Widow runs full-size railway in her backyard to honor late husband

By Douglas Whitbread via SWNS

A widow says she is continuing the legacy of her late husband by preserving a full-sized train line he built - in her back garden.

Elizabeth Shutt said her husband of 16 years, Colin, created the quarter mile line - named the ‘East Wressle and Brind Railway’ - in the 22-acre grounds of their home.

He went on to acquire a diesel locomotive and two pieces of rolling stock before building a 1920s-style railway station - with the help of a band of volunteers.

Elizabeth said the design engineer, who ‘always had a project on the go’, lovingly worked on the railway before his death in February 2016 at the age of 70.

But following his passing, Elizabeth allowed his original team of helpers to continue restoring the line's beautiful period engine and goods wagons.

Now she says people are stunned when she tells them that there is a full-sized private train line running around her garden.

Elizabeth said: “When I tell people I have a railway in my back garden, they think I’ve got a model railway.

“And even when I tell them it’s a standard gauge, that doesn’t usually mean anything to anybody.

“Then I say, ‘It’s like Leeds Station’ or wherever I happen to be at the time, and the penny drops that it’s actually a big railway.

"Then they assume that it was already there - but it wasn’t. We built it all from scratch.”

Elizabeth said that Colin had originally begun construction on the railway line at their home in Newsholme, near Wressle, East Yorks., in 2004.

She said he had entered a competition run by the Ford Motor Company for the most innovative restoration of a 'Model T' - to celebrate its 100th anniversary.

Colin, who had previously jointly owned an engineering firm, built a 'railcar' based on the chassis of the vehicle from the early 1900s.

Although he didn’t win, he later created a track for it to travel along in their garden, while he was a post-graduate student at Hull University prior to retiring.

He then enlisted the help of enthusiastic volunteers who developed the line into a fully functioning railway - complete with a diesel locomotive and wagons.

Elizabeth said: “My husband always had engineering projects on the go, so this was just the last one in a very large list. It was just another one he was going to do.

“And after some negotiations with East Yorkshire Council, we were able to go ahead and start building the railway in 2004.

“We now have a Ruston engine, which I bought him for his birthday, on condition he paid for it to be transported – which actually cost him more than it cost me.

“And then we have a flatbed coal truck and we also have another covered wagon.

“They are all early 20th-century vehicles. We also have a little rail motor that is about to be restored, which is currently in the barn. That’s our rolling stock.”

Colin and his volunteers also built a station platform, with a 1920s-style station.

And Elizabeth said it often felt quite whistful when the band of volunteers, who have maintained the line since Colin’s passing, fired up the engine.

She said: “It’s a nostalgic experience because it’s a 1920, 1930s railway station. It’s a touch of the railway children but a bit later.

“It’s only a quarter mile of track, but it goes round a corner, so nobody can actually see where it finishes.

"The station was a completely new build, but it’s a Colonel Stephens design of station, so it’s period.

“There's also a station master’s house and garden, which is actually a bit of kidology - it’s the back of our garage, which has been made to look like a house with a garden.

"I painted the windows so it looks like there are people and animals in them.

Elizabeth, who is responsible for maintaining the gardens surrounding the station, said she and the other volunteers are committed to carrying on Colin’s vision.

She said about their ongoing work: “It's to complete his legacy.

"Also, the chaps that come and work on it, they are all railways enthusiasts and they enjoy coming.

"So I think it’s a payback for them that we carry on doing it so they can enjoy their hobby.”

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