Stapleford Miniature Railway
Miniature LNER A4 Pacifics! The highlight of the recent open weekend at the private 10.25 inch gauge Stapleford Miniature Railway was the visit of LNER Class A4 4-6-2 4498 Sir Nigel Gresley and Southern Railway LN Class 4-6-0 850 Lord Nelson from the Eastleigh Lakeside Railway. In possibly the first ever A4 & Lord Nelson combination, we see 4498 Sir Nigel Gresley & 850 Lord Nelson at work on the 2 mile circuit at Stapleford on 27th August 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3Ku_Zwy39Y
The Stapleford Miniature Railway open days are one of the 'must see' events in the miniature steam railway calender. Opened in 1958, this wonderful 10.25 inch gauge miniature railway runs for almost 2 miles around the grounds of Stapleford House and is one of the finest private collections in the country. The railway is only open to the public on two weekends a year, and during the latest open weekend over the August Bank Holiday, six locomotives where in action which featured four visiting locomotives including LNER A4 4-6-2 4498 Sir Nigel Gresley, SR 4-6-0 850 Lord Nelson (both from the Eastleigh Lakeside), 4-4-2 'Atlantics' No. 1 Waverley and NER 2003 Emily, resident Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 'Berkshire' No. 752 and WR Class 42 'Warship' diesel-hydraulic 'The White Heron.' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Umw-PNQTwI&t=25s
Miniature 10.25 inch gauge Nickel Plate Road S2 2-8-4 'Berkshire' No. 752 is seen in action at the Stapleford Miniature Railway on 27th August 2017. The full-size Nickel Plate Road 'Berkshire' 2-8-4s were built by the Lima Locomotive Works in Ohio in 1944 and were designed for fast, heavy freight and passenger work over the Berkshire Mountains before being withdrawn in the late 1950s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHmMbdwxKbM
The closest we will get to an Alco built NYC 'Niagara' today! One of the finest 10.25" gauge miniature railways in the country is the Stapleford Miniature Railway at Stapleford House near Melton Mowbray, UK. Pride of the fleet is a model of one of the famous New York Central Class S-1b Niagara 4-8-4s, which operated between 1945 and 1956. Built by Alco-Schenectady, 27 of these incredible steam locomotives were built between 1945 and 1946 for working New York Central's expresses between New York and Chicago. Weighing 405 tons and with a length of 115 feet, these steam locomotives had a power output of 6700hp, the equilivent of over four LMS Duchesses. Completed in 1998, the 1/5th scale model of 6019 at Stapleford is the largest known working example, with all the 'real' NYC Niagaras having been tragically scrapped in the late 1950s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVbFwoHY4tA
Enjoy a train ride on one of the finest private miniature railways in the UK, as we ride behind Western Region style Class 42 'Warship' diesel-hydraulic 'The White Heron' on the 10.25" gauge Stapleford Miniature Railway, which operates for almost 2 miles through the grounds of Stapleford House near Melton Mowbray. 30th August 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvUVhch4EyU&t=25s
A train ride behind the world's only surviving 'Niagara' - albeit in 1/5th scale! We enjoy a train ride behind 10.25 inch gauge miniature New York Central Railroad 4-8-4 ' Niagara' No. 6019 on the Stapleford Miniature Railway near Melton Mowbray (England) on 26th August 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxsHx4WIpxI