Corris Railway - Carriages

Carriages

The original railway had ten four-wheel, tramcar-like carriages, built at the Falcon Works, Loughborough, and numbered from 1 to 10, with a brake van from the same source taking the number 11. The first bogie carriage, also from Falcon, which looked like two four-wheel bodies mounted on a single chassis, received number 12, and the four-wheelers were rebuilt over a five-year period on new chassis to form five bogie vehicles. A re-numbering had the rebuilds as 1 to 5 and the former 12 becoming 6. Two all-new carriages to a similar design were built by Metropolitan and numbered 7 & 8. Nos. 1 to 6 disappeared, presumed scrapped, after 1930, but 8 was rebuilt for use on the Talyllyn Railway as their No.17 while 7 is on display in the Corris Railway Museum. The brake van was also preserved on the Talyllyn but has been substantially rebuilt after being damaged in a fire.

So with eleven four-wheel vehicles and eight bogie vehicles having run on the railway, the Society has numbered its new carriages from 20 onwards.

Carriage 20 is similar in appearance to the bogie vehicles, but on a shorter, ex-National Coal Board four-wheel chassis. Carriage 21 has been designed to appear as similar as possible to the original 19th Century bogie vehicles, but constructed to 21st Century safety standards. Three more carriages similar to 21 are currently under construction at Maespoeth, numbered 22, 23 and 24; 22 and 24 will have clerestory roofs, similar to those carried by two original carriages in the 1920s.

When carriage 22 is completed the railway will be able to run an authentic-looking "1920s" train with the "Tattoo" loco and two bogie carriages.