Padarn Railway
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| Padarn Railway | |
|---|---|
| Locale | Wales |
| Dates of operation | 1841 – 1961 |
| Successor line | Llanberis Lake Railway |
| Track gauge | 4 ft (1219 mm) |
| Headquarters | Llanberis |
The Padarn Railway was a narrow gauge railway line in Wales, built to the unusual gauge of 4 ft (1219 mm), originally built to carry slate. It was opened in 1824 as a tramway for the Dinorwic Quarry, and converted to a railway in 1843. It closed in 1961. The line ran from Gilfach Ddu near Llanberis to Port Dinorwic.
An unusual feature of the railway were the transporter waggons. These 4 ft. gauge vehicles were flat wagons with two parallel 1 ft 103⁄4 in (578 mm) gauge tracks on them. Loaded slate wagons of 1 ft 103⁄4 in (578 mm) gauge (the gauge used on the extensive internal system at the quarry) were wheeled onto the transporter wagons and carried down to their destination at Port Dinorwic.
Since closure, part of its route has been reopened as the 2 ft (610 mm) gauge Llanberis Lake Railway.
[edit] Locomotives
| Name | Builder | Type | Date | Works number | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fire Queen | Horlock and Company | 0-4-0 tender | 1848 | Withdrawn 1886, now preserved at the Penrhyn Castle Industrial Museum | |
| Jenny Lind | Horlock and Company | 0-4-0 tender | 1848 | Withdrawn 1880s, scrapped. | |
| Dinorwic | Hunslet | 0-6-0T | 1882 | 302 | Scrapped 1963 |
| Pandora | Hunslet | 0-6-0T | 1886 | 410 | Renamed Amalthea in 1909. Scrapped 1963 |
| Velinheli | Hunslet | 0-6-0T | 1895 | 631 | Scrapped 1963 |
| Hardy | Hardy Motors Ltd. | 4wPM | 1925 | 954 | Scrapped 1963 |
