London to Oxted, East Grinstead, & Beyond in the Days of Steam Information on the Oxted Line: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Oxted_Line http://zoom.it/PvLM 30 September 1948: London Bridge (Central) Station, with Oxted line train leaving, view NW, towards buffer-stops of the Central Section (ex- LB&SCR) terminus. The locomotive is LB&SCR L.B. Billinton J2 class 4-6-2T No. 32326 (built 3/12 as No. 326 'Bessborough', withdrawn 6/51)—a rather splendid rarety. By Ben Brooksbank Southern Railway Films video of Oxted line in steam days, part 2, showing class 4 tanks at work on the line: http://youtu.be/LWDyuX01DAA http://zoom.it/5LCp 7 June 1954: Victoria (Central)-East Grinstead. View towards buffer-stops on Platform 14, Victoria Central (ex-LB&SC) Station. The 12.03 to Brighton via Oxted and East Grinstead is headed by BR Standard 4MT 2-6-4T No. 80085, which was then brand-new from Brighton Works and allocated to Bletchley LMR. It soon returned to the SR on which it worked until withdrawal in 7/67. (At the next platform is the Pullman 'Brighton Belle' By Ben Brooksbank http://zoom.it/Seeh 22 March 1957: Oxted line train from Victoria leaving Clapham Junction View NW from Strathblaine Terrace bridge, towards Clapham Junction station: ex-LB&SC main line from Victoria. The 14.08 Victoria - Tunbridge Wells West via Oxted is headed by LMS-type Fairburn 4MT 2-6-4T No. 42068 (built 10/50, withdrawn 12/63). The ex-LSW lines from Waterloo are on the right. By Ben Brooksbank http://zoom.it/onsd 24 April 1959: London Bridge (Central) Station, with Oxted line train View NW, towards buffer-stops of the Central Section Low Level platforms. The 16.40 to East Grinstead via Oxted has BR Standard 4MT 4-6-0 No. 75070 (built 10/55, withdrawn 9/66). By Ben Brooksbank http://zoom.it/ND2g 13 May 1961 : Train from Tunbridge Wells West at Victoria (Central) Station View SW, outward from near the barrier of Platform 14/15. Unlike all the other services into Victoria (Central, ex-LB&SC,) which were electrified before World War 2, the Oxted line trains remained steam-worked into the early 1960s, by 'imported' LMS-type and BR Standard classes. Here BR Standard 4MT 2-6-4T No. 80148 (built 11/56, withdrawn 6/64) has brought a train from Tunbridge Wells West. By Ben Brooksbank .