The Railway Magazine

I recently came into possession of nearly 90magazines from the 1950s. Does anyone collect these?

Some complete years...1956 entirely missing!

 

Seemingly fewer people do nowadays. What used to be a steady source of income for railway groups now is (much) less so.

PH

 

very interesting, I've skimmed through 1950 so far

 

I have a set of 4 bound volumes 1968 - 1972. Nobody wanted them but they cover a very interesting period of change in British railway history.

 

I collect Railway Magazines and have been doing so for about 5 years. I have failed to find any other resource which provides a better insight into the railways at any particular time over the last 120 years.

 

one gem I came across was someone who had heard that a double Fairlie was to be preserved... 1950 optimism?

 

Generally they have little resale value. I ended up giving mine away to a local railway.

They are a fascinating read but often they miss out so much that you wish they had covered at the time. Albeit with the benefit of hindsight.

 

My favourite are the letters from the mid to late 60s where some such person would suggest saving a particular engine or railway, and this would be followed by a Hitch-style 'what a ludicrous suggestion, we've already got 30 engines and 4 lines preserved, which is far more than the market can manage' response. Makes you appreciate just what had been achieved.

 

You make a reasonable point, but it does show what was particularly significant to them at the time, even if history would look at it differently.

 

March 1968 is a good issue. There's a photo of me standing near a Black 5 at Preston Station in it.

Bob.

 

In the 1970s I used to frequent the County Library in Stafford which had bound volumes of The Railway Magazine from (IIRC) the first half of the twentieth century and it was fascinating to read contemporary reports of new developments, such as the GWR building the cut off to avoid Bristol, and reports of new locomotives and rolling stock. I especially remember thinking I would never see lines being built or re-opened in my lifetime, as they were being to some extent in the magazines I was reading, with BR then being in what seemed a permanent downward spiral.

How times change!

 

Remember reading the Railway Magazine in the 60s and reading all the loco withdrawals very depressing, a great Magazine though.

 

Have a complete bound set from issue 1 to December 1980. Some of the articles are fantastic. One of the best, can't remember the year, highlights the rail system of Bishopsgate, Liverpool St. and Shoreditch. Complete track plan showing the multi level goods yard at Bishopsgate and the Coal drops at Shoreditch. All lines interconnected in some way.
If a time machine were ever to be invented, oh to go back to the 30s and watch the coal and parcels workings.