Items added on 28th December 2016 Those added most recently come first.

Many thanks to John (Constable) Cornelius for his artistic work.

Coombe Junction lost in the valley mist
Roger Winnen

161228f Coombe Junction lost in the valley mist. Viewed from Moorswater Viaduct on the 08.44 Penzance Paddington service. Copyright Roger Winnen

Remembering the Standard Class 4 75xxx series which worked in Cornwall
Roger Winnen

It is now over 60 years ago that members of the 75xxx Class could be seen working trains in Cornwall. A batch arrived in Cornwall built at Swindon in 1954 and remained for a couple of years, numbers 75025 75026 75027 75028 and 75029. It is remarkable that two of those engines remain in preservation to this day 75027 and 75029 with a double chimney. Seeing 75014 today working on the Paignton & Dartmouth Railway brought back many memories of looking over the Station Wall at Penzance and seeing these engines arrive and depart. One never had a camera in those days!

161228a 75014 Arriving at Paignton Queens Park on the 12.45 service from Kingswear. Copyright Roger Winnen

161228b 75014 Braveheart arrives at Kingswear with the 14.00 service from Paignton Queens Park. Copyright Roger Winnen

161228c 75014 Running around its train at Kingswear. Copyright Roger Winnen

161228d The penultimate departure of the day from Kingwear at 14.45. Copyright Roger Winnen

161228e 75014 Climbs out of Goodrington with the last train of the day, the 15.30 to Kingswear. Copyright Roger Winnen

Sheephouse Crossing
John Cornelius

Copyright John Cornelius.

Good Morning Keith, A sharp frost here this morning,but it is sunny at present. Letter and picture received 27th Dec.
About a mile east of Bruton station is sheephouse farm, with an occupation crossing over the main west of England line . For many years a crossing hut was situated there. It must have had some importance, as it had a cast iron nameplate 'sheephouse crossing' fitted on the end just below the window,although when I took this pic it had been removed and later the hut was removed.
​Does anybody know its history,and its main use?, I'd be interested to know.
cheers JOHN C.

Can you help John Please?  The trees in the background are of Cogley Wood and between it and the field is the river Brue - a small stream.  This is crossed further to the left, off the picture, by Breakheart Bridge and a path leads towards Collingshays House, whether this path was accessed over this crossing is not known. Is the keepers hut now a garden shed, or was it firewood?

​As quick as that, within hours                                                              - the answer from far away Burma.   Sheephouse, east of Bruton, was an occupation crossing for the (no doubt heavy and slow moving) timber traffic from Cogley Wood. The hut had no levers, just a block indicator (repeating the bells and block instruments of the boxes either side) and a telephone. There was also a stove! The installation would appear to date from the end period of the first world war (say early 1918) when there was an acute timber shortage. As far as I know it was closed in about 1973. The provision of a stove suggests manning for prolonged periods. All the best for 2017!   Roy  Hart
Many thanks indeed Roy and best wishes to you for 2017

​Contraction, caption
and pronunciation
Colin Burges

​Going through every one of your online photo galleries has brought me much fascination, although I have once more been overwhelmed by the scale of the contraction everywhere. Often, I have looked at your photos and tried to overlay them on the images in my mind of dereliction or eradicating development.
As I make clear in my web pages, the loss of over 400 miles and more than 200 stations from the Devon and Cornwall network is not a real measure, because the railway's capacity as well as its reach is so diminished.
http://www.teignrail.co.uk/the-railway.php#allstations
It may be thought that the losses would have been greater in the far west, but Somerset suffered much more than Cornwall, with only twenty stations left open and not one branch line remaining.
       My father (b. 1898) always pronounced "riviera" in the anglicized way and though he was apt to use unusual pronunciations, like "she" for "ski," I seem to think that "riveera" was the way that Great Western men would have known the train, if it wasn't simply the "Limited." I have heard this pronunciation on a Railway Roundabout film and on the B.T. film unit's Train Time; the one which shows the railway responding to a rush of Cornish perishables and a foreman ringing in: "Hello, Control? Er, Gwinear here. Helston stour ... " (STOUR: telegraphic code meaning "following is the state of our yard ... " - or in this case, branch).
www.britishrailways.tv/train-videos/2013-01/british-transport-films-train-time-1952/
    So, I contend that it is only in later years that the Italian pronunciation of "riviera" has been used and that this would not have been familiar with Great Western men or the travelling public.
    Among railway folk I doubt that I have to apologize for pedantry.
With all good wishes for the New Year.  Colin
Many thanks to Colin for the above - I do hope you will click on the links above for some very interesting material.

Colin Burges is the owner and operator of 'The Exeter & Teign Valley Railway' which we hope to visit in 2017 - details to follow.