THE ENGINE WITH FOUR NAMES
ANDREW RAPACZ champions a remarkable survivor that’s on the verge of running again. Its name? Illingworth. Perhaps…
If I had two men working on it for one week it would be finished,” says Stephen Middleton, owner of the delightful Hudswell Clarke 0‑6‑0ST Illingworth. Stephen is better known as the man who runs Stately Trains, a superb collection of vintage carriages, some of which are restored and operate on the Embsay & Bolton Abbey Steam Railway. Nevertheless, it is anticipated that his half‑forgotten locomotive will have steamed by the time this issue of Steam Railway goes on sale. Illingworth’s origins can be traced back to the construction of a reservoir for Bradford Corporation in the 1920s. By the end of the 1800s, Bradford was known as the world’s wool capital, and as such this industrialisation and expansion of the city required vast quantities of water. Three reservoirs in the Nidd Valley, north of the city, were completed over a period spanning almost half a century. Illingworth’s own history lies in the construction of Scar House, the third and, at 2.2 billion gallons, the largest of these reservoirs. The Nidd Valley Light Railway was built by Bradford Corporation during the construction of Angram, the second of the two reservoirs. Initially a narrow gauge line, this was modified to standard gauge. This avoided the cost and delays to transfer of goods with the North Eastern terminus at Pateley Bridge. Owing to Board of Trade stipulations, a public service was provided between Pateley Bridge and Lofthouse on the lower part of the line. There were two intermediate stations at Wath and Ramsgill. Beyond Lofthouse, the line continued on steep gradients to the construction site. The line was built to a high standard and the stations were fully signalled. The life of the line was extended when construction of Scar House Reservoir began in 1921. As at Angram, a village to house construction workers and their families was created at Scar House. Freight trains were often double‑headed and double‑ banked, such was severity of the line’s gradients. Passenger trains between Pateley Bridge and Lofthouse were operated by a former Great Western Railway steam railcar, while trains to Scar House were hauled by locomotives and formed of former Maryport & Carlisle and Metropolitan Railway four‑wheel coaches. New locomotives were purchased by Bradford Corporation for the Scar House project and this is where Illingworth joins the story.
Shamed and renamed
It was one of only two locomotives built by Hudswell Clarke in Leeds in 1916 with outside Walschaerts valve gear. Both were ordered by Bradford Corporation in connection with the Scar House Reservoir bridge. It remains a mystery why outside Walschaerts outside valve gear was specified for these engines, and Illingworth is the sole survivor of this type. Before arriving at their intended destination however, both 0‑6‑0STs were diverted to work for the Ministry of Munitions at Gretna Green and fitted with spark arrestors. There, Illingworth was numbered DES 3 (Department of Equipment and Supply). The locomotives did not enter Bradford Corporation service until sometime in 1921‑2.
As an ‘act of gross discourtesy’, the locomotive’s name was changed from Mitchell to Illingworth.
When the locomotive arrived in West Yorkshire, it was named Mitchell, after the corporation’s engineer who was in charge of Scar House. Despite receiving tenders for the reservoir project, Lewis Mitchell suggested it would be cheaper for Bradford Corporation to build it themselves. “A brave thing to say,” Stephen suggests. Unfortunately, it was more costly than anticipated, and Mitchell lost his job as a result of the overspend. The corporation’s architect, William Illingworth, stepped in and, in what the press reported as an “act of gross discourtesy”, the locomotive’s name was changed from Mitchell to Illingworth. Stephen has had correspondence with surviving members from both men’s families and also, around ten to 15 years ago, with workers of the railway, who stated that both men treated their employees well. Stephen is therefore reversing this humiliation, and the locomotive will carry the name Mitchell on one tank side and Illingworth on the other. Illingworth remained on the Nidd Valley Light Railway until its closure, following completion of Scar House Reservoir, and was auctioned along with other items of the railway at Pateley Bridge in 1936. Illingworth went back to Hudswell Clarke in Leeds (renamed Harold), and was subsequently loaned to Sir Robert McAlpine during 1936-1937 for construction of the Ebbw Vale steelworks, numbered 88. Its current owner has had reproduction nameplates made, which bear the name and number ‘Sir Robert McAlpine & Sons No. 88’ (a fourth title for the engine!). It’s been proposed that the locomotive could visit the Fawley Hill Railway, on the private estate of Robert’s descendent, Sir William, and work with what is believed to be the only other existing McAlpine contract locomotive, No. 31 also a Hudswell Clarke of 1913. ‘88’ has further significance for Stephen. Eight is considered a lucky number in China, where his wife hails from, so No. 88 ought to be doubly fortuitous! In the late 1930s, Illingworth was sold to another construction company, John Mowlem, for £900. It went to work at the Royal Ordnance Factory at Swynnerton until 1946, and therefore served in both world wars operating near explosives. From there, the nomadic saddle tank worked on the Workington breakwater project, and following that at Braehead in Scotland, before being withdrawn in 1957 and sent to Hardwicke & Son’s scrapyard at Ewell in Surrey. However, Illingworth eluded the scrapman because it had a steel firebox and was devoid of non-ferrous metals. It is believed it remained hidden behind old London buses at the scrapyard before being saved for preservation by a private concern. Stephen became its fourth owner in late 1990. At the time it was still essentially in scrapyard condition, and had been dismantled. Riley & Son (E) Ltd fitted new tyres before its final move to Embsay, where restoration work has continued to date.
Mysteries
Quite a large proportion of the engine has been replaced, including items such as the crossheads, slide bar guides and bracket. The frames were, thankfully, sound. Above the running plate, the boiler barrel is original, but new tubeplates, firebox (from Israel Newton of Bradford), smokebox and chimney have been made. The saddle tank and cab complete the list of new items. “It’s almost entirely new,” laughs Stephen. The boiler has already been steam-tested. All the parts are available and only a number of piping jobs were left outstanding by late January. Some mysteries about the locomotive have come to light during its restoration. Stephen thinks it may have been rolled on to its side at some point during its working life, and there was evidence of frost damage in the firebox, which may be one reason why it was withdrawn. Researching an accurate paint scheme has also been difficult, although Stephen spoke to former Nidd Valley employees who recalled a dirty black livery. He is however, restoring Illingworth to Hudswell Clarke’s house colours of lined green. In the restoration shed at Embsay, the 0-6-0ST stands facing No. 3170, a 1903 petrol electric railcar (autocar) that was one of an experimental pair on the NER. This Edwardian railcar, complete with clerestory roof, was saved by Stephen in 2003 and is itself under restoration. Coincidentally, the railcar used to operate over the NER Pateley Bridge branch and as such it may have met Illingworth, or as Stephen puts it, they’d certainly have been “in whistling distance of each other” at Pateley Bridge. Illingworth, or indeed Mitchell, is a special asset for Stately Trains as a genuine mixed traffic engine, and unlike most other industrial locomotives, it will form a harmonious Nidd Valley workers’ train when hauling vintage carriages, on occasions such as the annual Strawberry Specials. It will also be available for hire to other preserved railways. Is there a future prospect of a double-headed and doublebanked demonstration freight train on the railway, re-creating the heavy freights to Scar House reservoir? The E&BASR may not have the same fearsome grades, but an Illingworth-hauled train climbing the 1-in-80 from Bolton Abbey would still make for a wonderful spectacle.