Dear Valerie.... Railways, Horses and Findon..... I find your website of much interest, particularly as regards the subjects of horses trained at Findon.

Were you aware that some of Sir Charles Duff Assheton Smith's small industrial steam locomotives, which worked in his slate quarries in Snowdonia, were named after horses connected with Findon?

Since the closure of Dinorwic Quarries in 1969, many of the remainder of the twenty-three locomotives employed there over the years are to be found far and wide - even as distant as Canada; and are generally in good health, well cared for, and used on public or private leisure sites. Here is a list of them:

Charlie (built 1870); George (1877); Velinheli (1886); Alice (1889) (renamed King of the Scarlets); Enid (1889) (renamed Red Damsel, and later renamed Elidir); Rough Pup (1891); Cloister (1891); Vaenol (1895)(renamed Jerry M); Lady Madcap ((1898); Port Dinorwic (1898) (renamed Cackler); Wellington (1898) (renamed Bernstein, and later renamed Jonathan); Covert Coat (1898); George B (1898); Holy War (1902); Alice (1902); Maid Marian (1903); Irish Mail ((1903); Wild Aster (1904); Lady Joan (1922); Dolbadarn (1922); Michael (1932); Sybil (1906); Elidir (1933).

Some of these names are of Sir Charles' family members and others are of locations on his Vaenol estate, which included Snowdon and its little public railway; but the rest include the names of horses, some of which are mentioned on your website, viz: Holy War, Cackler, Jerry M, Cloister and Covertcoat; but apart from Irish mail, who came in a distance behind Covertcoat in the Grand National of 1913 and didn't, as far as I know, belong to Sir Charles; and Wild Aster, whose claim to fame seems to rest on his winning three hurdle races in one week, at the advanced age of eighteen, I have not, so far, been able to trace details of the others.

Additionally, on website www.ngrm.org.uk  (Narrow Gauge Railway Museum site) there is a long list of exhibits, among which are references to patterns used for the casting of the following locomotive nameplates:

Cackler; Amalthaea; George B; Joan; Flaxseed; Indian Runner; Elidir; Lady Joan; Minstrel Park; Red Damsel; Irish Mail; Covercoat; Wild Aster; George; Flaxen; Pandora; Charlie.

Of these, Amalthaea and Pandora were of workhorses and/or yachts owned by Sir Charles, and both Joan and Lady Joan possibly relate to one of his wives; one nameplate for before, and one for after he received his knighthood. The rest, one assumes, are the names of racehorses, except for Elidir, which is the name of the mountain from which slate was extracted.

Although it would seem that some of the patterns were prepared for future locomotive acquisitions, these were never used for that purpose.

You will already know about Aldiniti, who was trained at Findon by Josh Gifford. The electric locomotive bearing this name has been used chiefly, over time, on the West Coast mainline through Crewe. It has been renumbered over the years to suit its role on the railways (i.e. freight or passenger).

More recently it has run with the number 86628, but lost its nameplates some time ago. These locomotives were built from 1965, so have reached the stage when they will be considered for withdrawal from service, if this has not already occurred.

If you wish to find out more first-hand, there are a number of websites you can visit, but keying in "Dinorwic" is a useful starter. The Railway Magazine published an article entitled "Hunslet's Little Wonders" (meaning these locomotives) in the January issue of 1991. I have a copy of this in a bound volume, and possibly another loose copy which I should have somewhere in the house, but cannot locate it at the moment.

I would welcome any information concerning the foregoing.

Kind regards   (Mr) Ellis Leach"