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Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway

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The Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway (BWLR) is located near the villages of Wormshill and Bredgar in Kent, just south of Sittingbourne. It is a 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge railway about three-quarters mile (1.2 km) in length.

Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway
Bronhilde pulling into Stony Shaw station
Technical
Track gauge2 ft (610 mm)
Other
Websitehttp://www.bwlr.co.uk
Locomotive Bronhilde on woodland track near Warren Wood station

The BWLR is a private line which has been built up as a hobby by a group of friends since the early 1970s.[1] It is a fully operational line, operated to a high standard, with a station, engine sheds and workshops at Warren Wood station and a smaller station at the other end of the line, known as Stony Shaw.

The line is open to the public on the first Sunday of each month and most Wednesdays throughout the summer to raise money to maintain and manage the collection. On event days a number of other attractions are on display including a model railway, a Dutch street organ, a traction engine a steam roller, a Victorian beam engine, an American fire department Ladder truck and a range of old tractors and cars.

The Tearoom is open Wednesday to Sunday (9:00–15:00) throughout the year offering a selection of teas, coffees, cakes, sandwiches snacks and lunches.

The railway appeared briefly in a segment filmed for the BBC's Saturday Kitchen programme which aired on 18 June 2011.[2]

The Stations

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  • Warren Wood Station
  • Stony Shaw Station

Rolling stock

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Operational steam locomotives

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Manufacturer Works number
and year 		Wheel
arrangement 		Number and
name 		Notes Photo Commons Link
Hunslet Engine Co. 1429/1922 0-4-0ST No. 3 Lady Joan[3] Used in north Wales slate quarries until 1967. Has been used at Woburn Abbey and Knebworth. Acquired by the BWLR in 1996.[4]  
 
Category:Hunslet 0-4-0ST 1429 Lady Joan on Wikimedia Commons
W.G. Bagnall 2088/1919 0-4-0ST No. 4 Armistice One of two locomotives used on the Birmingham, Tame and Rea District Drainage Board Railway Armistice, was preserved in 1961 and renamed Lady Luxborough. Acquired in 1991 by the BWLR and restored in 1992, regaining her original name.[4]  
 
Category:Bagnall 2088 Armistice on Wikimedia Commons
Orenstein & Koppel 5668/1912 0-4-0WT No. 6 Eigiau Ex Penrhyn Quarry Railway. Sold to Bressingham in 1963. Acquired by the BWLR in 1995.[4]  
 
Category:Orenstein & Koppel 5668 Eigiau on Wikimedia Commons
Decauville 246/1897 0-4-2T No. 7 Victory Used at the Invicta Sugar Mill, Giru, Queensland, Australia. Sold in 1963 and used on a tourist railway. Acquired by the BWLR in 1984.[4]  
Orenstein and Koppel 12722/1936 0-4-0WT No. 8 Helga Used at various construction sites in northern Germany until 1957. To UK in 1970 and used on the Brecon Mountain Railway. Acquired by the BWLR in 1999.[4]
 
John Fowler & Co. 13573/1912 0-4-2T No. 10 Zambezi Originally built to 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) gauge. Used on Sena Estates railway, Mopeia, Mozambique, hauling sugar.[5] Worked until 1965 then became derelict.[6] To UK in 1998. regauged to 2 ft (610 mm) gauge.[5] Steam test passed in 2009 and entered service in 2010.[6]  
 
Category:John Fowler and Co. 13573 Zambezi on Wikimedia Commons

Steam locomotives undergoing overhaul or restoration

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Manufacturer Works number
and year 		Wheel
arrangement 		Number and
name 		Notes Photo Commons Link
John Fowler & Co. 18800/1930 0-6-0WT No. 9 Limpopo Ex Sena Sugar Estates, No. 17. Used at sugar mill in Mopeia, Mozambique. Acquired by the BWLR in 1998 and restored to working order, entering service in 2003.[7]  
 
Category:John Fowler and Co. 18800 Limpopo on Wikimedia Commons
Arnold Jung 3872/1931 0-6-0WT No. 2 Katie Used in sugar plantations in the Cameroons. Preserved in 1973 and acquired by the BWLR in 1980. Has flangeless centre driving wheels.[4]  
 
Category:Arnold Jung 3872 Katie on Wikimedia Commons

Operational diesel locomotives

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Manufacturer Works number
and year 		Wheel
arrangement 		Number and
name 		Notes Photo
Baguley-Drewry 3775/1983 4wDH No. 5 Bredgar Worked on the 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) metre gauge lines at MoD Milford Haven. Acquired in 1995 and regauged to 2 ft (610 mm) gauge.[4]  
Andrew Barclay 765/1988 4wDM No. 14 Milstead MoD No. NG54, Ex RAF Chilmark.[8] Arrived at BWLR in 2014.
Schöma 5239/1991 4wDH Jenny Used during the construction of the Channel Tunnel[8] Arrived at BWLR in 2016.

Diesel locomotives undergoing overhaul or restoration

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Manufacturer Works number
and year 		Wheel
arrangement 		Number and
name 		Notes Photo
Motor Rail 9869/1953 4wDM No. 12 Bicknor Supplied new to Great Ouse River Authority, Ely, and in service until 1977. Then at Cotswold Wildlife Park railway. Acquired by the BWLR in 2010 from The Hop Farm Country Park, Beltring.[9]
Motor Rail 7073/1936 4wPM No. 13 Lyne Works No. MR 7073. Built 1936. Built as a Petrol loco. Converted to a Deutz air cooled engine and new box body by Alan Keef in 1970.

Was used by Sinclair Horticulture Bolton Fell Cumbria and served there until 2016 when it moved to BWLR.

Locomotives no longer at the railway

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Manufacturer Works number
and year 		Wheel
arrangement 		Number and
name 		Notes Photo Commons Link
L. Schwartzkopff 9124/1927 0-4-0WT No. 1 Bronhilde Used at the Norddeutsche Affinerie copper smelting works, Hamburg. Sold to Bressingham in 1976. Acquired in 1979, it was the first steam locomotive at the BWLR.[4]
Sold to Richmond Light Railway in 2021.[10] 		 
 
Category:L. Schwartzkopff 9124 Bronhilde on Wikimedia Commons
Henschel & Sohn 29582/1956 0-6-0WT No. 105 Siam Worked on a sugar plantation in Chonburi Province, Thailand. Has visited Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway. 750 mm (2 ft 5+1⁄2 in) gauge.[4]
Sold to a railway in Latvia.[11] 		 
Hudswell Clarke DM1366/1965 0-6-0DM 15 Ex National Coal Board Harden Colliery and Seaham Colliery. Sold to South Tynedale Railway in 1990. To BWLR in 2006, then left in 2021.[12][13]  

Traction engines

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The museum has four steam road locomotives in its collection; some are operational and steamed on open days and others are undergoing repair, restoration or overhaul.

Manufacturer Works number
and year 		Registration
number and name 		Notes Photo
Garrett 33442/1919 BL 9009 Agricultural engine used at Hartford Manor, Faringdon until 1943, then at Witney until 1950. Relegated to heating a greenhouse at Brize Norton until preserved in 1964. Has been named King of the Road and Caroline in preservation but did not carry a name during its working life.
Acquired by the BWLR in 1988.
Operational and used on event days.[14] 		 
Ruston & Hornsby 115023/1922 XM 6373 Steam roller new to Henry Woodham, Catford in 1922. Used on road repairs until the 1950s.
Preserved in 1978 and acquired by the BWLR in 1988.
Operational and used on event days.[14] 		 

Cars

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Bean cars

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The BWLR is home to a collection of Bean cars.[15]

Model Power Year
built 		Registration
number 		Notes Photo
Model 6 Tourer 14 HP 1923 SV9172 Exported to Australia in 1923, re-imported in 2001.[15]  
Model 2 11.9 horsepower (8.9 kW) 1922 ME5904 Under restoration as of May 2015.[15]
Model 2 11.9 horsepower (8.9 kW) 1923 BU2789 One of the most original Bean cars in preservation. This car left the collection 2012.[15]  
Model 3 14 horsepower (10 kW) 1925 PE2445 Converted to a pick-up in the early 1930s. Restored to five-seat tourer in 1974. This car left the collection 2012.[15]
Model 4 12 horsepower (8.9 kW) 1925 XW8431 Used by a funeral director as a following car. This car left the collection 2012.[15]  
Model 4 12 horsepower (8.9 kW) 1926 FD3435 Car has original body, which has four identical doors. This car left the collection 2012.[15]  
Model 6 1927 SV8671 Exported new to Australia. Fitted with a body made locally in Adelaide. This car left the collection 2012.[15]  
Omnibus 1929 UL1771 Body by Birch Bros, Kentish Town on a Bean 1½ Ton chassis. Used as a caravan 1941–1966, bought for preservation in 1966 and restored 1988–1991. This vehicle left the collection 2012.[15]  
Model 11 1930 FG6161 Built on a 1½ Ton chassis. Spent its working life in Wooler, Northumberland. Bought for preservation in 1970 and restored 1990–2000. This car left the collection 2012.[15]
Pick-up Truck 1926 This vehicle left the collection 2012.  
Van XM7525 This vehicle left the collection 2012.  

Other cars

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Manufacturer Model Year
built 		Registration
number 		Notes Photo
Rolls-Royce Phantom I 1928 YX4095  

Other exhibits

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Other exhibits to be found at the BWLR include:

Beam engine

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Beam engine

An 1870 beam engine built by Thomas Horn to a design by James Watt. One of two supplied to a waterworks at Ashford. Acquired in 1988 and restored to working order.[16]

Twinning

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The BWLR is twinned with the Chemin de Fer de La Valée de l'Ouche (CFVO), Bligny-sur-Ouche, Côte-d'Or, France.[17][18]

See also

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References

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway.
  1. ^ BBC Kent article on the Bredgar & Wormshill Light Railway
  2. ^ "Episode broadcast 18 June 2011". Saturday Kitchen. BBC iPlayer. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  3. ^ James, Jonathan (May 2021). Narrow Gauge Railways London and South East England. Narrow Gauge Railway Society.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Visitors Guide. Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. 2008.
  5. ^ a b "Un-named Fowler". Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. Archived from the original on 12 April 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  6. ^ a b "Fowler resteams after Bredgar rebuild". Heritage Railway (132, 22 December 2009 – 20 January 2010): 11.
  7. ^ "No9. Limpopo". Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. Archived from the original on 12 April 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  8. ^ a b "Diesel Locos". BWLR.
  9. ^ "Waterworks locomotive moves to Bredgar". Heritage Railway (139): 23. 28 October – 24 November 2010.
  10. ^ "Bronhilda moves from Bredgar to Richmond". Narrow Gauge World (155). 26 February 2021.
  11. ^ ILFORD. "Related Notes". www.steamlocomotive.info. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  12. ^ "Hudswell-Clarke Diesel". Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. Archived from the original on 12 April 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  13. ^ "The BWLR - Bredgar & Wormshill Light Railway". Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 2011-03-25.
  14. ^ a b "Traction Engines at the BWLR". Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Bean Automobile Collection". Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. Archived from the original on 23 October 2004. Retrieved 3 August 2008.
  16. ^ "Beam Engine". Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. Retrieved 4 August 2008.
  17. ^ "CFVO twins with BWLR- October 2007 (Jumelage avec le Bredgar & Wormshill Railway octobre 2007)". The Tourist Railway of the Ouche Valley "CFVO". Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  18. ^ "BWLR and CFVO". Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway. Archived from the original on 2 October 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2008.

51°17′50″N 0°40′58″E / 51.297128°N 0.682891°E / 51.297128; 0.682891

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