York engine sheds and locomotive works

There were a number of engine sheds and railway works located in York. The large York North engine shed became the National Railway Museum in 1975.

The following engine sheds were located in York:

To get a complete picture of activity in the York area the three railway works located in the city are also included in this survey as at one time they have been responsible for the maintenance of locomotives.

Prior to 1923 several railway companies ran trains to York. By 1853 the North Eastern Railway (NER) was the dominant operator and by the 1870s the other significant operators were:

After 1923 the North Eastern Railway and Great Northern Railway were taken over by the London and North Eastern Railway which remained the dominant operator in the area. The other three companies became part of the London Midland & Scottish Railway. Prior to 1922 the Great Eastern Railway had come to an arrangement with the NER who had worked their trains through from Lincoln.

York North was opened by the North Eastern Railway in 1878 the year after the current York station was opened. With the re-location of the station outside of the city walls, it made operational sense to have an engine shed at the north end of the station as many trains changed locomotives at York. It also had good access to the freight yards and the carriage sheds located at Clifton.

On opening, the shed consisted of three roundhouses each with a 45-foot turntable linked to a coaling stage.

In 1891 the original 45-foot turntable in no 2 roundhouse was replaced by a 50-foot turntable. A new water tank was provided in 1909. In 1911 a fourth roundhouse was built and the two existing 45-foot turntables were replaced with electrically operated turntables. All these improvements were complete by 1915.

In 1923 operation of the shed became the responsibility of the London and North Eastern Railway.

In 1932 further modernisation took place with the fitting of a 70-foot Mundt type turntable built by Ipswich firm Ransomes & Rapier and the installation of a mechanical coaling plant. Prior to this the coaling would have been done by hand.

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Wikipedia