Corris Railway

Corris Railway(Rheilffordd Corris)
Overview
Locale	Gwynedd
Terminus	Maespoeth
Stations	5
Commercial Operations
Built by	Corris, Machynlleth & River Dovey Tramroad
Gauge	2'3" (686 mm, narrow gauge)
Commercial History
Year opened	1859
Year closed	1948 (Reopened 2002)

The Corris Railway (Welsh: Rheilffordd Corris) is a preserved two-foot three-inch (narrow gauge) railway based in Corris, situated on the border between Merionethshire (now part of Gwynedd) and Montgomeryshire (now part of Powys) in Mid Wales.

History

The line opened in 1859 and originally ran from Derwenlas, south east of Machynlleth, north to Corris and on to Aberllefenni. Branches served the slate quarries at Corris Uchaf, Aberllefenni, the isolated quarries around Ratgoed and quarries along the length of the Dulas Valley.

The railway closed in 1948, but in 1966 a preservation society was formed, initially opening a museum; a short section of line between Corris and Maespoeth was re-opened to passengers in 2002. The railway now operates as a tourist attraction. A new steam locomotive was built for the railway and delivered in 2005 while a second one is under construction and is nearly complete. The two surviving locomotives, plus some of the original rolling stock, are preserved on the nearby Talyllyn Railway.

Locomotives

List of locomotives that have only appeared in The Railway Series and Thomas & Friends media. For a comprehensive list on all locomotives - click here.

No.	Name	The Railway Series counterpart	Thomas & Friends counterpart	Notes
1	Corris Railway No. 1 (scrapped)	MSR No. 1 (dropped)	N/A	Originally built as an 0-4-0ST, scrapped 1930. Originally the basis of the Mid Sodor Railway's No. 1 in the Rev. W. Awdry's early drafts. Mentioned in Hugh Goes Sliding by Christopher Awdry.
2	Corris Railway No. 2 (scrapped)	MSR No. 2 (dropped)	N/A	Originally built as an 0-4-0ST, scrapped 1930. Originally the basis of the Mid Sodor Railway No. 2 in the Rev. W. Awdry's early drafts. Mentioned in Hugh Goes Sliding by Christopher Awdry.
3	Corris Railway No. 3 (formerly)	Falcon (Sir Handel)	Falcon (Sir Handel)	Originally built as an 0-4-0ST. In 1927, it was rebuilt using parts from all three Hughes locomotives. Purchased by the Talyllyn Railway in 1951, and named Sir Haydn. Referred to as Hugh by Christopher Awdry in Hugh Goes Sliding and the "Corris-Pondent".
4	Corris Railway No. 4 (formerly)	Stuart (Peter Sam)	Stuart (Peter Sam)	Tattoo class locomotive, purchased by the Talyllyn Railway in 1951. Then given the name Edward Thomas. Referred to as Kerr by Christopher Awdry in Hugh Goes Sliding and the "Corris-Pondent".
5	Corris Railway No. 5 Alan Meaden	N/A	N/A	Referred to as Simon the Simplex in the "Corris-Pondent".
6	Corris Railway No. 6	N/A	N/A	Referred to as Willy the Ruston in the "Corris-Pondent"; after The Railway Stories narrator, Willie Rushton.
7	Corris Railway No. 7	N/A	N/A	No. 7 once portrayed Peter Sam at a "Duncan Days" event on the Talyllyn Railway.
10	Corris Railway No. 10	N/A	N/A	No. 10 once portrayed Sir Handel at an Awdry Extravaganza event on the Talyllyn Railway.

Rolling Stock

List of rolling stock that have only appeared in The Railway Series and Thomas & Friends media.

Carriages

No.	Name	The Railway Series counterpart	Thomas & Friends counterpart	Notes
6	Brake Van #6	Cora	Skarloey Vans	In service at Talyllyn Railway as TR 6. Referred to as Cora the Brake Van in the "Corris-Pondent".
7, 8, 20, 21	Saloon Coaches	Saloon Coaches	N/A	No. 8 was restored by the Talyllyn Railway in 1958, and renumbered as No. 17. Referred to as Corinne, Coralie, Chicken, and Tiger in the "Corris-Pondent".

Goods wagons

No.	Name	The Railway Series counterpart	Thomas & Friends counterpart	Notes
5, 8, 11, 13, 15, 17	Open End Door Wagons	Open End Door Wagons	Open End Door Wagons	Iron-bodied wagons used by the Corris and Talyllyn Railways. Referred to as Mary the Coal Wagon in the "Corris-Pondent".

Trivia

• The Corris Railway, as well as the Ffestiniog Railway and Snailbeach Railway, were the inspirations for the Mid Sodor Railway. 
• A book named "Hugh Goes Sliding", written by Christopher Awdry, featured Sir Haydn and Edward Thomas working on the Corris Railway. It was based on a true-life event, reminiscent of The Railway Series. It implies that before being purchased by the Talyllyn Railway, Sir Haydn was named "Hugh" after his designer Henry Hughes, and Edward Thomas was named "Kerr" after his designer, Kerr Stuart.
• With permission from Christopher Awdry, Cora was featured in the Corris Railway's newsletter, known as the "Corris-Pondent", along with "Hugh" and "Kerr". Cora was depicted as a brake van who worked on the Corris Railway but moved to the Talyllyn Railway. A narrow gauge Diesel engine named "Willy the Rushton", after The Railway Stories' narrator Willie Rushton, was featured in a story for the newsletter.
• The Corris Railway's No.7 locomotive was briefly mentioned as a similar locomotive to Peter Sam and Edward Thomas in Sodor: Reading Between the Lines.

Gallery

Hugh Goes Sliding written by Christopher Awdry

Machynlleth

Esgairgeiliog

Aberllefenni (1884 - 1930)

No. 1 at Aberllefenni

No. 2 at Aberllefenni

Sir Haydn and Edward Thomas

External links

• Official website
• Corris Railway on Wikipedia
• Corris Railway on Locomotive Wiki
• Corris Railway's newsletter

See Also

• Corris Railway Locomotives

Corris Railway

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Locomotives	Steam	No. 7 | No. 10 | No. 1 | No. 2 | No. 3 | No. 4
	Diesel	Alan Meaden | No. 6
Rolling Stock		Saloon Coaches | Open Wagons

United Kingdom

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