East Anglian Railway Archive
Welcome
Welcome to my gallery of photos of the railway scene in East Anglia. Most were taken in the decade between 1972 and 1982. Thirty years on a lot of these scenes have disappeared for good. Some lines have closed, some have been electrified or the signalling upgraded with the consequent loss of signal boxes, semaphore signals and manual crossing gates. From a photographers point of view the railways are far less interesting today. Some of the shots are good, some are poor, but I hope they are all of some historical value. So please enjoy a trip down memory lane. Alan. Ipswich, Suffolk.
Top Photo

Soham. June 1981
(3 hits)
Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction
Most Recent Photo

Dullingham looking North East. 7th September 2005. Photo with kind permission of Peter Heath
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    Soham. June 1981  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (3)
    40057 at Soham with Parkeston to Mossend airbrake. 21st February 1980   Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (2)
    March Station. 23rd September 1978  March to Spalding Line  (2)
    Stamford to Parkeston Quay unit at Soham. 30th August 1979.  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (2)
    Arborial scene at Snailwell. 47571 heads the 0717 Parkeston Quay to Manchester Piccadilly. 1st September 1980  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (2)
    37219 passes Soham with the 0950 Bury St Edmunds to Whitemoor freight. 21st February 1980 #2  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (2)
    40057 at Soham with Parkeston to Mossend airbrake. 21st February 1980 #2  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (2)
    31417 at Soham during single line working. 27th August 1980  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (1)
    Ipswich to Peterborough via Cambridge train at Newmarket. 1981  Cambridge-Ipswich  (1)
    10 Potton Station. Bedfordshire on Cambridge to Bedford line. 28th March 1974  Abandoned Lines and Stations  (1)
    11 40057 passes Soham with an airbraked freight to Parkeston Quay. 21st February 1980  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (1)
    12 Second man on 37133 prepares to collect the token at Soham. 21st February 1980  Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction  (1)
    13 March Station. 28th July 1979  March to Spalding Line  (1)
    14 Spalding. Passengers board the 1128 Cambridge to Doncaster. 6th June 1979  March to Spalding Line  (1)
    15 08 Shunter Colonel Tomline at Felixstowe Docks September 1976  Ipswich to Felixstowe  (1)
    Most Recent Collections
    28th January 2008Abandoned Lines and Stations
    A miscellaneous selection of photos of disused stations throughout East Anglia. Some of these shots were taken 30 years ago. A lot has changed in that time. Some of the stations no longer exist having disappeared under housing estates and roads. Unfortunately most were shot with a Kodak instamatic which doesn't have the best quality lens in the world. References used Forgotten Railways ( East Anglia ) R.S. Joby. A Regional History Of the Railways of Great Britain Vol.5 by Don Gordon. Many thanks to the following who have helped with photos or information. Peter Heath.
    11th July 2008Cambridge to Bishops Stortford
    Scenes along the Cambridge to Liverpool Street main line before electification.
    19th July 2008Cambridge- Ely- Kings Lynn
    The line from Cambridge to Kings Lynn prior to electrification. All the signal boxes along with the semaphore signals and manual gates have all long since gone. Some of the boxes have fortunately been removed and restored.
    17th October 2008Cambridge-Ipswich
    17th October 2008Cambridge-Royston
    26th November 2007Cambridge-St Ives-March Branch
    This collection is dedicated to the memory of a railway line which was rarely photographed. The line from St Ives to March closed in 1967 and we no longer saw the many freight trains travelling to or from Whitemoor yard at March or the long coal trains from the Midlands coal field. Little trace of this line now exists. Many thanks to Stewart Ingram for allowing me to use his pictures from the last day of operation. They give an amazing insight into a bygone age. The passenger service from St Ives to Cambridge closed in 1970, but fortunately the line stayed open for freight traffic to Chivers at Histon until 1983 and for sand from Fen Drayton until 1992. This part of the line is currently being totally destroyed to make way for a guided busway which very few people want. Sadly it was a missed opportunity to reinstate the passenger service and to use it for cross country freight to get some of the lorries off the A14. Here are a few photos to show how it used to be before it is lost for ever. Thanks to the following who have helped with photos or information. Peter Heath, D Holden, Stewart Ingram, Charles Ison, Steve Parker, Richard Pike, Steve Wilkinson.
    17th October 2008East Coast Main Line
    3rd April 2008East Suffolk Line ( Ipswich to Lowestoft)
    Photos of the East Suffolk line taken between 1975 and 1980 with some contemporary shots for comparison. In 1984 the line became signalled by Radio Electronic Tokenless Block. All signal boxes, apart from Saxmundham which is the control centre for the line, have been demolished, in places the line singled and nearly all crossings open or automatic. These shots show how the line was before the changes took place. For a comprehensive history of this line and some excellent photographs have a look at John Brodribb's book " An illustrated history of The East Suffolk Railway" It's well worth a read.
    15th October 2008Ely-March-Peterborough
    11th September 2008Ely-Norwich
    10th September 2008Ely-Soham-Chippenham Junction
    15th October 2008Ipswich to Felixstowe
    28th June 2008Manningtree to Harwich
    Views of the Harwich branch before electrification taken in 1978/1979 with some up to date photos.
    24th April 2008March to Spalding Line
    The March to Spalding line closed on 27th November 1982. It was always an interesting line for the rail enthusiast especially during the Spalding Flower Festival and on Summer Saturdays with hauled trains from the Midlands to Great Yarmouth. Here are a few shots of the line in it's final years. I haven't been in the area for nearly thirty years and my memory is a bit foggy of locations etc. if there are any errors I would welcome any comments.
    20th June 2008Marks Tey to Sudbury
    Here are a few photos of this line which up until 4th March 1967 went through to Cambridge. The line is still open today. The old station at Sudbury has now gone and in its place the Kingfisher leisure Centre. A new station has been built.
    15th October 2008Norwich to Sheringham
    15th October 2008Norwich-Ipswich- Colchester-London Main Line
    The Norwich- London line prior to electrification.
    17th October 2008Norwich-Yarmouth and Lowestoft
    14th April 2009Odds and Ends
    Miscellaneous pictures of other railway related subjects which caught my eye during my travels.
    26th December 2008Other Transport Pictures.
    Pictures of other transport subjects including preserved trains, old aircraft and buses.
    21st June 2009Spalding to Peterborough New
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