Hornsey Station & Rail Tracks, 1953

Comment by Stephen Holliday on June 13, 2015 at 20:56

The tower certainly is the coaling plant as described here

The train is typical of those which ran from Moorgate/Kings Cross to the suburbs for about 40 years up to 1960. They consisted of two sets of four carriages which were "quadruple articulated" on five bogies and known as "quad-arts". The articulation kept the overall length down which was necessary with the restricted platform lengths available at such stations as Moorgate.  The carriages were of the compartment type with what are now called "slam" doors. Each compartment seated 12 passengers ("customers" were still in the future!) and the whole train 648.  Overcrowding is not a new thing so there could be another 200-300 passengers standing.

The large pipe on the locomotive running from the smokebos to the top of the side tank was provided  so that the exhaust from the chimney could be deflected into the tanks when running in the tunnels between Kings Cross to Moorgate.  This worked to a certain extent but it was always a bit "smokey".  In the sery  early days the engine crews were given permission to grow beards to give them some protection although the "atmosphere" was reckoned to be good as a cure for asthma and bronchitis!

Provision was made in the design of the carriages for motor bogies to be added as there were proposals for the suburban lines to be electrified.  The LNER, as it was then, suffered badly from the 1930s depression so electrification had to wait to a different age.

These trains, in two sets of five carriages (hence "quint-arts) were first introduced on the suburban services out of Liverpool Street Station and the weight of all the extra standing passengers on the Enfield Town branch caused the underframes to deflect so that some of the doors could not be opened!

The photo also shows the new section of footbridge leading from Hampden Road to the booking office. The original was destroyed when some bombs fell on the tracks during the Second World War.  The damage to the tracks was quickly repaired but it was some years after the end of the War before the section of the footbridge was replaced and then without the roof of the original.

Comment by Hugh on June 13, 2015 at 21:08

Thanks Stephen. You clearly know your beans! It must have been a half-memory of your comment on the photo you link to that gave me the hint that the building was a coaling tower. 

Comment by Peter John Morris on June 19, 2015 at 7:50

Absolutely spot-on Stephen. I always remember my Dad carrying an old hankerchief for use on carriage door handles at places like Kings Cross or Liverpool Street. Also for being told not to bang my hand up and down on the seats creating huge plumes of dust - Oh for the days of steam!

Add a Comment