Vicarstown (often misspelled as Vickerstown)[1] is the largest town on the far eastern side of Sodor.
History[]
The monkish chronicler, Arnold of Cronk, recorded that when in 1150 Cronk Abbey was founded as a daughter house of Furness Abbey, the Abbot of Furness asked for a grant of land on which his Agent or Vicar could build a residence. King Ogmund, suspecting that this might lead to English infiltration, would only grant him land for a house here; hence the place's name. A town eventually sprung up around the Vicar's house.
The North Western Railway extended to Vicarstown in 1915 and built their main Motive Power Depot and Administrative Headquarters here, as well as a rolling lift bridge connecting Sodor with the Mainland. After the 1925 agreement with the LMS to allow NWR trains to travel across the bridge to Barrow-in-Furness there was no further use required. A smaller replacement shed was built for the engines operating the car ferry service in 1927/8, and the turntable was taken up and installed at Barrow, while the headquarters moved to the other end of the main line at Tidmouth.[2] Thomas served as the station pilot here until being transferred to Wellsworth in 1925.
Landmarks[]
- Vicarstown Station - the main railway station for the town of Vicarstown and former headquarters of the North Western Railway.
- Vicarstown Sheds - an engine shed to the west of Vicarstown station; formerly six berths with a turntable behind, rebuilt in 1927/8 at a smaller size with the turntable removed.
- Vicarstown Yards - a shunting yard to the south of Vicarstown station.
- Vicarstown Bridge - a bascule bridge over the Walney Channel, connecting the Island of Sodor to the Mainland.
Shunters[]
Appearances[]
The Railway Series[]
- Thomas the Tank Engine - Thomas and Gordon, Thomas' Train and Thomas and the Trucks
- Gordon the High-Speed Engine - Smokescreen
- Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines - Golden Jubilee
Companion Volumes[]
- 1987 - The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways (mentioned)
Pop-Up Books[]
- 1995 - Thomas the Tank Engine and the Scrambled Eggs (cover only)
Trivia[]
- The name comes from the Rev. W. Awdry's time as an Anglican priest, and on maps of Sodor, it replaces the real Vickerstown, a suburb of Barrow situated on the Isle of Walney.
- This may be why it is often misspelled as Vickerstown.
- Vicarstown Drive in Columbus, Ohio, is named after the town.
Gallery[]
The Railway Series[]
Main Series[]
1915-1927[]
1928-present[]
Behind the Scenes[]
See also[]
Station Guide[]
| Preceding station |  North Western Railway
|
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barrow-in-Furness | The Main Line | Crovan's Gate | ||
| Terminus | Norramby Branch Line | Ballahoo | ||
References[]
| 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 |
| Locomotives | Arthur** |
|---|---|
| Stations | Crovan's Gate | Vicarstown | Ballahoo | The Church Station** | Norramby |