Goodness! My fifteen year old self is amongst the small crowd of onlookers at the top of the incline. Never thought that I'd see a film of the event. *It's interesting to remember that there were no TV cameras there - as there would, most certainly, be today: not even a photographer from the local newspaper.
Many thanks. I've always disliked what is normally very badly added sound, but I did toy with the idea of going fully in the other direction and adding the Benny Hill music as a joke!
Ian I have just stumbled on this, and wow, its wonderful, your father captured something very special here, and will never be seen again, a superb historical record, you should be very proud of this, and I am assuming that may have been you at the end working the signal Thank You so much for uploading
So nice to see colour footage. But those young walkers walking alongside the tracks with the incline cable whizzing along.. And the workers on their knees also inches away from the running cable... It's interesting to see the jack shaft coupling rods have been removed on the 03
A very historic piece of film. We walked past there on a holiday to the Peak Distict. You can now walk up the incline. It is very steep. I think it had been dangerous when it was in operation and shouldn't really have been built like that. A OO gauge model of this line was featured in Model Rail Magazine. Thanks for uploading.
The line was built in the very early days of steam haulage, when it was thought that locomotives couldn't manage gradients. Consequently it was laid out as a series of near level stretches where the trains were pulled by horses or locos, with stationary engines hauling them up steep inclines between. Hopton Incline was originally one of those chain-hauled inclines. If the line had been envisaged for locomotive hauling throughout it would have been built very differently.
I remember reading the accounts and seeing the photographs in The Railway World at the time. Later on I had a similar experience on the now vanished Loddington ironworks branch of the Midland Railway from Kettering (past the Geo. Cohen's scrapyard). Our Cl.2 tender engine could not manage the gradient with 12 brakevans and stalled. We tried again with 6 vans and successfully breasted the summit, not going far after that. I later on bought a Cl.5 chimney from that scrapyard and there is no trace of the site or the line now. It was very sharply curved away from the main line and the chairs were old - MR 1880s. There was no Health and Safety then and I doubt whether such a train on such old track with people standing on brakevan platforms whacked by hanging branches would be allowed these days.
The brakevans weigh about 20 tons each (they are ballasted to increase brake force) and were crammed with people, so about 130 tons in all. I imagine a loaded mineral wagon weighed about 15-20 tons so one loco should have been adequate for two.
@@iandocwra1169 Thanks for that information, I didn't realise brake vans were so heavy but obvious when you think about it. Nice film, interesting to see.
@@iandocwra1169No, Parsley Hay is much closer to Buxton, near the junction that used to take traffic to Ashbourne, what is now called the Tissington trail.
Goodness! My fifteen year old self is amongst the small crowd of onlookers at the top of the incline. Never thought that I'd see a film of the event. *It's interesting to remember that there were no TV cameras there - as there would, most certainly, be today: not even a photographer from the local newspaper.
I was there on that memorable day and have colour slides to show for it. lovely to see film, too. Thanks for posting
This is priceless historical footage. Have cycled this a few times and it's incredible to see what once existed.
Great to see how it was before my time. Thankyou for sharing.
Wonderfull footage
What a fantastic film unspoilt by dubbed sound and voice over, brilliant.
Many thanks. I've always disliked what is normally very badly added sound, but I did toy with the idea of going fully in the other direction and adding the Benny Hill music as a joke!
The J94 is by no means a weak locomotive, but gets simply smothered by a couple of brake vans, it shows how steep this incline was.
Thank Ian, superb video from years ago, never went but saw many J94 on sheds
Ian I have just stumbled on this, and wow, its wonderful, your father captured something very special here, and will never be seen again, a superb historical record, you should be very proud of this, and I am assuming that may have been you at the end working the signal
Thank You so much for uploading
Yes, that was me! I am hugely proud of the cine films that my father took, in an era when filming was far from cheap! Thanks for your kind comment.
Thanks so much for putting this up,never got to ride it,walked it and rode it and studied the books but seeing it is fabulous
Superb 8mm filming. Your father had a steady hand.
Huge thanks for processing this and uploading it. Absolutely wonderful scenes.
Ah, brake-van trips, a wonderful way to travel!
So nice to see colour footage. But those young walkers walking alongside the tracks with the incline cable whizzing along..
And the workers on their knees also inches away from the running cable...
It's interesting to see the jack shaft coupling rods have been removed on the 03
Very interesting photography by the way, lots of human interest and scenery!
A very historic piece of film. We walked past there on a holiday to the Peak Distict. You can now walk up the incline. It is very steep. I think it had been dangerous when it was in operation and shouldn't really have been built like that. A OO gauge model of this line was featured in Model Rail Magazine. Thanks for uploading.
The line was built in the very early days of steam haulage, when it was thought that locomotives couldn't manage gradients. Consequently it was laid out as a series of near level stretches where the trains were pulled by horses or locos, with stationary engines hauling them up steep inclines between. Hopton Incline was originally one of those chain-hauled inclines. If the line had been envisaged for locomotive hauling throughout it would have been built very differently.
That’s a fearsome incline, some of those shots really show it up well. Great!
You can hear the health & safeties flapping!
I remember reading the accounts and seeing the photographs in The Railway World at the time. Later on I had a similar experience on the now vanished Loddington ironworks branch of the Midland Railway from Kettering (past the Geo. Cohen's scrapyard). Our Cl.2 tender engine could not manage the gradient with 12 brakevans and stalled. We tried again with 6 vans and successfully breasted the summit, not going far after that. I later on bought a Cl.5 chimney from that scrapyard and there is no trace of the site or the line now. It was very sharply curved away from the main line and the chairs were old - MR 1880s. There was no Health and Safety then and I doubt whether such a train on such old track with people standing on brakevan platforms whacked by hanging branches would be allowed these days.
There must have been hundreds of feet of film used to record this event,wonder what happened to it just lost I suppose
I am surprised that 2 locos couldn't take 6 brake vans up the incline because when I was on it one loco managed 2 loaded mineral wagons.
The brakevans weigh about 20 tons each (they are ballasted to increase brake force) and were crammed with people, so about 130 tons in all. I imagine a loaded mineral wagon weighed about 15-20 tons so one loco should have been adequate for two.
@@iandocwra1169 Thanks for that information, I didn't realise brake vans were so heavy but obvious when you think about it. Nice film, interesting to see.
What about the Tanfield Branch 1 in 11- Two N10s and two loaded 21t hoppers every night Monday to Friday until March 1962
It's a good question. I have always seen Hopton quoted as the steepest on the 'main line' - was the Tanfield branch a light railway? I don't know.
pity it cant be opened up again, it would make a great tourist attraction👍
Is that the Parsley Hay Incline?
Yes, that's right; I had forgotten its proper name - thanks.
@@iandocwra1169 Not Parsley Hay incline, it's the Hopton Incline.
@@davidcrc9155 Yes, Parsley Hay is the one leading down to the canal at Cromford, I believe?
@@iandocwra1169No, Parsley Hay is much closer to Buxton, near the junction that used to take traffic to Ashbourne, what is now called the Tissington trail.
@@iandocwra1169no the one down to the canal is the sheep pasture incline, and in the beginning that was two inclines.