Wrightscale loves the Corris Railway

The Wrights and Corris go back a long way. 

In 1976, we went from Machynlleth to the village of Corris, in mountainous north-west Wales ‘There used to be slate trains here’ was all that Malcolm could say for certain; for seventy years, the Corris Railway took slate out of the quarries in the Dulas valley.

North West Wales, 1921. To the left can be seen the Talyllyn running down to Towyn. Over the watershed, the Corris Railway runs down the Dulas river to the Dyfi. Courtesy Times Publishing.

We had heard of Allan Meaden and a small but dedicated band of volunteers who wanted trains to run once more but they were not taken too seriously. Every village near a dismantled railway seems to host a group of enthusiasts who dream of restoration.

‘Tut! tut!’ Malcolm was horrified. We found that the old Corris station had been demolished although the stables survived. Stables, not an engine shed? This is a long story and we’ll get round to explaining this puzzle in a minute. The building, though firmly locked, bore signs of being converted into a museum. We heard a cheery ‘Hello!’ and saw a couple of volunteers at work a short distance away. The centre of their toil was a short section of track, leading towards a gate, ominously closed.

They were really friendly, jolly guys but it seemed that the Council were not keen to have a railway extending out of the yard. Although they had plans to improve communication down the valley, we thought that their work was doomed. At the time we were pessimistic, but have been delighted to be proved wrong.

Ex-Corris Number 4 on loan from the Talyllyn. Just seen to th eright is the name on the Maespoeth Engine Shed. Courtesy Corris Railway Society

In 1977, the existing Corris Society formed the Corris Railway Company Ltd. In 1981, they acquired the Maespoeth Engine Shed, half a mile to the south. After various tussles with the local authority, their first train ran from Maespoeth to Corris on April 20^th 1985.  Since then, the railway has been extended. Allow 50 minutes for the round trip – which includes a tour of the engine shed.

Over the years, we have stayed in touch with Corris history for two reasons.

Firstly, we have always been interested in the part ‘the great little trains of Wales’ played in the design of military narrow gauge. This is a fascinating though sad story.

As mentioned above, stabling for horses was an important part of the original Corris station complex. This is because the first Corris and Machynlleth Tramroad consisted of horse-drawn trains, as used in the local quarries. The Railway Act specified 2’3” gauge, possibly because this was already used in the quarries, but also very likely because engineers of the time firmly believed that  a smaller gauge was not reliable for heavy traffic.

These Welsh engineers may not have realised it, but their work was revolutionary.

In the 1870s, French engineers took an interest in the narrow gauge railways of North Wales. In 1876, M. Sevérie, Works Director of the P-O line, wrote an account of the Festiniog Railway. In 1877, M. Vignes from the Chemins de Fer de l’Etat also went there but this was not his first visit to Wales. In 1874, he reported on the Corris line. These visits were very important to France. The slate trains convinced certain French engineers that 60 centimetre (the French equivalent of 2’) gauge could take serious tonnages of freight.

Although the Corris was carrying unofficial passengers from 1874,steam haulage did not start until 1878.

Corris railway circa 1890. Early wagons and carriages were four-wheelers. The distinctive buildings are made from slate. Collection MD Wright

A young engineer in the French Artillery was convinced by the reports from Wales. His name was Prosper Péchot and he went on to design and champion a system of portable railways capable of taking guns, ammunition - anything needed to wage a modern war - off the beaten track. His invention, later known as the système Péchot was much imitated and made it possible for millions of soldiers to stay in the field for years if necessary. Though it was not anticipated by the good Péchot, this helped to turn the 1914-18 War into a protracted slaughter, especially on the Western Front.

16mm scale Péchot bogie wagon, originally inspired by the trains of Wales. Later, the Welsh imitated the bogie design. Model built by MD Wright

As admirers of Péchot’s problem solving skill, Wrightscale have produced 16mm models of his wagons and accessories. Sarah has written books and articles which you can consult for the full story.  

Secondly, the Corris inspired a Wrightscale model.

The first 16mm scale locomotive Malcolm built was a Kerr Stuart Wren. ‘Why not’ his good angel whispered, ‘build a KS Tattoo? There are strong family resemblances and some parts are interchangeable’

16mm Wrightscale model of a Kerr, Stuart Tattoo locomotive, showing the distinctive saddle tamk and exiguous cab

Once word got out that there were Tattoos on the block, customers started to suggest ‘Corris No 4’ Though a Tattoo, the Corris version was and still is distinctive.

The management ordered the prototype in 1921. They chose Kerr, Stuart and Co of Stoke on Trent. The original Corris suppliers had been the Hughes Engine Works of Loughborough who later traded as Falcon Works and then as Brush Engineering. Brush had passed on the ‘goodwill’ to Kerr Stuart. The makers offered their Tattoo 0-4-2 locomotive. Management had learned through bitter experience that the 0-4-0 configuration was unstable on Corris track. Corris 1, 2 and 3 had all been returned to the makers to have a trailing bogie fitted, and half-cabs.

This detail of a Corris locomotive circa 1890 shows the squat cab design and saddle tank Collection MD Wright

The Tattoo design came with a saddle tank, a feature of the previous locomotives, but the cab was too light. It was therefore from the beginning a modified Tattoo.  At 8 rather than 9 tons, it was lighter than the existing Falcon locos and it returned a relatively impressive 3330 lbs of tractive effort.

The quotation was accepted and the locomotive delivered. In spite of or rather because of its weight and output, it tended to slip in wet conditions but the drivers learned to cope. It helped to assure services until a few months before the railway closed.

The Corris Railway limped through the Second World War, but the slate trade did not pick up afterwards as hoped. In 1948, locomotive inspectors pronounced that Number 4 needed a major overhaul while the Certificate for Number 3 was only dated until August 31^st. Then the Dyfi river flooded, cutting off the railway. The last train ran on 20^th August 1948.

16mm Wrightscale Corris No 4 Tattoo, constructed by MD Wright, lined out by Geoff Munday. Photo courtesy Geoff Munday

 After closure, the locomotives and some wagons were sheeted away behind a rake of standard gauge wagons at Machynlleth.  In 1951, the newly formed Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society, with encouragement from Machynlleth, managed to buy these remains at a good price. To this day, all-Corris trains occasionally run on the Talyllyn and appear at the born-again Corris.

Ex-Corris No 4 visiting its original home.The stencil on the wagon in the foreground says 'mail wagon!' Picture courtesy Corris Railway Society

The Railway celebrated its centenary some years ago. Let’s hope it will manage a second centenary.