Christmas Poser

[Mickey]

That place sounds a right old place to live at Hatfield Shed.

In fact one time we use to live a stones throw from where Twentieth Mile Up box was situated if it had still been there back in the 1970s because we lived in one of the old houses that were subsequently demolished circa 1981 at the top of the embankment and set back about 300 yards out of sight of the GN main line.

Mickey

[Mickey]

Nearly back to the original question of this topic everyone on here knows where mile post 100 was at on the GN/LNER main line.

Mickey

[john coffin]

Given how new I am at this kind of area, my best guess is somewhere on Stoke Bank, or is it the top?

The signal box is certainly not officially at 100 miles.

Paul

[Mickey]

Given how new I am at this kind of area, my best guess is somewhere on Stoke Bank, or is it the top?

The signal box is certainly not officially at 100 miles.

To be honest Paul I don't know exactly where the 100 mile post is on the ground so to speak but yes it is somewhere around the Stoke area (south of Grantham) and from a vague memory wasn't there a big white painted metal sign on the Up side embankment situated maybe a few hundred yards south of Stoke box and saying something like KINGS CROSS 100 MILES(?) I presume that sign was for the benefit of the passenger's travelling in the passing trains. I only ever went north of Peterborough on several rare occasions back in the early 1970s when Stoke box was still there so I am not over familiar with the road between Peterborough & Grantham?.

Mile post 50 is around the Tempsford area 2 miles south of StNeots station which is 52 miles from Kings Cross.

Mickey

[john coffin]

Interesting Mickey, I too seem to remember a 100 Mile sign just south of Grantham on the London side.

As for Tempsford, that seems to be 47 1/2 miles from London, and St Neots South Box is 51 1/2 miles with the North box at 51 2/3miles.

The nearest to 50 Miles was the Barford Box at 49 1/2 miles. or is it Basford?

All this info from a 1912 set of data, not my own measuring

I didn't realise learning all this would be so interesting to me, since I normally deal with tenders, locos and carriages

Paul

[Mickey]

Interesting Mickey, I too seem to remember a 100 Mile sign just south of Grantham on the London side.

As for Tempsford, that seems to be 47 1/2 miles from London, and St Neots South Box is 51 1/2 miles with the North box at 51 2/3miles.

The nearest to 50 Miles was the Barford Box at 49 1/2 miles. or is it Basford?

I am glad you remember the 100 MILES TO KINGS CROSS sign Paul and I am fairly sure it was located just south of Stoke box on the Up side (London side) embankment and it was a fairly huge sign at that and as for the 50 mile post in that case that would be a bit further north of Tempsford and slightly north of Barford box as well. Little Barford power station was and maybe still is somewhere over to the west and from memory you could see the cooling towers from a train south of St Neots where a single line originated from that ran south parallel with the main line for some distance before veering away to the west and Little Barford power station.

Mickey

[StevieG]

" .... Little Barford power station was and maybe still is somewhere over to the west and from memory you could see the cooling towers from a train south of St Neots where a single line originated from that ran south parallel with the main line for some distance before veering away to the west and Little Barford power station.

Mickey "

Thinking that, rather than a 'single line' to Barford Mickey, you may instead be remembering the connection off the Down Slow at Barford into the (four?) marshalling sidings for the power station parallel to, but about 20 feet away from, the tracks of the main line; from both ends of which sidings a rail circle dropped down and away towards both north and south ends of the power station.
From presumably the late 1950s/ early '60s, when the ladder of facing crossovers at St. Neots replaced the traditional GNR trailing one, Up trains for Barford were able to use the Down Slow in the Up direction to Barford Ground Frame, fully signalled.
Prior to that they had to run Up to Tempsford, run round, then back Down to the ground frame, and set back to get inside.

[StevieG]

" .... Little Barford power station was and maybe still is somewhere over to the west and from memory you could see the cooling towers from a train south of St Neots where a single line originated from that ran south parallel with the main line for some distance before veering away to the west and Little Barford power station.

Mickey "

Thinking that, rather than a 'single line' to Barford, Mickey, that you may instead be remembering the connection off the Down Slow there at Barford into the (four?) marshalling sidings for the power station parallel to, but about 20 feet away from, the tracks of the main line; from both ends of which sidings, a rail circle dropped down and away towards both north and south ends of the power station.
From presumably the late 1950s/ early '60s, when the ladder of facing crossovers at St. Neots replaced the traditional GNR trailing one, Up trains for Barford were able to use the Down Slow in the Up direction to Barford Ground Frame, fully signalled.
Prior to that they had to run Up to Tempsford, run round, then back Down to the ground frame, and set back to get inside.

[Mickey]

Thinking that, rather than a 'single line' to Barford Mickey, you may instead be remembering the connection off the Down Slow at Barford into the (four?) marshalling sidings for the power station parallel to, but about 20 feet away from, the tracks of the main line; from both ends of which sidings a rail circle dropped down and away towards both north and south ends of the power station.

I reckon so Stevie. Even though I probably passed through St Neots several dozen times on various trains during the 1970-1975 period it wasn't always easy to comprehend a track layout like St Neots even after passing through it on a number of occasions as it seemed a slightly more complicated track layout than other places along the Hitchin-Huntingdon length such as Biggleswade, Sandy & Huntingdon also another reason was more often than not when approaching St Neots in either direction I was usually watching out for St Neots s/box located south of the station on the Up side of the line rather than noting the track layout in detail.

[silverfox]

I recall reading somewhere that there were seven sets of these 'xx Miles To xx' spaced at 50 mile intervals situated each side of the line back in the good ol' days!

[pete2hogs]

Is there not a '30 mile bridge' just south of Welwyn Garden City station?

[StevieG]

Is there not a '30 mile bridge' just south of Welwyn Garden City station?

That's the Twentieth Mile bridge that's already been included in this discussion.
Thirty miles from Kings Cross would be approximately st Wymondley, roughly half way between Stevenage and Hitchin.