Today marks 54 years since the passing of Oliver Vaughan Snell Bulleid CBE. He was of course Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Southern Railway between 27th May 1937 and 31st December 1947 and then briefly for the Southern Region of British Railways until 1st October 1949.
A line up of malachite Bulleid Pacifics , a Q1 and even the Leader, at Fisherton Sarum.
On the 10th May 1937 Sir Nigel Gresley advised O.V.S Bulleid, who was working away from Kings Cross, by telegram stating that “Sir Herbert Walker wishes to see you 12.30 tomorrow” at the meeting Bulleid was asked by Sir Herbert Walker, the SR General Manager, to apply for the position of CME
This post is not an attempt to outline the whole of Bulleid’s career, but to mark the anniversary of his passing, and also an excuse to show one of my favourite pictures of some of his achievements on Fisherton Sarum.
Should you wish to listen to more about Bulleid’s lifetime and career and why I believe he was one of the ‘Kings of the steam age’ a new podcast series is now available from Railway Mania “Kings of the Steam Age”
1st January 1950 Bulleid was awarded CBE in the New Years Honours list. He retired from being Chief Mechanical Engineer CIE in May 1958, firstly living in Devon before moving to Malta in December 1967.
My grandfather, Thomas Arthur Muspratt, known as Arthur, was born this day 125 years ago in 1899.
As I have stated before on this blog he was a ganger for the Southern Railway based at Salisbury, for most of the period that I model, before he gained promotion to Sub Inspector (permanent way) at Andover Junction at the end of 1947 and subsequently had a roving role. He died, before I was born, whilst in service on the railways on 11th April 1961 aged 61.
His promotion to sub-inspector (Permanent Way) at Andover Junction was listed in the Staff Changes, Chief Civil Engineer’s Department, Supervisory Staff, section, see left, of the December 1947 edition of the Southern Railway Magazine, the in house magazine for all company staff.
This was of course also the last issue of the staff magazine issued by the Southern Railway, before it became the Southern Region of British Railways.
Alongside the platelayers hut next to the main line on Fisherton Sarum, a representation of my Grandfather in his role as a Ganger learning on his ballast fork along with a group of Permanent Way workers, sometimes also known as platelayers, that are taking a taking a tea break, one of whom is sat reading the newspaper and another has a mug of tea in his hand.
The permanent way team would have been made up of a number of Linesmen and look outs under the leadership of a Ganger who in turn would have reported to a local / area Sub-inspector (Permanent way). On Fisherton Sarum the look out flag man is just walking towards the hut to join the rest of the team in taking there tea break.
The classic concrete platelayers huts were seen all over the Southern railway and were a design and product of the Southern Railway’s own concrete works at Exmouth Junction. The distinctive roof shape was so that minus the chimney they could be delivered, within the loading gauge on a well wagon, in one piece to anywhere on the network. A number of 4mm models of these typical Southern Railway platelayers huts are available in kit from Roxey Mouldings in white metal, as per this example along with the typical cast concrete ballast bin located alongside or the huts are also available from Ratio in plastic.
Today the 15th October marks the 200th birthday of William Adams (15 October 1823 – 7 August 1904). He was the Locomotive Superintendent of the North London Railway from 1858 to 1873; the Great Eastern Railway from 1873 until 1878 and then of course the London and South Western Railway until his retirement in 1895.
Appropriately, and not coincidentally, this month has seen two William Adams related events.
Firstly, the publication of a new comprehensive biography “William Adams: His Life and Locomotives: A Life in Engineering 1823-1904” by John Woodhams and published by Pen & Sword Transport.
During his time on the LSWR over five hundred locomotives were built to his designs, including many graceful 4-4-0 express classes regarded by many as his greatest achievement. Adams also proved himself a very capable designer in developing locomotive and carriage works at all three railways, improving efficiency and reducing costs.
This book covers his early years, time on the North london and Great Eastern Railways along with his successful time on the LSWR vastly improving locomotive and carriage fleets. It includes a summary of all his locomotove designs and his legacy covering the preserved Adams locomotives, including T3 Class No. 563 detailed below. Overall it tells the story of a genial man with a love of music, who was undoubtedly one of the finest late Victorian locomotive engineers, and is well worth a read.
The graceful lines of the T3 Class 563 at Norden on the Swanage Railway 7th October 2023
Secondly, and one close to my heart, as I have been assisting the Swanage Railway Trust 563 Locomotive Group, the completion of the restoration of LSWR Adams 4-4-0 T3 Class Number 563.
This 130 year engine was last steamed on 11th June 1948, albeit at a low pressure of 25psi to move from Micheldever to Waterloo to be on display as part of the Waterloo centenary celebrations.
First introduced in March 1893 she initial worked from Nine Elms before spells being allocated to Guildford from 1905 and Salisbury from September 1935.
The Drummond livery looking great in the sunshine as she awaits to run round the first train on 7th October 2023
She was initially withdrawn on 9th March 1939 after a failure on the Fawley goods, before being repaired and reinstated in November 1939 due to WWII.
She survived in further use until August 1945 and withdrawn and put into storage, despite being stored at Kimbridge Junction to await scrapping at Dinton.
She was thankfully reprieved (by Bulleid) in January 1948 and restored into Adams condition wearing Drummond livery for the Waterloo celebrations in June and July 1948 (the 11th July being the actual anniversary date).
563 approaches Woodyhyde Lane between Harman’s Cross and Corfe castle on the first public passenger service 08/10/23
She along with ex LBSC A1 Terrier ‘Boxhill’ was a regular at works and shed open days during the 1950s. She underwent a further refurbishment, mainly to the underframe and running gear, but not the boiler or the life expired firebox in August 1559 emerging in Adams livery.
She entered the National Collection 25th January 1961.
563 spent many years on display firstly at the Clapham Museum before relocation to the National Railway Museum at York then Locomotion at Shildon and subsequently being a theater prop in a production of the Railway Children at the ex Waterloo International Platforms and incredibly Toronto Canada.
563 is a fine sight between Harmans Cross and Corfe Castle 09/10/23
The next major milestone was in March 2017 when ownership was bravely and controversially at the time transferred to the newly formed Swanage Railway Trust 563 Locomotive Group with the intention to restore her back to working condition.
Following a six year project to raise funds, in excess of £650K and carry out the restoration, including a brand new copper inner firebox, 563 has steamed again for the first time since 1948 and last weekend (7th/8th October) hauled passengers for the first time for over 78 years.
563 approaches Corfe Castle viaduct 08/10/23
A magnificent achievement by all involved with the Swanage Railway Trust 563 Locomotive Group and the vision of the Senior Curator, Anthony Coulls, of the National Railway Museum, that has certainly proved naysayers and vocal complainants of the time wrong, that has enabled the wonderful restoration to working order of 563 as can be seen in the pictures on this post. I am honoured to have been able to play a small part in her restoration assisting the Swanage Railway Trust 563 Locomotive Group with some archive research, drawings and livery advice.
Overall both the book and especially the T3 restoration are a fitting tribute to William Adams on what would be his 200th Birthday today.
This is not only incredibly my 750th post on this here little part of the interweb Southern Railway related blogosphere, but more importantly today marks the 60th and Diamond Wedding anniversary of my dear Mum and Dad.
One of my favourite pictures of my Mum, in happier health times, and my Dad, celebrating his 80th Birthday on the Bluebell Railway in dining style, five years ago.
The last 18 months has been a huge challenge for all the family due to my Mum’s health, thankfully she fought off a frightening and emotional life threatening low point in time, and she is now being wonderfully looked after by the excellent and dedicated staff at the Hulcott Nursing Home, although her ongoing condition is still an emotional challenge to us. Dad has coped admirably with great compassion, strength and dignity to the change of life routines that has inevitably evolved.
I offer them both my most hearty congratulations, love and also thanks for sticking with it and coping with bringing up myself and my older Brother. Also of course it was Dad and his upbringing in Salisbury, where my Granddad worked on the railway, that gave me the interest in all things Southern Railway.
So in addition to the joining in matrimony of my parents Ken and Wendy, 1963 was a notable year for a number of other things, I won’t go into the politics of the time, dreams, or assassinations (as I definitely can’t remember where I was at the time as I didn’t exist!) however the following are railway related:
The year started on Monday 1st January when the British Railways Board took over responsibility for the running of the railways from the British Transport Commission’s Railway Executive.
On the same day all the Southern Region west of Salisbury, was transferred to the British Railways Western Region for the final time. This was really the first nail in the coffin of the old Southern Railway route to Exeter, North Devon and Cornwall.
1963 also started with the worst winter conditions since 1946/7 and I am sure many of you will have the footage of railway locomotives stuck in the snow across the network. For example on the 8th February snow totally blocked the old Southern main line route at Meldon and no doubt many other place over that period too.
On Saturday 31st March the Railway Clearing House (RCH) was disbanded after 120 years and its functions and staff transferred to the Chief Accountant’s Department of the British Railways Board. The RCH had been apportioning railway receipts between the British railway companies since 1842.
A more sinister event took place on 8th August with what has become known as the “Great Train Robbery” (although not so great for Jack Mills the driver), I used to drive past the farm they used as their initial hide out every day to and from my then place of work.
Metropolitan Railway Loco No.1, that so successfully returned steam to the UndergrounD ten years ago to celebrate the the Underground’s 150th Anniversary, was originally withdrawn from service in 1963 having taken part in the centenary celebrations earlier in that year.
In November the Bluebell Railway was just 4 years old when the line from Haywards Heath to Horsted Keynes was closed leaving them without a connection to the British Rail Network right up until ten years ago when the northern extension to East Grinstead was triumphantly reopened.
Finally: The Beatles released their first album “Please please me” and gained their first Number One with “From me to you” and later that year had Number One singles with “She Loves you” and “I want to hold your hand” all perhaps very apt for my parents starting their new stage of life together!
So to Mum (although she will not be able to read this) and Dad, I say with love, congratulations and many heartfelt thanks!
To regular readers of this blog, I thank you for your time taken to read my ramblings over the last 750 posts, I hope you found them to be informative and sometimes entertaining regarding all things Southern Railway.
I also thank you for the comments and messages received, I always try to respond to as many of them as I can.
With the quantity of posts continuing to increase, the menu / category structure has continued to evolve to make finding relevant, all things Southern Railway, content easier to find, as well the original menu items such as Workbench Witterings and Talking Stock and newer menus including model news, model reviews, history and book reviews I have also now indexed them further to help you find Modelling Tips and Techniques topics that might be of interest to you. If in doubt you can also use the search facility, or click here for any random post, you never know what you might find.
Told through over 100 historical and contemporary images, The Waterloo Story recounts the sometimes surprising history of this 175 year old railway station and will be located on the main concourse of the station. Compiled by friend Mike Lamport and Network Rail, with assistance from the South Western Circle, The Waterloo Story is well worth viewing if you are passing through Waterloo.
A ceremony to mark the occasion is being held on platform 19 at 11am this morning to unveil a plaque as well naming one of the brand new South Western Railway class 701 Arterio electric multiple units.
An early view of the original platform 9
Waterloo station opened by the then London and Southampton Railway on this day Tuesday 11th July 1848 as a ‘roadside station’, supposedly just a stop on the way to a planned for major city terminus that was never realised. This original station, known as ‘central station’, had six platforms.
Waterloo was extended in an ad-hoc way to cope with demand. In 1860 the ‘Windsor station’ was opened on the north-west side of the original central platforms. In 1878 Waterloo gained an additional two platforms on the south-east side for mainline suburban trains in an extension known as the ‘south station’.
In 1885 the ‘north’ station was opened, adding a further six platforms bringing the total at Waterloo to eighteen.
It was however a very confusing station for passengers with platforms divided between four different sections of the station, the platform numbering was unclear, four different areas which were classed as concourses along with very poor information displays. In 1899 London & South Western Railway (as the London & Southampton had become) sought permission to completely rebuild and expand the station.
One of my views taken during a helicopter ride showing the expanse of the current station, the Victory Arch and International station to the left can also be seen.
The Company sent its chief engineer J W Jacomb-Hood to America to gather information on termini buildings to assist its redesign. Following the rebuilding work, that took twenty years to fully complete, Waterloo became a spacious station with a large open concourse.
With 21 platforms under a huge ridge-and-furrow roof it became light and airy compared to the dark maze it once was. Widely praised for its architecture, the new curved building to the front of the station housed the LSWR’s offices and facilities for passengers including a large booking hall and upstairs dining room which were simple and elegant with Georgian style panelling in the dining room and Edwardian decoration in the bars.
The Victory Arch at Waterloo
As the station rebuild was drawing to a close, and as a memorial to their staff that died in the First World War, the LSWR commissioned the Victory Arch; designed by J R Scott, their chief architect and made of Portland stone and bronze it depicts War and Peace, with Britannia holding the torch of liberty above. Leading from Station Approach onto the concourse, the Victory Arch forms the main entrance to Waterloo.
Waterloo remained largely unchanged until early 1990s when platforms 20 and 21 were demolished to make way for Waterloo International. Opened in 1994 this was the terminus for Eurostar services running through the Channel Tunnel until 2007. In July 2012 a first-floor balcony opened at Waterloo to help reduce congestion at the station, additional space has been created by repositioning shops from the middle of the main concourse onto the balcony.
Please Note: The free to view exhibition that opened on the main concourse of Waterloo station at 12.00hrs on Tuesday 11 July has now closed (slightly earlier than planned). It will however return as a permanent fixture in the station later this year.
Released by Oxford Rail, back in February 2021 , their OR76TK2006 Graham’s Golden Lager No113 12 Ton Tank wagon was a bit of impulse buy due to its branding and the fact that I feel their 12T tank wagon is one of Oxford Rail’s best models to date. Little did I realise at the time that a wagon of a Scottish larger brewer would have an interesting Southampton, and by association Canute Road Quay, connection…
The real Graham’s Golden Lager tank wagon, image copyright and embeded from HMRS website
In 1927 a new beer was brewed in Arrol’s Lager brewery in Alloa, Graham’s Golden Lager. This was produced on behalf of Allsopp’s of Burton, following the moving their lager plant to Arrol’s in 1921.
Being sucessful, and as now Arrol’s were brewing all Allsopps lagers, Allsopp’s took a controlling interest in Arrol’s in 1930, prior to their 1934 merger with Ind Coope. Arrol’s was completely bought out in 1951 and the brewery converted to a lager-only plant.
Arrol’s of Alloa appeared to have a number of branded rail mounted tanker wagons that included the example as model by Oxford Rail.
In 1959, Graham’s Golden Lager was rebranded as Skol, though for a while it was branded Graham’s Skol Lager. It became the main lager of Ind Coope and later the whole Allied Breweries Group.
I think the Waterloo Tavern (Ian…) might have over ordered… the picture that uncovered the story…
…So where does this fit in with Southampton…
…following posting the picture left, on my layout thread on RMweb, Pete Cottrel kindly related the story that the Southampton branch of the Wine Merchants business of the Eldridge Pope Brewery was bombed in 1940 and that buried in the rubble were several intact crates of bottled Graham’s Golden Lager.
They weren’t actually near the docks but in Above Bar Street, in the area that is now Guildhall Square, no rail connection though, it was in the heart of the Old Town, inside the medieval walls.
The Oxford Rail 12T Graham’s Golden Lager tank wagon, picture courtesy KMRC
In 2005 while doing trial excavations on the site the crates were discovered with a JCB bucket that broke several of the bottles. The Eldridge Pope brewery and bottling plant were at Dorchester, so bulk lager could have been sent there. However Cooper’s Brewery in Southampton had a bottling plant and had ceased actual brewing due to war damage, so it could in theory have bottled Graham’s Golden Lager post war.
The find was also reported on the BBC website:
Archaeologists’ intoxicating find, by David Fuller BBC News June, 2005
One of the best and well detailed wagons produced by Oxford Rail to date. Picture courtesy KMRC
Archaeologists searching for remains of a city’s medieval past have made an intoxicating discovery, a cache of World War II beer. The hundred-or-so bottles of lager buried beneath Southampton’s Guildhall Square were still capable of developing a head when they were opened. It is thought they had been stored in the cellar of an off-licence which was destroyed in the Blitz. The routine dig was to study the site before a new arts centre was built. Pete Cottrell, the dig leader, was hoping to find evidence of a medieval leper hospital known to have been in the area. He said the bottles were in very good condition, but the liquid inside was not. “I think you’d be very ill if you drank that, it’s absolutely rank.” Some of the bottles have now been handed to the city’s museum, while the rest has been reburied.
I thought this was a fasinating story emanating from a simple impulse buy and a picture, and was worth sharing (even as a real ale drinker), I hope this little diversion from the normal is of interest…
Today marks 53 years since the passing of Oliver Vaughan Snell Bulleid CBE. He was of course Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Southern Railway between 27th May 1937 and 31st December 1947 and then briefly for the Southern Region of British Railways until 1st October 1949.
A line up of malachite Bulleid Pacifics , a Q1 and even the Leader, at Fisherton Sarum. I make no apologies if you have seen this excellent picture by Chris Nevard / Model Rail magazine before but it’s one of my favourites!
On the 10th May 1937 Sir Nigel Gresley advised O.V.S Bulleid, who was working away from Kings Cross, by telegram stating that “Sir Herbert Walker wishes to see you 12.30 tomorrow” at the meeting Bulleid was asked by Sir Herbert Walker, the SR General Manager, to apply for the position of CME…
This post is not an attempt to outline the whole of Bulleid’s career, but to mark the anniversary of his passing, and also an excuse to show one of my favourite pictures of some of his achievements on Fisherton Sarum. Also it’s an opportunity to reiterate the fact that order for the first ten express passenger locomotives, that became the first series Merchant Navy’s, was approved by the board in March 1938, and it was a myth of convenience that they were rumoured to be classed as mixed traffic locomotives due to being introduced during the war and having 6’2″ driving wheels (actually the same as the LNER P2 class that Bulleid had previously worked on)!
1st January 1950 Bulleid was awarded CBE in the New Years Honours list. He retired from being Chief Mechanical Engineer CIE in May 1958, firstly living in Devon before moving to Malta in December 1967.
It is sixty years to the day when Dr Richard Beeching’s report “The Reshaping of British Railways” was officially published on the 27th March 1963. The report and its effects are still discussed with many opinions to this to this day, often in connection with the proposed reopening of some lines and the actual reopening of Exeter to Okehampton in November 2021. This post is an attempt to offer some, hopefully balanced, thoughts and discussion about the report, with of course a slight Southern perspective.
Dr Beeching was at the time Chairman of the British Railways Board. The report identified 2,363 stations and 5,000 miles of railway line for closure, 55% of stations and 30% of route miles, with an objective of stemming the large losses being incurred during a period of increasing competition from road transport, that also had the support from the then Conservative Government Minister of Transport Ernest Marples and had also appointed Dr Beeching in the first place.
It would seem however Marples had a direct conflict of interest between his role as Minister of Transport and the civil engineering road building firm Marples Ridgway. This firm was founded in 1948 by engineer Reginald Ridgway and the then accountant Ernest Marples, whose shares he “sold” to his wife.
The Reshaping of British Railways report published on 27th March 1963
Many of the ex Southern Lines especially in the South West of England, already coined the ‘Withered Arm’ were closed as a result of the report. A few protests resulted in the saving of some stations and lines, but the majority were closed as planned and Beeching’s name is to this day associated with the mass closure or ‘axe’ of railways and the loss of many local services in the period that followed.
One such line that was included in the report for closure was the Tamar Valley line, however due to the poor road links in the area some of the line was reprieved and survives to this day between Plymouth, Bere Alston and Gunnislake. In fact there is currently a growing movement and support for the line to be reopened north of Bere Alston back to the south end of Tavistock and even through to Okehampton to complete the Northern route to counter the issues sometimes experienced along the ex GWR coastal route via Dawlish.
In addition to the main report there were a number of maps included within Part 2 of the report that diagrammatically showed data such as : Density of passenger traffic, Distribution of passenger receipts, Density of Freight Traffic, etc. and of course the main outcome of the report the map of Proposed Withdrawal of Passenger Services. I have reproduced part of a couple of these maps in this post showing the Southern Region area.
Map 3 of the report shows the Distribution of Passenger Traffic Station Receipts (click for larger version)
Map 9 of the report shows the Proposed Withdrawal of Passenger Services (click for larger version)
Map 9 Proposed Withdrawal of Passenger Services shows the almost total eradication of the ex Southern Railway lines in the South West as already mentioned above, and a number of other lines in the South of England identified for closure. Happily some of these lines have now since reopened as preserved railways such as the Alton to Winchester line that between Alton and Alresford now forms the Mid Hants Watercress line.
Although the Unions at the time released their own version of the report titled “The Mis-shaping of British Railways” a number of facts (although in some cases it can also be argued that the figures used within the report were not statistically strong as only a weeks worth of data of passenger numbers from stations etc. were used) within the report appear compelling, (even though the phenomenal subsequent rise in both car usage and ownership could hardly have been predicted at the time), it is perhaps not surprising that the conclusions reached were so wide ranging.
The report with respect to freight on the railways proposed the move to quicker, higher capacity trains, serving the main routes, transporting greater loads to hubs. Not with the then traditional wagons, that were essentially unprofitable perhaps due to the carriage rate structures inherently set by the Government a hundred years previously, but trains loaded with containers. Does that seem familiar today?
Whilst Dr Beeching is a much maligned name (or in some eyes “Scapegoat”) for the passenger line closure section of the report, the majority of the actual line / station closures occurred whilst Barbara Castle was the then Labour Government Minister of Transport, this despite the Labour Party opposing the closures whilst in opposition. It it is also easy, perhaps, to forget that this report also proposed investment in alternative passenger services such as high speed coaches, that of course never occurred, and that this report dramatically modernised freight on the rail network promoting containerisation and long-distance freight haulage.
Who knows if the current growth and success of the railway network as it stands today would have been possible if some of the harsh decisions as a result of “The Reshaping of British Railways” were not taken…
It would be remiss of me not to mark the fact that today is 100 years since the Grouping and the formation of the Southern Railway, it also of course marks the demise of its constituent companies. This post attempts to provide a simplified potted history of the Grouping and the Southern Railway.
The Southern Railway coat of arms incorporated heraldic elements from the main constituent companies.
Although the actual Grouping occurred on 1st January 1923, it’s instigation can be traced back to the First World War where all railways were under state control until 1921. The Railways Act 1921, followed discussions at the time on potential nationalisation, had the aim of stemming the losses being occurred at the time by many of the 120 or so railway companies.
The form of Grouping originally proposed in 1920, by former North Eastern Railway executive, the Minister of Transport, Eric Geddes, was for five English and one Scottish regional companies, by 1921 this was amended to four English and two Scottish companies before the Scottish routes were incorporated in the companies that we know as the ‘Big Four’. Royal Assent for the Railways Act was in August 1921.
The first SR passenger livery was a continuation of the LSWR style in Olive Green with expanded Clarendon ‘Egyptian’ style ‘Southern’ font as seen on ex LSWR Adams A12 0-4-2. From 1937 the Bulleid malachite green and ‘Sunshine’ lettering as seen on the ex LSWR M7 in the background was introduced.
Also incorporated were the three Isle of Wight railway companies and the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway (Bere Alston and Callington section).
Some non-working or joint companies that had been previously leased or worked by the main constituent companies, including for example (not an exhaustive list): the North Cornwall Railway, Sidmouth Railway, Lee-on-the-Solent Railway, Hayling Railway, Cranbrook and Paddock Wood Railway, London and Greenwich Railway, Croydon & Oxted Joint Railway and Dover & Deal Railway, were also included, as was the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway although not covered by the Railways Act 1921, it had been absorbed by the LSWR.
The Southern Railway also was to share or jointly operate a number of lines including: the East London Railway, West London Extension Railway, Weymouth & Portland Railway and of course the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway.
The Southern Railway Network
The total route mileage owned whole by the Southern Railway at Grouping was 2,186 miles, with the main constituents not surprising forming the majority with 1,020 miles ex LSWR, 457 miles ex LBSC and 637 ½ ex SECR. The SR was operated essentially as three Districts: Western, Central and Eastern based approximately on the previous main constituents.
There were two Chief Mechanical Engineers; Richard Maunsell, ex SECR, between 1923 and 1937 and Oliver Vaughan Snell Bulleid, ex GN / LNER, from 1937 to 1948.
And just because you can never have enough Bulleid pacifics or Southern malachite green…
Although originally three general managers were appointed from each of the main constituents, with a year Sir Herbert Walker became the single General Manager and the development of the SR was built upon many of his ex LSWR practices. Following his retirement in 1937 he was succeeded as general manager by his long-time assistant Gilbert Szlumper. In 1939, Szlumper left the Southern Railway for war service and Sir Eustace Missenden took over.
The Southern Railway officially lasted, of course until Nationalisation in 1948, although in reality, just as during the First World War, the Railways due to the outbreak of The Second World War were taken once again under Government control via The Railway Executive on 1st September 1939 and would remain so until the 1st January 1948 becoming the Southern Region of British Railways.
With the passing of the Transport Act 1947 that nationalised the Railways, Missenden became the first Chairman of the Railway Executive and John Elliot became acting General Manager of the SR and would later become Chief Regional Officer of the Southern Region of British Railways.
I hope this brief simplified history of the Southern Railway has been of interest, and appropriate to mark the 100 years since its formation. I thought it was about time that it was included on my corner of the blogsphere!
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The model railway world and mainly Southern Railway meanderings of Graham 'Muz' Muspratt
