One hundred and fifty years ago on 10 August 1857, Royal Assent was given to an Act of Parliament authorising the Dorset Central Railway's extension from Blandford to Cole, the objectives of which were stated as: '...not only to accommodate the traffic of the district, but by means of other lines to complete a continuous line about 70 miles in length, from the English Channel at Poole and Southampton to the Bristol Channel at Highbridge ...'. 'Other lines' referred to the Somerset Central Railway, whose extension from Glastonbury to Cole had been authorised a year earlier, and the two lines would subsequently link to become the infamous Somerset & Dorset Railway or S&D (known affectionately as the Swift & Delightful or Slow & Dirty) and fuel a gauge war generating ill-feeling between the S&D and GWR, which ultimately contributed to the untimely end of the former. When the first section of the Somerset Central Railway from Highbridge to Glastonbury opened on 28 August 1854 as a broad-gauge (7' - 0 1/4") branch operated by the Bristol & Exeter Railway, it was described as 'going from nowhere to nowhere over a turf moor, with but one town on the whole line and that having less than 4000 people'. The intermediate stations at Ashcott and Shapwick were two miles from the villages they served and the intervening moors were sparsely populated. It was therefore not surprising that the Directors' minutes for 7 October 1854 referred to the possibility of extensions to Burnham and Wells, which were authorised by an Act of 30 July 1855.

At a special general meeting held on 30 October 1855, the directors of the SCR proposed developments to the port of Highbridge and revealed their ultimate objective: 'The connection of the Bristol and English Channels has for many years been considered to be of great importance particularly with a view to the more rapid conveyance of the produce of South Wales to the ports of the South Coast of England'. The meeting considered two alternative proposals for extension eastwards: 1)Through Wells (as authorised by the Act of 30 July 1855) and Shepton Mallet to the Wilts, Somerset & Weymouth line at Frome; 2)To Week Champflower (sic) to make a junction with the Wilts, Somerset & Weymouth line near Bruton.

In addition to providing a rail link to London, both plans ostensibly envisaged reaching the south coast at Southampton by way of Westbury and Salisbury, but the second alternative was specifically and significantly recorded as 'having for its object an ultimate connection with the proposed line from Poole'. This can only refer to the scheme for the Dorset Central Railway, whose prospectus proclaimed it as 'Junction of English and Bristol Channels'. The case was argued against the route from Wells to Frome on the grounds of high costs and steep gradients. Despite strong opposition from the Wells faction, the Bruton proposal carried the day and the extension from Glastonbury to Cole was authorised by an Act of 21 July 1856.

Meanwhile, the Dorset Central Railway was emerging from meetings in Blandford and Poole in 1854, although part of its heritage comes from the abortive South Midlands Union Railway of 1852, leaving the Midland Railway's Birmingham to Bristol line at Mangotsfield and following a route through Keynsham, Radstock, Holcombe, Stoke St Michael then close to the route ultimately followed by the S&D through Blandford to Poole. The scheme was abandoned due to considerable opposition and physical difficulties, though the preliminary survey was claimed as available in the Dorset Central's prospectus.

Despite the protests of Dorset landowners against the desecration of 'the sacred valley of the Stour' an Act of Incorporation authorising the construction of ten and a quarter miles of single line, from the London & South Western Railway at Wimborne up the Stour valley to Blandford was obtained on 29 July 1856, eight days after the Somerset Central had obtained the Act for its Bruton extension. The Directors of the Dorset Central included Sir Ivor Guest of Canford Manor, the son of an ironmaster from Dowlais, South Wales and George Reed of Burnham under Chairman H. D. Seymour MP, who had already become a Director of the Somerset Central. Also sharing a Secretary, Robert A. Read, an Engineer, Charles Gregory, solicitors and London offices, and publishing half-yearly reports that were identical in format, the Somerset Central and Dorset Central were clearly hand-in-glove from the outset. The Dorset Central was planned as a standard-gauge (4' - 8 1/2") line, a factor of great importance to the ultimate fate of the two companies.

The 'gauge war' at its height at this time resulted from the controversy sparked by Brunel building the Great Western Railway to the broad-gauge. The Gauge Act of 1846 limited the building of new broad gauge lines to the Great Western sphere of influence. This included the Somerset Central Railway by virtue of it being a branch from the broad-gauge Bristol & Exeter. The writing was clearly on the wall for the broad-gauge, but the Great Western and Bristol & Exeter were reluctant to accept this and expounded tremendous energy in defending their gauge and attempting to block invasions of their territory by standard-gauge concerns, adding additional bite to normal competition between railway companies in the same area. The association of the Somerset Central with the Dorset Central was therefore bound to evoke the gauge controversy.

The cutting of the first sod of the Dorset Central on 13 November 1856 was described by the Illustrated London News as follows:

"On Thursday, the 13th inst the first turf of the Dorset Central Railway was cut at Blandford St. Mary, by the Lady of Sir John James Smith, Bart, of the Down House, in the presence of a vast concourse of people from the surrounding district, graced by a brilliant array of rank and fashion.

The first section of this railway already sanctioned by Parliament is the South Western railway at Wimborne to Blandford, and it is proposed in the coming session of Parliament to apply for powers to extend the line through the vale of Blackmore, to join at Bruton the authorised extension of the Somerset Central Railway, and thus establish a direct communication between South Wales and the Bristol Channel on the one hand and the whole of the South Coast and the English Channel on the other.

From an early hour in the morning the town of Blandford had all the appearance of a fete day - carriages of all descriptions, from the barouche and four - to the market cart, brought in their load of holidaymakers, and at noon the Corporation of Blandford received Lady Smith, the High Sheriff of the county, and several of the nobility and gentry; the Mayors and Corporations of Poole and Glastonbury, the directors and officers of the Dorset Central and Somerset Central Railway.

These all formed in procession, headed by the local schools and benefit societies with banners, navvies bearing spades and picks, and two wheeling in barrows barrels of strong beer.

The field of operations was very tastefully decorated under the direction of Mr. M.K. Welsh of Poole, with banners, triumphal arches etc. The barrow is of polished mahogany, with bunches of corn and poppies carved on the panels and the handles carved as Indian corn. The blade of the spade is of polished steel, the ornamentation is very beautiful and the handle of tulip wood, carved with ivy leaves.

Lady Smith cut the turf in a most business-like manner and caused great admiration in the minds of the navvies when she tipped the barrow, turned round between the handles and drew the barrow back behind her along the planks. Three hundred of the company afterwards sat down to an excellent 'dejeneur a la fourchete' in the Assembly Rooms, supplied by Mr. Eyres of the Crown Inn."

The wheelbarrow and spade used were presented by the contractor, Charles Waring, and can be seen on display in the museum of the Somerset & Dorset Railway Trust at Washford, West Somerset. The expenses of the ceremony amounted to £224 13s 2d, including £71 for wine, a tidy sum in view of the company's uncertain financial prospects.

The Dorset Central had already set its sights on higher things, its new Act of 10 August 1857 authorised the building of an extension to meet the Somerset Central at Bruton to complete the channel to channel link. No such link could materialise so long as there was a difference in gauge, but at its own general meeting of 28 February 1857, the Somerset Central had already announced its intention of laying standard gauge in anticipation of the link-up, and this was authorised by an Act of 1 August 1859. They then realised that a complete conversion to standard-gauge would save £30,000 on the cost for providing mixed gauge, so they approached parliament with a bill to abandon the broad-gauge in addition to extending the time to complete the Glastonbury-Bruton extension. But it was not to be so easy to shake of the broad gauge connection, parliamentary opposition by the broad gauge parties resulted in modifications to the Somerset Central's act, which received Royal Assent in July 1861, stipulating that mixed gauge must be laid on the Bruton extension and the connection with the broad gauge Wilts, Somerset & Weymouth line near Bruton must be built as originally authorised. Throughout the negotiations, the Bristol & Exeter Directors showed a most kind and neighbourly spirit, but had every reason to feel aggrieved by the Somerset Central's complete change of front over the Bruton extension and its barefaced attempt to sever the broad gauge connection.

The Somerset Central's Burnham branch had been passed by the Government inspector on 22 August 1857, but difficulties were being experienced in forming a cut to admit coastal steamers to lie by the causeway and a new landing slip was opened for public traffic with the Burnham branch on 3 May 1858. Wells, with a population of about 7,500, had shown enthusiastic support for the extension from Glastonbury at a public meeting in 1852. Disappointment followed when the 1855 Act provided only for a branch instead of the through line to Frome and the 1856 Act by-passed the City. There was reluctance to subscribe to the Somerset Central's extension and the inhabitants began to look towards the East Somerset Railway and encouraged it to add a Wells extension, which was authorised on 27 July 1857. This threat brought further pressure on the directors of the Somerset Central to complete the branch before their powers lapsed. The formal opening took place on 3 March 1859, followed by a Board of Trade inspection, and the opening to the public on 15 March.

A down Bournemouth service at Blandford hauled by 0­-6­-0 No.35 c1892

The first section of the Dorset Central from Wimborne to Blandford opened on 1 November 1860 and was worked by the LSWR under a five-year agreement. An extension of time was obtained for the completion of the Blandford to Bruton section, with priority given to Templecombe to Bruton. Work on the Somerset Central's Glastonbury-Bruton extension commenced in May 1859, after the Wells branch was completed. The contractor, Rigby, had 470 men and 50 horses at work, which increased to 600 men and 70 horses by February 1860. Work was held up by bad weather, a serious slip on Pylle bank and the requirement to lay a third rail to provide mixed gauge. In addition a new station and workshops were required at Highbridge, offices provided at Glastonbury, new staff to be trained and above all a considerable amount of standard gauge locomotives and rolling stock had to be purchased and paid for. The Bruton to Templecombe section was ready for use by November 1861, but it was not until 18 January 1862 that the formal opening from Glastonbury to Templecombe took place and public traffic over the complete standard gauge railway from Burnham to Templecombe began on 3 February 1862.

In February 1861, the Somerset Central directors were stressing the mutual advantages of the two companies being worked as one and by August they were strongly in favour of amalgamation to secure unity of action and economy in management. A special general meeting on 9 May 1862 approved the Bill for Amalgamation. The Dorset Central directors also approved the proposal for amalgamation in August 1861 and met the Somerset Central directors in July 1862 at the Westminster Palace Hotel before their final board meeting on 31 July 1862. The Bill for Amalgamation received Royal Assent on 7 August to take effect from 1 September 1862 when the Somerset & Dorset Railway was born. The final link in the was completed on 31 August 1863 with the opening between Templecombe and Blandford and the company, by virtue of running powers to Hamworthy controlled a railway stretching between the Bristol and English Channels and with the inclusion of its shipping services, from Cardiff to Cherbourg.

Traffic was not heavy because much of the route only served scattered rural communities, while Burnham was found incapable of being transformed into a major port without considerable expenditure. Even so, receipts exceeded the working expenses and the financial position would have been tolerable had it not been for the excessive debts from equipping the line. A further traffic outlet was essential and the S&D initially hoped to reach Bristol by virtue of the Bristol & Exeter laying a standard-gauge rail. However this did not materialise and the S&D was forced to construct its own route north. In 1874 an extension was opened from Evercreech Junction to Bath, linking the standard gauge Midland and London & South Western Railways with a line that passed through the territory of their broad gauge rival, the Great Western. However, the extension to Bath drained the S&D finances so that it was not able to cope with the rapid increase in traffic generated and in 1875 the line was leased jointly to the M.R. and L.& S.W.R, becoming the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway and causing further irritation to the GWR.

The line from Bath to Bournemouth rapidly developed as a main through route from the north and led to the growth of Bournemouth as a holiday resort, the original Somerset Central route reverting to 'going from nowhere to nowhere over a turf moor'. In 1883 a cut-off was opened between Corfe Mullen and Broadstone so that S&D trains could reach Poole and Bournemouth without reversal at Wimborne. Most of the original single track from Templecombe to Bath was doubled in the late 19th century, followed by Corfe Mullen to Blandford, although Blandford to Templecombe, Corfe Mullen to Broadstone and the Somerset Central west of Evercreech Junction remained as single line to the end. The steep gradients, sharp curves, tunnels and viaducts required to cross the Mendip Hills on the Bath extension contrasted with the original line which ran through the flat Somerset Levels and gently undulating Blackmore Vale.

SDJR 4­-4­-0 No.68 at Bournemouth West in August 1913

Freight was always important, particularly between Bath and Templecombe, with both through trains and local coal and stone traffic from the Mendips. A special type of 2-8-0 goods locomotive, was designed for the line, the first being built in 1914. Passenger traffic was seasonal and apart from the 'Pines Express' through trains from the Midlands and North of England to Bournemouth ran only in summer. On busy Saturdays every available locomotive was often pressed into service to double head the heavy trains on gradients between Bath and Evercreech Junction.

The run down of the system began in the 1950s with the closure of the branches to Wells, Bridgwater and Burnham-on-Sea and intensified after the Western Region of British Rail, the GWR's successor, gained control of the majority of the line in 1958, which many thought was pay-back for past ill-feeling. Through traffic, including the 'Pines Express', was diverted to other routes in 1962 and the S&D closed completely amid much controversy on 5th March 1966. However, the individuality of the S&D gave it a reputation far greater than its size or importance in the British railway network and as evidence of the extent of interest, its memory lives on today through several societies.

The Gartell Light Railway is owned and operated by three generations of the Gartell family. The railway runs on two-foot-gauge track, part of which runs along the route of the S&D just south of Templecombe, and was first opened to the public in 1990. Two S&D stations owned by the local authorities have societies dedicated to their restoration and maintenance. The Somerset & Dorset Railway Heritage Trust was formed in 1992 to restore Midsomer Norton Station and a section of working railway along the route of the S&D. The North Dorset Railway Trust, formed in 2000, aims to restore Shillingstone Station and available surrounding area to how it was in the early 1960s.

One society that encompasses all aspects of the S&D, the Somerset & Dorset Railway Trust, has been in existence for over 40 years. Originally formed in 1966 as the S&D Railway Circle with the prime aim of collating and circulating information on the S&D, it now has a membership of around 800 worldwide. A museum at Washford station on the West Somerset Railway displays a selection of the Trust's extensive collection of S&D relics and documents, with a working reconstruction of Midford signalbox mounted in the signal cabin linked to S&D style signals. The pride of the Trust's collection of rolling stock is No.53808 (S&DJR No.88) built in 1925 by Robert Stephenson & Co. One of the famous S&D 2-8-0 goods locomotives, 53808, was withdrawn from service in 1964 and sold to Woodham & Sons, Barry, from whom she was purchased by the Trust in 1970 and returned to working order in 1987. There are also a number of industrial locomotives, a steam crane, several carriages and assorted goods vehicles.

The Trust publishes a bi-monthly magazine, booklets, an annual calendar and Christmas cards. A collection of archive films, still photographs, books and documents is available to members wishing to study particular topics. There is an annual model railway exhibition and local area groups run activities in many parts of the country. For the 150th anniversary of the formation of the S&D, the Trust is planning a series of activities between 2007 and 2013 commemorating various events. Exhibitions, conventions and visits to sections of the trackbed are proposed in relevant locations to mark the major milestones, such as the opening of each section of the route. Displays of memorabilia and photographs to mark particular events will be produced to exhibit at local libraries and other appropriate locations. A talk titled '150 Years of the Somerset & Dorset Railway', illustrated with slides and recordings, is available for presentation to any interested group and will be varied to suit the location, technical understanding and interests of the particular audience.

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