Introduction
Welcome to the East Walsham project, begun over three years ago and very slowly making its way towards completion. The
layout is built in OO Gauge (finescale), proving that the adoption of an otherwise inaccurate distance between the rails does not lead inevitably to a lesser result.
In fact at the layout's recent first outing, even in its unfinished state,
viewers were unsure if it was EM Gauge! I will also be incorporating a number of ideas in
the areas of presentation and operation which I have evolved since my last layout.
I will be putting my thoughts into a series of articles for British Railway
Modelling and into my next book for Ian Allan Aspects of Modelling: Model
Railway Signalling to be published later in 2009.
Plan of East Walsham station
Background History
East Walsham was opened on 3rd July 1880 as part of the Great Yarmouth & Stalham Light Railway. The contractor intended to build on towards Happisburgh and Cromer, but circumstances intervened to prevent it. Instead, the line towards North Walsham and ultimately Melton Constable was promoted, and East Walsham remained a branch terminus. Agreements with the Great Eastern Railway brought about the formation of the Norfolk & Suffolk Joint Railways Committee in 1898, and the opening of a line from Mundesley to Cromer in 1906. The construction of the remaining line between Mundesley and East Walsham followed opening in 1908. East Walsham was enlarged into a passing station with two platforms. Changes to the signalling were instituted in 1899 in anticipation of this event. As soon as the work was finished and the new line opened, East Walsham was transferred to the N&S Committee and GER trains ran to it. The station and the branch from Stepping Stone Lane Junction
will at first be modelled in 1906, while still part of the M&GN. In future, the layout will be expanded into its 1908
N&SJt form.
Progress So Far
Construction was begun two years ago, and was far enough advanced for the layout
to appear at the Festival of the M&GN in King's Lynn on 5th September
2009. It operated with few problems, I'm glad to say, and collected many
favourable comments, despite the fact that there was no scenery. The baseboards
were painted and temporary buildings erected to give the impression of what the
finished product would look like. The time frame was brought forward 50 years to
the summer of 1958 both to celebrate the closure 50 years ago, and to make
possible the use of stock and engines loaned by Richard Adderson, Malcolm Banyer
and Matt Armstrong. The photographs were taken at the exhibition.
General view looking north showing station building, signal box and goods yard (still in E&M flat-bottom rail)
Looking south towards Stalham, showing North Walsham & Dilham Canal, level crossing and home signal
The turntable storage yard, and a glimpse of one of the tablet machines used to operate the layout
Even though the layout is a long way from being finished, this is still a scene evocative of the M&GN in the 1950s. Local train about to depart for Mundesley
Local
train about to depart for Yarmouth Beach, a scene now possible largely thanks to
Bachmann! The locomotive is good, but
the general opinion is that
the tender lets it down, being too light and with poor wheels
About to depart for Yarmouth Beach. The bullhead track is by C&L, and still needs ballasting and detailing