The Boulton and Watt engine is a tribute to how well made it was, the same machine, in the same location, still doing the job for which it was designed and installed, 210 years later.

@hairyairey

2 жыл бұрын

Simple design, easy to maintain.

@Simon_Nonymous

2 жыл бұрын

And standing in when those new fangled electric pumps failed - you couldn't make this stuff up!

@suzyqualcast6269

Жыл бұрын

H, hm, there's one down at Leawood, working as well.

@matthewrichardson4777

Жыл бұрын

Birmingham born

Spent many winters weekends in the early 90's down that well servicing the foot vales amongst other things. I can also claim to have had the title of chief driver once. My first job as a volunteer was cleaning all the soot from the flue which runs from the boiler house to the chimney. You'd be amazed where soot sticks, even after a couple of showers🙄

@xr6lad

2 жыл бұрын

Up your own drain pipe no doubt!

I like this channel more and more with every video I see. Very well presented and informative. Thank you both (and all)

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you. Very kind.

Rebecca didn't look happy when looking down to the bottom of the engine, well done for keeping your nerve!

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Twas a Loooong drop indeed

@bostonrailfan2427

2 жыл бұрын

@@pwhitewick nerves of steel!

@bostonrailfan2427

2 жыл бұрын

i only noticed it due to your post, she did look a bit like she was glad Paul didn’t go down there then again, he’d only do that if it was abandoned 😉

@18robsmith

2 жыл бұрын

@@pwhitewick Not only a long drop, but a very particular smell. In years gone by (not that many) there was a distinct lack of mesh guards, great fun when one had to venture down there when everything was hot, smelly and very steamy.....

@janinapalmer8368

2 жыл бұрын

She suddenly appeared too..! I was wondering where she was ....

Paul and Rebecca, Thank you so very much for sharing this video. Seeing a Beam engine operating in the 21st century doing the job for which it was built is a real treat. A special extended thanks to all of the preservation minded people who keep history alive for all of us to see. :)

Always lovely to see the beam engines and Crofton. Went there on the first date with my wife. We'd found we had a shared interest in industrial archeology over lunch and it was nearby.

A man in a boiler suit by a boiler is quite rare these days! Very interesting video, learnt far more than I was expecting!

Saw Tom Rolt's name on that plaque at the end of the vid. He was as famous for his work for canals as he was for railways.

Boiler Inspector. There's a job you don't see advertised often! Fantastic video.

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Not one I would envy too!

@LeoStarrenburg

2 жыл бұрын

@@pwhitewick Typical manhole size is an oval 16x12 inches so you have to work your way into the boiler proper through that, than wiggle your way around to be able to have a good look at things. Then there's the sooty bits where the fumes go through. That's why they invented a boilersuit ;-)

@hughjones4060

2 жыл бұрын

Part of my job used to be arranging Boiler Inspections and other statutory inspections on things such as lifts and cranes, power presses and dust extraction equipment . I worked for an insurance company who had a nationwide staff of engineer surveyors with various specialisations.

@admiralcraddock464

2 жыл бұрын

We ave a boiler inspector in to inspect our boiler every year. He's in his early seventies but still crawls in the steam and water drum.

Ah yes about 25 years ago i visited with a friend of mine ... also a mechanical engineer ... the solutions arrived at to move that amount of water per hour were amazing ... i take my hat to the design and construction team , not to mention those who continue to run the system today to prove and show how well the system worked . Great to see your video of this bit of UK Engineering history thank you .

as a child, I loved roaming around the former copper mines at Moonta in South Australia. They no longer house Cornish beam-engines, but the engine-house ruins always fascinated me, and even now, I like to imagine what they were like when in operation. Thanks for yet another excellent video!

I do enjoy this channel. It makes my Monday mornings when I get round to viewing it. Thanks.

This was excellent, no larking around. I first and last visited Crofton in May 1971 when they had a steaming day. It was a fabulous day out. Highly recommend a visit here.

Excellent. And what a very knowledgeable young girl who gave you the tour 👌 I noticed when she said "that ladder all the way down there", Rebecca's face looked pretty much as mine would've, slowly stepping back 😂

I lived in Reading during my school/uni days and my dad was huge steam fan, so naturally we visited the Crofton Beam Engine regularly. I remember the chimney being rebuilt and my dad telling me at great length why this was important 😊. Brilliant place to visit - huge working Victorian steam beam engines, a canal to explore with well-tended footpaths and locks, plus a mainline railway with both passenger and freight traffic. All in lovely countryside too!

Now its time to head towards Bath and do a vid on the Claverton pumping station, which does the same job as Crofton, but in a totally different way.

I love how elegant the Victorian engineering solutions were combined with the sturdiness and chunkiness of the execution. This was a cracking video.

Wonderful story & pictures in a a beautiful place many thanks paul & rebecca kind regards bob.

Fasciinating!!! Love anything "British engineering at its finest". Very informative.

Every video is a pleasure to watch. Thanks Paul and Rebecca 👍🏻

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Ian.

I use to love taking my kids to Crofton, and the windmill on the hill.

I volunteer at Claymills victorian pumping station and it's very rewarding. I've not been to Crofton yet, but will in the future. It's well worth helping out if they need volunteers :)

Thank you both for taking me along with you today and showing me this amazing adventure ! Cheers from California!

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Cheers Olin.

@pioneertechnolgy

2 жыл бұрын

@@pwhitewick I hate you

@pioneertechnolgy

2 жыл бұрын

@@pwhitewick my channel is better

Beautiful! Combining you steam locomotive and you your canal passion into one building. Amazing engineering from days of old!

Went here to ,loverly visit and i mentioned id come after seeing your video ,they remebered you :)

@pwhitewick

Жыл бұрын

Ah wonderful. Thanks Richard.

@richardvickers148

Жыл бұрын

@@pwhitewick then i went to monkton farleigh sidings...tunnel..going bk to crofton for the steaming day...

love the canal engineering ones. The history of engineering is awe-inspiring. Brilliant people

Really enjoyed watching this with the trains passing by and the Crofton Beam Engines, great video Paul

@cyrildhy8993

2 жыл бұрын

That bend around Crofton is said to be why The Great Western only built one Pacific. It jumped rails.

Fascinating and inspirational. It helps one to realize the amount of work, intelligence, know-how, courage and perseverance is devoted to building the world around us. The guide was quite helpful, too.

Fascinating. I love old boiler houses and pumps. You've also answered a question I've long pondered. One of your very best 👌

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Andy, very kind.

hello again Paul and Rebecca , cool and very interesting video , i could look and listen to this stuff all day , well done and thank you :)

Thanks for a great video. I hope to be visiting this pumping station next week. Beam engine motion is almost hypnotic.

That was fascinating. Thank you. I had never really thought about where the water comes from to go into the canal ...now I know! Another entertaining Sunday evening. 👏👏👏

Paul Rebecca that was outstanding blog 👏 top people 👏 love ❤ that 👏 well dun 👏

Brilliant, one to add to the "Visiting" list. Thanks for the insight.

Well done again Paul and Rebecca!

Maybe Rebecca could try the walkway on the Newport Transporter Bridge. It's very high up and you can see through the mesh floor as you cross. Interesting place and one of only six in the world still working but closed until next year.

Very interesting. Your videos are sometying to look forward to on Sunday afternoons.

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Awesome, thank you!

Always wondered where the water in a canal comes from and this video has given me the answer. :)

I love a good steaming weekend!

I enjoyed this one a LOT. Thanks & Happy Summer!

The current boiler is not enough to run both engines at the same time, except briefly while changing from one engine to the other. The amount of water being pumped out of the river reduced the number of water mills able to operate.

went there 30 Jul 2019 steampunk event it was quite busy lovely day out got some nice footage of the engines in steam been there quite a few times but it's long way from where I live I learnt some new things from your video so thanks Very well presented and informativeas always

Back in my neck of the woods again. I know that place very well - grew up in the area. Great video.

Ahh Sunday at 5pm , cheers Paul 👍

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Enjoy

Brilliant. I was lucky enough to have this on my running route and often marvelled at how much effort it would have taken to dig the canal.

Great video stayed there on a canal boat with my scouts a few years back great to see it working and the aerial shots love it

Fascinating, Well done P&R!

Thanks, that was fascinating, and not something we often think about.

Wow, always informative, and entertaining. Thank you. Great music choices too.

What an absolutely beautiful part of the country. Love the canal, railway , road and old engine house sitting close together in those green fields.

Excellent video as always: thank you! Quite appropriate for me as last week, I spent some time in a narrowboat sitting on the bottom of a lock on the Grand Union because someone the previous day had left a paddle half-open and the the canal pounds had pretty much emptied. The resident ducks looked happy, though, as they could reach weed to eat that was normally inaccessible!

LTC Rolt - A great writer and supporter of the preservation of the canal network. Robert Aickman, similarly, but better known for his horror stories. LTC Rolt also wrote similar stories, though sadly, not so many - One volume only - 'Sleep No More', contains some of the most disquieting stories, based on mines, railways, canals, foundries, and a car racing circuit, that you will ever read. He definitely had talent. Rolt and Aickman had a big falling out, though, which they never really recovered from, before their deaths.

@TheEulerID

2 жыл бұрын

Both fascinating characters in their different ways. The first secretary for the IWA was he writer Elizabeth Jane Howard, who was married to Peter Scott at the time. She had an affair with Aickman and, later in life, went on to marry Kingsley Amis (Martin Amis was her stepson and he credits her for encouraging him). However, that barely scratches the surface of her life, which is documented in her autobiography Slipstream named, in part, for her time with the IWA and how she was often in the slipstream of events and more influential men. Tom Rolt's second wife Sonia is also a very interesting character, and she became important in the conservation movement in her own right.

Another enthralling video from the Whitewicks, that was really interesting thank you Paul and Rebecca

I was wondering about Catherine the other day. That's spooky. I didn't know she was working there. I think a visit to those engines is all the more in order now.

Excellent video

Another interesting video. Thank you.

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Always a pleasure.

Crofton Beam Engines in steam is a must see. Luckily for me, just 20 miles from my house.

This is why I finally have a giant TV……. that I don’t watch 😳 Top quality production….. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Haven't been there in an age. Fascinating to find out how it operates without actually being there.😁

what a fantastic video - thank you for all your time in making the video

What a fascinating place - really interesting and well filmed, thanks!

What a great vid - good to see these Crofton Beam Engines still working after all this time 🙂🚂🚂🚂

Wow fascinating. We must have cycled near there on our way to Bath. Wish we'd known about it as would have loved to visit. Sign another life now. Cheers and thanks.

Another great video, team, cheers!

Intriguing, perfect vlog created by Rebecca Catherine(she really knew her stuff) and Paul. Thanks, and take care.

That was incredibly interesting thanks. Please stay safe and take care

Great timing for this video, only yesterday I interviewed the Kennet and Avon Trust on Kennet Radio, to publicise their waterways festival in Newbury today. I was also at Crofton a few weeks ago with my film camera. Not far away is Wilton Windmill too, preserved but a separate piece of history.

I've enjoyed many a visit to the pumping station. BTW, not far from the pumping engine the canal goes in a tunnel (Bruce tunnel) and under the railway. There is no towpath so walkers ascend up steps, go under the railway, and then descend to the canal at the other end of the tunnel. Before motorised canal boats the boatmen had to haul themselves through the tunnel using a chain attached to the wall of the tunnel while the horse when over the hill. I understand that it's quite an experience to be on a canal boat in the tunnel with a train thundering overhead.

Great video. The brief shot of the advert for the Murder Mystery and Hog Roast at Wilton Windmill sounds uncannily like the script for disposing of the evidence in an episode of Midsomer Murders...

I liked it when you clarified that you were Paul... Though I don't think many of us would have thought you were Rebecca! Maybe if you put on a red wig...

@gordanmilne7034

2 жыл бұрын

Don't encourage him.

Proper engineering, thanks for the tour! 🙏

Very interresting and enjoyable to watch!

Another fine video! Thank you.

Very interesting. Enjoyed the tour.

Fascinating! One to visit, I think!

So lovely to see machinery like this still in action!

This was really cool. Thank you so much for all the effort you both do to bring these things to us!

Rebecca doesn't look to comfortable looking down that piston shaft. Great video as always.

Just excellent, well done.

Beautiful Crofton Pumping Station! I work at a pumping station in Darlington called Tees Cottage Pumping Station. It’s also steam powered! If your ever near Darlington and want to see it let me know! We have open days but we can also do private tours.

Thanks

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Welcome

it’s weird seeing canals and the support infrastructure discussed and seeing trains roll by: the very things that brought them into disuse… thankfully this key piece of transportation history is kept intact and working and being used alongside the modern equivalent

@Alan_UK

2 жыл бұрын

The railway put the canal out of business. After being derelict volunteers started to restore it and now it's a great leisure asset. BTW, not far from the pumping engine the canal goes in a tunnel (Bruce tunnel) and under the railway. There is no towpath so walkers ascend up steps, go under the railway, and then descend to the canal at the other end of the tunnel. Before motorised canal boats the boatmen had to haul themselves through the tunnel using a chain attached to the wall of the tunnel while the horse when over the hill.

Thanks for explaining the workings of this wonderful old steam engine!

Been there myself quite a few years back now and thoroughly enjoyed it. Well worth a visit both on steaming and non-steaming days. Theres more of these engines out there than you think!

Fascinating! … well done !

Excellent stuff!! You have a gift for simplifying the complicated, which is much appreciated. Thank you both for unmissable Sunday viewing.

Great stuff again, you always find interesting stuff!!

Canals and railways, two of my favorite things. 😁

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Mine too!

Great videos!!!! I think folks back in the day were a lot smarter than we are nowadays. I mean yes, we're more technologically advanced than they were back then. But they used their minds more to accomplish what they did. My opinion, thank you. Peace Love & Groovies 😎

This video deserves to go viral.

brilliant video and i enjoyed watching this one keep up the awesome work

@pwhitewick

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Michael.

Well this is a first--I had to watch this video twice because I was so distracted by your stunning tour guide Catherine. Usually your photographic skills take my breath away, Paul! (Btw of course Rebecca's lovely too, but I know she's married lol)

There at 9:22, the plaque which mentions Tom Rolt, I have an edition of his book, Narrow Boat, which was done as a 70th Anniversary edition by CRT. Good book, well worth reading. It has both a photo section and scattered through the book specially done what appear to be woodcut illustrations.

@brianartillery

2 жыл бұрын

It's a superb book. I can't recommend it highly enough. 👍👍👍

@hughjones4060

2 жыл бұрын

@@brianartillery Tom Rolt was also the driving force behind the saving of the Talyllyn Railway

@scottfw7169

2 жыл бұрын

@@hughjones4060 That connection brings to mind that a fellow named Richard Datin who built the original starship models for the original Star Trek was also a founding curator of the Nevada State Railroad Museum.

My goodness we live and learn. That was so interesting.. what a fabulous vlog. Thank you.

You should have a look at the source of the Llangollen canal at Llangollen. And the horseshoe falls

A pumphouse! Amazing!

Been waiting for this and it didn’t disappoint. Thank you. Definitely on my places to visit list.

Wow! Now that’s a Skookum water pump!

amazing how they got them big beams up there

Water levels were a particularly acute problem for the Thames & Severn. They tried to mitigate it using a similar pump house near the source of the Thames at Thames Head (now sadly demolished).