Author Archives: Rod Ash

Lavender Line Isfield Sussex

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Isfield station is delightful and if you’ve not visited it you must add it to your “bucket list”. I visited on a Sunday lunch time in September 2015 and the station cafe was busy. The cafe occupies most of the old station building with the shop on the adjoining platform. The line only runs for about a mile but there’s national interest in seeing the line fully re-opened by Network Rail from Uckfield to Lewes to provide a London to Brighton additional route. So time may be limited to sample a ride on this authentic heritage line. I have previously visited about 30 years ago and from what I remember it has hardly altered with the exception of a new loco shed. As for postcards, the shop was selling a set of four produced by Smartart and a card by Beric Tempest which I suspect goes back some years.

I have listed all the Lavender Line postcards I’m aware of here:

Lavender Line  click on link to show pictorial listing

If you are aware of other postcards produced featuring the Lavender Line please send us an image of both sides of each card please.

Sussex Community Rail Partnership

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I know that several of you like to know of new issues by rail operating companies, This is next best thing! This multiview has an Electrostar unit and promotes rail travel in Sussex. I found this card at Isfield station on the Lavender line. I wasn’t able to determine how old it is.

Hayling Seaside Railway

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The Hayling Seaside Railway is at the southern end of Hayling Island (near Portsmouth) and adjoins the sea front and visitor amusements. The shop and workshops are currently ( autumn 2015) being relocated from the western to eastern end of the line. The line does sell postcards featuring its own operations. The service is volunteer operated. Whilst not as old as many seaside narrow guage lines there are historical elements to find such as sections of track recovered from the old Alton Towers

The cards available in September 2015 are detailed here ( click on link below to view postcards)

Hayling Island Seaside Railway

Salmon 09/80/05/96

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J Salmon have released a postcard “Travel by Train” within their Retro Days series. Several branches of WH Smiths are stocking the postcard.

Salmon

Salmon

Recent issues from the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway

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During 2014 the Keighley and Worth Valley railway expanded their range of postcards by a further three. These being:

 

WVR326 Morning preparations at Haworth Spring 2014

WVR327 “Big Jim” at Oxenhope station

WVR328 34092 City of Wells at Keighley autumn 2014.

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All three postcards and many others, some first published 20 years ago, are available from the railway’s shops at Keighley, Haworth and Oxenhope. The shop at Haworth is the largest and also has a vast selection of books and models. These new cards reflect large locos now operational on the line rather than the line’s 1950’s BR (Midland) general ambiance. Well worth a visit.

Finally, for those of you that like technical details and errors card WV184 showing Haworth station is now available as WV284R2006.

Back in 2006 it was re-issued as WV184R2006 but it looks like a printing was made with the wrong number and this has now nine years later been put on sale.

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Saltburn Cliff Railway

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Saltburn has three railways operating during summer weekends, the Cliff railway, a miniature line and the standard gauge branch to Darlington. Saltburn standard gauge station today is of “bus shelter” design on a platform just to the west of the former station building which acts as a home to local retailers and a gateway to a supermarket. The local picture retailer at this site has a postcard for sale produced by paphoto.co.uk featuring the cliff railway in 1984. Unfortunatey this is the only postcard featuring any of the railways to be found at any of the stations in Saltburn. Don’t be deterred, if you’ve not had rides on all these lines they each have unique features and merit a visit to this generally little known coastal resort.

Armley Mills Museum, Leeds

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This museum has a locomotive section with a variety of industrial locos originally manufactured in Leeds. Only “Jack” of the steam locomotives is currently operational and this loco is fired up to run on the museum’s demonstration line on special event days. The museum shop does sell a few postcards but these at present do not feature any of the railway collection.

National Railway Museum – update

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Perhaps as a reflection on the national decline in postcard usage and collecting, the selection of postcards available at the National Railway Musuem at York is drastically reduced from not so many years ago. It is a bit of an event when a new card is published. To support the commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of Churchill’s funeral train, a new card has been issued. The stock number on the back of the card is 10562963.