Valleyfields Central Railway

**The Valleyfields Central Railway** is one of the two main standard gauge railways, and the most famous on the island of Rhendowhen.

## History

Located along the middle of the Island of Rhendowhen, the Valleyfields Central Railway was founded in 1885, with the help of Sir Archibald Ravenville's family. It merged together 3 previous railways: the North Rhendowhen Railway which ran from San Dowhen to Occoneechee, the Blackwood, Rupert and Bartlett Railway (from Blackwood to Bartlett Hill) and the Ravenville, Rockport & Liberty Railway (from Ravenville to Liberty Park). After it crosses a channel from the Mainland, the Main Line as we know it runs from San Dowhen in the North to Ravenville in the South. It also has 3 of its own branch lines, and their main exports include slate, timber, produce, fish, and cars.

The first engines to operate on the Railway were of their controllers' own designs. These engines proved successful for almost 40 years, until the Great Eastern Railway had their own line built on the island in 1921 when the Railways Act came into effect. This caused a fierce rivalry between the two railways, often competing for various passenger and freight contracts. To stay afloat and keep up with the Great Eastern, the Valleyfields Central began purchasing engines from other railways, many of them having been withdrawn. Preston was the first engine to be bought by them, followed by a 3F tender named Cobi, 2 4F's named Carly and Warren, two former Wellsworth & Suddery engines named Colin and Adam, and a B1 Express tender engine named Wilson. This roster helped the railway manage to compete with the Great Eastern, until it became clear that Wilson was unable to keep up with the increasing Express passenger demands. Hence, he was retired from Express duties and given his own branch line, where he has worked ever since.

Unfortunately, finding a stable replacement for him was easier said than done. The VCR went through a rotating cast of Express engines for the next 15 years for various reasons; some of them were sent away for their arrogant behaviours, others had been borrowed, but had to return home, and a couple of them were sold to the GER as the railway couldn't afford to mend them. As a result, the railway's popularity with passengers dwindled, and they were losing contracts to their competitor. However, it took the withdrawal of the N15X engines in 1955 for the railway's luck to turn around. They rescued two engines from scrap that same year named Remembrance and Stephenson. It was at that point where the VCR also found its niche: saving engines from scrap and giving them a second chance at life.

Remembrance was promptly made Express engine, and the railway's reputation began to resurge in popularity. Once Stephenson's overhaul was complete, he would share the job with her, as well as heavy goods. Then, in 1959, Solario was rescued and assigned to Express duties for both passengers and goods, followed by Enterprise in 1962. This left Stephenson with less work to do on the Main Line, so he was reallocated to the Jackson Heights branch line to keep him busy. Remembrance was also reallocated to work on what was then known as the Newport Branch Line to help with the growing traffic.

Like the North Western Railway on Sodor, the VCR refused to modernize when the end of steam came in 1968, but it still persevered due to its reputation for rescuing outdated engines. But in 1971, the Valleyfields Central was commissioned to build a new engine on a existing design, Ravenville a new SR Maunsell N15x to work on the Newport Branch Line with her older sister Remembrance. For the next decade, the railway ran entirely on steam power, until 1981 when it fell on hard times again. The Ford Motor Company became interested in building a car factory near the Newport line, and the railway agreed to sell the line to them to get them out of financial peril. As a result, the line was renamed "the Rhinehart branch", and used solely for importing and exporting cars and car parts. This also led to Remembrance and Raven's removal from the branch and return to the Main, and they were replaced by the railway's first diesel, Murph.

But their roster of diesels didn't end there. In 1996, Preston retired from his station pilot position at San Dowhen, and a gronk shunter named Cameron was purchased to take his place; Preston would join Stephenson on the Jackson Heights line. Then in 2010, they rescued and overhauled a class 28 Co-Bo diesel for Main Line goods work. He was given the name Quentin, and had become the railway's first ever Main Line diesel engine.

The Valleyfields Central had done relatively well since their partnership with Ford, but they would eventually enjoy a level of fame and popularity they'd never dreamed of. In 2014, their two current controllers, Rufus Cavendish and Quentin Butcher, made the deal of a lifetime with the North Western Railway's current controller, Kris Topham Hatt, to run a new Express service between their two railways. Remembrance was chosen to pull that Express, as her overhaul had been completed by then. This not only led to stories being written about the engines on the VCR as well as Sodor, but also a greater amount of exposure and tourism.

## Routes

* The Main Line
* The Jackson Heights Branch Line
* The Sawmill Branch Line
* The Rhinehart Branch Line