Crewe Works
Crewe Works | |
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Steam locomotives |
Crewe Works is a British
During the late 19th century, the
After
The works continued to produce engines under
History
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from Mainline and Basic Layout
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Grand Junction Railway
The directors of the Grand Junction Railway determined to construct a works on a 3 acres (12,000 m2) site at Crewe in 1840 with the first locomotive, No. 32Tamerlane completed in October 1843.[2] By 1846, the demand for space was such that wagon building was moved, first to Edge Hill and Manchester, then to a new works at Earlestown. By 1848, the works employed over 1,000 producing one locomotive a week.
London and North Western Railway
In 1845, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway was merged with the Grand Junction. These, in turn, merged in 1846, with the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway to form the London and North Western Railway (LNWR). All four had their own workshops but, in time, locomotive building was concentrated at Crewe.
In 1857, John Ramsbottom became Locomotive Superintendent. He had previously invented the first reliable safety valve and the scoop for picking up water from troughs between the tracks. He went on to improve the precision and interchangeability of tools and components.
In 1862, locomotive work was transferred from Wolverton. Wolverton became the carriage works, while wagon building was concentrated at Earlestown.
In 1853, Crewe had begun to make its own
Production increased steadily and, with the sale to the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway of ten 2-4-0 and eighty six 0-6-0 locomotives, privately owned manufacturers took out an injunction in 1876 to restrain the railway from producing anything but its own needs. This remained in force until British Rail Engineering Limited was established in 1969.
By 1920 Crewe Works had grown into a poorly laid-out establishment with nine separate erecting shops, four of which could only handle smaller locomotives, and the LNWR sanctioned plans for a new large erecting shop which placed on hold until revised and implemented later by the LMS.[3]
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
When the LNWR became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923, its passenger locomotives were eclipsed by those of the former Midland Railway, which offered light, fast and frequent services. As traffic density increased, there was a need for longer trains and more powerful locomotives to haul them. In 1932, William Stanier became Chief Mechanical Engineer and set out to rationalise production. Since Crewe had experience with heavier locomotives and had its own steel making facilities, he chose it as his main production location.[citation needed]
There followed the
During World War II, Crewe produced over 150 Covenanter tanks for the army.
British Railways
After
Diesel production commenced, with D5030 the first main line example completed in 1959.[6] The final diesel locomotives built at Crewe Works were the Class 56 with the last completed in 1984, while the final class of electric locomotives were the Class 91 with the last completed in 1991.[7]
Modern ownership
Crewe Works became a part of
At its height, Crewe Works employed between 7,000 and 8,000 people; in 2005 fewer than 1,000 remained on site, with a further 270 redundancies announced in November of that year and more cutbacks or even closure possible. Current work is largely focused on general maintenance and the inspection of seriously damaged stock. Much of the site once occupied by the works has been sold off and is now occupied by a supermarket, leisure park and a large new health centre. In 2019 another part of Crewe Works was demolished for a new housing estate.
In December 2021 the contract for delivery of HS2 rolling stock was awarded to a partnership between Hitachi Rail and Alstom. Alstom's share in manufacturing of the 54 trains will take place at Derby Litchurch Lane Works and Crewe Works. All the bogies, which house the wheelsets, will be both assembled and maintained at Alstom's Crewe facility.[9][10] Manufacturing is expected to start in 2025.
Notes
- Citations
- ^ from Google Earth/Google Maps
- ^ Larkin 2009, p. 39.
- ^ Whitehouse & Thomas 1987, pp. 165−166.
- ^ "No. 6207; A Study in Steel (1935)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 6 March 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
- ^ Last Steam Locomotive from Crewe Works Railway Gazette 26 December 1958 page 762
- ^ Crewe Works Builds Its First Main-Line Diesel-Electric Locomotive Railway Gazette 26 June 1959
- ^ The Making of Crewe and What Made Crewe The Railway Magazine issue 1254 October 2005 pages 14-23
- ^ Bombardier cleared to buy Adtranz Archived 2 April 2019 at the Wayback Machine Railway Gazette International May 2001
- ^ "Hitachi and Alstom win order to build and maintain High Speed Two trains in Britain". Mynewsdesk. 9 December 2021. Archived from the original on 9 December 2021. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
- ^ Historic Crewe Works to receive upgrade amid new HS2 contract Nantwich News, December 16, 2021
- Bibliography
- ISBN 0-434-92762-7.* Evans, Martin (1966). Inverness to Crewe: The British 4-6-0 Locomotive. UK: Model Aeronautical Press.
- Kelly, Peter (December 1981 – January 1982). "This is Crewe". OCLC 49957965.
- Larkin, E.J.; Larkin, J.G. (1988). The Railway Workshops of Britain 1823-1986. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 0-333-39431-3.
- Larkin, Edgar J. (2009) [1992]. An Illustrated History of British Railways' Workshops : Locomotive, Carriage, and Wagon Building and Maintenance, from 1825 to the Present Day. Heathfield Railway Publications. OCLC 59982877.
- Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2012). Stafford to Chester. West Sussex: Middleton Press. figs. 76-80. OCLC 830024480.
- Reed, Brian (1982). Crewe Locomotive Works and its Men. David and Charles. OL 3244524M.
- Simmons, J. (1986). The Railway in Town and Country 1830-1914. Newton Abbott: David and Charles. OL 2295938M.
- Talbot, E.; Taylor, C. (2005). The Crewe Works Narrow Gauge System (2nd ed.). Derby: The London & North Western Railway Society. OL 32859270M.
- Whitehouse, Patrick; Thomas, David St John (1987). LMS 150 : The London Midland & Scottish Railway A century and a half of progress. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. OL 2078605M.