Barry Railway Carriage 163
| Barry Railway Carriage 163 | |
|---|---|
 Barry Railway Carriage 163 | |
| Built By | Ashbury’s of Manchester |
| Status | Under restoration |
| Number | 163 |
| Other numbers | 15, 6058 |
| History | |
| Built | 1895 |
| Type | CZ (as built) |
| 1928 | Withdrawn |
| 1992 | Entered preservation |
This carriage was built in 1895 by Ashbury’s of Manchester for the Barry Railway in South Wales, where it was originally numbered 15 and later 163. It is a composite carriage having two first class and three second class compartments and when built it was mounted on a 6-wheeled underframe.[1]
Contents
Barry Railway Carriage 163 in service
The Barry Railway became part of the GWR in April 1922, which saw 163 re-numbered as GWR 6058. The coach continued in use for a further 6 years before being withdrawn from service by the GWR in 1928 as more modern carriages came into use.
Barry Railway Carriage 163 in preservation
Following withdrawal, the coach body and that of sister coach 164 were used as a holiday home in the Clent Hills until 1992. 163 was then rescued for restoration, arriving at Hampton Loade on 25 April 1992[2] along with parts from 164 which had already been broken up.
The carriage body is now mounted on the 4-wheeled underframe of an ex-SR Guards and Luggage van (type BY), built at Eastleigh in 1937 and originally numbered C 436, later numbered ADB975140 for departmental use by BR. This was initially preserved in 1994 at the Gwili Railway, but the body was later scrapped and the underframe acquired and moved to Hampton Loade on 24 February 2001 as a donor for 163. After the underframe was shortened, the body of 163 was mounted on it on 16 August 2003 with the aid of the Bridgnorth steam crane.
In addition to being mounted on the donor underframe, the carriage's internal partitions have been reinstated and much of the bodywork repaired. The Barry Railway Carriage Trust was formed in 2009 to complete the restoration, which continues at Hampton Loade station. The Trust have stated that they are aiming to get Barry Railway carriage 163 into traffic in time for its 125th birthday in 2020.[3]
The carriage is one of the items to look out for in the childrens ‘I-spy’ supplement to the SVR’s From The Window booklet.
See also
References
Railway Heritage Register Carriage Survey
Barry Railway Carriage Trust
- ↑ BRCT web site 163 page
- ↑ SVR News 118
- ↑ BRCT website 'our project' page
Links
163 (body) on Railway Heritage Register On-Line
436 (underframe) on Railway Heritage Register On-Line
Barry Railway Carriage Trust web site home page
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