The Port Carlisle Dandy

On April 4^th 1914, the horse-drawn ‘Dandy’ coach made its last trip along the railway line to Port Carlisle. Two days later, steam locomotives were chuffing along the quiet country line for the first time in over fifty years.

Over the years, the Dandy had become not only a local institution but also a minor tourist attraction. Numerous picture postcards were produced of ‘England’s only one-horse railway’.

Finally, it was decided to put the horse out to grass and re-introduce steam services. Work began early in 1914. The tracks had to be renewed to carry the much heavier loads which would now pass over them.

When the day for the first steam train eventually dawned, there were great celebrations. The parish council arranged a public luncheon in the Hope and Anchor Inn at Port Carlisle. The Carlisle Journal reported the village was in holiday mood and that a large delegation of executives, from the railway company’s headquarters in Edinburgh, had arrived. This included the locomotive superintendent, the chief inspector of permanent ways, the district  traffic superintendent and Mr James Orr of the horse department.

Rev. L.E.D. Mitton, the local vicar, presided at the luncheon. Mr Topping, the council chairman, proposed the health of the North British Railway. John Black, responding for the company, assured the gathering that they would do everything possible in advertising the place and would offer cheaper fares and extra services in the summer months. He suggested the council should consider the provision of a golf course as no holiday resort was complete without one.

More toasts were drunk and further speeches made. The Carlisle Journal’s report suggests the conviviality and mutual back-slapping continued for most of the afternoon. Finally, the dignitaries decided to take a walk around the port to view its attractions and, probably, to sober up a bit too.

Unfortunately, they were caught in a heavy shower and had to beat a hasty retreat to the train which awaited them at the station. F.W. Tassell, Carlisle’s leading photographer of the day, was present and the group must have posed for him in front of the lavishly decorated locomotive.

Despite the introduction of steam traction, Port Carlisle never became a tourist destination. The railway company gave the old Dandy coaches to the village. For many years, they served as pavilions for the local bowling green and tennis club.

In 1925, there was an exhibition at Darlington to mark the centenary of the world’s first railway there. The organisers thought that the old Dandy would prove a popular exhibit and entered negotiations with the bowling club for its return.

Repainted in its original colours, the Dandy took pride of place in the Darlington show. When the exhibition closed, it was taken to Waverley Station in Edinburgh where it remained until it was moved to its present location, the National Railway Museum in York.