Photograph location - Helensburgh?

[oldman]

Can anyone locate this 1950s photograph? My guess is Helensburgh Upper, but I wonder if anyone can confirm from the background slope.

 

[Railsigns]

The shadow on the left suggests that it's one of the stations where the island platform is approached by a subway rather than a footbridge. See for example the image of Ardlui station here.

I think it's Arrochar & Tarbet station. The edge of a small building is just visible on the left edge of the photo; compare with this view. We're probably seeing the push-pull service returning from Arrochar & Tarbet to Craigendoran, hence why it's departing from the 'wrong' platform.

 

[Dr Hoo]

So ‘right hand running’ through the loop with typical West Highland island platform?

 

[hexagon789]

Arrochar & Tarbet on the push-pull service?

 

[Strathclyder]

Can anyone locate this 1950s photograph? My guess is Helensburgh Upper, but I wonder if anyone can confirm from the background slope.

View attachment 173704

I'd also put forward Helensburgh Upper as a candidate when giving it a very cursory first glance. If not there (doesn't seem to be when looking closer), definitely at one of the stations between Helensburgh & Crianlarich given that the loco - ex-NBR C15 67474 - was regularly employed on the West Highland push-pull service alongside classmate 67460 in the mid-late 50s before being replaced by railbuses by 1960 (they were the last of their class still active by the end of the 50s).

@Railsigns' suggestion of Ardlui is a good shout imho. Cross-referencing it with more recent pics of the station, the slope above seems to match the one above platform 1. Always happy to be proved wrong however!

 

[Railsigns]

@Railsigns' suggestion of Ardlui is a good shout imho. Cross-referencing it with more recent pics of the station, the slope above seems to match the one above platform 1. Always happy to be proved wrong however!

I don't think it's Ardlui; I think it's Arrochar & Tarbet.

Both stations are approached by subway and the slopes are similar, but the small building that's just visible on the left edge of the photo is only present in that position at Arrochar.

We have an explanation for the train being in the 'wrong' platform at Arrochar because the push-push service turned back there, but no explanation for one being in the wrong platform at Ardlui (both stations were signalled for normal left-hand running).

 

[Strathclyder]

I don't think it's Ardlui; I think it's Arrochar & Tarbet.

Both stations are approached by subway and the slopes are similar, but the small building that's just visible on the left edge of the photo is only present in that position at Arrochar.

Ah that's fair enough. Like I say, I'm happy to be proved wrong either which way. Except for the really obvious ones, this kinda old image guesswork, as fun as it can be, can trip me up often as not lol

 

[Rescars]

Does anyone know the headlamp codes for this push-pull service? Does the lamp visible above the front buffer beam have any significance regarding the direction of travel? Might this have any bearing on the "wrongness" of the platform?

 

[Gloster]

There is a very similar photo on Flickr of 67460 which is listed under the tag Arrochar & Tarbet station.

 

[Cheshire Scot]

So ‘right hand running’ through the loop with typical West Highland island platform?

Push pull operation although with the driver receiving a tablet it indicates it is at the front of the train at this moment (as per my below suggestion).

I think it's Arrochar & Tarbet station. The edge of a small building is just visible on the left edge of the photo; compare with this view. We're probably seeing the push-pull service returning from Arrochar & Tarbet to Craigendoran, hence why it's departing from the 'wrong' platform.

The push pull did not normally operate north of Arrochar which effectively rules out Ardlui.

My suggestion would be just preparing to depart from the down platform at Arrochar (the driver appears to be accepting the tablet) - at that time there may have been an up direction starting signal from the down platform although none is visible in a 1962 You Tube video. Alternatively perhaps even preparing to shunt to the up platform for departure which, although the shunt would not require the tablet to be issued, would mean he would already be in posession of it when the time came to depart.
I would also suggest comments from fellow locals of that or a very slightly later era @D6130 and @McRhu may enlighten us.

 

[Gloster]

67474 was withdrawn in early in April 1960 according to BRDatabase. That tallies with Walmsley, Part 4.

 

[Siemens Staines]

Arrochar was my first impression. Most of the stations between Craigendoran and Arrochar had a North-South(ish) orientation, so for the sun to be creating a shadow facing the hillside, the photograph would have to be taken in the afternoon with the locomotive at the North end of the station. That would mean wrong line at Helensburgh Upper which does not have open hill side behind it and the station ramp is at the wrong end. At Garelochhead the subway is at the south end, and I don't recall any platform structures at the north end that could create such a shadow. Arrochar has an East-West orientation, and so the photograph could be taken in the morning with the locomotive at the west end of the platform, as described by others. The only one I do not know about is Shandon, and whether or not there was a separate token exchange there in connection with the Faslane branch. I don't think that was controlled at the station, but I am not certain of that.

 

[McRhu]

It's not the Upper, nor Rhu nor Shandon... I would think it's Arrochar but Garelochhead must be a possibility too going by the shadow of the railings and the immediate lie of the hillside.

 

[Railsigns]

I would think it's Arrochar but Garelochhead must be a possibility too going by the shadow of the railings and the immediate lie of the hillside.

Garelochhead station only has an uphill slope on its east side, so the train in the photo would have to be facing north. The shadow suggests the presence of a gate at the start of a fenced exit path going off to the left (i.e. north), but at Garelochhead the path runs south from the gate.

 

[Cheshire Scot]

The only one I do not know about is Shandon, and whether or not there was a separate token exchange there in connection with the Faslane branch. I don't think that was controlled at the station, but I am not certain of that.

The Faslane branch went off at Faslane Junction close to but not at Shandon, latterly Ground Frame controlled with Traincrew operated intermediate Token Machine although in that era the signalbox would still have been controlling the junction.

Garelochhead station only has an uphill slope on its east side, so the train in the photo would have to be facing north. The shadow suggests the presence of a gate at the start of a fenced exit path going off to the left (i.e. north), but at Garelochhead the path runs south from the gate.

Very much inclined to agree with that.

 

[D6130]

Sorry, late to the party here as I've been out this afternoon and evening. I would concur that it's Arrochar & Tarbet.

 

[Rescars]

Does anyone know the headlamp codes for this push-pull service? Does the lamp visible above the front buffer beam have any significance regarding the direction of travel? Might this have any bearing on the "wrongness" of the platform?

Seems I can answer my own question! Some gentling googling has produced quite a few photos of this service, with the loco always carrying express headlamps (one above each buffer). I had anticipated it would have carried a local train single lamp at the top of the smokebox. Does anyone know if such use of express headlamps was commonplace on other push-pull services?

 

[oldman]

Thank you all for your answers. Thinking about it, I should have realised that it would have to be at the Arrochar terminus for the photographer and railwaymen to have time to have a chat and pose with the tablet.

 

[Cheshire Scot]

Seems I can answer my own question! Some gentling googling has produced quite a few photos of this service, with the loco always carrying express headlamps (one above each buffer). I had anticipated it would have carried a local train single lamp at the top of the smokebox. Does anyone know if such use of express headlamps was commonplace on other push-pull services?

Can't answer for push pull but the traditional practice for all West Highland passenger trains to be class 1 even though they pretty much stopped everywhere once on the West Highland itself (i suppose it got them priority through the Glasgow suburbs). I didn't realise the push pulls were also class 1.