Image ID: 15178

Thrumpton Level Crossing

Retford
England

Showing engines nos. 61212 and 61213, en route to the engine shed. These 'B1'-class engines' are running 'light engine', a railway term meaning engine(s) only, without any vehicles to haul. Naturally there were frequent telephone conversations between signal boxes' or to Area Control Offices at Doncaster and Sheffield (every passing train had to be reported to one of these Control centres). Most steam locomotives' working along the lines crossing at Retford carried a 5-figure number beginning with a '6'. This prefix identified engines' formerly owned, before railway nationalization, by the L.N.E.R. During the telephone conversations, this initial number 6 did not usually form part of the spoken number, because it was considered redundant in these circumstances. For example, the engines' here would be identified simply as 'twelve-twelve' and 'twelve-thirteen'. This convention was in use at least from Retford along the line westwards towards Sheffield, and survived until the end of steam working here in 1965. Generally speaking,! at least in the North Midlands, the pronunciation for engines' whose number included a nought, was always letter 'O', never zero: for example, in the situation described above, no. 61208 would be called 'twelve o-eight'. (Information provided by John - the signal box man at this time). This photo also shows that work on the track for the new dive under has commenced.

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Keywordsrailwaysignalsemaphoresignboxtraintracklinerailsenginesteamlocomotivegantrybridgefootbridge

Retford Library