Introduction

This is an Introduction page to a detailed Signal Register which is being compiled for the whole of the former Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway (S&DJR). It is hoped to be able to list basic details of construction and type for as many as possible of the various signals which existed at different times on the S&DJR during the period from about 1900 until closure of most of the line in 1966. General information about the different types of S&DJR signals and their construction can be found on a separate page in RailWest.

Currently the Signal Register covers only the main running signals, although ground signals may be added at a later date. There are additional pages in RailWest with further details about the subsidiary ringed arm and wrong-road signals. Signals will be listed in the Register under the name of the signal-box or ground-frame by which they were worked. At many locations the signal-box (or ground-frame) or its lever-frame was replaced at some time during the life of the S&DJR and therefore there may be multiple entries in the Signal Register for the same location.

The Signal Register entries are listed in the line order of the various signal-boxes and ground-frames, but an alphabetical Index to Locations is provided for quick access. (The names of ground-frames are shown in italics to distinguish them from signal-boxes.) In most cases any ground-frames listed in the Register controlled level-crossings; the Register does not list any ground-frames which did not control main running signals, nor any level-crossings which did not have signals.

Sources of Information

There are very few relevant details about signal construction in any surviving S&DJR records and therefore most of the information for this Signal Register has been drawn from photographs. Railway photography of the S&DJR was quite common, certainly by the 1950s, although it tended to be concentrated on those places more popular with, or easily accessible by, railway enthusiasts. However the signals were not usually the main focus of the photographers' attention and therefore often appear only by chance. While some signals may feature prominently in many photographs of certain locations, others can be glimpsed only rarely in the distant background and some appear to have escaped the camera altogether.

Although all signals would have been marked on the signal diagram for each signal-box or ground-frame, those drawings basically were diagrammatic only and can not be relied upon to provide an accurate representation of the actual form of the signal. Information from the associated mechanical locking tables (where available) has been used to provide the 'official' descriptions of the various signals, otherwise 'generic' descriptions have been used. The lever number for each signal is given where known, but in a few cases no suitable records exist.

Changes to Signals

During the lifetime of the S&DJR many of the signals were altered, relocated or replaced. Apart from some very rare early photographic evidence in a few exceptional cases, in general the original form of any S&DJR signal can not be determined with certainty. Consequently it is not always possible to know, when looking at photographs of signals in later years, if or when or how often they might have been altered. An exception to this problem is the use of upper-quadrant (UQ) signal-arms, because any signal which had existed prior to the adoption of UQ arms circa-1930 must have had a lower-quadrant (LQ) arm originally. Some alterations to subsidiary ringed-arm signals can be identified also because of known changes in the style of arm. The entries in the Signal Register therefore merely divide the available information about signal styles and changes into rough 'early' and 'later' periods, with supporting notes (where possible) about the approximate timescale for the change. Some information on alteration dates has been gleaned from surviving S&DJR Signal Instructions and appropriate references are being added to the Register as time permits.

Signal Register

The Signal Register sets out the available details for all known S&DJR main running signals, grouped by their controlling signal-boxes or ground-frames (in italics for the latter) listed in line order. For ease of downloading the Signal Register has been divided into 3 parts on separate pages. Each part may be viewed by clicking on the relevant link below, or an individual signal-box or ground-frame may be accessed from the alphabetical Index of Locations. Register parts are:-

A number of Codes are used in the Signal Register to describe various features of the signals - click Key to Codes for a full list. The following explanations of Signal Register entries should be noted:-

• The signal 'Description' has been taken from the relevant locking table (where available), otherwise a generic description has been used.
• The signal lever number (where known) is given in the 'No' column.
• The 'Early' and 'Later' columns give construction and style details of the signal at differing periods - see Changes to Signals above for further explanation.
• A hash symbol '#' refers to an entry in the 'Remarks' column.

NOTE: Any dates prefixed 'pre-' or 'post-' indicate merely the earliest or latest known date and not the actual date of change.

© CJL Osment 2002-23