Tracks through the fields
For what was only ever intended to be a static museum, the ‘Middy’ has done pretty well for itself, writes EDMUND CROSTHWAITE
For the small group of people who formed the Mid-Suffolk Light Railway and moved onto its site in Brockford in the early 1990s, running trains was a very distant dream. It is one which has now been realised - the quirky line tucked away in the corner of a field several miles from any significant towns will enter its 15th year of operation in 2016, which also marks its 25th anniversary. They began with just a wall of the cattle dock, which still stood in the corner of a field. Now, visitors can see reconstructions of some of the original buildings, along with a demonstration line, refreshment room, shop, ticket office and museum, plus workshops, and authentic rolling stock. For those unfamiliar with the line’s history, the original MSLR, or ‘Middy’ to its affectionate devotees, was built early in the 20th century under the Light Railways Act of 1896, the catalyst for many similar schemes across the country. Across the middle of Suffolk, from Haughley Junction (on the Great Eastern Main Line), it stretched through fields and isolated villages, providing a viable alternative to the bumpy tracks available to road vehicles at the time. Opened for goods on September 20 1904 and passengers four years later, money was always a problem, and a number of its backers were financially ruined by the scheme to extend the line to Westerfield, which was never completed. Ultimately, the track from Haughley only reached Laxfield, a total of 19 miles, and nine short of the ultimate target of Halesworth on the East Suffolk Line. A two-mile extension to Cratfield opened in 1906, but fizzled out quickly.
Connection failure
It was originally proposed for the ‘Middy’ to connect to the Great Eastern at four locations, and indeed the cutting of the first sod with the Duke of Cambridge took place at Westerfield, near Ipswich, somewhere the line never actually reached; the only junction realised was the one at Haughley. The Westerfield connection, which would have run south from Kenton through Debenham, along with those at Halesworth (on the ‘main’ MSLR line) and Needham Market (another branch off the line south of Debenham) never had any serious work done on them. The line to Needham was axed early on, and though Debenham was reached on the Westerfield route, lack of funds prevented any further work, with the line being taken up so the materials could be used for the First World War effort. Disagreements with the GER, which was not keen on the idea of losing its lucrative monopoly in the area, also played a part in the ‘Middy’s failure to complete its grand plans. Absorbed (after some heavy persuasion) by the LNER a year after the 1923 Grouping, and later incorporated into the BR system, the MSLR never made it into the Beeching report - it
was shut in 1952 and the track was torn up the following year. No rolling stock survived the closure; the motley collection of three dedicated engines (two Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0Ts, and a Manning Wardle, all later LNER ‘J64’) had gone by 1929, as had their Great Eastern-design ‘J65’ replacements. Preservation has been more successful, however, with surviving LNER ‘J15’ No. 65462 (the class was the line’s regular motive power under BR) visiting from the North Norfolk Railway in 2002 for the first trains along a quartermile demonstration line. Since then, services have returned each year - but only on a limited basis. Visitor numbers are broadly on the up over the last few years and in 2012, after a decade of preservation trains, the railway held its first gala. That is not to say that everything has been trouble-free. One of the railway’s perennial struggles is the number of days on which it can run trains for the public. The conditions of the planning permission under which it operates only allows for 30 days a year, though this is much-improved from the previous 20, 12 and eight-day restrictions in past years. Its location, though picturesque in the summer, is also a minor hindrance, with few public transport links to Brockford, situated part-way up the notorious A140 road. It is a hard place to stumble across on your way to somewhere else, set back from the road and hidden behind industrial units on part of the old station site - you have to know about it beforehand and generally make a special point of visiting. But being in such a secluded location is part of the railway’s charm and, as Chairman Jon Taylor says, a faithful re-creation of the Mid-Suffolk has always been top of the agenda. “The ‘Middy’ was an early closure, and the aim of the museum is to keep its memory alive in the local area by
The ‘Middy’ has a commendable membership to volunteer ratio, especially for its size
presenting as authentic a re-creation of the line as we can,” says Jon. “Rolling stock is carefully selected and will only be brought on site if it pre-dates the closure of the line and is appropriate for a light railway context. “Non-original buildings have been sympathetically re-constructed and great care is taken to ensure the site is kept tidy to enhance the visitor experience.” After all is said and done, a big part of any steam railway is the main running line - how many chuffs you get for your buck. The MSLR is constrained at present, and the estimated costs of extending the track are high. That does not mean lengthening the track is off the table. Jon adds: “The MSLR aims to extend its demonstration line with a view to re-creating Wilby station, while remaining sympathetic to the needs of local inhabitants and minimising our impact on the environment. We already lease the land required and have a comprehensive plan ready to put into action once planning permission is obtained.”
Victorian stock
Should the extension get the go-ahead, it is in 19th century coaches that passengers will be transported to an even more remote wayside halt, after travelling more than double the current length of the running line. The original MSLR bought engines new from Hudswell Clarke of Leeds, but its coaches were second-hand, from the Metropolitan Railway.
preserved MSLR has the same idea, with ex-Met stock being restored as Mid-Suffolk vehicles, though for the sake of variety similar period vehicles from other companies are also to be represented in the future. “The MSLR operates only Victorian four-wheeled passenger coaches - no BR Mk 1 or Mk 2 stock here,” Jon explains. “Coaches 12 and 13 represent vehicles operated by the original MSLR, and are restored GER wooden bodies from the 1870s on suitably modified modern underframes. “MSLR No. 15 is believed to be the oldest surviving operational railway horsebox in the country and is a restored GER body from 1869 on a modified BR Conflat chassis. It sees occasional use in passenger trains when the public can ride in the groom’s compartment. “Coach 140, which will enter service fully restored this year, is a four-compartment GER smoking first, and is believed to be the oldest surviving GER passenger vehicle in the country. Like Nos. 12 and 13, it will be mounted on a modern underframe and has been restored over a two-year period in our workshop.” Of course, the lifeblood of any heritage railway is its volunteers. The ‘Middy’ has a commendable membership to volunteer ratio, especially for its size. Paid-up supporters usually number somewhere between 350 and 400 people, while the number of registered volunteers will often be around the 70-80 mark - roughly one in five. To secure its future the railway needs to attract more volunteers of all ages, but like any preserved line there is a desire to bring in younger people to sustain it in the long term. Slowly, the MSLR has developed a growing band of supporters in the under-30 age group, all brought together by an interest in steam. One of them is Zach Bond, a Cambridge undergraduate who has been known to face early morning DMU journeys across the Fens back to Suffolk for a firing turn. “Having inherited a love of steam and railways from my grandfather, the opportunity to engage with steam locomotives was something I cherished,” he explained. “And for historical interest, quirks and curiosities it would be difficult, in my opinion, to beat the light railway, particularly one as idiosyncratic as the ‘Middy”. A relaxing day in the Suffolk countryside, practising a skill he enjoys and engaging with like-minded enthusiasts over numerous cups of tea are all cited by Zach as reasons for succumbing to the draw of a steam railway, in particular the MSLR. For others, he feels, it may be a chance to escape from the demands of constantly pinging smartphones and learn something hands-on which appeals. “Perhaps it is the chance to physically interact with real brass and steel that drives the younger generation to the railway. Learning is a large draw, I feel, for the under 30s - skills which can’t be taught from a text book or through the medium of PowerPoint. “Of course, much encouragement will have come from the grandparents’ generation who tell tales of the steam railway.”
Restoration
Along with an extension to the line, the MSLR is looking to take another step towards self-sufficiency over the next few years. Having only ever hired in locomotives, the restoration of Hudswell Clarke W/No. 1604 of 1928 is progressing well. Initially a loaned static exhibit, now owned by the railway for some years, it is an appropriate choice for a line that bought its first engines from the same company in the 1900s. While not exactly the same as the original three (W/ No. 1604 has saddletanks instead of side tanks and outside cylinders rather than inside) it is in keeping with the ethos of trying to keep the preserved Middy as close as possible to the historical company. Once complete it will reduce the company’s reliance on borrowed engines and enable wider promotion for the line across the country with occasional visits away. In today’s economic climate, trying to grow a steam railway nestled in the countryside may seem like a Herculean task. The ‘Middy’ though is proof that the right people, with the right enthusiasm, can make anything work. It might still be a slow-burner, but it is undoubtedly more successful than its predecessor (not a difiicult task as it actually makes a profit) and the MSLR is fast becoming one of Suffolk’s essential tourist attractions. So what of the future? With the current operating line around a quarter of a mile, a planned extension would roughly double this. As well as being of more interest to locomotive crews, the new halt built at the eastern end of the line would give passengers the feeling they have actually travelled somewhere. Because of challenges with planning and other permissions, as well as the cost of actually laying the track, completion of the extension is still several years away at least. Wilby was the second to last station on the line heading eastwards and is not the destination of the proposed extension (the next station along from Brockford in the same direction is actually Aspall). The extension would terminate the line in a field (very appropriate to such a rural light railway!) where there was not an original stop, but it is at the limit of what the railway can do with its current resources. The reason it is often referred to as being ‘Wilby-esque’ is because the building which will go on the platform is the original structure from that station. In another 25 years, when the preserved ‘Middy’ will have operated for the same length of time as the original, it is hard to predict where the railway could reach. Hemmed in by fields on most sides and with much of the formation eastwards lost, further expansion prospects are, unfortunately, greatly hindered. Buildings and the A140 main road to the west back to Haughley probably scupper any hopes of a permanent extension in that direction. The cost of going in the other direction towards Laxfield, not to mention the stretching of the charity’s currently limited resources, mean the trustees have no plans to consider anything beyond the current publicised developments.