The Serene & Delightful S&D

Living, as I do, in Wincanton I have great affection for the much-missed Somerset and Dorset Railway, which ran from Bath Green Park to Bournemouth West. 

It also had three branch lines that ran from Evercreech Junction to Highbridge & Burnham on Sea; from Glastonbury & Street to Wells Priory Road and from Edington Junction to Bridgwater North.

The Wells and Bridgwater branches closed in 1951 and 1952, respectively, while the rest of the S&D closed to passengers on 6th March 1966.

I was a regular traveller on the line and even rode on the last service train between Wincanton and Templecombe on Saturday 5th March - a very sad day indeed.

Some time ago I acquired seven colour 35 mm slides taken of the S&D and, the other day, I scanned them and, now, present them on this blog for others to see.

I have no idea who took them so, alas, I cannot credit them. I also do not know the dates on which they were taken but must assume they were all captured during the 1960s.

The first two photographs here were taken at Bath Green Park with the first of these showing a Class 2P 4-4-0 Nº 40564 at the head of a train in the middle road at Bath.

In the next photo a BR Standard Class 4MT 75007 is standing at the arrivals platform with what I believe is a train for the S&D rather than one for Bristol TM.

Moving down the line to Combe Down tunnel, we have next a BR Class 4 75073 double-heading a down express as the train emerges from the southern portal of the tunnel. The train engine is not very clear but looks like an S&D 7F 2-8-0.

Travelling down the line a little further we arrive at Radstock North where we see a Class 3F 0-6-0 'Jinty' (Nº 47316) heading northwards with a coal train.

The final three photos were all taken at Midsomer Norton with the first of these being another 'Jinty' (Nº 47275) at the head of another coal train. The last two pictures show south-bound passenger trains calling at the station. The first is an unidentified and somewhat grubby BR Class 9F 2-10-0 while the second one is a BR Standard Class 5, Nº 73073 - I think.