This photograph is a diversion on the old beck branch and shows the North Tees power station in the background and all of the surrounding industry which is now long gone. Courtesy of Gordon Armes. 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
The Stirling Boilers were indeed large, going inside was a bit like walking into a Cathedral and high above were the three headers, the superheaters with the tall cross tubes from the bottom headers to the top. ICI maintenance repaired the boilers and they were a very experienced crew of all trades. Old broken tubes were removed and replaced they had to be right as you could not shut down easily once you got going. The boilersmiths and welders responsible for fitting the tubes with the help of the rigging teams worked inside the headers, hot cramped and dirty using wind machines that made it even worse but I never remember one failure on start up. ICI at that time had some of the best tradesmen anywhere, on the steam reform plants they repaired and renewed pipes and convertors that worked up to 1500 psi, you are talking very technical working on what we called exotic metals, carried out to the highest standards and inspected by Vulcan inspectors. My lads Dave, gave me a mug on retirement saying I may have been born without a Father but I was a very fair chap considering that fact. As with all things you have to have trust and respect on all sides even when working in a snow storm on plant that was losing a million pounds a day and had to be got running again no matter what it cost. I do remember your long hair, I thought you may be trying to grow it longer than your mother who had long flowing blond hair when I knew her in our dancing years.
Graeme, I was a trainee Operator on the Billingham ICI Power station Boiler plant in 1971 – all four pulverised fuel Sterlings were still operational at this time but their time was limited as the IC (International Combustion??) boilers were being converted to gas firing & would soon make the Sterlings redundant. A very dirty plant to work on but the workforce really looked after each other and I had a wonderful time on the plant, meeting some real characters who I remember with fondness to this day – even the old style Foremen who, although very strict and demanding regimental respect, usually had a softer side once they got to know you – what they must have thought of a long haired 19 year old is anyones guess! I think it was Frank Mee who commented on the size of the Sterling boilers, I managed to get inside a couple of the Sterlings during shutdowns & they were enormous inside – however the floating economiser roof made of Asbestos sheets would have put me off going inside if I had then been aware of the potential consequences.
Dave Summerfield is correct. The large chimney in the centre is one of two from the Stirling Boilers, probably no longer in use in 1965, so no emissions. I have studied an Ordnance Survey map to confirm it and the Casebournes chimney is to the right of the photo spewing out smoke/steam amongst the cranes of the ship yard.
The cooling tower in the centre background was part of the LP Ammonia plant, I would guess the chimney slightly to the right of the cooling tower to be related to the Power Plant Sterling Boilers – there were two chimneys for the four Sterling Boilers but the angle of the photograph makes it look like only one. The two chimneys in the left middle background are the CCF plant.
I do not dispute Denis’s dating of the photograph, however my records show that the new Blue bridge at Ragworth was ‘installed’ on 13th June 1965 – maybe the train in the photograph was diverted for another reason. Diversion of trains due to engineering works was quite common at that time – on the 8th November 1964 the line between Norton & Hartburn was closed for engineering work and trains were routed from Norton to Redmarshall, then reversed down the Cuckoo to Thornaby before reversing again to rejoin the coast route North of Eaglescliffe. Also on July 25th 1965 my records show the line between Hartlepool & Norton was closed due to engineering works, the coast services between Hartlepool & Stockton were diverted via the Castle Eden branch over Thorpe viaduct to Redmarshall East junction before rejoining the line at Norton South junction – the diverted trains became the last passenger trains to cross Thorpe Thewles viaduct before the line closed in July 1966 – quite a large group of us witnessed the last passenger train pass through Thorpe Thewles station that night.
F.Starr, I suspect the large chimney may belong to the old ICI ‘Casebournes’ cement works.
Nice pictures of North Tees B and C power stations. But does anyone know what plant belongs to the very tall chimney in the far background?
I would date this picture as taken on the 11-04-65, as I also have a picture of this same train at Haverton Hill South taken from the lineside while waiting to give driver the token to travel over the single line. The identifing point being the lamp carried on the front which was not removed after the manouvre from Billingham to Haverton Hill Station which was the trains tail lamp.
As far as I remember the blue bridge over the Stockton Ring Road at Norton A1027 was put in place in the summer of 1965, which may help to date the photograph.
This diversion dates from the time when they built the new bridge on the ring road next to Fussick bridge. I have posted some other pictures on this site, I do have some more and I will look them up and post them.
This is a very unusual shot showing the diversion of a diesel hauled passanger train on the Billingham Beck branch. Presumably this must be some kind of long distance train running down from Sunderland and possibly going through to York. But what was the date? Has Gordon Armes any other pictures of locos on this forgotten stretch?