Looking to replace my station building

[AyJay]

When I built my railway, the first building that I made was the station and for this I turned to the Country Station, PO237, by Metcalfe.

However, I soon turned to scratch making, when I wanted something different, and have not looked back.

This has presented an interesting problem however, in that my station area now does not look good enough and needs an upgrade.

I would like to make something of similar size and footprint, preferably a real station. Can anyone point me in the direction of good drawings or photographs, such as a book; or even a Google-Earth location with plenty of viewpoints?

Once I have done a new Station building, I will then need to replace the Coaching Inn, PO228, that stands next to it. That should keep me busy for awhile. Thank you.

 

https://www.metcalfemodels.com/product/po237-00-h0-country-station/

[Edward]

Don't know your era but the 2 books by Nigel Digby "The Stations & Structures of the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway " contain numerous scale drawings and photographs which I have found a constant source of inspiration.  But they are very pricey even when I bought them some years ago.  Probably too much for just 2 buildings.  Of course the Railway Modeller does regularly include scale drawings.

[KeithHC]

Pick a station get photos and start counting bricks. I am currently doing this….. The station building for Grange road was demolished in 1967/68 but was one of several built to the same design. Fortunately for me there are several of these buildings still around. I spent a couple of hours earlier this year taking photos of Lingfield and Edenbridge town and am now counting bricks.

 

Keith

[Nearholmer]

I’m not sure where your layout is set, but if in Sussex, numerous LBSCR stations would fit that general shape/footprint. The Wild Swan (IIRC) book about The Cuckoo Line has good drawings, or you might be able to get drawings from The Bluebell, since their stations are of the type I’m thinking of. Maybe look at Disused Stations website to get a feel for them?

 

This is Heathfield in its present guise as an example, although they come in a variety of versions/sizes.

 

Edited December 4, 2023 by Nearholmer

[Flying Pig]

I've only seen one photo of your layout (in the thread about an extra siding in the loco shed) and I think the Metcalfe station fits the ambience of that quite well.  It has always looked to me like something that might have been built on one of the later lines that popped up in the Yorkshire coalfield and the proportions seem convincing  (though it is possible that actual dimension of details like doorways hve been adjusted).

 

Of course the surface texture and details like the fancy bargeboards could be much better.  Have you considered cladding the roof and walls and replacing the details?

[phil_sutters]

Groombridge on the Spa Valley Railway could be a starting point. It has a station house with an extension that could be trimmed off. The central section could be reduced to fit your space. That currently doesn't have any canopies. There are additional lower height sections to the north.

 

[Nearholmer]

And, there are drawings of it in the book I recommended.

 

In it’s full form, it was pretty big and fancy though.

Edited December 4, 2023 by Nearholmer

[MartinRS]

5 hours ago, Flying Pig said:

I've only seen one photo of your layout (in the thread about an extra siding in the loco shed) and I think the Metcalfe station fits the ambience of that quite well.  It has always looked to me like something that might have been built on one of the later lines that popped up in the Yorkshire coalfield and the proportions seem convincing  (though it is possible that actual dimension of details like doorways hve been adjusted).

 

Of course the surface texture and details like the fancy bargeboards could be much better.  Have you considered cladding the roof and walls and replacing the details?

The Metcalf station looks like a MS&LR double pavilion station, or one of the similar later GCR designs for the Cheshire Lines Committee. There is a (floor) plan of the Chapeltown and Thorncliffe station here, but no elevations. There are plenty of photos of former MS&LR/GCR stations on the web. Chapeltown is still standing but is a private residence. Another extant station, still in use, is Woodhouse, though the present building has been spoilt by the application of orange paint! Most of the early MS&LR double pavilion stations shared a similar design and footprint.

[rovex]

I don't know where your layout is based but Garforth (my old home town) is about the same size. 

As a standard NE design plans shouldn't be too hard to come by.

 

http://www.railwayarchitecture.org.uk/Location/Garforth/Garforth.htm

[AyJay]

Hi all. For a previous layout many years back, I did find some drawings and photos of a station similar to what Nearholmer had posted (thanks for the reminder, I may see if I can find them).  Having at that time acquired a moulding kit from some company called 'Linka' or somesuch, I made it out of Plaster-of-Paris tiles.  I thought that it looked jolly good and the texture made it look like real stone.  However, years later, I realised that it looked terrible, so I binned it.  Might be worth considering it for a card model though.

Whatever I do, an important consideration is that the size is well proportioned for the site.

For anyone interested, I have posted a recent picture, you'll see what I mean by proportioned.  I will then have to take another look at the 'Red Lion' hotel, although I'll probably leave the terrace of houses and the shop as they are.

Might trawl round the charity shops tomorrow, never know what books I might find.

 

[drmditch]

Suggestions (summarised from above):-

 

Choose the approximate region for your model.

Search for photographs online ('disused-stations.org.uk is a good starting point.)

Search for books. A visit to a 'preserved railway' might be a good starter.

Assess whether you want to scratchbuild or find a kit.

You could work out a modification to a 'new' Metcalfe kit. At least that would preserve your 'footprint'.

You might also need to modify/replace your footbridge as well.

[Nick Holliday]

On 06/12/2023 at 15:33, drmditch said:

Suggestions (summarised from above):-

 

Choose the approximate region for your model.

Search for photographs online ('disused-stations.org.uk is a good starting point.)

Search for books. A visit to a 'preserved railway' might be a good starter.

Assess whether you want to scratchbuild or find a kit.

You could work out a modification to a 'new' Metcalfe kit. At least that would preserve your 'footprint'.

You might also need to modify/replace your footbridge as well.

Although, as a keen Brighton fan, I should be agreeing with the ideas of basing the project on LBSCR stations like Groombridge and the Myers buildings, they are so redolent of the line that, unless the OP wants to base his layout in Sussex, they would look out of place.  @drmditchhas tried to summarise the advice so far, but there is an implied assumption that the OP does want to base his layout on a particular line, which may not be the case.  I would suggest that there are at least three possible ways to go.

1)      OP selects a railway company and researches the potential resources, as @drmditchhas noted, and, hopefully can locate suitable drawings for his project

2)      OP finds a drawing of a suitable style of building, more generic than the rather exotic LBSCR examples, and either follows the design exactly, or uses it as the basis for a building more in keeping with his modelled surroundings – perhaps changing a stone built design into the local brick and/or using available windows rather than bespoke copies.

3)      OP takes his Metcalfe building, and replicates it, maybe altering brickwork and windows etc to suit his layout, and reconsider the platform canopy which is rather identifiable.

There are plenty of drawings around, but until some of the OP’s thoughts are fully known, it is difficult to point him in the right direction.  One thought is that often lines were originally built by independent, local, companies which would not be tied down to any particular architectural trend, and so the station building might not have any resemblance to others on the rest of the company’s system.  Another is that sometimes the builders would go a bit off-piste, providing a totally out of place design, such as at Clapham in Yorkshire (see photo and RM January 1965) and some aristocratic structures on the North Staffordshire Railway, or use existing buildings, such as at Mitcham, and even an old tree!  So I would suggest, unless actually having pinned down an actual location, almost anything, apart from the more identifiable designs, would do.

Clapham (Yorkshire) Station (c) Ben Brooksbank/Geograph

[AyJay]

Well I have had some success in that after some rooting around, I unearthed some photocopies of pages from a book giving the stations I was looking for.  The good news is that they are scale drawings of each of the 4 views.  They are Much Wenlock in Shropshire, now a private residence, and Wateringbury in Kent, still an active station.  And both have views on Google Earth.  It was Much Wenlock that I originally made in Plaster of Paris and I think it would fit the required space.  

The bad news is that having seen it in it's current form, I don't think I want to model it now.  I have also taken a look at Wateringbury photographs and although it also looks suitably elegant for my tastes, I don't fancy the gothic style arched doorways and the window glazing. 

 

I did also try searching for 'Railway Stations', adding in 'disused' and 'heritage'.  The result was a bit too broad and I soon got bored with looking; a case of 'can't see the wood for the trees'.

 

Ah well, I guess it's back to searching again.

(Here's the Google Earth images for Wateringbury and Much Wenlock)

 

https://earth.google.com/web/search/Wateringbury+station/@51.24983953,0.42248229,15.247761a,0d,90y,163.79798151h,99.23081t,0r/data=CigiJgokCQp7t3H5TEpAETjSU6hpTEpAGWbsnk9cbATAIdTdWfqdewTAIhoKFi1aVzRuYXZjZUIwQ29hbzFST1pGb1EQAg

 

https://earth.google.com/web/search/Station+House,+Station+Road,+Much+Wenlock/@52.59944546,-2.55708471,160.73228455a,0d,60y,150.9703171h,89.43492091t,0r/data=CpQBGmoSZAolMHg0ODcwNzk4NGE1ZDhjOTQ3OjB4NmQ2NzIxZjNlOTI0NjU0NxlEzNvHwExKQCGlhcsqbHYEwCopU3RhdGlvbiBIb3VzZSwgU3RhdGlvbiBSb2FkLCBNdWNoIFdlbmxvY2sYASABIiYKJAm6YTwyCU1KQBHPgMoC70tKQBlW5Z36cm8EwCFArV12zogEwCIaChYzbFB1Z2p3UXE2djl4cTRjb2VpM3dBEAI

 

 

 

[Nearholmer]

IIRC, Edwardian of RMWeb is ‘doing’ Wateringbury as the basis for one of his stations. A very challenging building  to model!

 

If you want ‘ornate’, but perhaps not quite so difficult to model, maybe have a look at Battle in Sussex (gothic again) or Alton Towers in Staffordshire (very unusual Italianate). Looking at your station site, I actually think that a mirror image of Alton Towers would work very well, about the right sort of visual mass.

 

Cirencester Town is another (madly) ornate station that is still standing, although a bit messed about in places by BR during their ‘not conscious of the value of what we own’ phase.

 

 

 

 

Edited December 20, 2023 by Nearholmer

[Dunalastair]

I remember going to Wateringbury by train from Scotland for a couple of summers in the early eighties, driving tractors on a hop farm ... I don't think that those brick terraces would fit especially well with that part of Kent but good luck with your build. As suggested, it can be useful to have a geographical area in mind, to help buildings work together to make a more convincing scene.

[Nick Holliday]

8 hours ago, AyJay said:

Well I have had some success in that after some rooting around, I unearthed some photocopies of pages from a book giving the stations I was looking for.  The good news is that they are scale drawings of each of the 4 views.  They are Much Wenlock in Shropshire, now a private residence, and Wateringbury in Kent, still an active station.  And both have views on Google Earth.  It was Much Wenlock that I originally made in Plaster of Paris and I think it would fit the required space.  

The bad news is that having seen it in it's current form, I don't think I want to model it now.  I have also taken a look at Wateringbury photographs and although it also looks suitably elegant for my tastes, I don't fancy the gothic style arched doorways and the window glazing. 

I did also try searching for 'Railway Stations', adding in 'disused' and 'heritage'.  The result was a bit too broad and I soon got bored with looking; a case of 'can't see the wood for the trees'.

As you seem to have found some drawings of buildings that might fit your layout, perhaps you could adapt the plans to suit the level of ornamentation you want.  You can decide whether you want bays and what sort of canopies, if any, tickle your fancy, and select sympathetic masonry.   I thought this rather random selection of LBSCR stations, built in the same sort of arrangement that you're after, might help give you some idea of the range of styles you could find on just one of the smaller pre-grouping lines. 

Rendered brickwork at Epsom Downs 1984

 

Baynards 1982 - plain brickwork with "stone" lintels, but interesting roof finishes

 

Falmer 1986 - some rather stark brickwork with rubbed brick window arches

 

These cottages are at Falmer, probably for the station master.  Presumably contemporary, the use of flint in one half is interesting.

Hackbridge 1984 - a fairly restrained use of polychromatic brickwork.

 

 

Rather more flamboyant polychromatic brickwork at Lingfield 1988 - similar to Groombridge et al. 

 

 

Rather more rococo - at Leatherhead 1984 - a listed building

 

And finally, the Myers buildings, which proliferated in the 1880's, that were originally stucco rendered but many receiving tiling. Sheffield Park 1980

 

PS Earlswood 1990 - a rather more modern, but still complex, design

Edited December 20, 2023 by Nick Holliday
Earlswood caption added

[AyJay]

Not sure how to proceed, I just typed 'Kent railway stations' into my browser and looked at the images that came up. Repeated for Surrey, Sussex and 'Great Western'.  This soon gave me a long list of interesting looking stations which all looked very similar in style.  However, when I then looked at them again in Google Earth, I found that in all cases, there was only a view where the camera car went, which was limited.

However, those that I particularly liked were: Portishead, Hampton Loade, Godalming, Eynsford Kent, Groombridge, Heathfield Sussex and Battle. 

I think, ultimately, it will come down to finding schematic drawings that will give me the shape and dimensions. For that, I have no idea where to look. After that, choosing to try to model correctly or change something to fit, is a secondary question. But since every other building on my layout is in red brick, I guess the station has to be also.

[Dunalastair]

16 minutes ago, AyJay said:

 

However, those that I particularly liked were: Portishead ...

 

That would make a change! I seem to remember a Railway Modeller plan of the modernistic 1954 station back in the ?1970s

 

https://www.railmagazine.com/news/network/2023/03/22/feature-reversing-beeching-portishead-prepares

Edited December 21, 2023 by Dunalastair

[AyJay]

Well this is beginning to look encouraging...

I logged onto the website for my local library, did a search for 'Railway Stations' and came up with numerous hits.

Various books by authors: Gordon Biddle, Kenneth Hoole, Steven Parissian, Allan Jackson, VR Anderson. 

 

A couple of them indicating plans etc for modellers:

Chris Leigh:  GWR Country Stations.  GWR Country Stations 2

R.H. Clark: A historical survey of selected G. W. Stations.

 

Also there is Ian Lamb: Modelling Railway Stations, a practical guide.

 

None of them available at my local, but all within the region, so a visit is on the cards.

 

I also found an entry for this:  Kate Moore.  Felix the Railway Cat.

I cannot let this opportunity pass.

[Nick Holliday]

On 21/12/2023 at 18:47, AyJay said:

Not sure how to proceed, I just typed 'Kent railway stations' into my browser and looked at the images that came up. Repeated for Surrey, Sussex and 'Great Western'.  This soon gave me a long list of interesting looking stations which all looked very similar in style.  However, when I then looked at them again in Google Earth, I found that in all cases, there was only a view where the camera car went, which was limited.

However, those that I particularly liked were: Portishead, Hampton Loade, Godalming, Eynsford Kent, Groombridge, Heathfield Sussex and Battle. 

I think, ultimately, it will come down to finding schematic drawings that will give me the shape and dimensions. For that, I have no idea where to look. After that, choosing to try to model correctly or change something to fit, is a secondary question. But since every other building on my layout is in red brick, I guess the station has to be also.

@AyJay I'm afraid your rather scattergun approach may be putting people off from providing suitable pointers.  Now that you have found a few that tickle your fancy, perhaps you can decide what sort of features you want, which may help you make a decision, or at least provide a specification that others could follow.  You haven't said yet whether you are trying to create an exact copy of a particular station, or whether you are after a more generic style that will not tie it to a specific area or railway company, which does make a difference.  As I have said before, some of the styles that you have considered, such as Heathfield's, are redolent of a certain parentage which may not tally with your chosen modelling ideas.

From another point of view, some of the above may prove too large for the space on your layout.  According to the Metcalfe website, your current building is just under 300 mm long, or about 75 real feet.  If you go on the NLS Maps website, and use the georeferenced maps,  you can zoom in on your chosen station, and, on the 25" scale maps, you can then use the handy distance measuring tool to check the approximate dimensions. This would show that Groombridge, at 105 feet long, might be rather too long for your purposes, whereas Edenbridge, whose photo I submitted, has many of the positive features of Groombridge, but is only about 80 feet long, and Heathfield, whilst about the same size, is actually set at right angles to the track and above it, so one of the other virtually identical buildings on the Cuckoo Line might be more suited.

9 hours ago, AyJay said:

Well this is beginning to look encouraging...

I logged onto the website for my local library, did a search for 'Railway Stations' and came up with numerous hits.

Various books by authors: Gordon Biddle, Kenneth Hoole, Steven Parissian, Allan Jackson, VR Anderson. 

 

A couple of them indicating plans etc for modellers:

Chris Leigh:  GWR Country Stations.  GWR Country Stations 2

R.H. Clark: A historical survey of selected G. W. Stations.

 

Also there is Ian Lamb: Modelling Railway Stations, a practical guide.

 

None of them available at my local, but all within the region, so a visit is on the cards.

The trouble with the majority of the books that your search has uncovered, is that they are very much picture books, using the photos to demonstrate the architectural aspects, with little in the way of actual drawings. Sadly, of those which indicate plans, only Chris Leigh's first book really fills the bill, with 6 or 7 drawings of station buildings, including Much Wenlock that you mentioned at the beginning; the second volume is purely photographic, although potentially inspirational.  Looking at a couple of R H Clark volumes, they are devoted to station layout plans, equally inspirational, but in other ways.  There are several other books devoted to railway architecture, including those by V Anderson covering the LMS and Midland, and Vaughan for the GWR, but for their size they are slightly disappointing in the number of actual station building plans they offer, perhaps 6 - 10 per volume, but they do include plenty of photos and, of course, drawings for other railway buildings.  A volume that might be of interest is one by John Minnis on SECR architecture, which has about 7 useful drawings, including Wateringbury, which I think has caught your attention already. Another possible source is the 2 volume Southern Branchlines, in which three or four branches are examined in some detail, and several structural drawings are included for each, an approach also adopted for GWR Branch Terminal Stations.  Potentially the best source are the various line books from publishers such as OPC, Wild Swan and Lightmoor, many of which contain drawings of station buildings and other structures, one of the best examples being The Cuckoo Line by A Elliott, although some may only have only one or two drawings.  However, the only easy way to tap this resource is if you can be more specific so that readers can consider the contents of their libraries as to whether there is anything useful therein, and then advise you accordingly; at the moment everything is rather vague.

 

[AyJay]

Hello Nick. Thank you for going to the trouble of writing a thorough and well thought out response. It is appreciated. It must be frustrating for anyone wanting to help, when I cannot pin down what I want. Believe me, It is frustrating for me also that a constant in my life is a complete paralysing inability to make up my mind about almost anything.

 

My layout is intentionally fictitious and not meant to represent anywhere in particular. All of my locomotives are steam and they all bear the BR totem. Each of the big 4 are represented, GWR and LMS are predominant, and chosen because I just like the look of them, nothing more.

 

The buildings are all red brick, with one exception. The Castle is Etal Castle in Northumberland. The Church is a building that is near my home. The Pub (not the one in the picture) is my own creation but inspired by a certain popular TV soap opera. One of the shop fronts is a bicycle shop that I used to frequent in Walthamstow.

 

As for the desired station, I like the style of the Metcalfe model and am looking for something loosely similar. I only want to replace it with a scratch build so that it blends better with an adjacent scene that is all scratch built. It needs to not overwhelm the available space, so that puts it at about 75ft to 100ft in length. Modelling a real building is easier than making one up, but I am willing to make minor changes to fit in. I shall probably end up doing either:

Much Wenlock, because I have good drawings, although that’s not red brick.

Wokingham, if I can find drawings.

Or I also really like Wateringbury, but I only have drawings of the front and rear so will have to search for end views (it also pushes the size budget a bit).

Of those suggested, I particularly like Heathfield, but lack drawings and the Google Earth views are limited.

 

Thank you also for your comments about the books. All I had to go by was the write-up’s of each on the Library website. None of them are in my local, so I have requested a few of them. However, I shall make a note of your suggestions and look out for them.

[Nick Holliday]

For what it’s worth, there is a Wills “kit” https://www.jacksonsmodels.co.uk/wills-ck16-brick-built-country-station-with-platform-oo-gauge-craftmans-kit.ir?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiceYw5eogwMVqpNQBh2t7AGjEAQYASABEgKiKPD_BwE (other retailers are available) that can be built into a pastiche of the LBSCR Myers building, such as Heathfield,

[Nick Holliday]

@AyJay Some useful books might be Vivien Thompson's slim volume on Period Railway Modelling Buildings from Peco, and Derek Bidwell's Modelling Historic Architecture from The HMRS.  Both contain plenty of drawings of railway buildings, including cottages, goods sheds and signal boxes, and both describe in detail their preferred method of constructing buildings.  I have sent you a PM to show some examples of their content.

[Peter Kazmierczak]

First question is; do I want to model a generic station building or one based on a railway prototype? If so, to which company design?

[AyJay]

Good morning all, well that's Christmas out of the way; now I need to deal with the feeling of being overstuffed!

 

Peter.  Good and valid question. But I have come to the conclusion that my choices are based on how something triggers my sense of aesthetic appeal, and not geographical location. It is a fantasy layout after all.

 

Nick.  Thank you, yes I have just seen your PM's.  I did a search around and discovered that my copy of the Vivien Thompson book was saved from the charity shop clearout that I did some time back, so I do have the drawings for Wokingham.  I do also have photocopies of drawings for Much Wenlock and Wateringbury, both of them I am drawn to and I think I may choose one of them. However, the problem is that I don't know which books they came from and I don't think that the photocopies are 1:1 scale. So can you indicate which is which please?

 

I'm banned from doing anything creative (i.e. messy) in the house now, freshly redecorated and new carpets throughout.  So any work will have to wait until the spring, when I can get back to surviving more than 5min's at a go in my shed.  My first stage in making a model is normally to do a quick mock-up out of cereal-box cardboard, just to see what it looks like.

 

Other plans for 2024 include volunteering at Pendon and finding a model club to join, although being in my first year of retirement, I have been kept busy with house projects so far and I know that there is a long list of other tasks waiting for me. So 'me time' may be in short supply.