Peterborough North

[great northern]

That is a really interesting train Gilbert. I rather like the unsung workings like this. I wonder why Colchester was the origin? Was it a mail hub or something back then?

BGs eh! I have a part finished Comet one lurking.

Hope you are feeling better after a rest day?

Phil

Getting better gradually thanks Phil. I need to, as I have a golf committment tomorrow, and my partner is travelling up from Devon to play!

[great northern]

I promised a locomotive, and here it is.

I didn't say it would be a different one, did I?

 

[Clive Mortimore]

Didn't Colchester also house the main 'glasshouse' for UK-based troops?

There was another busy trooping service from the area as well- Harwich to Manchester; according to an old boss of mine, this connected, via the ferry, to the MEDLOC services.

Hi Brian

 

I got thrown out of the Military Corrective Center, well their corporals club for being too drunk.

[Clive Mortimore]

Official formation states:-

 

BG Cambridge - Glasgow  traffic for York Edinburgh and Glasgow.

 

BG Colchester- Edinburgh  Letter mails. Priority traffic fpr Doncaster York and Newcastle.

 

BG Colchester -Edinburgh  Traffic for Doncaster Newcastle and Edinburgh, and transfer.

 

BG Ipswich - Edinburgh 

                                           Bracketted as traffic for Doncaster York Newcastle and Edinburgh

BG Lowestoft- Edinburgh 

 

BG South Lynn - Edinburgh Traffic for York Newcastle and Edinburgh

 

PMV (sealed) TThO  Baldock - Glasgow  Traffic for Edinburgh and Glasgow.

 

BG  Cambridge- Edinburgh  Traffic for Doncaster Hull and West Riding.

 

First of all, I wonder what was in that sealed PMV? Second, the South Lynn BG would logically have been added at Peterborough. East or North, though? Can anyone interpret all this information for us please.

Hi Gilbert

 

Looking at that list most seem to be carrying parcels except the BG. Could the train be the main parcels train between the southern part of East Anglia and Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland? Like the army tried with us squaddies was cheaper to route parcels via Peterborough than London?

[Flood]

Official formation states:-

 

BG Cambridge - Glasgow  traffic for York Edinburgh and Glasgow.

 

BG Colchester- Edinburgh  Letter mails. Priority traffic fpr Doncaster York and Newcastle.

 

BG Colchester -Edinburgh  Traffic for Doncaster Newcastle and Edinburgh, and transfer.

 

BG Ipswich - Edinburgh 

                                           Bracketted as traffic for Doncaster York Newcastle and Edinburgh

BG Lowestoft- Edinburgh 

 

BG South Lynn - Edinburgh Traffic for York Newcastle and Edinburgh

 

PMV (sealed) TThO  Baldock - Glasgow  Traffic for Edinburgh and Glasgow.

 

BG  Cambridge- Edinburgh  Traffic for Doncaster Hull and West Riding.

 

First of all, I wonder what was in that sealed PMV? Second, the South Lynn BG would logically have been added at Peterborough. East or North, though? Can anyone interpret all this information for us please.

 

The booklet states E next to the South Lynn BG which at the bottom denotes "Attached at Peterborough North 9.25 p.m". Also the final BG is to Doncaster not Edinburgh in the Summer 1958 booklet.

 

 

(click to enlarge)

Edited May 20, 2016 by Flood

[Oldddudders]

Hi Gilbert

 

Looking at that list most seem to be carrying parcels except the BG. Could the train be the main parcels train between the southern part of East Anglia and Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland? Like the army tried with us squaddies was cheaper to route parcels via Peterborough than London?

I'm sure you are right. I can recall the 06.39 Blisworth - Redhill, which ran via Oxford, Reading, Guildford in the '60s, and then the 22.00 Guide Bridge - Redhill in the early 70s, which obviously missed busy times on WCML, albeit then running via the West London Line to Croydon, I think. Not getting into London termini or depots was seen as a time-saver.

[great northern]

The booklet states E next to the South Lynn BG which at the bottom denotes "Attached at Peterborough North 9.25 p.m". Also the final BG is to Doncaster not Edinburgh in the Summer 1958 booklet.

 

Colchester - Glasgow Summer 1958.jpg

 

(click to enlarge)

Thanks for putting that right. I'm not at my best at the moment, and so totally failed to see that footnote. The other bit was a typo.

[great northern]

One more photo before I go and attempt to coordinate myself. Sleep deprivation is not a good thing. Another attempt at a shot from Spital Bridge area, as you seem to have liked the last effort.

60070 now has the Colchester- Glasgow, and is starting away, while a coal train has been routed to the Up slow, where it will be held, as the Talisman is running ahead of time. Actually this was a way to block off the right hand side of the image really, but the margin on the WTT is quite tight, so it may have happened. I love lattices and ladders really, but not when I have to photoshop them.

[Fenman]

The booklet states E next to the South Lynn BG which at the bottom denotes "Attached at Peterborough North 9.25 p.m". Also the final BG is to Doncaster not Edinburgh in the Summer 1958 booklet.

 

Colchester - Glasgow Summer 1958.jpg

 

(click to enlarge)

 

You beat me to it.

 

Generally, things from South Lynn were related to the former M&GN so would go to Peterborough North; things from King's Lynn were former GER and so would go to East. These traditional patterns seemed to persist long into the BR era.

 

Paul

[JeffP]

 

 

......I love lattices and ladders really, but not when I have to photoshop them.

 

OK, tell me I'm stupid, but......

 

Could you photograph the offending signals etc with a print out of the clouds behind them, then photoshop them directly onto your pics? Would it help?

[The Stationmaster]

The PMV is interesting in that it only runs two days a week suggesting it was some sort of regular flow and clearly high value - possibly something to do with banking? (The banknote printing works was at Debden, 23 miles fro  Baldock - but I'm adding 2 + 2 to get a very big number so might be well adrift) or it could be a special postal flow of some kind.

 

The formation details don't include mention of Parcel Post (not surprisingly at that date) but i would have thought it could have made a significant contribution to the total as Colchester was for many years an important District centre for the Post Office.  As it was loaded by railway staff there would be no particular need to segregate it on the marshalling Instruction but it would be segregated when loaded.

[thegreenhowards]

For those who like to know, and see, train formations, here are those in the Colchester - Glasgow. A glorified parcels train really, but I think we established way back that the military used it to move soldiers about.

stock 1.jpg

CSK and end door SK

stock 2.jpg

SK, Thompson style, and Gresley CK

stock 3.jpg

Gresley BGs

stock 4.jpg

another one, and a PMV.

stock 5.jpg

And one more BG at the rear. Actually, there should be two more BGs, but I don't have enough yet. A locomotive later.

Lovely coaches Gilbert, could you tell us how you sourced them? I am intrigued by what looks like a heavy duty bogie on the front BSK. Is that prototypical or just what happened to be in the spares box?!

 

Andy

[stewartingram]

The PMV is interesting in that it only runs two days a week suggesting it was some sort of regular flow and clearly high value - possibly something to do with banking? (The banknote printing works was at Debden, 23 miles fro  Baldock - but I'm adding 2 + 2 to get a very big number so might be well adrift) or it could be a special postal flow of some kind.

 

The formation details don't include mention of Parcel Post (not surprisingly at that date) but i would have thought it could have made a significant contribution to the total as Colchester was for many years an important District centre for the Post Office.  As it was loaded by railway staff there would be no particular need to segregate it on the marshalling Instruction but it would be segregated when loaded.

Debden is still there, adjacent to the Central Line. Of course back in time, there were still some BR services on the branch, with connections off it to the GE Section; putting 2 + 2 together again make that read the Cambridge line.....or the Colchester line....?

 

Stewart

[great northern]

Birstall Golf Club. Jolly nice place, reached by going over the bridge past the entrance to the old GC station. Sound of approaching loco leads to sticking head over bridge parapet to see an Ivatt 2.6.0 roll by. Good start to day. We are then told by a gentleman that he has travelled up from Bishop's Strortford to photograph to photograph the S&D 2.8.0, which is the other loco in use today, so we time our departure after golf to coincide with its arrival. And the sound of approaching loco this time brings..... Witherslack Hall. Funny looking 2.8.0 Funny looking anyway some might say, but not I of course.   I bet that chap was a bit miffed.

 

Anyway, one more picture tonight, and I'll catch up with everything in the morning.

The camera is now placed as close as I can get to where a person standing on the Midland part of Spital Bridge would be, though I wish he had stood  a bit straighter, Goodnight.

[JeffP]

He'd probably spent too much time on the nineteenth hole, Gilbert

[MarshLane]

Gilbert,

Stunning layout, and those final shots are awe-inspiring. As somebody who never saw steam in the real days, this layout really provides a look into the past for me - well done.

 

Rich

[great northern]

OK, tell me I'm stupid, but......

 

Could you photograph the offending signals etc with a print out of the clouds behind them, then photoshop them directly onto your pics? Would it help?

Good idea Jeff, but my photoshopping "skills" are limited to two layers maximum. Any attempt to do more causes meltdown.

[Mallard60022]

How be thee today old bean?

Phil

[great northern]

Lovely coaches Gilbert, could you tell us how you sourced them? I am intrigued by what looks like a heavy duty bogie on the front BSK. Is that prototypical or just what happened to be in the spares box?!

 

Andy

Mostly RTR Andy. The BSK is a conversion using a Hornby sleeper underframe, including standard bogies, so that will just be the camera playing tricks again. The CK was made by Ian Willets using MJT sides, and the Thompson SK I think by Mike Radford, and one of the Gresley BGs I got from Larry Goddard who had done a lovely conversion job on it, but then wasn't satisfied.

[great northern]

How be thee today old bean?

Phil

Better, thanks Phil. I got a reasonable night's sleep at last, and the virus seems to be relenting. Doesn't this sort of thing bring advancing age into focus? What my body would have coped with easily before now seems to cause much more problems. Still, never mind, it is only a temporary thing.

[great northern]

 A couple more this morning, still concentrating on the views from and around Spital Bridge.

I can't avoid the end of the world effect on the right side with this one, but I think the general view makes it worthwhile. I'm now looking at that area of brown board, and wondering..... The problem is that putting backscenes on that side of the layout does restrict access when operating, so that things that used to be easily reachable now aren't.

 

Then I noticed the light shining on Peter Leyland's beautifully detailed roofs, and decided that you might like to have a look at those as well.

[mullie]

I wouldn't worry about the board towards the back or the void on the right. Everything else is so good it isn't a distraction, so it can be done when time allows.

[great northern]

I wouldn't worry about the board towards the back or the void on the right. Everything else is so good it isn't a distraction, so it can be done when time allows.

There is really nothing I can do on the right, except crop it out when possible, as access is essential. I'm not very good at thinking just now, or I would have remembered that the area to the right of where my low relief houses end was all railway land, with lots more sidings and a turntable, so there is nothing I can do there either which would fit in with the real thing. I'll concentrate on Station Road, where we should be able to do some kind of representation.

[Clive Mortimore]

The PMV is interesting in that it only runs two days a week suggesting it was some sort of regular flow and clearly high value - possibly something to do with banking? (The banknote printing works was at Debden, 23 miles fro  Baldock - but I'm adding 2 + 2 to get a very big number so might be well adrift) or it could be a special postal flow of some kind.

 

The formation details don't include mention of Parcel Post (not surprisingly at that date) but i would have thought it could have made a significant contribution to the total as Colchester was for many years an important District centre for the Post Office.  As it was loaded by railway staff there would be no particular need to segregate it on the marshalling Instruction but it would be segregated when loaded.

Hi Mike

 

The Bank of England printing works is close to Debden (GER Epping Branch) but to transport the notes from there to Baldock (GNR Cambridge Branch) would have meant a journey by rail via Stratford, round to Cannonbury Junction on the North London, up the ECML to Hitchin then to Baldock? Otherwise it would have been a road journey to Baldock but there is no direct road, A11 to Bishop Stortford then the A120 to Standon, A10 to Buntingford and the A507 to Baldock. But why load at Baldock?

 

I know the used notes that end up in the Bank of England are sent for destruction at the Loughton Printing Works go by road in a pair of armoured lorries with multiple of police car escorts.

 

When I worked for the Blood Transfusion Service we done donor sessions at both the Printing Works and in Threadneedle Street. Never any free samples form the printing works. :nono: U'know when they show the Bank of England on the telly they show the front with the balcony above the pillars, I have stood on that balcony, the doors weren't alarmed to our surprise.

[The Stationmaster]

Hi Mike

 

The Bank of England printing works is close to Debden (GER Epping Branch) but to transport the notes from there to Baldock (GNR Cambridge Branch) would have meant a journey by rail via Stratford, round to Cannonbury Junction on the North London, up the ECML to Hitchin then to Baldock? Otherwise it would have been a road journey to Baldock but there is no direct road, A11 to Bishop Stortford then the A120 to Standon, A10 to Buntingford and the A507 to Baldock. But why load at Baldock?

 

I know the used notes that end up in the Bank of England are sent for destruction at the Loughton Printing Works go by road in a pair of armoured lorries with multiple of police car escorts.

 

When I worked for the Blood Transfusion Service we done donor sessions at both the Printing Works and in Threadneedle Street. Never any free samples form the printing works. :nono: U'know when they show the Bank of England on the telly they show the front with the balcony above the pillars, I have stood on that balcony, the doors weren't alarmed to our surprise.

 

Mrs Stationmaster used to work at the Bank of England and before we married i would occasionally make my way to London on a weekday and meet her for lunch or whatever - no problem at all getting in if you were expected  (but then they didn't have any real money in the building where she worked).

 

In older times lots of money omved about the rail system totally unnoticed - prior to decimalisation the mint down in Llantrisant was busy basjhing out the new coinage and barrels (the size of small oil drums) were regularly forwarded up to paddington by passenger train although it was an escorted road vehicle which met them at Paddington.