Saturday. The PCS union says about 16 workers in the two regions are walking out.

The action involves control centre staff and traffic officers who deal with the aftermath of accidents.

National Highways says it has “well-rehearsed resilience plans in place” to cover the walkouts.

However, it warns that the strike action on the railways means that roads could be busier than usual.

Check out our full rundown of all the January strikes

What are trade unions and who can go on strike?

Follow Zoe Conway on Twitter

How are you affected by the strikes? Are you taking part in strike action? You can email: [email protected].

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