Great Western Branch Lines - A Pictorial Survey compiled by C.W. Judge
Great Western Branch Lines - A Pictorial Survey compiled by C.W. Judge
Book published by The Oakwood Press in 1998, 80 pages. Paperback (N7775)
Brand New Book
From the introduction: Why another photographic Great Western branch line book you may ask? The answer is that many GWR branch line photographs appear in specialist which cover the branch in minute detail. This is useful for the local historian or modeller but means that good and interesting photographs of branches are for the eyes of a relatively few only; hence this small inexpensive book has been compiled covering many branches.
This book does not therefore set out to be a history or even cover all of the GWR system, but instead it is intended to capture the scenes of days long gone on, I believe, one of the most evocative railways that ever existed. All the views are taken before the 1948 Nationalisation and therefore are 'truly Great Western', a few have been seen before in 'more expensive books', but have been included here to tell a fuller story.
These GWR branch lines were very important and can be compared with the function of the arms and legs of the human body. These 'limbs' or branch lines supplied the main GWR system with passengers and freight to keep the whole system profitable and working; something Beeching never did grasp!
The photographs are laid out in approximate geographic sequence starting from London, heading west towards the West Country, then returning towards the border country and the West Midlands. To define a branch line is almost impossible and I hope that the reader will forgive several choices which might appear 'marginal'. The three photographs included with this introduction give an indication of the basic type of motive power developed over the years by the GWR to help sustain branch line traffic.
I hope that the 136 photographs in this book bring back fond memories of holidays taken by rail or, for the younger reader, help them understand the complex network of rural branch lines that the GWR established in the heyday of rail travel. Perhaps also the photographs will help the GWR modeller with some small detail to make their model more authentic and prove a valuable addition to your railway library.
This book does not therefore set out to be a history or even cover all of the GWR system, but instead it is intended to capture the scenes of days long gone on, I believe, one of the most evocative railways that ever existed. All the views are taken before the 1948 Nationalisation and therefore are 'truly Great Western', a few have been seen before in 'more expensive books', but have been included here to tell a fuller story.
These GWR branch lines were very important and can be compared with the function of the arms and legs of the human body. These 'limbs' or branch lines supplied the main GWR system with passengers and freight to keep the whole system profitable and working; something Beeching never did grasp!
The photographs are laid out in approximate geographic sequence starting from London, heading west towards the West Country, then returning towards the border country and the West Midlands. To define a branch line is almost impossible and I hope that the reader will forgive several choices which might appear 'marginal'. The three photographs included with this introduction give an indication of the basic type of motive power developed over the years by the GWR to help sustain branch line traffic.
I hope that the 136 photographs in this book bring back fond memories of holidays taken by rail or, for the younger reader, help them understand the complex network of rural branch lines that the GWR established in the heyday of rail travel. Perhaps also the photographs will help the GWR modeller with some small detail to make their model more authentic and prove a valuable addition to your railway library.
| Condition | New |