A brief history of (Society)
time
The
Society was formed in 1974 and was originally based in
rooms on Scarisbrick New Road. It moved to its present
location at 57a Portland Street in 1987. This building
was the Stationmaster's house for the original
Southport station, part of the Liverpool, Crosby and
Southport Railway, which opened on 21st July 1848. The
Southport Terminus is now at Chapel Street, a little
further down the line.
The house and its garden are all that remains of the
station. It's a Grade 2 listed building, which meant that
RailTrack (remember them?) couldn't easily demolish it, so
they rented it to us. The tree at the bottom of the garden
also belongs to what is now ex-Railtrack, and is busy
invading our neghbour's drains and extending its overhang
of the track. A day of reckoning approaches....
The building
was restored by 1989, but because of its age it requires
constant maintenance, which is carried out by SMRS members.
One little conundrum is that to get a ladder up the east
elevation requires footing it against the 3rd rail of the
down line. And they never turn the current off....
The
name Southport was carried on an LMS Patriot, no.
44527. The nameplate in this photo was cast from the
same mould, but not carried on the loco.
Talking of history, this is
Steamport, the preserved Southport engine shed. It was
open to the public for some years, but the building
was in a poor state.
Eventually Preston
Borough Council made them an offer they couldn't refuse. In
1999 they relocated and rebranded as Ribble Steam
Railway.
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