OFF THE STRAIGHT AND NARROW

This gallery is a sort of compendium of all the bent and the broken, the crashed and the bashed, both steam age and modern, loco and stock, both British and foreign. Most are duplicates of pictures to be found in other galleries, some taken by me and some very obviously not. These pictures are displayed for recreational/information/research purposes only and are not for sale under any circumstances. Every effort has been made to verify the information in the captions but its accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
PLEASE NOTE : IMPORTANT MESSAGE : Please be aware that I do not sell copies of ANY of my pictures, DO NOT email copies to viewers or allow re-posting on other sites. Neither do I wish to enter into correspondence with any individual or group regarding my pictures or their captions. All comments reflect my personal opinions and I am not prepared to discuss these with anyone. I apologise for this disclaimer but I'm afraid it has been forced upon me. I have no wish to upset anyone and please continue to enjoy my pictures at your leisure.

GRANTHAM (1) - Late in the night of September 19th, 1906, the northbound mail train was due to call at Grantham. The signalman at Grantham South had his Down Distant signal at caution and the signalman at Grantham North had all of his Down signals at danger to protect a goods train crossing from the up Nottingham line to the up main line - over the Down Main line on which the mail train was approaching. This was not considered dangerous as the mail was scheduled to make a lengthy station stop. It was a clear night with patchy rain, as the train roared towards the station and passed the distant signal at caution at about 40 mph, much too fast to stop in the distance available. To the alarm of the postal sorters and the station staff who realised it was the mail train, it sped through the station towards Grantham North box where the points were set against it. A loud explosion was heard and fire lit up the entire North yard. The locomotive rode the curve, but its long tender derailed on the reverse curve following it and swept away the parapet of an underbridge for 65 yards, before falling off the edge of it. This derailed the locomotive, Ivatt Class C1 Atlantic, No.276, which was slung broadside across both tracks and almost completely destroyed. The engine crew was killed instantly. The carriages ran down the embankment after the bridge, and only the last three remained undamaged. The wreckage of the derailed passenger train adjacent to Dysart Road, 19/09/06. The train derailed on a sharp curve whilst going much too fast - 14 dead, 17 injured, a relatively light death toll as there were few passengers on the train.

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GRANTHAM (1) - Late in the night of September 19th, 1906, the northbound mail train was due to call at Grantham. The signalman at Grantham South had his Down Distant signal at caution and the signalman at Grantham North had all of his Down signals at danger to protect a goods train crossing from the up Nottingham line to the up main line - over the Down Main line on which the mail train was approaching. This was not considered dangerous as the mail was scheduled to make a lengthy station stop. It was a clear night with patchy rain, as the train roared towards the station and passed the distant signal at caution at about 40 mph, much too fast to stop in the distance available. To the alarm of the postal sorters and the station staff who realised it was the mail train, it sped through the station towards Grantham North box where the points were set against it. A loud explosion was heard and fire lit up the entire North yard. The locomotive rode the curve, but its long tender derailed on the reverse curve following it and swept away the parapet of an underbridge for 65 yards, before falling off the edge of it. This derailed the locomotive, Ivatt Class C1 Atlantic, No.276, which was slung broadside across both tracks and almost completely destroyed. The engine crew was killed instantly. The carriages ran down the embankment after the bridge, and only the last three remained undamaged. The wreckage of the derailed passenger train adjacent to Dysart Road, 19/09/06. The train derailed on a sharp curve whilst going much too fast - 14 dead, 17 injured, a relatively light death toll as there were few passengers on the train.