‘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"
Broom History Group will be holding an event at Broom Village Hall 2-4pm on 9th November 2024 including a film on the railway and Broom Junction.…Continue
Hi everybodyI’m building a OO gauge model of Fenny Compton and Clifford Sidings over here in Belgium.Quite a strange idea but so be it…In view of this I plan to transform a RTR Beatie Well Tank into SMJR N° 5 the 2-4-0T and use some etchings for the…Continue
Blisworth Mines were busy right up to their closure. The engines got gradually more and more grubby, but it was a last piece of SMJ action in our area.The mines were operated by Richard Thomas and Baldwins, which became part of British Steel in 1967, Blisworth closed in September 1967 but was worth visiting right up to the end. The end of Blisworth Mines led to the closure of the last part of the SMJ east of Fenny Compton on September 30 1967.Despite visiting it many times, and always getting a warm welcome, I did not take enough pictures - although for safety reasons they were not keen on my visiting the quarry area.(I was 19 at the time).
Comment by Andy Thompson on November 1, 2010 at 20:11
Can't wait John!!
Andy
Comment by John Evans on November 1, 2010 at 17:33
Hey, it's all still there! Can't wait to load my color pictures I have stored back at home in the UK. We spent too many useless hours at quarries in the Northampton and Wellingborough areas, which totally puzzled my father.
Comment by Andy Thompson on November 1, 2010 at 15:34
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