Tidmouth Sheds are the main engine sheds of the North Western Railway located at Tidmouth. The sheds are home to many of the Main Line engines and were originally much smaller, being rebuilt as a roundhouse in 1952.
History[]
In 1925, an agreement was made with the LMS, which allowed NWR trains to run as far as Barrow-in-Furness. Following this, the main motive power depot was moved from Vicarstown to Tidmouth, where the new four-road engine shed was built nearby the station. There was also a turntable outside of the shed, which was close to the sea, which once caused James to be spun around at high speed due to the wind. Additionally, a large coaling stage for the steam engines is situated just outside of the shed, with a ramp to push up trucks supplying coal.
In 1952, the engine sheds were heavily rebuilt. While the original four-road building remained, it was now also the entrance to a much larger roundhouse building situated behind it, with the turntable now being moved inside the shed rather than outside by the sea. The roundhouse followed a similar design to typical LMS roundhouses such as Barrow Hill, with twelve berths with ash pits underneath situated around a turntable and an entrance and exit at either end. Additionally, a new two-road carriage shed was erected next to the original four-road structure. That same Christmas, a party for Mrs. Kyndley was held at the newly-completed sheds.
Later on, a diesel fuelling and cleaning facility was added to the area of the original shed shared by BoCo and Bear. Sometime after this (but before 1983), a visiting diesel from the Other Railway nicknamed Old Stuck-Up once crashed through the back of the shed wall, which was later repaired, while going to be cleaned and refuelled here before heading for home.
Residents[]
While the sheds are primarily used by the Main Line engines, Donald, Douglas and various engines from the Ffarquhar, Brendam and Arlesburgh branch lines - alongside several visiting engines from the Mainland - have also been known to stay here. As such, who stays at the shed frequently changes between stories. For ease of reading, this list contains only engines which are (or were previously) allocated to the shed on a permanent basis.
Current[]
Former[]
Appearances[]
Trivia[]
- Although they do not appear until Gordon the High-Speed Engine, the new sheds from the later books were actually present since 1952, as in Thomas' Christmas Party it mentions the new engine shed and according to the Reverend W. Awdry, they were the most accurate in The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways, indicating the old shed up until James and the Diesel Engines was inaccurate.
- Though largely based on the television series, the My Thomas Story Library books often illustrate Tidmouth Sheds based on its original pre-1952 appearance in The Railway Series.
- This also carries over to some of the Engine Adventures books, the 2019 book Thomas and the Dinosaurs and the 2020 book Thomas the Hero.
| Locomotives | Steam | Henry | Gordon | James | Donald and Douglas |
|---|---|---|
| Diesel | BoCo | Bear | The Works Diesel | Pip and Emma | |
| Former | Edward | |
| Rolling Stock | Passenger | Orange-Brown Corridor Coaches | Orange-Brown Non-Corridor Coaches | Red Express Coaches |
| Former | The Spiteful Brake Van | |
| Trains | Passenger | The Wild Nor' Wester | The Sudrian | The Limited | The Barrow-Tidmouth Semi-Fast | The Main Line Push-Pull |
| Goods | The Flying Kipper | The Morning Milk | The Midnight Goods | |
| Infrastructure | Stations | Tidmouth | Knapford | Crosby | Wellsworth | Maron | Cronk | Killdane | Kellsthorpe Road | Crovan's Gate | Vicarstown | Barrow-in-Furness |
| Sheds | Tidmouth Sheds | Vicarstown Sheds | |
| Tunnels and Bridges | Tidmouth Tunnel | Knapford Harbour Bridges | Crosby Tunnel | The Viaduct | Balladrine Bridge | Ballahoo Bridge | Henry's Tunnel | Vicarstown Bridge |