Down at the Club

The Internet is a great source of information, but means of getting in depth knowledge, specific to ones interest, is often still best achieved by being a member of an organisation that focuses on your interests. Many enthusiasts seem to remain unaware of organisations that do cater for their needs, whilst others perceive this or that group is not for them, possibly for reasons lost in history. So can you name Britain’s largest railway society and what is more to the point do you know what it offers either heritage or modern? The answer to the question is the Railway Correspondence and Travel Society founded as long ago as 1928. Now, perhaps the name is not very inspiring, as the world has moved on in those last 90 plus years but, fortunately, so has the society, and it tries to cater for a very wide range of interests. That is evident from the range of subjects presented at the monthly branch meetings, there being nearly thirty around the country. A random selection of subjects from those taking place in one month recently were, B17 Spirit of Sandringham (new build project), Flying Scotsman (talk by a former project manager), the LMS route from London to Birmingham, Preserving the HST, a Taste of Japan and, most impressively, a presentation by the head of Network Rail. In a twelve month period some 200 subjects featured in the 2019 programme. Of course the meetings have a social side, as well as giving the chance to meet up with fellow enthusiasts. If, on the other hand, there is specific subject that you would like to research, then there is the society library, located in the former station master’s building at Leatherhead. This new facility has brought together the many thousands of books and magazines which are in the care of the Society. Then, there is the large collections of working timetables to trawl through. If it is photographs that you want, the Society has many thousands available for purchase, or if you enjoy taking them, why not submit them for publication in the monthly Railway Observer magazine, which has some 80 pages of news and fine pictures. You can even join a group that critiques photographs, if that is your interest. There are also discounts for members on publications and heritage line travel, so why not find out more, including details of a special joining membership offer at www.rcts.org.uk