Prototype A Study in Dereliction

[oldravendale]

If you mean Peter Scott the bird and wildlife man, Mark, the answer's No! My friend Peter was a railway enthusiast like me and we went on several trips together, including to Manchester to see the last rites of steam.

I'm home and, once I've cleared all the mail etc I'll make a search for the book Alastair. It's probably pre ISBN.

Brian

Edit. Found it at Abe Books: Harrow Stanmore Railway by Peter Scott - AbeBooks Whether it actually has any photos of Stanmore Station apart from the drawing on the cover I'm unsure until I find mine which is the 1972 version.

 

[MarkR]

If you mean Peter Scott the bird and wildlife man, Mark, the answer's No! My friend Peter was a railway enthusiast like me and we went on several trips together, including to Manchester to see the last rites of steam.

Hi,
Sorry, please accept my apologies for the confusion, Antarctic exploration is another one of my rabbit holes!
Mark

 

[oldravendale]

Of course - he's not the Antarctic explorer either!

 

[LarryG]

Of course - he's not the Antarctic explorer either!

Porridge Oats....?

 

[Alvis]

If you mean Peter Scott the bird and wildlife man, Mark, the answer's No! My friend Peter was a railway enthusiast like me and we went on several trips together, including to Manchester to see the last rites of steam.

I'm home and, once I've cleared all the mail etc I'll make a search for the book Alastair. It's probably pre ISBN.

Brian

Edit. Found it at Abe Books: Harrow Stanmore Railway by Peter Scott - AbeBooks Whether it actually has any photos of Stanmore Station apart from the drawing on the cover I'm unsure until I find mine which is the 1972 version.

Hello Brian,

Again,many thanks for the information,I've just found that book and have just now ordered one which is a revised edition.
I also came across another book,The Stanmore Village Branch...A photographic Journey,which looks good.Ordered that too,so should have some details to look into.I will let you know on that,should you wish.

Kind Regards,

Alastair.

 

[oldravendale]

Thank you Alastair. I'm pleased to have been of some assistance. Please keep us informed about your progress. I'll look for The Stanmore Village Branch book for myself - I remember it well although I've not returned for many years.

Brian

 

[David Long]

A chap called Dave Pennington built an EM gauge layout of Stanmore Village station. It was featured in MRJ Issue 1 in 1985. I saw it on a couple of occasions at exhibitions in the 1980s and it was a fine layout.
'The Stanmore Village Branch - A Photographic Journey' is by Ian Baker and Jim Connor. It is part of the series by Connor & Butler Publishing featuring mostly branch lines in the Greater London area.
Belmont is interesting in that it opened as a single platform halt but gained its enlarged status in the mid-1930s. This was driven by the fact that in 1934 Belmont received an award for being the station which achieved the greatest increase in passenger traffic on the LMSR.
The platform building is similar to many of those built by the LMS in the 1930s and I've always hoped to find some better pictures of the structure but the over-hanging canopy and a train in the platform have always made this difficult.

David

 

[oldravendale]

Thank you for that extra detail, David. I'll pull out my MRJ issue 1 because I'd entirely forgotten about the layout being in that issue. The book by Ian Baker and Jim Connor will also be of interest, so I'll search that out.

It's interesting that Belmont achieved its island platform as a result of increasing passenger numbers. I remember the train I used on my visit to the branch was very busy, standing all the way, but it was probably a busy time of day as it was after school so on the fringes of rush hour. I suspect that trains during the day would have been less well patronised. As I mentioned earlier I reckon the loss of the branch is mourned by many nowadays as it was a perfect feeder to Harrow and Wealdstone from a highly populated area. I suspect it's another of those "managed" run downs. In fact, considering the difficulties associated with parking in Harrow nowadays I'd not be surprised if the branch to Stanmore Village would be an economic proposition now.

It is notable that the branch from Watford to St Albans hung on by its fingertips for many years but nowadays is a well used and convenient link to the WCML.

Brian

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

Unfortunatey the LNWR had a habit of building some of their branch line junctions facing north rather than towards London with Harrow and Wealdstone-Stanmore and Cheddington-Aylesbury being classic examples. If these junctions faced London, electrified as part of the WCML electrification and through services provided the lines may well have remained opened as they would have provided faster links to London.

The Watford-St Albans branch junction at Watford Junction faces London and, again, if this line was electrified as part of the WCML electrifcation rather than later the story may have been different.

It is anecdotal as soon as a line was/is electrified and regular interval services provided passenger numbers increase.

 

[oldravendale]

Thanks Dave. I'd never considered that previously. As you're doubtless aware it took a time for the St Albans branch to be electrified and as far as I know there are no through trains to London. It seems that, nowadays, through trains from branch lines are something of a rarity. Would the Stanmore Village branch have survived if it faced south rather than north at Harrow - who knows? A train change at Harrow on to one of the many London bound trains wouldn't be too onerous.

Anyway, all what might have been I suspect.

Brian