Bowaters Paper Railway

The Bowaters Paper Railway was a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gauge industrial railway running from Sittingbourne to Ridham Dock on The Swale in the county of Kent. It had the distinction of being the last steam-operated industrial narrow gauge railway in Britain when it closed in 1969. Part of the system still operates as the Sittingbourne & Kemsley Light Railway.

Bowaters Paper Railway
Overview
HeadquartersSittingbourne
LocaleEngland
Dates of operation1906–1969
Technical
Track gauge2 ft 6 in (762 mm)
Length10 miles (16.1 km)
Sittingbourne & Kemsley Light Railway
/ Bowaters Paper Railway
Kemsley Down
Burley's Wharf
Milton Regis Halt
Milton Regis Viaduct
Sittingbourne Viaduct

History
C1910 map

The manufacture of paper at Sittingbourne dates back to the seventeenth century. The paper mill was originally supplied with raw materials by barges that sailed to wharves at the head of Milton Creek. A short horse-hauled tramway moved pulp to the mill. Two steam locomotives were introduced in 1908.

In 1913, as Milton Creek began to silt up, the paper making company began work on the construction of Ridham Dock, a deepwater facility on the Swale estuary, where seagoing ships could unload raw materials and load finished paper products. At the start of the First World War the railway and the dock was taken over by the Admiralty and the railway was extended to connect the dock. After the end of the war the railway was returned to the paper company. In 1924 a second paper mill opened at Kemsley Down, and further extended in 1936. By this time, the railway reached its maximum length of 10 miles (16 km). There was also a Standard gauge system around Kemsley and Ridham Dock that was connected to the Sheerness line near Swale.

Closure, preservation and uncertain future

In 1969, a time and motion study by the then owners, The Bowater Paper Corporation (Bowater), resulted in the closure of the railway. By this time the railway was the last industrial narrow gauge railway in Britain operating steam locomotives and, until withdrawn from 30 September 1969, had operated a scheduled passenger service for its employees between the Sittingbourne mill and Ridham Dock.[1] Bowaters had a "handing over" ceremony to the news lessees, the Locomotive Club of Great Britain (LCGB),[2] on 4 October 1969 but continued running its goods trains until the final one on 25 October 1969. The LCGB was granted a lease of the southern portion of the railway between Sittingbourne and Kemsley Down in 1970. Much of the rest of the equipment went to form the Great Whipsnade Railway. The LCGB formed the Sittingbourne and Kemsley Light Railway Company to operate the railway. The company operates the railway under the name Sittingbourne & Kemsley Light Railway (S&KLR).

The S&KLR was threatened with closure at the end of 2008. The current owners of the railway land, the Finnish paper company M-real, closed the paper mill at Sittingbourne in 2007[3] and sold the paper mill at Kemsley to another company. M-real gave the railway company notice to quit the site and to remove all their locomotives and equipment by the end of December 2008.[4] After a brief period of opening in October 2010, the railway began operations again in the summer of 2012. As of June 2015, the railway is operating yearly from Late March to the end of September.

Locomotives
Name Builder Wheel arrangement Gauge Works Number Built Notes Photograph
Alpha W.G. Bagnall 0-6-2T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 2472 1932 Undergoing cosmetic overhaul at the SKLR.
Chevalier Manning Wardle 0-6-2T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 1877 1915 Acquired from the Chattenden and Upnor Railway in 1950. Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway, later resold to Bill Parker.
Conqueror W.G. Bagnall 0-6-2T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 2192 1922 Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway, now part of the Vale of Rheidol Railway Museum Collection.
Excelsior Kerr Stuart 0-4-2ST 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 1049 1908 Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway in 1968–1970.
Jubilee W.G. Bagnall 0-4-0ST 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) 2542 1936 Now at the East Anglian Railway Museum.
Leader Kerr Stuart 0-4-2ST 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 926 1905 Operational on the SKLR.
Melior Kerr Stuart 0-4-2ST 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 4219 1924 Operational on the SKLR.
Monarch W.G. Bagnall 0-4-4-0T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 3024 1953 Sold to the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway in 1966.
Pioneer Manning Wardle 0-4-0T 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) 942 1885 Acquired from Smith, Patterson & Co Ltd, Blaydon in 1943. Scrapped in 1954.
Pioneer II Ashford 0-6-0T 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) 1910 SECR P class no.178. Acquired from BR in 1958. Sold to the Bluebell Railway in 1969.
Premier Kerr Stuart 0-4-2ST 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 886 1905 Under overhaul on the SKLR.
Superb W.G. Bagnall 0-6-2T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 2624 1940 Under overhaul on the SKLR.
Superior Kerr Stuart 0-6-2T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 4043 1920 Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway in 1968–1970.
Triumph W.G. Bagnall 0-6-2T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 2511 1934 On display at the SKLR.
Unique W.G. Bagnall 2-4-0F 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 2216 1924 A rare narrow gauge fireless locomotive. On display at the SKLR.
Victor W.G. Bagnall 0-4-0F 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 2366 1929 A rare narrow gauge fireless locomotive. Scrapped in 1967.
Rattler W.G. Bagnall 0-4-0T 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 1978 1913 Acquired from the Cape Copper Company, Swansea in 1942. Loco was in poor condition and did little work. Scrapped in 1950.[5]
- Hudson Hunslet 4wDM 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 4182 1953 Operational on the S&KLR with the name Victor.
The Tank English Electric 4wBE 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) 515 1921 Scrapped in 1969.
- Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns 6wDM 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) 2603/7889 1957 Class 04 D2259, acquired from BR in 1968. Scrapped in 1978.
- Vulcan Foundry 6wDM 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) 2551/D277 1955 Class 04 D2228, acquired from BR in 1969. Scrapped in 1979.

See also

References
  1. Journal of the Stephenson Locomotive Society Dec 1968 p.380
  2. http://www.lcgb.org.uk/
  3. "M-real milestones". M-real Corporation. Archived from the original on 4 May 2007. Retrieved 31 August 2008.
  4. Dyspozytor (27 August 2008). "S&KLR only 4 months to go?". Behind The Water Tower.
  5. Neale, Andrew (2 October 2008). "Must we let this be swept away?". Heritage Railway. 116: 42–46.

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