The Southern Since 1953

The Southern Since 1953

The Southern Since 1953 is a photographic journey of the ever-changing railway scene of southern England stretching from Cornwall to the Kent Coast, which was served from 1953 to the present day by the Southern Region and its successors. When our story begins, steam west of the Portsmouth main line still reigned supreme while much of the rest of the network was served by Southern Electric.

Many of the trains at work in 1953 were of pre-1939 origin, some even dating back to the first decade of the twentieth century, although the influence of Oliver Bullied’s revolutionary semi-streamline Pacifics and high-capacity suburban EMUs pointed to the future. By 1967, diesel would replace steam, and electrification would spread, while many less well-used lines in Hampshire, Dorset, Devon, and Cornwall would close.

Electrification began in the London area in the early 1900s, expanding to the Kent, Sussex, and east Hampshire coasts, in the process creating the greatest main line electrified system in the world; this would continue to the present day. With nearly 250 images and Baker’s detailed commentaries, this volume documents the history of an iconic railway.

Softback, 140 pages, black & white and colour illustrations