Irish Narrow Gauge Railways: A View From The Past
£15.99
Stock type: -
Stock reference: 33.012
£15.99
Stock type: -
Stock reference: 33.012
Ireland was once served by a variety of fascinating narrow gauge railways, each with its own character. For instance, the West Clare was rural, the Portstewart line was a street tramway, the Cork & Muskerry took visitors to within feet of the Blarney Stone, the County Donegal was a cross border route and the Ballymena & Larne ran boat train services.
Today the Irish narrow gauge is a thing of the past, with the exception of the preservation centres and the industrial lines serving remote turf bogs. How different is was when the Clogher Valley Railway ran its trains from end to end of the High Street down the middle of the road, the local people in this busy town having to get out of the way of the train.
A number of Irish narrow gauge lines developed a rustic charm as their equipment aged, however others kept abreast of technical developments. Two of the lines ran diesel railcars where traffic allowed this, and one line ran fairly powerful diesel locomotives. The great bulk of the steam locomotives were built in Britain, though some foreign types went into industrial service.
Drawing upon a superb selection of photographs, the author recalls the era up to the 1950s when many of the lines survived in some form to provide an essential service to local communities. As such, the book will be a source of considerable nostalgia to many who fondly recall travelling in Ireland in the period before the lines closed.
Michael H C Baker.
Hardback.
235 x 172 mm. 96 pages.
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