Template:Featured picture/December 2017

By Festiniog standards, Van 59 is relatively recent. It began life in 1923 as a cattle truck built at Swindon by the Great Western for the Vale of Rheidol line, but in 1937 it returned to Swindon for conversion to 2 ft 6 in gauge for the Welshpool & Llanfair line, from whom it was bought by FR in 1959 because of its suitability for re-gauging to two-foot gauge. According to Bob Harris: W&L volunteers bought it from Potter's in Welshpool just before they were starting to cut it up. It was quite some time before we found out that the FR had bought it earlier (from BR maybe?) and we had to give it up. We stripped the wheel sets out at Castle Caereinion and slewed it over clear of the loop for road collection. Never got our fifteen quid back though! Van 59 was sold to the Vale of Rheidol Railway in December 2014 and has left the Railway. All the FR added stuff such as vacuum brake and hand brake wheel was given back to Boston Lodge. At Aberystwyth it has been rebuilt in its original form as a cattle wagon. The photo shows the van on its first outing on 10th November 2017 as Vale of Rheidol No. 38089. Photo credit: Joey Evans Recently featured: Pen y Bryn Halt Penrhyn Crossing Livingston Thompson