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London North Western
Railway:
Midland
Railway:
Stratford
Midland Junction Railway
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The wreck of the Irish Mail at Tamworth in 1870
Document Summary - The wreck of the Irish Mail at
Tamworth in 1870
The report into the wreck of the Irish Mail at Tamworth in
1870. This document was published on 15th September 1870 by Board of Trade. It
was written by Captain HW Tyler. This item is linked to the Accident at
Tamworth on 14th September 1870 The original document format was Bound Volume,
and comprised 6 pages. This document was kindly sourced from University of
Leicester Library and is in The
Rail Archive Accident reports collection. It was added to
the Archive on 27th October 2005. This document is Crown Copyright, and is
subject to the terms governing the reproduction of crown copyright material.
Depending on the status and age of the original document, you may need an
OPSI click-use license if you wish to reproduce this
material, and other restrictions may apply. Please see
this
explanation for further details.
"The train approached Tamworth about 4.9, thirteen minutes
late; and the rear guard observed that the distant-signal and the intermediate
signal were both at all right, showing white lights. The guard heard the
engine-driver whistle, a series of sharp whistles, which be calls "the alarm
whistle," as soon as he had passed under the Gungate bridge; and he applied his
continuous breaks without loss of time. He estimates the speed of the train,
when he heard this whistle sounded, at 45 miles an hour; and believes it was
the usual travelling speed of the train in approaching and passing through the
Tamworth station. He noticed that the upper lamp on the home signal post, which
applied to the through line, showed a red light, but he did not notice the
condition of the lower lamp, which applied to the platform line. His breaks
were fully on before be passed that post. He felt a lurch in passing it from
which he was aware that the train was running up the platform line in place of
passing along the through line. He saw, after he had applied his own break,
sparks flying from break-blocks in front of the train, and he believes that the
speed was reduced from 45 to 15 miles an hour before the engine struck the
buffer-stop at the end of the fuel siding.
The engine mounted the buffer-stop, and ran over it, falling
24 yards beyond it, on its wheels, but at right angles to the line of its path,
in the middle of the river. The tender fell on its side, with its wheels to the
rear, and lay also at right angles to the line, but with its leading end in the
opposite direction, partly on the engine."
A copy of the full report and map showing the site of the
accident can be obtained here via
courtesy of
Rail
Archive.
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