Rail Route Weymouth to Chisledon

[HERITAGE PLUS]

Grateful if any pal could advise me what the rail route would have been from Weymouth to Chisledon, Wiltshire, which had its own station, likely to be taken by a man on leave during the Great War.

Thanks

Dave

[Steven Broomfield]

A few years ago, Mrs Broomfield (splendid woman) gave me a copy of The Railways of Great Britain, A (sic) Historical Atlas, by Colonel H M Cobb (Ian Allan). Tracing my finger along the route, I suspect the most straightforward would have been to take the GWR from Weymouth (via Dorchester, Yeovil, Frome, Westbury) to Savernake, where you would change on to the Midland and South Western Junction line north to Swindon (via Marlborough), Chisledon being just south of Swindon. (The M&SWJ became part of the GWR in 1923).

There is an alternative, changing to the LSWR at Dorchester and then taking a somewhat convoluted route via Salisbury, but as you'd end up getting on the GWR train to change at Savernake, you'd need to like travelling by train an awful lot.

[Moonraker]

Railway network c1920

Dorchester-Wimborne-Fordingbridge-Salisbury-Andover, then direct train through Savernake and Marlborough, is perhaps the option Steven has in mind.

Whatever year in the war, either journey would have been "interesting" and the more so as civilian services were reduced. The route from Andover, through Tidworth, Savernake and Marlborough to Chisledon, thence to Swindon, would have been particularly fraught because it carried so much military traffic.

(When being demobilised at Chisledon Camp, one lieutenant managed to be issued with a warrant to travel from Swindon to Edinburgh via Penzance! The War Office had recently refused the Commanding officer's request for a Bradshaw railway timetable, a map of the British Isles and regional railway guides, and this was pointed out to higher authority when it queried the roundabout journey. The requisite publications arrived shortly afterwards.)

Just as Steven mutters about suitcases-on-wheels, no doubt some passengers found soldiers' rucksacks a hindrance.

Moonraker

[HERITAGE PLUS]

Thanks Gentlemen

[Steven Broomfield]

(When being demobilised at Chisledon Camp, one lieutenant managed to be issued with a warrant to travel from Swindon to Edinburgh via Penzance! The War Office had recently refused the Commanding officer's request for a Bradshaw railway timetable, a map of the British Isles and regional railway guides, and this was pointed out to higher authority when it queried the roundabout journey. The requisite publications arrived shortly afterwards.)

Moonraker

Michael Portillo makes it look all so easy.

[sotonmate]

Michael Portillo makes it look all so easy.

SB

You mention this fine gentleman,I met him at the NA in October ! What an honour. Asked him if he had arrived by train,and did he have any spare tickets for the Amalfi Coast. What a prat I am ! How many times he gets asked that,I subsequently wondered. Now if it had been you meeting him.......?

[Steven Broomfield]

I think he's great and I love the programmes.

I just have a sneaking suspicion some functionary is just out-of-shot, tugging Mr P's ruddy great wheeled suitcase.

[Bryan Pready]

My wife saw him making a programme about the line between Wigan and Manchester. As far as she could see, it was just Portillo and a cameraman.

Perhaps the support team was somewhere on the road, in a large truck.