South Devon Railway engine houses
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The 'South Devon Railway engine houses were built in Devon, England, to power the atmospheric trains on the South Devon Railway between Exeter and Plymouth.
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[edit] Atmospheric trains
The South Devon Railway was built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel who proposed to move the trains by atmospheric power. A pipe was laid between the rails with a continuous slot along the top that was sealed by a leather flap. Each train had a piston carriage at the front, beneath was slung a piston which ran in the tube. Stationery engines sucked the air out of the tube in front of the piston and the atmospheric pressure in the pipe behind forced the piston forward, pushing the whole train along.
At stations a smaller pipe was laid alongside the track and a piston in this was connected to the train by a rope to start it moving. On arrival at the next station it was down to the driver to bring the train to a stand using its brakes. Engine houses were situated at every station except for Exeter St Thomas where the driver had to hold the train against the atmospheric pressure with the brakes.
The buildings that housed the boilers and engines were built in a decorative Italianate style with square chimneys.
[edit] Location of engine houses
- Exeter to Newton
- Newton to Plymouth (never used in service)
- Dainton
- Totnes railway station
- Rattery
- Torquay branch (never used in service)
[edit] Engine house remains
[edit] Turf
The remains of Turf engine house can be seen on the river side of the line just where the railway comes alongside the River Exe near Turf Lock, the entrance to the Exeter Canal.
The square pond surrounded by trees was the main water reservoir. Just to the south of this the foundations of some buildings can be seen. This was the engine house itself, although some of the foundations are from later alterations. The building was eventually demolished and the stone used in a nearby farm.
[edit] Starcross
The most familiar engine house, and the most intact one which actually saw service, is situated on the landward side of the line at the south end of Starcross railway station. The chimney was reduced in height for safety many years ago. For a while it had a new pitched roof, but this has since been removed.
After the engines ceased work, the boiler house was used by coal merchants until 1981. The engine area was used as a Wesleyan Church from 1867 to 1958, after which it was used as a youth club for a few years. the whole building was sold and reopened as a museum for the atmospheric railway in 1982. This has since closed and the building is now used by the yacht club.
[edit] Dawlish
Part of the engine house wall can be seen at the back of Dawlish railway station car park.
[edit] Torquay
By the time the railway opened to Torquay the decision had already been made to abandon atmospheric working, so this engine house was never used. It was however completed and is the surviving example with the least number of exterior modifications.
It is also the one least often seen. It is above the level of the railway above a cutting on the right hand side of the line approaching from Newton Abbot railway station, about ΒΌ before reaching Torre railway station. It is easily viewed from a supermarket car park in Newton Road.
[edit] Totnes
The engine house adjacent to Totnes railway station was never brought into use, but has been converted for use as a milk processing plant for Dairy Crest.
[edit] Further reading
- Exeter - Newton Abbot: A Railway History, Peter Kay, Platform 5 Publishing 1991, ISBN 1-872524-42-7
- Atmospheric Railways, Charles Hadfield, Alan Sutton Publishing, reprinted 1985, ISBN 0-86299-204-4
- The Atmospheric Railways, Howard Clayton, self published 1966
- Records of the South Devon Railway and its successors can be consulted at The National Archives
