| Home | THE LEIGH VALLEY LIGHT RAILWAY PRESENTS A TRIBUTE TO NORMAN BOZZARD 1929 - 2006 |
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| The late Norman Bozzard at home with his beloved rolling stock including wagons often seen on the LVLR | ||
| Born in Cheltenham, Norman
"Hank" Bozzard was an accomplished modeller, a
long time member of the 16mm Association and had been
associated with the Leigh Valley Light
Railway from 1993.
An aviation engineer by trade, his interests included small narrow gauge steam and diesel locomotives ( mainly industrial ), agricultural tractors, aircraft, motorcycles, steam traction and pretty well anything mechanical. He was one of those guys who had genuinely "done it all" - a very genial, sociable gentleman who loved to tell a story and could entertain visitors for hours with his impressions - including a Westinghouse Pump, a heavily burdened steam locomotive struggling up a gradient, various aircraft and a Harley Davidson motorcycle roaring past to name but a few. His knowledge was limitless on most subjects. If you had a question you could be sure that Hank would know the answer. He also had a fascination for the Great War and on several occasions visited the war graves of the Somme, Flanders and Ypres: moments which touched him immensely. He died on 8 October 2006 and a Norman "Hank" Bozzard Memorial Day will be held at the Leigh Valley Light Railway from 10.00 on Sunday 3 June 2007. This will follow the format of previous LVLR Open Days and include both lunchtime food and an evening barbeque. It is planned as a day to celebrate Norman's life and everyone is welcome to attend. The emphasis will be on enjoyment, having a good time and nothing too serious. as Norm would say, "It's about grown men playing trains." Rivet counters need not apply! Proceeds from the day will be donated to the Porthmadog based Welsh Highland Railway's Baldwin Appeal. The WHR Baldwin was Hank's favourite locomotive. Norman "Hank" Bozzard leaves a wife, Patricia, and will be sorely missed by family, friends and acquaintances alike. |
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THE WELSH HIGHLAND RAILWAY BALDWIN APPEAL |
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794 |
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| Norman Bozzard's favourite
locomotive was 794,
a 14 1/2 ton Baldwin class 10-12-D two cylinder 4-6-0 PT
built for the Great War ( another of Norman's special
interests ) in January 1917. With a maximum axle load of
3.46 tons,794 carried the works number 44699 and after
the 1918 Armistice, the locomotive was sold and exported
to an Indian sugar plantation, where it carried the name
'Tiger'. Recovered from India in the mid 1980s and based on the Welsh Highland Railway at Porthmadog since June 2004, 794 is now owned by The Imperial War Museum, and although it has a complete rolling chassis the boiler is in poor condition. It is intended that a new boiler be fitted and the that loco will operate under the pseudonym 590, being almost identical to the original Welsh Highland Railway locomotive of that number. The expensive new boiler will require substantial donations from members of the public. 794's other vital statistics are 23 1/2" ( 597mm ) driving wheels, 396 gallon ( 1 800 litres ) tank capacity, 254.5 square ft ( 23.6 square metres ) heating surface, 5.6 square ft ( 0.52 square metres ) grate area, 178 psi ( 1.23MPa ) boiler pressure, 9" x 12" ( 228mm x 305mm ) cylinders and a tractive effort of 5429 lbs ( 24.15 kN ) at 85% boiler pressure. The Baldwin class number - 10-12-D - is derived from a rather complicated classification system initiated in 1842 and used until some time around 1940. Another example is the class number for a Baldwin locomotive built for the Nevada-California-Oregon Railway which can be described in the following manner: 10-24 D 35 where 10 = total of 10 wheels 24 = represents cylinders size D = 3 pairs of driving wheels 35 = Indicates the 35th locomotive in the class The initial number is the total number of wheels of all kinds under the locomotive. The second number indicates the cylinder diameter in inches, this quantity being obtained by dividing the cylinder diameter by 2 and adding 3 to the quotient. The above classification number of 24 indicates a cylinder diameter of (24 divided by 2) + 3 = 15". A fraction, e.g. 42/68 indicates a compound locomotive having two cylinders. The letter designation indicates the number of pairs of coupled driving wheels. "A" = special class of high speed geared locomotive with one pair of driving wheels ( Also rack railroad locomotives) "B" = one pair of driving wheels. "C" = two pairs of driving wheels. ... "F" = five pairs of driving wheels. Double letters = articulated locomotives having more than one set of driving wheels. The last number(s) in the class number identifies a specific locomotive within the class ( although the numbering is not contiguous.) Therefore 10-12-D represents 10 wheels, 9 inch cylinders, and 3 coupled axles. |
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THE ORIGINAL WELSH HIGHLAND 590 |
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The original Welsh Highland 590 at Porthmadog in 1934 |
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| 590 was also a
4-6-0 PT locomotive of the Baldwin class 10-12-D. It was
completed on 1st March 1917, and was part of a batch of
locomotives (works numbers 45133 to 45236) ordered by the
War Department from the Baldwin Locomotive Works,
Philadelphia, USA, for use behind the Western Front. The
War Department Light Railway locomotives were different
from the original 10-12-D locomotives as they had half
instead of full cabs. The War Department gave this batch of locomotives the WD numbers 1001 to 1104. However, at some time during 1917, WD locomotives 1005 to 1150 were renumbered 546 to 700; thus 590 received the number by which it subsequently became known. Following wartime service, the locomotive was overhauled by Bagnalls of Stafford in 1919. It was bought for use on the Welsh Highland Railway by Colonel Holman F. Stephens for the sum of £240 from the Government Property Disposals Board. It arrived at Dinas Junction on 4th July 1923, having been delivered by E.W. Farrow and Son of Spalding, Engineers Merchants. Due to its size, it was restricted to use on the Welsh Highland Railway, never seeing service on the Festioniog Railway. 590 was reputedly a rough riding locomotive, and was later confined to freight traffic as this was slower. It's ride may well have been linked reverse running without a pony truck under the cab ( Fellow WHR locomotive Russell's 2-6-2 configuration being ideal for bi-directional running). Prior to 1934, it faced Porthmadog and carried a black livery. Then it was turned and repainted in red. In 1942, Cohen's, the contractor commissioned to scrap the W.H.R. permanent way, attempted to steam 590. However, the locomotive was in very bad condition, leaking steam badly and so it was cut up for scrap. The surviving tank was used for oil storage in a contractor's yard. The only other surviving part of 590 is a builder's plate which is on display at the National Railway Museum, York, along with a builder's plate and nameplate from Russell. There are few examples of this type of locomotive still at work in India and there are also two in Britain |
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THE PETER THOMASON FUND |
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| Peter Thomason lost his
life in a road accident in September 2003. He had been a
life-long supporter of narrow gauge railways and of the
Welsh Highland Railway in particular. Peter joined the
Porthmadog-based Welsh Highland company in 1972 at the
age of 18. He became the much respected vice-chairman of
the Company, and its financial advisor. If Peter loved the Welsh Highland, then he loved the locomotives which ran on the original line even more- and 590, described above, was his favourite. In August 2003, with Peter's assistance, an agreement was signed between the Imperial War Museum at Duxford and the Welsh Highland Railway Ltd (Porthmadog) for the long term loan and restoration of Baldwin "794". It was to be reconstructed as "590" and once again haul heritage trains between Porthmadog, Beddgelert and Caernarfon on the reconstructed Welsh Highland Railway. It would thus be a fitting memorial to Peter if this ambitious, and far-sighted project should be successfully completed as soon as possible. The Welsh Highland Railway is a registered charity (thanks again to Peter) and is eligible for the Gift Aid scheme. All donations will therefore attract Tax Repayment at the rate of 28p for every pound donated to the fund. A newsletter will be issued to all donors from time to time with updates on progress. The newsletter will also be available on the Welsh Highland web site. It is estimated that the scheme will cost about £100,000. A new boiler will be the biggest single item of expenditure, costing in the region of £45,000. The locomotive is the subject of a permanent public display as the work progresses. The fund will be administered by the Welsh Highland Railway Ltd, which is a registered charity (No. 1039817). The Company will be responsible for the management of the restoration scheme, which can be contacted at: Baldwin 794 Restoration
Fund, |