The summer of 2013 marks the 200th anniversary of the use of the first commercial adhesion steam engine Puffing Billy, employed to haul chaldron wagons on metal rails from the coal mine at Wylam to Lemington staiths on the River Tyne. It was built by local men, engineer William Hedley, engine-wright Johnathon Forster, and blacksmith Timothy Hackworth, for Christopher Blackett, the owner of Wylam Colliery.
Over the summer of 2013 communities and schools from Wylam, Heddon, Newburn and Lemington will be celebrating this momentous anniversary. It is impossible to overstate the importance in this development and we are going to celebrate its engineering and historical legacy.
Celebrations will include visits to and from Beamish Museum involving their Puffing Billy replica, community events, games, model railways, steam engines and competitions.
Over the summer of 2013 communities and schools from Wylam, Heddon, Newburn and Lemington will be celebrating this momentous anniversary. It is impossible to overstate the importance in this development and we are going to celebrate its engineering and historical legacy.
Celebrations will include visits to and from Beamish Museum involving their Puffing Billy replica, community events, games, model railways, steam engines and competitions.
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Download more information here: 
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Contacts:
Email enquiries to puffingbilly@beamish.org.uk Geraldine Straker Community Engagement Co-ordinator Beamish Museum Tom Martin Wylam Parish Council |
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Puffing Billy Festival
Beamish Puffing Billy replica to be in Wylam on Saturday and Newburn on Sunday.
George Stephenson's Birthplace and tearooms open 11am to 4pm both days.
Wylam: Sat 21 September, 11am to 4pm, Countryside Car Park & The Falcon Centre
Competitions (see below), sports and fun events
Live music, drama, dance, stalls
Scoutrail Model Railway Exhibition, Wylam Institute 10am to 4pm (Sat & Sun)
- Local Schools Puffing Billy Celebration: 2-4 July 2013
- Open evening event at Wylam: Tuesday 2nd July 3:30 to 5:30pm.
- Community Puffing Billy Celebration: 21-22 September 2013
Beamish Puffing Billy replica to be in Wylam on Saturday and Newburn on Sunday.
George Stephenson's Birthplace and tearooms open 11am to 4pm both days.
Wylam: Sat 21 September, 11am to 4pm, Countryside Car Park & The Falcon Centre
Competitions (see below), sports and fun events
Live music, drama, dance, stalls
Scoutrail Model Railway Exhibition, Wylam Institute 10am to 4pm (Sat & Sun)
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Don't miss the new, 1/12 scale, moving models of Puffing Billy & Wylam Dilly by John Hazle, just installed in Wylam's Falcon Centre Railway Museum. 
Scoutrail model railway exhibition in Wylam Institute. |
Photo from The Wylam Globe, Autumn 2013.
Also featuring the World Premiere of Wylam Amateur Dramatics Society's silent film, 'Just in Time'. 
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Newburn: Sun 22 September, 11am to 4pm, Visitor Centre, Tyne Riverside Country Park
Competitions (see below)
Dance, stalls & family activities
Scoutrail - Model Railway Exhibition (10 different layouts) in Wylam Institute 21-22 September
Competitions (see below)
Dance, stalls & family activities
Scoutrail - Model Railway Exhibition (10 different layouts) in Wylam Institute 21-22 September
Heddon Local History Society
are planning short Heddon Railway Heritage Walks from the village on both these days to link up with the Community Festival events in Wylam and Newburn.
These are part of the Hadrian's Wall Trust Walking Festival.
Saturday 21 September Heddon to Wylam (3.0 miles)
Leave Heddon Memorial Park (opposite The Three Tuns) at 9am
We aim to arrive in Wylam for the start of the Puffing Billy Festival at 11am
Sunday 22 September Heddon to Newburn (2.5 miles)
Leave Heddon Memorial Park (opposite The Three Tuns) at 9am
We aim to arrive in Newburn for the start of the Puffing Billy Festival at 11am
Download the walks leaflet below:
are planning short Heddon Railway Heritage Walks from the village on both these days to link up with the Community Festival events in Wylam and Newburn.
These are part of the Hadrian's Wall Trust Walking Festival.
Saturday 21 September Heddon to Wylam (3.0 miles)
Leave Heddon Memorial Park (opposite The Three Tuns) at 9am
We aim to arrive in Wylam for the start of the Puffing Billy Festival at 11am
Sunday 22 September Heddon to Newburn (2.5 miles)
Leave Heddon Memorial Park (opposite The Three Tuns) at 9am
We aim to arrive in Newburn for the start of the Puffing Billy Festival at 11am
Download the walks leaflet below:
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Minibus transport back to Heddon (limited):
Saturday from Wylam Institute dep. 3:30pm, 4:30pm (earlier for Heddon Brownies & Guides).
Sunday from Keelman Pub, Newburn dep. 2pm & 3pm.
Saturday from Wylam Institute dep. 3:30pm, 4:30pm (earlier for Heddon Brownies & Guides).
Sunday from Keelman Pub, Newburn dep. 2pm & 3pm.
- A series of talks on early railway history
Railways before George Stephenson by Les Turnbull
Wed 11th September 2013 - Lemington Centre - 7pm
The Northumberland Railway: Brunel in Stephenson's Backyard by J Michael Taylor
Wed 18th September 2013 - Wylam Institute - 7pm
The Wylam Locomotives: Their History, Preservation & Interpretation by John Liffen
The talk is preceded by a visit to Wylam Railway Museum, Falcon Centre open from 5.30pm.
Wed 25th September 2013 - Walbottle Campus - 7pm
Hedley, Chapman & Issac Jackson: Who Did What? by Jim Rees
Wed 9th October 2013 - Heddon on the Wall, Women's Institute - 7pm
Stephenson's Triumph - Liverpool 1830: Who was there and what they did next by Bob Gwynne
There will be a collection of donations at meetings to help meet expenses.
Click image to expand
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- Beamish Puffing Billy Celebration: 26 October to 3 November 2013
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See Puffing Billy on the Pockerley Waggonway at Beamish Museum. Admission charges apply. Beamish Museum is open between 10.00-17.00 each day. |
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Pockerley Waggonway, Beamish Museum.
- Competitions - now open to all with extended closing date
- Photography: 'Going on the rails'
- Poetry: 'Inspired by Billy'
Categories: 5 to 8, 9 to 12, 13 to 16 years, adults.
Closing date: was Saturday August 31st 2013 (now extended)
Entries before Saturday 14th September to Wylam Institute as below, or on day of Wylam Puffing Billy Event, Saturday 21st September before 2pm, for judging at 3pm and prize giving at 4pm.
Entries should be a maximum of 12 x 8” (photo) or on A4 paper (poetry) and posted or delivered to
Wylam Parish Council Office, Wylam Institute, Church Road, Wylam.
Provide your name, category, address and telephone number.
Winners will be announced on Saturday 21st September at 4pm.
It would be great if you could also e-mail entries to wylampc@btinternet.com
We hope to use some entries in later Wylam Parish Council publications, if you do not want this to happen, please say on your entry.
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- Puffing Billy 200 Challenge Sports Events (Heddon v Wylam)
Selman Field, Heddon on the Wall at 11am
Cricket - date to be announced
Jubilee Field, Wylam at 2pm
Other local events
- Tyne Riverside Country Park Spring Event: Newburn Visitor Centre: Sunday 26th May 2013 11am-5pm
- 175th Anniversary of Newcastle to Carlisle Railway: Tuesday 18th June 2013
- Heddon on the Wall St Andrew's Church Summer Fair: Saturday 22 June 2013,
Knott Hall 1:30pm
- Wylam Summer Fair: Saturday 22 June 2013
- Lemington Summer Fair: Saturday 13th July 2013
Replica of Puffing Billy, Beamish. Photo by Pauline Eccles (2011).
This is a replica of the world's oldest surviving steam locomotive. It was the first commercial adhesion steam locomotive, employed to haul coal chaldron wagons from the mine at Wylam to the docks at Lemington-on-Tyne in Northumberland. It is being prepared for its first morning run along the Pockerley Waggonway at Beamish Open Air Museum.
© Copyright Pauline Eccles and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
© Copyright Pauline Eccles and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
Road sign for Wylam village. Photo by A Curtis (2009).
© Copyright Andrew Curtis and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
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Puffing Billy Brown Ale, Wylam Brewery.
Wylam Brewery's new Puffing Billy created in May 2013 is a smoked black bitter (5.5% abv) with a mellow blend of roast, cara and black malts..
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Puffing Billy. Picture published in 1876. From Grace's Guide.
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Puffing Billy. Picture published in 1894. From Grace's Guide.
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Puffing Billy incorporated a number of novel features, patented by Hedley, which were to prove important to the development of locomotives. Piston rods extended upwards to pivoting beams, connected in turn by rods to a crankshaft beneath the frames, from which gears drove and also coupled the wheels allowing better traction. This was the first time that coupling had been employed on a locomotive.
The engine had a number of serious technical limitations. Relying on smooth wheels running on a smooth track, its eight-ton weight was too heavy for the rails and crushed them. This problem was alleviated by redesigning the engine with eight wheels so that the weight was spread more evenly. The engine was eventually rebuilt as a four-wheeler when improved track was introduced around 1830. It was not particularly fast, being capable of no more than 3 to 5 mph (5 to 8 km/h).
Puffing Billy was an important influence on George Stephenson, who lived locally, and its success was a key factor in promoting the use of steam locomotives by other collieries in north-eastern England. It also entered the language as a metaphor for an energetic traveller, so that phrases like "puffing like Billy-o" and "running like Billy-o" became common.
The engine had a number of serious technical limitations. Relying on smooth wheels running on a smooth track, its eight-ton weight was too heavy for the rails and crushed them. This problem was alleviated by redesigning the engine with eight wheels so that the weight was spread more evenly. The engine was eventually rebuilt as a four-wheeler when improved track was introduced around 1830. It was not particularly fast, being capable of no more than 3 to 5 mph (5 to 8 km/h).
Puffing Billy was an important influence on George Stephenson, who lived locally, and its success was a key factor in promoting the use of steam locomotives by other collieries in north-eastern England. It also entered the language as a metaphor for an energetic traveller, so that phrases like "puffing like Billy-o" and "running like Billy-o" became common.
The Test Carriage used at Wylam to establish the parameters allowing adhesion of iron wheels on iron rails. From Grace's Guide.
Text and pictures from Grace's Guide where there is more information and links.
The result of Mr Hedley's experiments with the underground carriages strengthened and confirmed in him the belief that if the wheels of an engine carriage were connected, it would by the friction of the wheels upon the rails, induced by its gravity alone, be enabled to overcome the resistance presented by an attached chain of carriages.
.... he resolved to test the experiment on a larger scale, one that should not by indecisive results leave anything to be determined.
Accordingly, in October 1812, a carriage was constructed and placed upon the railway. It had four wheels and was made of sufficient strength to allow of an engine to be placed upon it, if the experiment proved satisfactory. To prevent independent action of the fore and hind wheels of the carriage, they were connected by five teeth wheels......
Various parcels of iron, of ascertained weight, were placed upon it. The progressive motion of the carriage was effected by the application of men at the four handles, of which there were two at each side of the carriage .......
Messrs Blackett and Hedley congratulated each other on the certainty that the coals would now be conveyed by 'iron horses'.
From: Who Invented the Locomotive Engine? by Oswald Dodd Hedley (1858), describing events with the experimental carriage in Wylam in 1812 that proved the principal of adhesion.
Blogs (on this site)
Puffing Billy & the Heddon Balloon
Tale of the Model Steam Locomotive at Close House
Memories of Wooden Waggonways & Wylam Dilly
The Waggoner, traditional Tyneside song
Excavation of waggonway in Newcastle
Wylam Waggonway
Lemington Staiths & Lemington Gut
Puffing Billy & the Heddon Balloon
Tale of the Model Steam Locomotive at Close House
Memories of Wooden Waggonways & Wylam Dilly
The Waggoner, traditional Tyneside song
Excavation of waggonway in Newcastle
Wylam Waggonway
Lemington Staiths & Lemington Gut
Links - Press coverage
The Telegraph - 18 October 2009 - The Inventor of the Steam Locomotive (letter)
Hexham Courant - 26 December 2012 - The village that turned pitmen into pioneers
BBC News - 11th February 2013 - Puffing Billy's 200th anniversary to be celebrated
Chronicle Live - 11 March 2013 - Puffing Billy steam locomotive celebrations planned in Wylam
Hexham Courant - 19 June 2013 - Tynedale was Cradle of Railway Age
ITV Tyne Tees - 2nd July 2013 - Celebrations as Puffing Billy returns home.
The Journal - 3 July 2013 - Wylam youngsters get hands-on with Puffing Billy train
Hexham Courant - 24 September 2013 - Wylam Puffing Billy Festival
The Telegraph - 18 October 2009 - The Inventor of the Steam Locomotive (letter)
Hexham Courant - 26 December 2012 - The village that turned pitmen into pioneers
BBC News - 11th February 2013 - Puffing Billy's 200th anniversary to be celebrated
Chronicle Live - 11 March 2013 - Puffing Billy steam locomotive celebrations planned in Wylam
Hexham Courant - 19 June 2013 - Tynedale was Cradle of Railway Age
ITV Tyne Tees - 2nd July 2013 - Celebrations as Puffing Billy returns home.
The Journal - 3 July 2013 - Wylam youngsters get hands-on with Puffing Billy train
Hexham Courant - 24 September 2013 - Wylam Puffing Billy Festival
Links - Other
YouTube: Puffing Billy Replica on Beamish Pockerley Waggonway
Beamish - Living Museum of the North
Cotton Times (Understanding the Industrial revolution) - William Hedley
Waverley Primary School - Puffing Billy Week
Northumberland Railway Walks - Puffing Billy 200
Robert Stephenson Trust - Puffing Billy
Locos in Profile - Pre-1825 Locomotives
Wylam Dilly - National Museums Scotland
Making the Modern World - Puffing Billy (animation of how the steam locomotive worked)
Photos of Puffing Billy at the Science Museum (2013)
Puffing Billy replica - Deutsches Museum (Munich)
YouTube: Puffing Billy Replica on Beamish Pockerley Waggonway
Beamish - Living Museum of the North
Cotton Times (Understanding the Industrial revolution) - William Hedley
Waverley Primary School - Puffing Billy Week
Northumberland Railway Walks - Puffing Billy 200
Robert Stephenson Trust - Puffing Billy
Locos in Profile - Pre-1825 Locomotives
Wylam Dilly - National Museums Scotland
Making the Modern World - Puffing Billy (animation of how the steam locomotive worked)
Photos of Puffing Billy at the Science Museum (2013)
Puffing Billy replica - Deutsches Museum (Munich)
Puffing Billy 1813. US History Images, Published 1918.
Send a Puffing Billy eCard from the Look & Learn Picture Library to tell friends about the Puffing Billy Festival.