The line
The railway “occupies about 5 miles of the old Ryde & Newport line” (timeline of the island’s railways). The original line opened on 20 December 1875 and closed in February 1966. The Isle of Wight Steam Railway was founded on 24 January 1971; Wootton station formally opened in August 1986, and the Smallbrook interchange on 20 July 1991 (same page).
The oldest working stock
“Our oldest locomotive was built in 1876 and carriages date back to 1864!”, the railway says (heritage page). Its Terrier No. W11 Newport emerged from Brighton Works in 1878, and Calbourne was the first engine acquired by the embryonic Steam Railway, in 1967 (locomotives page). At Havenstreet, the Train Story exhibition first opened its doors in April 2014 (Train Story page), and the railway lists The Hours, the 2002 film, among its screen credits (TV and film page).
Freshwater and Train Story
No. W8 Freshwater was built in 1876 at the Brighton works of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (locomotives page). Train Story at Havenstreet was paid for with a £1.2m Heritage Lottery Fund grant (Train Story page). Tickets give unlimited travel through the day (fares page), and the number 33 bus serves Havenstreet (getting to the railway).
Calbourne and the island’s hand-me-downs
Steam on the island ended on the Ryde to Shanklin line on 31 December 1966. A small group, the Wight Locomotive Society, raised the money to save W24 Calbourne, one of the last engines, and some of the carriages. In 1971 the new company bought a mile and a half of track between Wootton and Havenstreet.
Why are the carriages so old? The island’s railways could rarely afford new stock, so they took elderly engines and coaches from the mainland. The result is a train from an earlier era than almost any other preserved railway in Britain, with carriages built between 1864 and 1924. The Island Steam Show, every August bank holiday weekend, has run since 1979 (Wikipedia).
Planning the day
A third class ticket was listed at £26.00 online or £29.50 at the gate, for unlimited travel through the day (fares and tickets). Smallbrook Junction offers a simple cross-platform connection with Island Line trains, and Havenstreet has a large free car park (getting to the railway).
Photographing the line
Good news here: the railway lists public spots where you can photograph without asking, from Wootton station and Packsfield and Woodhouse crossings to Havenstreet signal box, Ashey station and Smallbrook Junction. That doesn’t mean you can go on or near the track, and the railway says trackside permits will be restricted in future.
Sources: IWSR lineside photography (checked 21 October 2026).
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