Kings Cross

[manna]

Been trawling the net lately and found some new pictures of Kings Cross, what a mess! weeds and trees growing everywhere,huge great blue portacabins on the site of Kings Cross loco, York Rd station gone,did not recognize Holloway with so many trees so close to the track I had to read the caption? ( I worked at the Cross for four and a half years ) The area around Goods and Mineral Junction , GONE !!
What happened to the Great Northern Hotel, it use to face south east now face's north west and looks to me to have been moved 200yds south ??
I use to shunt at Ashburton Grove! Looks like there building a dounut ther now, also use to shunt at the roundtrees warehouse, between Wood Green tunnel and the Hertford line flyover looks like there's house's built there now, Oh Dear, what have they done ??
PS How do I post pictures on here,and smilies ------ Thanks

[52D]

Hit post reply. Scroll down till you see upload attachments below the text box and carry on, be aware of max file size.

[giner]

Manna! MANNA! That donut at Ashburton Grove is the superb new Emirates Stadium, home to the glorious Arsenal Football Club. (A Spurs man, obviously)

I do agree wholeheartedly with you about the, to us of mature years, 'greening' of the railways. Call me sentimental if you want but, without the old soot, smoke, and general grime, railways have lost a certain je ne sais quoi. It was inevitable really, I suppose, but when we see the way it all looks now we are reminded of a happy time of our lives that's gone forever. Sorry to be a bit morose, but we always have the old photos from fellows like Malcolm and many others, plus all the great models from the talented chaps in the Model Railways section of the forum. Fings ain't wot they used to be, for sure.

[Flamingo]

Kings Cross and the area around it - no definitely not the place it was. There is a big urban redevelopment scheme in progress which will probably destroy what little still remains, including the scenes familiar from the mid-50s film classic The Ladykillers.

My memories go back at least 60 years when we used to go to the Cross for a days number snatching. Take an up local from Palmers Green , bunker first N2 + 2 Quad-Art sets, which usually took us into the suburban side but occasionally dropped us off at York Road paltform if it was heading to Moorgate. On the way back the trains from Moorgate were the ones to go for because they used Platform 16 with its wooden platform and steep gradient.

Most of the day would be spent on the end of no. 10 watching the Pacifics and V2s backing down from Gasworks Tunnel and coupling on to their trains. Anything less than 13 coaches was a sissy load in those days. Before 1950 Felstead, Grand Parade, Papyrus and Humorist and Spion Kop too could all be seen in a day at KX but they all later came to be regarded as rare cops.

[manna]

Thanks for the replies mates,How did you guess i was a Spurs supporter, use to live at Wood Green and yes I can remember the N2's, when the diesel units first started to come into use we would wait for the next train, sometimes we would sit there for hours waiting for a steamer,in the end a porter would tell us to get on the next train or else, funny thing was we only had a 3d return to Hornsey. LOL

[giner]

LOL! I'm sure some of us must have bumped into each other at the end of Platform 10 at one time or another. And, true, having come on the trainspotting scene around 1954, I never saw any of the locos mentioned by Flamingo. Because I live a long way away these days, I just had a butchers at the area on Google Maps aerial view - I wish I hadn't now. At least the Arsenal are keeping the tradition alive by being well visible from the main line. One of these days when I'm over there, I'll have to have a ride out of the Cross and keep my eyes shut till we come out of Copenhagen Tunnel. Wonder what Highbury looks like now from the train.

[smudger]

One of these days when I'm over there, I'll have to have a ride out of the Cross and keep my eyes shut till we come out of Copenhagen Tunnel. Wonder what Highbury looks like now from the train.

The East and West stands have been quite tastefully converted into flats. Of course the old Clock End and North Bank went years ago, but their replacements were pulled down.

I'm too young to remember steam, but I've watched trains go by from the East Stand and wondered what view I would have had had I been born earlier.

Alan

[giner]

I just had a look on the web about the changes at Highbury. So glad to see they didn't bulldoze the whole lot - kudos to the developers for that. Part of the day out to the Arsenal from Stevenage was the trip down to Finsbury Park - either a B1 or L1, regular outer suburban motive power. Of course, a sharp eye was kept on the main line just in case a new cop came through while we waited for our return train after the game. Happy days.

[chaz harrison]

My father (now dead) used to go to reserve matches at Highbury (He couldn't afford the first team matches) when he was a kid in the thirties. He told me that it was quite possible to take the numbers of locos passing on the main line whilst standing at the top of the stands (at the clock end?).

Whilst I miss steam and would love to stand on the platform at Welwyn North again on a warm summer's day and watch the parade of big steam as I did in their final years, the modern railway is in a different league. I recently went up to Retford. I had hardly settled in my seat and glanced at a book when I looked up and was stunned to see that we were already passing Hitchin.

I have a feeling HNG would approve.

Chaz

[giner]

It's funny you know, but in all my years of being at Arsenal games I never once stood at the Clock End, it was the North Bank always. And, yes, from the top of the north-west corner of that terrace you most certainly could see the cab numbers. I would think that if your dad was looking out of one of the top windows at the back of the West Stand then the line would be well visible. From the clock end terracing itself, mmm . . . just maybe from the top of the south-west corner.

I would think that there would be many opportunities these days at the new stadium to watch the trains go by, being as it is virtually right on the up slow. But then, trainspotting seems to have become something of a lost art. Does anybody actually go spotting now?

Quick disclaimer: None of the above is to suggest that the trains are more interesting to watch than the football being played. Up the Gunners!

Oh, and Welwyn North. One of my favourite spots. Lovely location.

[geoffshumba]

Quite a lot of people still go spotting - even when all they can hope to see are 66s and DMUs. Some even collect coach and vehicle numbers. I gave up spotting when steam ended, when I was 16.

[Bryan]

Some even collect coach and vehicle numbers.

I used to work for a track renewal firm until this June.
We were always getting "Digger spotters" when using Road railers and Dozers on sites.

[hq1hitchin]

Oh, and Welwyn North. One of my favourite spots. Lovely location.

Where I started on the railway, a good place to learn as well. One of the A4 names lived nearby but I never got to see him. Sir Charles Newton? Sadly, can't remember now

[52D]

Was'nt he Blown up at York.

[52A]

Thought that was his old mucker Ralph.

There are lots of station garden pictures at the Railway Eye Blog.