Editing Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway (section)

===Original railway===
The original Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway was a {{RailGauge|3ft}} line opened on 24 May 1875 to transport [[hematite]] [[iron ore]] from three mines near and around the village of [[Boot, Cumbria|Boot]] to the [[Furness Railway]] [[standard gauge]] line at Ravenglass.<ref name=WHITEHOUSE >{{cite book
 |author1=Whitehouse, Patrick  |author2=Snell, John
  |name-list-style=amp |title=Narrow gauge railways of the British Isles
 |isbn=0-7153-0196-9
 |publisher=[[David & Charles]]
 |year=1984
 }}</ref><ref name="Davies, Inception" >{{Cite book
  |title=The Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway
  |chapter=Inception of the Railway
  |last=Davies  |first=W.J.K.
  |publisher=[[David & Charles]]
  |orig-year=1968
  |year=1981
  |isbn=0-7153-9224-7
  |ref={{harvid|Davies|Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway}}
  |pages=13–22
}}</ref> There has previously been a dispute about the gauge the railway was built to. It is shown as 3 feet in records but is quoted as {{Track gauge|2ft9in|lk=on}} in some books such as the ''ABC of Narrow Gauge Railways''.<ref>Ian Allan ABC of Narrow Gauge Railways, c. 1960, pp. 49–50</ref> This figure was believed for many years until the present company discovered a sleeper from before the line closed, with spacings between holes made by track spikes confirming the gauge was the wider one. The confusion probably stems from the fact that the line was built under the condition that it was "of a gauge not less than 2'&nbsp;9" ".<ref name=RailwayMagDec2008 />

Following requests from the residents of the Eskdale valley for a passenger service, the railway was upgraded to meet the minimum standards of the [[Board of Trade]], and the first passenger trains ran in November 1876.<ref name=RailwayMagDec2008 /><ref name=WHITEHOUSE/> It was the first public [[narrow-gauge railway]] in England.<ref name=WHITEHOUSE /> However, the cost of upgrading the line for passengers left the railway company with substantial debts which it was unable to pay off.  The company was forced to declare itself bankrupt in 1877, although trains continued to run under the control of a series of receivers.<ref name=WHITEHOUSE/> Nonetheless, in 1880 a tramway was built connecting the line near [[Beckfoot railway station]] to newly opened mines across the [[River Esk (Ravenglass)|River Esk]] at Gill Force.<ref>{{cite web |title=View: Cumberland LXXIX.SW (includes: Eskdale; Irton.) – Ordnance Survey Six-inch England and Wales, 1842–1952 |url=https://maps.nls.uk/view/101093182 |website=maps.nls.uk}}</ref><ref name="1978 Handbook">{{Cite book |title=The Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway Handbook |publisher=The Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway Co. Ltd |year=1978 |edition=5th |pages=5 & 7 |language=en}}</ref>  All but one of the iron ore mines closed within 10 years of the railway opening, and there was not enough traffic from other sources (local goods and passengers from the villages and farms of the valley) to sustain the railway.  The railway "struggled on" by carrying granite from local quarries and became popular with summer tourists.<ref name="1978 Handbook"/>  The Summer 1898 [[Furness Railway]] timetable shows five weekday trains along the line with three on Sundays.{{sfn|Davey|1984|pp=13 & 39}}

In 1905, a passenger train was derailed at [[Murthwaite Halt railway station|Murthwaite]] due to a combination of a defective locomotive and defective track.<ref name=Earnshaw5>{{cite book |last=Earnshaw |first=Alan |title=Trains in Trouble: Vol. 5 |year=1989 |publisher=Atlantic Books |location=Penryn |isbn=0-906899-35-4 |page=5 }}</ref> By 1908 the track-work was in such poor condition, it was declared unsafe for passengers by the Board of Trade.  The railway closed to passengers that year.  Goods trains continued to run whilst attempts were made to raise money to rebuild the railway.  These attempts failed, and the railway closed completely in April 1913.<ref name=WHITEHOUSE />