Description

The era of the steam locomotive at work in the city of Plymouth evokes many memories. This was Great Western territory, but the Southern played a part as well. Besides sharing a common station, each company had its own terminus and locomotive sheds. Expresses, mostly double-headed, ran to Paddington; those to Waterloo were in the main portions to be joined up somewhere else. Besides the various expresses, there were the local trains, freight trains, parcels trains, lines to the docks, excursion trains, locomotive movements, and much more than that made the city's railways so fascinating. This album seeks to capture images of the contrasts that could be seen and enjoyed in the city. From Hemerdon to the Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash, the book takes a tour along the Great Western main line, with a similar look at that of the Southern from Tamerton to Friary. The steamier aspects of the Laira and Friary sheds are explored, together with the lines which served the various quays, not forgetting the branch lines that radiated from Plymouth.