The East Indian Railway ...

[rogerfarnworth]

At the end of 1905, G. Huddleston, CLE., was Deputy Traffic Manager (Goods) East Indian Railway. This article is based round the one written by him in the December 1905 Railway Magazine.

The East Indian Railway – The Railway Magazine, December 1905 and a journey along the line.

The featured image for this article shows a Class AP 4-4-2 Locomotive of the East Indian Railways. [19] At the end of 1905, G. Huddleston, CLE., was Deputy Traffic Manager (Goods) East Indian Railw…

rogerfarnworth.com

This first article about the East Indian Railway follows the length of the railway from Kolkata.

 

[Calthrop]

An interesting look at things not really that wildly long ago in historical time; but in some ways feeling, as the chap approximately said, "as distant / different / 'other', as Noah's Flood".

I've always found rather sonorously heart-stirring, the names of the Indian sub-continent's pre-independence / nationalisation, rail undertakings. "East Indian Railway" was one of the more straightforward, prosaic ones; but if some had not been so, the more "jazzy" / poetic names, would not have stood out as such ! Kind-of feel that "East Indian Railway" in that wording, lends itself to a bit of misunderstanding -- sounds slightly as though it should refer, rather than to easterly parts of India; to the East Indies -- Malaya, Java, etc. ...

I struggled a bit at first, with the included "1905-time" map of the system -- with help of your text, sorted out it's not being, re India, "with North at the top" -- set out as it is, to fit in with "interlaid" Great Britain, it with North at top, for comparison of scale / reach. That map's "what pointed which way" could be construed as strongly suggesting which of the two countries was -- in the minds of those who then ruled -- "top dog" !

Interesting text from Mr. Huddleston, 120 years ago, re features of that era's rail journey Calcutta (as it then was) -- Delhi. I could not help feeling, reading recounting of the long stretch of the journey in daylight -- "lawks, the 'upper echelons' then and there, didn't half eat copiously and frequently ".

 

[rogerfarnworth]

Good to hear from you Calthrop. Trust you are well.

 

[Calthrop]

Doing fine, thanks -- yourself too, I hope. Afraid that I skimmed rather rapidly through your painstakingly-made modern-day parallel re the EIR's trunk route. Will confess to my railway enthusiasm's having a rather narrow focus -- basically, "only liking old stuff". Am glad of having made my only in-real-life visit to India, at a time when its railways still used steam (that was chief purpose of visit) -- though by then (turn-of-year 1993/94) said means of traction was, on the broad and metre gauges, down to a very few standard modern classes.

 

[rogerfarnworth]

Yes, well thank you. It is an established principle that we are all best only reading what interests us most! ..............


== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 22 Feb 2025 ==

Some East Indian Railway branches and the Kalka to Simla Narrow Gauge Line.

A further article about the East Indian Railway appeared in the July 1906 edition of The Railway Magazine - written again by G. Huddleston, C.I.E.

Huddleston looks at a number of different sections of the network and after looking at what he has to say about each we will endeavour to follow those railway routes as they appear in the 21st century. We will go into quite a bit of detail on the journey along the Kalka to Shimla narrow-gauge line. The featured image at the head of this post was taken at Taradevi Railway Station on the Kalka to Shimla line, (c) GNU Free Documentation Licence Version 1.2.

Some East Indian Railway branches and the Kalka to Simla Narrow Gauge Line.

A further article about the East Indian Railway appeared in the July 1906 edition of The Railway Magazine – written again by G. Huddleston, C.I.E. [1] The first article can be found here. [2]…

rogerfarnworth.com