‘The Stratford Upon Avon & Midland Junction Railway’ (or S.M.J.) was a small independent railway company which ran a line across the empty, untouched centre of England. It visited the counties of Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire and a little of Buckinghamshire, only existing as the SMJ from 1909 to 1923. In 1923 the S.M.J.became a minor arm of the London Midland and Scottish (L.M.S.), then in 1948 'British Railways'
Gone but not forgotten: "the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth"
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SMJ Forum
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Hi allI'm pleased to announce that the first volume of my history of…Continue
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NEW BOOK ON THE SMJ - AVAILABLE SHORTLY
Hi all
I'm pleased to announce that the first volume of my history of the SMJ should be available in the near future - details are as follows:
The Stratford-upon-Avon & Midland Junction Railway Volume One: The years before the S&MJR 1866-1909: The Constituent Companies
Barry Taylor
208 pages. 275x215mm. Printed on gloss art paper with colour laminated board covers
A comprehensive history of the Northampton & Banbury Junction Railway, The East & West Junction Railway, The Evesham Redditch & Stratford Junction Railway, and the Stratford upon Avon Towcester & Midland Junction Railway – up to the formation of the Stratford upon Avon & Midland Junction railway in 1909.
Volume 2 will continue the story through the S&MJR, LMSR, and BR periods through to closure and to the present day.
Black Dwarf Lightmoor Publications - ISBN13 9781911038252 – Price £25.00 + p&p
For more details see the new publications page at: lightmoor.co.uk
The book should be available from Lightmoor as from 14th August, and will be on sale at the O Gauge Guild show at Telford on 1st/2nd September if anyone is going up there.
No date yet for Volume 2 but should be during 2018.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Simon Dunkley on -
I ordered it on the 10th. No sign yet?
Has it been held up?
(Would be entirely appropriate if it had been delayed en route - probably had to stop to allow Milord of somewhere to attach a horse box, or similar...)
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Permalink Reply by Barry Taylor on -
Arrived in the warehouse at Lydney late on Thursday 17th apparently - so first shipments out to pre-orders and trade should have been on Friday.
Probably got held up on the Midland at Broom Junction for a day or two on the way..................shouldn't be far away now.
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Permalink Reply by Simon Dunkley on
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I will keep an eye out for the postman, then!
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Permalink Reply by NIGEL on -
My copy arrived this morning. Had a quick read of the first few pages, very informative and good detail.
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Permalink Reply by Simon Dunkley on
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Same here: it just arrived (yes, at 3 pm!) but on first glance looks very nice.
NIGEL said:My copy arrived this morning. Had a quick read of the first few pages, very informative and good detail.
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Permalink Reply by Simon Dunkley on
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Actually, I can and will go further. It is exceptionally well produced and extremely well laid out.
Plus it has some photos I haven't seen before, and given the usual cost of prints sold at shows and on-line (excluding an additional premium for rarity) then the book has actually saved me some money!
If I may add to the information in the book, the photo on page 133 will be number 8: number 9 had 12 H section spokes to its drivers, which were put under number 8 circa 1903/4, as you say. Furthermore, the photo on page 179 of number 8 is intriguing, because the boiler has acquired a vacuum ejector, not present in the earlier photo.
I can only deduce that when number 9 was scrapped, and number 7 was re-boilered with a newer Webb-pattern boiler, number 7's old Ramsbottom boiler was put onto number 8. Number 8 has also acquired brakes on the engine - again not present on the earlier photo! This has not, to my knowledge, been recorded before: it is not in Baxter, nor in the revised edition of Dunn, neither Jordan, nor Riley and Simpson.
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Permalink Reply by Nick Meredith on
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I have just received my copy, and from a quick scan it looks fascinating.
From a purely selfie ah point of view, as a modeller of Kineton in its British Railways days, is there an estimate fo arrival for volume two?
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Permalink Reply by Barry Taylor on
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Encouraging to see someone already looking for Vol 2 with Vol 1 still hot off the press!
Coincidentally I had a conversation with the publisher just this morning on that subject - they are looking for the finished text "early in the New Year" so assuming that I can get it ready for, say, March, that would probably mean publication in the Summer.
I'd better get on with it then.........!
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Permalink Reply by Jim Goodman on -
Picked up my copy from Telford 0-gauge Show yesterday and very impressed with it too. Masses of information and, as mentioned above, several photos I've never seen before - mostly from your collection Barry, do you have any more for volume 2? Many hours of reading ahead!
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Permalink Reply by Barry Taylor on
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Thanks Jim - pleased that you like the book.
Vol1 was somewhat difficult to illustrate as there was only a finite number of views relevant to the period pre-1909, and one or two later pics had to be used.
However for Vol 2 the choice is much wider, certainly after the SMJ period, so there should be a lot more new shots - maybe next summer!
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Permalink Reply by Alan Brant on
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Publication date took me by surprise.
Ordered straightaway and have just spent two days browsing/reading it,
excellent.
Cannot wait for volume 2
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Permalink Reply by Dick Bodily on -
Have only just got hold of a copy. Barry has done a superlative job of covering the early days of the line. There are lots of 'new' photos and the familiar ones are reproduced better than in previous publications and on quality glossy paper. All those hours at Kew, Northampton Records Office and reading the Mercury have paid off, Barry. When joined by Vol 2 next year, it will become the definitive history of the line I'm sure. Sincere congratulations to Barry and the publishers.
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