Historic station for Thorpe line
A15-inch gauge miniature railway revived just seven years ago is now planning to restore a waiting shelter from a historic but lost line. The Thorpe Light Railway in County Durham owns Bossall station, the last remaining building from the 18-inch gauge incarnation of the Sand Hutton Light Railway near York.
The Sand Hutton line closed in 1932, but Bossall station building survived as a garden shed. It was then stored on a farm until around five years ago when it was acquired for the Thorpe line.
The Friends of the Railway feel that it is time that the building was restored – today it is nothing more than a set of walls needing a lot of love and a roof, but it is highly original and bears much graffiti scratched into its framework from former passengers. These include a set of initials 'SW', which some wonder could be from Sand Hutton line creator Sir Robert Walker's former wife, Synolda, after whom he named his 15-inch gauge locomotive before later converting the Sand Hutton line to 18-inch gauge.
The Friends of the Thorpe Light Railway, a registered charity, would love to have the shelter restored and on the station platform for the 50th anniversary of the current Thorpe line, which was formerly the Whorlton Lido Railway.
It is estimated that around £2000 would complete the project. Anyone who might be interested in helping, either practically or financially can email the chairman of the Friends, Anthony Coulls at ajcoulls@yahoo. co.uk. More information on the Thorpe line is available at www.thorpelightrailway.co.uk