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From the opening of the Great Western Railway in 1838 through to the end of steam traction on the Western Region in 1965 the ‘engine shed’ formed an important role in both the infrastructure and operation of the railway. As the Great Western system expanded so did the need for larger locomotive servicing facilities and from the 1870s right through to the 1930s many sheds were rebuilt into larger locomotive depots or in some cases replaced by entirely new structures Nationalisation of the railways in 1948 saw the formation of the ‘British Railways Western Region’. Apart from a few early sub-shed closures the number of Western Region steam depots and sub-sheds remained almost unaltered until the regional boundary changes of 1958. Using black and white and color images from the Great Western Trust archive at Didcot, the book illustrates Western Region steam depots and ‘sub sheds’ that were in operation in the mid 1950s. With many previously unpublished photographs the book should interest modellers, historians and enthusiasts of the Western Region. Today the unique atmosphere of the steam ‘shed’ can be still be experienced at Didcot, where the original 1932 locomotive shed forms the centrepiece of the Didcot Railway Centre.
From the opening of the Great Western Railway in 1838 through to the end of steam traction on the Western Region in 1965 the ‘engine shed’ formed an important role in both the infrastructure and operation of the railway. As the Great Western system expanded so did the need for larger locomotive servicing facilities and from the 1870s right through to the 1930s many sheds were rebuilt into larger locomotive depots or in some cases replaced by entirely new structures Nationalisation of the railways in 1948 saw the formation of the ‘British Railways Western Region’. Apart from a few early sub-shed closures the number of Western Region steam depots and sub-sheds remained almost unaltered until the regional boundary changes of 1958. Using black and white and color images from the Great Western Trust archive at Didcot, the book illustrates Western Region steam depots and ‘sub sheds’ that were in operation in the mid 1950s. With many previously unpublished photographs the book should interest modellers, historians and enthusiasts of the Western Region. Today the unique atmosphere of the steam ‘shed’ can be still be experienced at Didcot, where the original 1932 locomotive shed forms the centrepiece of the Didcot Railway Centre.
WORCESTER LOCOMOTIVE SHED is the third in a series of in depth studies of Western Region motive power depots. This provincial city was a busy and fascinating rail centre with main line passenger and freight services passing through alongside local passenger and freight tripping duties that together provided an endless panorama of railway activity. The Great Western Railway had a major locomotive depot here and this book takes a detailed look at the shed, how it functioned, its locomotives and its operational duties during the latter days of steam. As well as official records valuable detail and reminiscences have been gathered from former footplate and shed staff ensuring that local custom and practice is well recorded in the story. The depot’s sub-sheds at Evesham, Honeybourne, Kingham and Ledbury are also all covered in detail as well as Worcester Locomotive Works. Worcester was also home to the fondly remembered ex-GWR diesel railcars and it was their last operational base at time of final withdrawal in 1962. Their role in the area is well covered in photographs and words. Taken together the book is both a valuable historical record and a fascinating and readable story of a large motive power depot in the latter days of steam.
Michael Harvey's book brings to its readers the excitement of trainspotting in the 1950s and '60s, the hobby's heyday. It was the advent of the famous Ian Allan ABC Locospotters books that really gave the hobby its impetus, as they gave trainspotters all the information they required. Forget the Anorak sets out to provide the reader with a personal account of what the hobby entailed - teenagers roaming the railways of Britain, sleeping on deserted platforms on porters' trolleys, 'bunking' dimly lit depots and eluding capture, travelling hundreds of miles on a platform ticket, and stink bombs on the Underground. You'll be able to smell the steam, soot and unwashed socks, and taste the boiled egg sandwiches, the chips wrapped in newspaper and the hot jam doughnuts, all washed down with warm Tizer. Illustrated with Michael Harvey's own photographs and a selection of maps, Forget the Anorak appeals to anyone who experienced the golden days of trainspotting, as well as to anyone interested in the social history of Britain after the Second World War.
A photographic tribute to the former GWR in the postwar years up to the end of Western Region steam on 31 December 1965.
In mid-1964, Keith Widdowson got wind that the Western Region was hell-bent on being the first to eliminate the steam locomotive on its tracks by December 1965. The 17-year-old hurriedly homed in on train services still in the hands of GWR steam power, aiming to catch runs with the last examples before their premature annihilation. The Great Western Steam Retreat recalls Widdowson's teenage exploits, soundtracked by hits from the Beatles, the Kinks and the Rolling Stones, throughout the Western Region and former Great Western Railway lines. He documents the extreme disorder that resulted from that decision, paying tribute to the train crews who managed to meet demanding timings in the face of declining cleanliness, the poor quality of coal and the major problem of recruiting both footplate and shed staff. This book completes the author's Steam Chase series and provides a snapshot into the comradery that characterised the final years of steam alongside the long-gone journeys that can never be recreated.
Throughout its length from London to Glasgow via Crewe and Carlisle, with a loop through the West Midlands and spurs to Holyhead,Liverpool and Manchester, the West Coast Main Line has consistently provided interest for those many with more than a passing interest in trains and travel. This book outlines the history of the route,its physical characteristics and sets the scene for the various passenger and goods traffic flows that sustained it; it then details the arrangements for motive power and train working through the era of change that was 1957 to 1963. The level of interest - as evidenced daily by the presence at the lineside of hordes of young spotters and other observers - was particularly high at that time as processions of trains hauled by fine express passenger locomotives and those more suited to other traffic passed by. The book also goes 'behind the scenes' to provide insights into the daily and seasonal challenges of managing that section of a wider railway network, as directed by the varying terms of relevant legislation, and a government increasingly concerned to shape the railways for the changing needs of the public, industry and the economy. The book will be of particular interest to those who simply recall those days by the lineside, those with an interest in detailed arrangements to provide and maintain suitable motive power, those with an interest in how the railway served the needs of the nation and modellers who seek information. The book is illustrated with color and monochrome images and supported by maps.
Great Britain not only invented the main-line railway but has also led the way in it's preservation - not just locomotves and carriages but also the buildings and structures that bear witness to the confidence of railway developers, architects and engineers. This book defines the nature of the railway heritage - from signalboxes, viaducts, tunnels and locomotive depots - and then discusses priorities and the best practice for it's conservation. The subject is a strongly topical one due to current concern over privatization, the effects of planned high-speed rail links and lively debates concerning the role of the enthusiast in railway preservation.
Allen Jackson's illustrated look at signalling and signal boxes along the routes of the London & South Western Railway.