Whitehaven in the 1960's could still boast a fascinating system of industrial railways. To the south the chemical plant at Marchon and the NCB facilities at Ladysmith were linked by inclines to the main line and the harbour.
To the north the NCB facilities at Harrington were partly serviced by the steeply graded LOWCA Light railway northwards to Workington whilst the harbour itself featured numerous lines along the quays. Its all gone!
Thanks to Dave Hodgson we have some views of Corkickle Brake and the Marchon Works in their heyday. These slides were rescued by Dave in 2000 and are offical slides taken by the Company photographer which were being 'skipped' when the old Company's records were being thrown out. There are also 20 views from Gordon Nicholson who maintains a fascinating site covering the Brake which he worked at for many years. Check out the link to his site.

This collection covers various lines inherited from the LNWR,CR and Furness some now long defunct whilst others are passenger only or preserved

This collection covers the routes of the old North Eastern and North British Railways routes in Cumbria. Basically only the ex North Eastern railway main line from Carlisle east to Newcastle survives together with odd bits of the North British Railways Waverley route and associated branch line serving cement and MOD depots.

This collection covers the route from Carlisle via Maryport, Workington, Whitehaven, through Furness and Grange Over Sands to Carnforth. Views date from before the War through to the 1990's.

The old Midland railway Settle & Carlisle main line is a great survivor. This collection depicts the route from steam days to the present. THe part of the collection relating to the Skipton area is now part of a collection in the Gallery Northumbrian Railway Archive.
Many of the views from the 1960's were taken by my good friend David Ford.

Views from the 1920's of LMS locomotives at Carlisle, unfortunately this collection is a bit unbalanced as the pre-grouping locomotives are mainly ex LNWR but I hope to corrct this in due course

These views are mainly from the 1920's and feature Carlisle Citadel station and London Road shed (the former North Eastern railway depot)

The WCML from Lancaster to Carlisle from LMS days to the present.

Various locos and workings at Carlisle during 2006

56's were only a feature at Carlisle for a few years being cascaded as the coal industry declined and earlier locos were withdrawn.

Views of 37's at Carlisle taken over the last 5-10 years

Back in the mid 1960's, Carlisle was the place to be for steam and I used to make regular trips from Newcastle. Unfortunately once I had paid the train fare there was little money left for photography (Given the quality of this lot, thank God for that I here you say) This is the best of a bad lot. Its always easy to be wise after the event but after I had taken the 3 colour shots I then 'wasted' the rest of the film on the Ravenglas and Eskdale ignoring all the steam at Workington on the way!
Further views from the 1950's are now included (not my work! so the quality is a bit better)

This was the era of corporate blue with just a few variations and in some ways it gave one the impression of the railways being a much more unified system. The locomotive scene was far more interesting than today with most services being loco hauled. Classes 20 25 26 27 and 40 were common sights
Unfortunately dates are a real problem on this gallery as I have few surviving notes

Some of the more interesting trains (mainly freight!) through Carlisle in 2005