A Very British Railway

by Paul Catchpole

Price: £15.95

Hardback, 84 pages,
125 black & white photographs,
37 diagrams, 2 maps.

ISBN 1-900340-15-1

The engineers were Scottish, the early steam locomotives were built in England and Scotland, the gauge was 5'3" as in Ireland, and the stations and infrastructure would have appeared perfectly at home on any railway of the pre-grouping period in Britain. Cowlairs-style inclines were constructed to conquer a jungle-covered mountain range and were operated with steam powered brake vans.

The British-owned São Paulo Railway carried coffee to the port of Santos on Brazil's Atlantic coast and used Garratts for express passenger haulage. It was a very British Railway indeed - but built in South America.

Even into the diesel and electric era the British influence remained in evidence as Armstrong-Whitworth built express diesel railcars and English Electric supplied the first main-line electric locos and e.m.u.s. Photographs from enthusiasts who have visited this railway bring the story more up to date with American-built diesels and electrics and the conversion to rack haulage with Japanese-built electrics. Today the line is operated by a freight company with leased diesels but part of the duplicated route with steam-hauled inclines has been preserved and survives, including winding engines and brake locomotives.

The inspiration for this book came from Trevor Rowe when he showed the author an exceptional album of official photographs dating from around 1920, which just begged to be seen by a wider audience. The full story behind building this remarkable railway has since been uncovered and more photographs of the line and its locomotives have been traced. A number of regular 'Locomotives International' contributors provided further information, in particular Reg Carter of the Stephen Locomotive Society who assisted research by making available his South American locomotive list and official São Paulo Railway diagrams.