Advent Quiz - 2019

[whole diary]

[grahame]

December has snuck up on us this year ... suddenly we're into the month of Christmas.  Looking though the bottom of my drawer (which appears to have some sort of wire leading out of it to a world of photos) I have come across some images which I think I can place ... but can you help me?   I will post one per day, starting with this:

[SandTEngineer]

Calne station in sunny Wiltshire.....
(Its the rare bracket starting signal that gave it away for me).

[martyjon]

Agreed.

[grahame]

Calne station in sunny Wiltshire.....
(Its the rare bracket starting signal that gave it away for me).

It is indeed Calne ... and why am I not surprised that you identified it from a rare signal!

[grahame]

And where is this?

[Oxonhutch]

Weston-super-Mare perhaps

[CyclingSid]

Salisbury??

The connection with curved platforms and the report on the accident where the driver did not comply with the speed limit and ran down the platform at Salisbury

[grahame]

Neither Salisbury nor Weston-super-mare, I'm afraid.

[PhilWakely]

Gloucester Eastgate?

[Reginald25]

Mangotsfield?

[bradshaw]

Portland, Dorset; second station opened in connection with the line to Easton in 1902

[grahame]

Portland, Dorset; second station opened in connection with the line to Easton in 1902

Yes, correct .. the original terminal was straight ahead but when extended to Easton it did a sharp left and then got into some spectacular engineering.   Rather the same was as the LSWR^▸ (London South Western Railway) (or whatever it was called at that time) did as it came to Dorchester.

[bradshaw]

The Southampton and Dorchester was the original name. It ran that way as the promotor, Castlemain, intended it to run on to Exeter. The LSWR^▸ (London South Western Railway) with an interest in the central route would not play ball.
The curve towards Weymouth opened with the WS&WR in 1857.
At one point Castlemain decided to ally himself with the GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) but an agreement between them and L&SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) returned it to the latter’s fold.
I spent some time researching the WS&WR and there are some interesting stories to be told.

It is also worth spending time looking at the railways in Portland, especially the mineral ones.

[martyjon]

I got some 8mm cine film of a steamer shunting at Easton and then the descent down the incline with huge blocks of Portland stone. If ever I get round to it I'll have it digitised and post it on YouTube along with other clips of railway interest.

[grahame]

On the third day of advent my photographer brought to me this colourised postcard ...