Prototype Tim Mills' Photos

[James Spooner]

That could be a regular Southend turn and not necessarily via LTS, they ran up the GEML to Shenfield and branched off. LTS services dropped off after Forest Gate and down to Barking but I recall that was generally freight only or stuff off the NLL in my day.

Liverpool street trains run to Southend Victoria, Fenchurch Street run to Southend Central and terminate at Shoeburyness.

In the 80's when I commuted the Southend trains were limited stoppers on the fast lines, Stratford, Ilford, Romford, Shenfield then all stations to Southend, off peak they ran on the slow lines and just ripped through all the other stations non stop.

View attachment 229765

That takes me back! In the seventies, in the rush hour, there were the ‘Billericay flyers’, all stations Southend to Billericay, then non stop to Liverpool St, then the semi fasts, all stations to Harold Wood, then Stratford and Liverpool St. As someone brought up in Shenfield at the time, I preferred the Norwich line services, which tended to provide the fast trains, including, from the mid seventies, the lovely class 312s…

Nigel

 

[mickoo]

That takes me back! In the seventies, in the rush hour, there were the ‘Billericay flyers’, all stations Southend to Billericay, then non stop to Liverpool St, then the semi fasts, all stations to Harold Wood, then Stratford and Liverpool St. As someone brought up in Shenfield at the time, I preferred the Norwich line services, which tended to provide the fast trains, including, from the mid seventies, the lovely class 312s…

Nigel

Just for closure and not to divert from Brians images, found the non stop shot head on (previous was going away) at Manor Park, I think line speed here was 75, narrow platforms and no silly yellow lines got your attention.

I suspect the 307 may not be at full speed as it may just have departed from Ilford.



It was followed by a 312 also non stop, the curved front used to make a distinctive warbling/whistling noise up close at high speed. It's going back many decades but my dim memory is that the 312 was traveling significantly faster and probably hadn't stopped at Ilford so may be a Colchester/Clacton express.

 

[Alan]

Those pics bring back memories of commuting between Goodmayes and Forest Gate in the very early 70s.

 

[PMP]

Adam,
I'll save you the trouble, it was just the one photo taken at Long Sidings, Peak Forest. They are labelled Non Pool and the lettering on these examples is quite different to the one with 84024.

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That's my Airfix reflex triggered...

 

[oldravendale]

Thank you Martin @Martin Shaw . Additional and correcting details always welcome.

That's wonderful stuff, Mick @mickoo. Photos are so good! I studiously avoided photographing those EMUs, or any other for that matter. As it happens, though, hoping for some steam one year at Stratford I photographed a couple of 312s in original maroon.

H Class 0-4-4T 31324 on Ramsgate shed on 17th August 1958. The loco was allocated to Ramsgate in June 1952, moved to Nine Elms in June 1959, then Tonbridge February, Ashford April, both 1960, and back to Tonbridge in February 1961 and finally Three Bridges in May 1962 where it was withdrawn in July the same year. (SLS). It then went to Eastleigh Works where it was cut up week ending 10th August 1962. (RO).



Class L1 31781 with H Class 31324 and 31500 at Ramsgate on shed on 17th August 1958. For details of the L1 see the previous post and for 31324 see above. 31500 was allocated to Ramsgate from October 1955, then Nine Elms in June 1959. By November the same year it was allocated to Tonbridge where it was withdrawn in June 1961. (SLS). The Railway Observer reports it was cut up at Ashford week ending 1st July 1961.




On shed at Ramsgate on 17th August 1958 is N Class Mogul 31411 clearly carrying a 73A Stewarts Lane shed plate. It was allocated there by January 1948 and moved to Redhill in July 1963 before ending up at Guildford in January 1965 where it was withdrawn in April 1966. (SLS). It was scrapped at Cashmore’s, Newport, in September 1966. (BR Database).



This is believed to be Standard Class 2 2-6-2T 84025. It’s at Ramsgate - as Dave @Yorkshire Dave pointed out the chimneys are those of Ramsgate Power Station - on a local train on 17th August 1958. The loco was allocated to Ramsgate when new in April 1957 and thereafter moved to Ashford in June 1959, Brighton in May, Newton Heath in September and Bolton, all 1961, and then was allocated back south to Eastleigh in November 1965 although it seems doubtful that a physical transfer ever took place. (SLS). In fact it was seen in store at Stockport between December 1965 and 6th March 1966. (WHTS). Thereafter there’s a suggestion it went back to the LMR but no allocation is given. In any event it was withdrawn in December 1965 (SLS) and went to Arnott Young at Parkgate where it was scrapped in March 1966. (BR Database).



It's very unlikely I'll post anything tomorrow so a Happy and Healthy Christmas to all and my grateful thanks for your support through the year..

Brian

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

That's wonderful stuff, Mick @mickoo. Photos are so good! I studiously avoided photographing those EMUs, or any other for that matter. As it happens, though, hoping for some steam one year at Stratford I photographed a couple of 312s in original maroon

I think you mean the 2 and 4 car 309s. Apart from the EMUs built for the Clacton and Walton On Naze services all others were delivered in stock green, electric blue or BR blue.

 

[mickoo]

I think you mean the 2 and 4 car 309s. Apart from the EMUs built for the Clacton and Walton On Naze services all others were delivered in stock green, electric blue or BR blue.

Was going to say the same, very few EMU's were delivered in maroon and the AM9 (309) were considered express stock due to their 100mph running.

There were other maroon EMU's, the Wirral/Merseyside units were maroon and I'm sure there were others in maroon; actually I've justy checked and didn't realize the Merseyside (Southport) stock was so old (1939), the later Wirral stock was 1949.

Photos (good) of maroon AM9's are hard to come by as like Brian, most people were photographing steam.

 

[mickoo]

That's wonderful stuff, Mick @mickoo. Photos are so good! I studiously avoided photographing those EMUs, or any other for that matter. As it happens, though, hoping for some steam one year at Stratford I photographed a couple of 312s in original maroon.

I wish I'd taken more now, funny how age (hindsight) does that to you.

 

[Martin Shaw]

For the record from the RCTS
84025 Ramsgate 4/57, Ashford 6/59, Brighton 6/61, Newton Heath 9/61, Bolton 11/61, Eastleigh 11/65, Bolton 12/65, Wdn 12/65.

Two things, the transfer from Ramsgate to Ashford, along with 84026-9, was the closure of the former to steam, the transfer to Eastleigh was for the IoW scheme however it was on paper only for a week. In actual fact the loco was dumped at Bolton and subsequently towed to Stockport prior to disposal.

Martin