Happy Birthday Henry Greenly !
Today (3rd June 2026) marks the 150th birthday of Henry Greenly.
Born on 3rd June 1876, Greenly was a key figure in the world of model railway design in the early 20th century.
His involvement in the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway, although brief, had a great impact on the railway’s survival. He was responsible for the design of River Esk – the locomotive that allowed the railway to handle quarry traffic all year round. River Esk was a workhorse within a model, capable of pulling 25 tons of stone or 150 passengers along the mountainous track. It continues to run on the R&ER to this day.
Soon after River Esk was completed, Greenly was headhunted to design a third scale Flying Scotsman for two millionaires, followed by a main line in miniature to run them on in Kent. Not cutting all ties with Ravenglass, his locomotive Green Goddess came to the R&ER for trials in 1925.
The miniature line he created became the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway which opened in 1927. Although he was responsible for every detail of this new railway, Greenly was not introduced at its royal premiere and was railroaded off the scheme after it was finally completed to the Dungeness lighthouse.
Henry Greenly’s influence on model railways as a hobby was massive. He proposed the standards for scales and track from ride-on models down to O gauge and table top OO. As a young man in his early 20s, he was on a committee to establish a national railway museum – and as we all know, railway museums are the best!
He published his own magazine ‘Models, Railways and Locomotives’, wrote definitive books on the subject and of course designed small working replicas of the full-size steam locos that could be small enough to run round the playroom or big enough for the funfair. He even designed gun-mounts for the Royal Aircraft Establishment during the First World War.
Working with the Basset-Lowke company, his models were sold to narrow gauge railways around the country. The Rhyl Miniature Steam Railway has enjoyed almost continuous operation since May 1911.
While his small loco designs still flew off the drawing board, he was later bankrupted by a clear case of plagiarism involving his old associate Bassett-Lowke. 79 years after his death, several of his machines are in daily service and the model railway hobby continues to flourish and follow his standards.
Fast forward to Ravenglass 2026, 150 years after Henry Greenly was born, and we were delighted to receive a visit from Henry’s Great Granddaughter, Caroline Nicolaides. Caroline was delighted to see several examples of her Great Grandfather’s work at Ravenglass Station. Museum staff showed her around Ravenglass Railway Museum, where Greenly designed engine Little Giant is on display, as well as into the Engineers Workshop to see Synolda and into the Engine Shed to see River Esk.
Caroline said, “it is so lovely to know that Henry lives on! “
To mark this special birthday, our Museum Curator created a special headboard for the occasion, which was of course displayed on Greenly’s masterpiece, River Esk. Our friends at the RHDR have also created a headboard in honour of the 150th birthday of the man who designed their railway.
If you have spotted River Esk today along the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway line, or you have been visiting the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway, you may have spotted these very special headboards – please do share your pictures with us! @ravenglassrailwaymuseum
