I’m not a railway enthusiast, but every time I pass this Grade II listed signal box, I have to admire its style.
This smart little building was constructed in 1892 by the Midland Railway, replacing an earlier box on the site, when the line was expanded from two to four tracks. It is a wooden structure with a slate roof and heavy glazed windows and has no foundations. It has undergone a few changes in its life to keep pace with signalling and track changes, and a toilet was added in 1963. The structure and its interior fittings were listed in 1979 and the box was closed in 1980.
After a period of decline, it is now cared for by a local group and his been renovated and painted in this smart livery – it possibly gleams when the sun shines. So much so, I had to stop to take a couple of photos on my morning commute.
St Albans City station is just 20 minutes north of St Pancras. If you’d like to see this little gem, it stands in clear view as you draw into the station. It is open to visitors once or twice a month – details here.
A wonderful little building.
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Intriguing design for a signal box. And so many windows. Most impressive. And love the colours.
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It certainly is a beauty.
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Wonderful shots of the place.
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It is indeed a pretty little building 🙂
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So glad it is being preserved and cared for! It’s wonderful!
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Love it, what a fabulous building, so great that it has been restored x #alphabetphoto
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It’s great that there are groups of people prepared to help with such projects
On Wed, Jan 21, 2015 at 10:38 PM, Travel with Intent wrote:
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What a lovely old signal box, it’s certainly seen some sights over the years hasn’t it #alphabetphoto
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It certainly has 🙂
On Wed, Jan 21, 2015 at 10:37 PM, Travel with Intent wrote:
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It looks amazing! Quaint design and lovely colors =) #alphabetphoto
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Thanks for this interesting post! The building looks inviting for people who want to explore it.
Wil, ABCW. Team
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I don’t know if I’m a RR enthusiast as such, but I DO love seeing old buildings that have been preserved—especially unusual or unexpected building like this one. Thanks for sharing!
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I AM a RR enthusiast, so LIKE these.
ROG, ABCW
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The Victorians were great in their designs for even the most banal functional buildings. Lovely photos. 😀
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And it doesn’t look out of place now 🙂
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A nice building with bright red windows !
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I like it also and not in the last place because the bushes in the foreground are red also.
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I can see why this calls to u as u pass by it = and your three photo shad so many cool lines – power lines, shrub verticals, window frame – chimneys, fence – just rich and layered – and love the red for ruby tues.
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And I like the little glimpse of levers and switches through the window 🙂
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yeah – me too – and they kinda look lined up “bumper cars” – (to me) – ha!
glad it got renovated with some TLC
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