‘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

Evesham Redditch & Stratford-upon-Avon Junction Railway 8 Replies

Did this railway (as opposed to the East & West Junction Railway) go into receivership - if so, when. And when did it come out of receivership?Continue

Started by Richard Maund. Last reply by Richard Maund Feb 11.

Bidford-on-Avon 5 Replies

Shall we bring this discussion under the proper heading!So far as the OS plan surveyed 1885, published 1886, is concerned: the OS liked - wherever they could  - to have text running parallel to the top and bottom borders. When they came to add the…Continue

Started by Richard Maund. Last reply by Richard Maund Feb 10.

North End and Warwick Road stations? 57 Replies

Some time ago we ahd an interesting and lively discussion on the mystery station at Tiffield, which added quite a lot to our collective knowledge.I've recently been looking closely at two of the other mystery stations- at North End (sometimes…Continue

Started by Barry Taylor. Last reply by Richard Maund Jan 27.

1873 timetable 4 Replies

Page 12 of Arthur Jordan's book features a full page reproduction of the E&WJ public timetable handbill for August 1873. Does anyone know where the original of that handbill is preserved?Incidentally, the timetable itself formed the basis of…Continue

Started by Richard Maund. Last reply by Barry Taylor Jan 25.

SMJ photos

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This section still had rails for some years after closure and was used for storing redundant open wagons. These were of course cleared out before the track was lifted and a friend of mine, Tony Warwick, then a fireman based at Northampton (Far Cotton Sheds), made at least one trip from the Bedford line towards Towcester collecting the wagons c1965. After the wagons were stationed there it became the practice in fine weather for some of the older boys from Roade Secondary School to make there way across a couple of fields that separated the line from the School fields and make use of one of the wagons as a private smoking room during the lunch break. One day somebody released the brakes on the wagon in which the lads were "faggin' it" and they trundled off down the gradient towards the main line bridge, hitting another stationary rake with considerable force and scaring the lads out of their wits.
The M1 bridge was never, so far as I am aware, ever used by revenue-earning trains. The rails through Stoke Bruerne station were certainly removed by August 1965, although I found several ex-LNWR chairs lying in a heap by the Boat Horse road bridge a year later. some of these were used as ballast in a canal boat and one, cast-marked L&NWR 1909 I used for many years as a door stop. I believe these were in fact recycled main-line chairs used by the LMS during the 1930s when the whole line from Ravenstone to Towcester was relaid.

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   I'm sure I've input this before...I fetched the ashes from the burnt out remains of the box and fellow RCTS member John Mawby made the casket.   I visited the box many times and have rescued a number of Train Registers and also one of the box nameboards which goes with one of the boxboards I rescued from Towcester.  I recovered both ends by climbing a ladder and unscrewing the boards and climbing back down - no fun as all the metal had been removed and the men were about to torch the wooden frame which they also did to Ravenstone Wood Jct. box.    There is film at RWJct and down the branch to Roade in my Telerail DVD.

   Re the 11.11.09 query - the trains came up from Northampton Far Cotton.  Northampton power, men and guard booked on daily around 5.30am and were relieved at around 1.00pm by another engine, men and guard.   This was the case when the track was lifted between Roade and Towcester and later Ravenstone Wood Jct. to Roade.   As far as I know only Northampton men and guards signed the SMJ east of Woodford West Jct. as the only train that passed over the branch was the 8.30am Northampton - Woodford and back, Mondays to Saturdays and it was only worked by Northampton men.    I cadged many trips on this train and it was a really super day out with our snap and strong (condensed milk) tea consumed in Byfield box before a gentle ride back through some very remote countryside...and almost always you could take the regulator as far as Blisworth.!

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