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| locality:- |
Goodlicroft Pit |
| locality:- |
Seaton |
| civil parish:- |
Workington (formerly Cumberland) |
| county:- |
Cumbria |
| locality type:- |
tramroad |
| 1Km square:- |
NY0030 (guess) |
| 10Km square:- |
NY03 |
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hearsay:-
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A 3 mile wooden waggonway was built from Seaton pit to Workington, early 1730s. Sir
James Lowther took over the lease of Seaton pit in 1732.
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In 1751 Carlisle Spedding was offered, by William Brown, the help of an experienced
wright:-
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"[Mr] Douglas he tells me he was in your part about 20 years since and laid a waggon
way from Seaton to Workington"
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ie the early 1730s.
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Some records provide details of the construction of waggonways. The gauge was usually
about 4 to 4½ feet; sleepers were probably about 6 feet long at 1½to 2 foot spacing;
wooden rails were usually about 5 inches square, pinned to the sleepers by trenails;
rail lengths were usually about 6 to 8 feet; rail joins were made by pinning the butt
ends of two rails to the same sleeper.
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Lighter rails were often used in Cumberland. One supply of round timber was offered
from Scotland, 1776:-
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"... which would square 4 inches ... You mentioned in your last that you could have
none but what is 7 foot long or upwards. Now I cannot agree to that for it is a grett
lenth; I think 6 foot is a good lenth and perhaps some chance ones may be less, ..."
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The Seaton waggonway rails were probably 4x3 inches of various lengths, some as long
as 12 to 15 feet.
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Lewis, M J T: 1970: Early Wooden Railways: Routlegde and Kegan Paul (London):: ISBN
0 7100 7818 8
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hearsay:-
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Ran from Workington Harbour, north to Goodlicroft Pit, Muncaster Close, ended at Seaton
Banks near Kirklands; opened about 1740. No traces remain. The tramroad was owned
by Spedding and Benn, and later by Sir James Lowther.
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Baxter, Bertram: 1966: Stone Blocks and Iron Rails: David and Charles (Newton Abbot,
Devon)
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