08162 ambles through Wakefield Kirkgate light engine, 29th January 1976. Originally 13230 and later D3230 it was built at Darlington in 1955 and was allocated to Hull Dairycoates MPD. By 1963 it had transferred to Bradford Hammerton Street and by 1966 to Healey Mills where it would remain until withdrawn in July 1980. It was broken up in January 1981 at Swindon works.

Tags:   29th January

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Nottingham carriage pilot 08894 basks in the winter sunshine between carriage shunts, 25th January 1976. Behind the pilot engine can be seen the station buildings of what was Nottingham London Road station, opened for traffic in 1857 which became the terminus for the London and North Western Railway and Great Northern Railway traffic. The station finally closed during World War Two becoming a parcels depot and remained in use as such until 1988. It is now a health centre and gym.

Locomotive History
08894 was originally D4124 and it was built at Horwich in 1961 and on entering traffic was allocated to Swindon MPD. It remained a Swindon engine until 1974 when it was transferred to Newport Ebbw Junction, however its stay was short because following a works visit in August 1975, when it acquired dual brake equipment it was transferred to Toton. It remained a Toton engine until the late 1980’s when it transferred to Allerton. Withdrawn in August 1998 it would languish at Allerton until early 2007 when it made its last journey (by road) to TJ Thompson, Stockton and was broken up in September 2007.

Praktica LTL, Orwochrome UT18

Tags:   25th January D4124 08894 UT18 Praktica LTL Orwochrome UT18

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It was unusual to see single class 20’s around Nottingham but here we have 20044 on its own stabled in Nottingham carriage sidings, 25th January 1976.

Locomotive History
Originally D8044 it was built by English Electric at the Vulcan Foundry and entered traffic in November 1959, allocated to Devons Road MPD in Bow, London for cross-London transfer freight duties. On the closure of Devons Road in 1962 it transferred to Willesden. In 1969 it transferred to Toton and I first saw this engine paired with D8045 at Wilford Road, Nottingham on the 3rd April 1969. In 1982 20044 was stored at Leicester, when a large number of Toton’s vacuum braked class 20 fleet were stored due to the reduction in coal traffic from pit closures and the continued introduction of air braked MGR coal wagons. 20044 was re-instated in April 1983 following air brake and slow speed control fitment to enable it to operate MGR coal duties and transferred to Eastfield where it would stay until a move to back to Toton in the late 1980’s. It was withdrawn from Toton in August 1989 and broken up by MC Metals, Glasgow two years later in August 1991.

Tags:   25th January D8044 20044

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The sun is just starting to disperse the early morning mist as 20127 and 20025 crawl out of the haze as they head along the Goods line “round the back” of Wakefield Kirkgate station with a train of 16 ton mineral wagons, 29th January 1976.

Locomotive History
20127 was the last of the initial run of class 20 locomotives and entered traffic as D8127 in August 1962 allocated to Polmadie MPD (Glasgow). It was a Scottish based locomotive for a long time (as denoted by the cab recess for single line token exchange equipment) until it moved south to Tinsley in the mid 1970’s. In 1982 20127 was stored when a large number of the vacuum braked class 20 fleet were stored due to the reduction in coal traffic from pit closures and the continued introduction of air braked MGR coal wagons. 20127 was re-instated in December 1982 following air brake fitment to enable it to operate MGR coal duties and transferred to Eastfield. Withdrawn during the early 1990’s it found a new lease of life with Direct Rail Services and was one of the five heavily refurbished class 20’s with which DRS commenced operations in 1995 and it is numbered 20303 in the DRS fleet. 20025 entered service as D8025 in 1959. It would survive in traffic until withdrawn in September 1991 and was broken up by MC Metals at Glasgow in February 1995.

Praktica LTL, Orwochrome UT18

Tags:   29th January D8127 20127 20303

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24038 was built at Crewe works and entered traffic as D5038 in August 1959, allocated to March MPD. It was transfered in August 1967 to the Stoke Division and was stored in August 1975 before being briefly re-instated in December 1975 and is seen here at Nuneaton on the 31st January 1976. Its return to traffic was brief and it was stored again in February 1976 at Basford Hall before final withdrawal in July 1976. It was towed to Swindon Works in May 1977 and broken up there by the end of June.

Tags:   31st January D5038 24038

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