Bowaters Paper Railway

Bowaters Paper Railway
Locale	England
Dates of operation	1906 – 1969
Track gauge	2 ft 6 in (762 mm)
Length	10 miles
Headquarters	Sittingbourne

The Bowaters Paper Railway was a 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge narrow gauge industrial railway. It had the distinction of being the last steam-operated industrial narrow gauge railway in Britain when it closed in 1969.

History

The Bowaters' paper mill at Sittingbourne was originally supplied with raw materials by small ships that sailed to docks on Milton Creek. A short horse-hauled railway moved pulp to the mill. Steam locomotives were introduced in 1908.

In 1913 the company began work on the construction of Ridham Dock, a purpose-built facility on the River Swale where much larger ships could load and unload. The railway was extended to connect the dock and the mill. In 1924 a second Bowaters' mill opened at Kemsley Down and the railway reached its full length of 10 miles.

Closure and preservation

In 1969 a time and motion study at Bowaters resulted in the closure of the railway. By this time the railway was the last industrial narrow gauge railway in Britain operating steam locomotives. The Locomotive Club of Great Britain leased the southern portion of the railway between Sittingbourne and Kemsley Down in 1970. The portion of the line now operates as the Sittingbourne & Kemsley Light Railway (S&KLR). Much of the rest of the equipment went to form the Great Whipsnade Railway.

Locomotives

Name	Builder	Type	Works Number	Built	Notes
Alpha	W.G. Bagnall	0-6-2T		1932	Running on the S&KLR
Chevalier	Manning Wardle	0-6-2T	1877	1915	Acquired from the Chattenden and Upnor Railway in 1950. Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway
Conqueror	W.G. Bagnall	0-6-2T	2192	1922	Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway
Excelsior	Kerr Stuart	0-4-2ST	1049	1908	Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway
Leader	Kerr Stuart	0-4-2ST	926	1905	Running on the S&KLR
Melior	Kerr Stuart	0-4-2ST	4219	1924	Running on the S&KLR
Monarch	W.G. Bagnall	0-4-4-0T	3024	1953	Sold to the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway
Premier	Kerr Stuart	0-4-2ST	886	1905	Running on the S&KLR
Superb	W.G. Bagnall	0-6-2T	2624	1922	Running on the S&KLR
Superior	Kerr Stuart	0-6-2ST	4043	1920	Sold to the Great Whipsnade Railway
Triumph	W.G. Bagnall	0-6-2T	2511	1934	Running on the S&KLR
Unique	W.G. Bagnall	2-4-0F	2216	1924	A rare narrow gauge fireless locomotive. Now on static display at Kemsley Down station
Victor	W.G. Bagnall	2-4-0F	2366	1929	A rare narrow gauge fireless locomotive. Scrapped in 1967
	Hudson Hunslet	4wDM		1953	Running on the S&KLR with the name Victor
	English Electric	4wBE		1921	Scrapped in 1928

See also

• British narrow gauge railways

References

• Thomas, C.S. (1995). The Whipsnade & Umfolozi Railway and the Great Whipsnade Railway. The Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-478-4. 
• Mitchell, Vic and Smith, Keith (2000). Kent Narrow Gauge. Middleton Press. ISBN 978-1901706451. 
• Narrow Gauge Railway Museum article on Bowaters Paper Railway.