Making tracks

We went to deliver a card to a friend of ours this afternoon, and decided to take a detour on the way back through Knighton Wood, having had the foresight to put our walking boots on, even though we started out on a pavement walk!

We skirted along the edge of the wood and arrived back at this track, which leads down to Monkhams Lane. The track itself is also known as Monkhams Lane, and it forms a boundary between Knighton Wood and Lord’s Bushes, both part of the ancient Epping Forest. This particular path is of interest to local historians because it was the site of an interesting experiment in the 1870s.

Secret tests were performed here at that time on a prototype of a new kind of steam tram, which would run on an experimental design of track based on flat timbers laid end to end. The steering was by a central steel rail, on either side of which guide wheels attached to the locomotive kept the train on its tracks. 

600 yards of single track were laid along this 1 in 20 incline in the wood (which was similar to that of Lisbon in Portugal, where the steam trams were destined to be used). A steam tram named Cintra successfully pulled two carriages, each holding 18 people, reaching breathtaking speeds of up to 20mph!

The experiment was a success and the engine was due to be shipped to Lisbon Steam Tramways Co. Ltd. in Portugal, but the steamship sank after a collision on its way up the Thames, delaying shipment. Some records show that another prototype sank in the Bay of Biscay.

For those who might like to read more about this experiment (I'm thinking of you, https://www.blipfoto.com/jophreeves ...!) I have added a couple of links below. I have also found a newspaper article from The Evening Standard of 4th January 1873 which gives the engineer as Mr. F. H. Trevithick. Here's a brief quote from the paper:

The engine, called the "Cintra", was built by Messrs. Sharp, Stewart & Co., of the Atlas Works, Manchester, and the carriages by Brown & Marshalls of Birmingham. These when fully at work will consist of four classes, one first-class carrying 16 persons, a composition first and second-class carrying 18, a third-class carrying 20, and another class 24." 

http://www.shadyoldlady.com/location/2324

https://eppingforestforum.com/knighton-wood-and-lords-bushes/#page-content