The LNER Encyclopedia

Remembering my spotting days sat for many hours on a footbridge off a road overbridge immediately to the south of Doncaster station, the wooden footpath gave access to a single platform on a line branching to the west, just before carriage sidings (only ever saw DMU's coming of this line)
My question is what was the platform originally used for and why was the access maintained (the wooden slope down) in the 60/70's?
I always remember the fence well adorned with previous messages from generations of previous spotters "I died here waiting for 60009" and any other Haymarket pacific!

harvester wrote:Remembering my spotting days sat for many hours on a footbridge off a road overbridge immediately to the south of Doncaster station, the wooden footpath gave access to a single platform on a line branching to the west, just before carriage sidings (only ever saw DMU's coming of this line)
My question is what was the platform originally used for and why was the access maintained (the wooden slope down) in the 60/70's?
I always remember the fence well adorned with previous messages from generations of previous spotters "I died here waiting for 60009" and any other Haymarket pacific!

That would be the platform used for race day specials. If I'm not mistaken, it was all cleared when Doncaster was remodelled in the 70's. The footbridge led down from Hexthorpe Road overbridge. Many of the old timers I worked with used to speak of this bridge (it gave access to some railway offices) and the old platform.

Brian

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I think this may be what you are referring to:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doncaster_ ... ay_station

Although sadly that link does not work properly because the use of brackets on a forum means something else.

You will have to add the "_railway_station" part manually or the link will just take you to the St James' Bridge page.

I remember what we used to call St James' platform.

When the mainline station had the not infrequent purge of spotters, we would use this platform which had reasonable views over the mainline.

There was a scrapyard opposite which had a number of (military) tanks awaiting cutting up.

As Harvester mentions, most trains were DMUs (to/from Sheffield) but the line also formed part of a triangle and there would be the occasional Pacific use it for turning.

Thanks for the info gents, I suppose the racegoers would then be buses out to the course, would north bound trains from Sheffield have worked wrong line and used the single platform or was it for south/east bound only.
Now Solario mentioned it I remember the tanks, Churchills I think, something to scramble over between lulls in spotting or when on your way to try and sneak round the "Plant" I also remember the trolley buses passing over the bridge from memory Balby or Hexthorpe bound.

Sat on the footbridge/slope I eventually did see 60009, 1961 I think on the Saturday Elizabethan balance working!!!

Deleted

My grandfather,who was a Doncaster driver, was taken off driving duties during St Leger week to be station master at St.James' bridge station in the years leading up to WWII. It only existed as a station for that week.

My mother remembered him bringing blackboards home to be written up with notices in chalk. He had beautiful copperplate writing.

The plant was always closed for annual holidays during Race Week; I think was largely so that the sidings could be used for stabling race specials.

Ay up!

There's an article in this month's Brill on Donny Boys School with a nice view of the south end. The article is all about the School Railway Club.

I remeber the accident Micky is on about.

If I remember the third or fourth coach rear bogie carried on down the loop line whilst the rest of the train had already gone out onto the main, hitting and getting almost cut in two by the bridge parrapet

Several passengers were killed and some injured.

It is amazing just how much can be found on Wikipedia these days,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doncaster_rail_crash

http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docume ... er1951.pdf

I was a Telegram Boy in the Telegraph Office on Doncaster Station 1942/43. The station buildings mentioned were then used by the Controllers, I often delivered Telegrams there.
Geofrancis