A Train Journey through Dullingham

Edward Thorp, known as ‘Chib’, an undertaker from Leigh on Sea, spent his weekends throughout the year visiting the rural railway lines in East Anglia with wife Edna and their dog Micky. Chib always took along his 8mm camera, a good supply of Kodachrome film, and a tape recorder, to document their trips. He would edit the film himself at home, and sometimes record a commentary. 

From Colleges to Courses is a film held in the East Anglian Film Archive and shows a journey from Cambridge, through Dullingham, to Kennett.  It's my assumption that Enda is the lady in the red dress who features several times.

The journey was undertaken in 1967 shows how things have changed - particularly on the railways.  For example the line from Cambridge to the Newmarket tunnel was duelled then.  Today we only have the passing loop at Dullingham.  

Unfortunately there isn't any narration for this 12 minute film so I've added the timings (mm:ss) to the salient parts.

01:07 - note how open the curve at Coldham's Lane is compared with today's hedges

03:53 - Six Mile Bottom.  Note the level crossing comprises 4 half-gates operated from the signal box 

04:04 - the train passing through SMB station is a Derby Lightweight DMU

05:28 - Dullingham Station

06:14 - signalman Larry McDonnell (father of Maureen Baldwin who made me aware of this film)

07:56 - Woodditton level crossing on the Dullingham Road

08:08 - Newmarket Station (opened in 1902 to passengers)

08:38 - The old Newmarket Station (closed completely in April 1967 just before this film was ) and taking the token for the tunnel

09:19 - Newmarket's third station Warren Hill (1885 to 1945) on the Bury Road

10:09 - joining the line Ely-Ipswich line at Chippenham Junction and returning of the token 

11:48 - Kennett Station

For more details and pictures on the all these stations have a look at the website disused-stations.org.uk

• Cambridge Station
• Six Mile Bottom
• Dullingham Station (although not disused it has been included for completeness)
• Newmarket Station

Sources:

• British Film Institute 
• Disused Station

Station Garden Award

 An Award for Station Garden

As we celebrate the 200th anniversary of the railways in the UK - indeed the world - here's an article which appeared on the front page of the Newmarket Journal on 31st August 1961.

The gardens running along the platforms won an award in the Eastern Region Gardens competition.  An extract from a subsequent article on the station garden, published in the Journal on 18th January 1962 reported:

The staffs of Newmarket and Dullingham Railway stations can pat themselves on the back and call their stations the cleanest in the Eastern Region.

They have received first class awards in the annual regional competition for cleanliness and tidiness.  

British Railways officials visit stations at any time during the year and inspect the platforms, waiting rooms, entrance halls, offices, toilets and signal boxes.  

They look for dust and dirt cobwebs in general and untidiness and award points to each station.

Station Masters and staff never know when officials are likely to call so they have to be on their toes all the time.

Each station receives a £5 cheque and a certificate signed by the general manager, Mr H.C.Johnson.

At Dullingham Mr J Kitchen told us that he thought Dullingham station was particularly hard to keep clean because of its open platform.   

Mr Kitchen, who was not the station master when the competition was in progress, thought it a great feat for the two leading porter-signalmen who kept the station clean and tidy during the year.

They are Mr Winston Reeve and Mr Dennis Jarrold, of Dullingham.

At a guess Winston & Dennis are on the left in the picture above.