The Moseley Railway Trust has one of the UK’s largest collection of narrow gauge locos. Some of these are owned directly by the Trust, but the majority are owned by small consortia or individuals. Many of these locomotives have yet to arrive at the Apedale site, generally awaiting the construction of a storage shed. One such locomotive is Hunslet number 996 of 1909 “Edward Sholto”.

“Edward Sholto” is one of the famed Quarry Hunslets. She is actually described as a Large Quarry (Penrhyn) type, and was the last new steam loco procured for Penrhyn quarries. When new, she cost 600 pounds. She was named after Edward Sholto Douglas-Pennant who inherited the Penrhyn estates upon the death of his father in 1907. The loco worked at the quarries until laid up around 1956. She was one of the first locos to leave Penrhyn for preservation, being exported to Canada in October 1961. She never steamed in Canada, and changed hands several times before being acquired by a prominent member of the Moseley Railway Trust and returned to the UK in July 2006. The loco was in poor condition. However, she had left the quarry early on, and had not been restored or tinkered with during her “preservation” career, and therefore was still in a totally original condition – perhaps uniquely for a Penrhyn quarry Hunslet. The owner has built a small team who have worked very hard on the loco, and hopes are high that the loco will steam again during 2008. The photos show the frames, fully restored and awaiting reassembly, and the saddle tank. The tank was massively corroded and has been rebuilt by a true craftsman – it’s a work of art!! As ever, visit our main website here, or e-mail us here.

The Moseley Railway Trust is making good progress on developing its site at Apedale, near Newcastle-Under-Lyme, Staffordshire. A small but dedicated band of volunteers are working on constructing a 2’0” gauge passenger carrying railway from the Apedale Heritage Centre. The objective of the Phase One railway will be to a station at Apedale Road, a distance of 500 metres from the Heritage Centre. Later phases will see the railway cross Apedale Road and storm up a 1 in 50 ruling gradient to a terminus at Apedale Country Park, giving a run of nearly 2km.

Significant assistance has been provided with the groundworks, ballasting and other activities associated with the passenger carrying railway by a grant from Lafarge Aggregates, administered by the Derbyshire Environmental Trust. The Moseley Railway Trust wishes to publicly acknowledge this, and thanks both Lafarge Aggregates and the Derbyshire Environmental Trust for their support for the Apedale project.

A further key priority for the Moseley Railway Trust in 2008 is to construct a large storage shed at Apedale. This will then allow the movement of the trust’s large collection of locomotives and other vehicles currently stored elsewhere. The locomotive fleet is one of the UK’s largest, numbering approximately sixty, and many of these have not been on display to the general public since the MRT vacated its original site at the former Moseley Grammar School site at Cheadle, near Stockport.

An opening date for the railway has not yet been set, as there is a considerable amount of work yet to be done, both physical and on the inevitable paperwork mountain. However, the MRT is planning an open day later in the year. The date for this will be publicised in the next few weeks, and this will be an opportunity for visitors to see progress at Apedale.

The Moseley Railway Trust’s Apedale Appeal remains open and donations large and small are sought to further the MRT’s site development aims at Apedale.

Phil Robinson, the Moseley Railway Trust’s chairman said “The trust has made stunning progress – in just a little over a year, we have taken a derelict site, renovated the buildings, and made a real start on building a new passenger railway. This will provide a major new attraction for the North Staffordshire area, and will mark a step-change in the regeneration of the Apedale valley”.