Lostock Hall Motive Power Depot 1882 - 1968

For many, the sudden realisation, that the era of the everyday matter-of-fact steam railway was about to vanish forever, came to overshadow everything else in life and, during those final heart-rending weeks, days and hours, the otherwise totally unassuming and quite ‘matter of fact’ sheds at Carnforth, Rose Grove and Lostock Hall, along with the trains that their locomotives worked, had fame literally thrust upon them, resulting in the areas around soon becoming inundated with visitors of totally unprecedented proportions.  

Indeed, perhaps inevitably, one single positive aspect of that final contraction in steam operation manifested itself in the coming-together of large numbers of individuals, from every walk of life and from just about every corner of the nation, all intent upon sharing in such a unique experience. In the desolate times that followed, although more than a few came to totally abandon their allegiance to steam (either as a matter of principle, or, maybe, in exasperated and reluctant surrender), the remarkable fact remains today that, for very many more, the camaraderie that had ensued during those sad days had created lasting friendships that, in the majority of cases, have survived the intervening years.

Admittedly, footplate experiences were rarely glamorous for anyone, indeed at times involving severe hardship, but they were based always on the practising of old-fashioned skills, craftsmanship, loyalty and conviviality between fellow workmen and all of which formed the backbone of an unbroken tradition going back more than 170 years. Indeed, today for so very many, dieselisation & electrification, automation, speed and the eternal quest for bland, boring, faceless, cost-saving efficiency will never have a place and it is an intriguing fact that, forty years on, the significance of 1968 came to be commemorated in the organising of a large number of special events. Even after so long, these provided ample opportunities for the renewal of old acquaintanceships and recollections of happier times together, with the most amazing aspect of all this being the sheer number of reunions that continue to be arranged by the railwaymen themselves.

Far more significantly perhaps, although at one time there may well have been an invisible divide between enthusiasts and professional railwaymen, with the passage of time and the unexpected renaissance of steam in an emerging preservation era that none of us once dreamt might ever be possible, all true lovers of steam came to forget such differences and have come together as one to share memories and experiences, past and present.

The year of 1968 proved to be a pivotal one, certainly in a period of great change, but with the march of so-called ‘progress’ - this including man being a matter of months away from walking on the moon - the time really had come for steam. The accountants in their ivory towers had explained that it had outlived its usefulness and the first week in the month of August was to see closure of the final three standard-gauge steam depots on British Railways – all within a few short miles of each other in Lancashire – and, in so-doing, effectively drawing to a conclusion the well over a century and a half of loyal service provided by a form of transport to which the wealth of our nation had owed so much.  

Nevertheless, although the end had so poignantly occurred in an enthusiast-initiated, stage-managed blaze of glory over the weekend of the 3rd and 4th of August 1968 .... with many still remembering it as if it had happened only yesterday, there was another less-publicised side to the story.  What the majority had failed to appreciate was that this was also a period in which innumerable steam railwaymen - most of whom had dedicated their entire lives to service on the railways – had, at the stroke of a pen by some anonymous person in a distant office, come to find themselves declared redundant  and to be faced with little in the way of further work prospects.

It came as no surprise, therefore, that many of the fainter-hearted were actually glad when it was all over and, from that point forward, demanded no more to do with nostalgia in any way, shape or form. There were considerably more, however, who viewed matters quite differently and wouldn’t argue that they didn’t enjoy their jobs on the railway and particularly in being privileged to work with such fine colleagues.

The website and its discussion forum, therefore, are a means by which all can indulge and share in sheer nostalgia. So, whether you knew the place as 27, C27, 23E, 24C or 10D, please do enjoy this tribute dedicated to the all the men and machines that made Lostock Hall Motive Power Depot so very special to us all.