Mrs. Richardson hands over four boxes of negatives to Ian Young, Chairman, S&DRT Ltd.

The S&DRT is delighted to receive by donation around 1000 railway photographs taken by Anthony Richardson, a talented photographer whose first railway interest was the Somerset & Dorset line.

Our photo shows Mrs. Richardson handing over four boxes of negatives to Ian Young, Chairman of S&DRT Ltd. in our fully restored S&D First Class Coach No.4 – built in the S&D’s own works in Highbridge in 1886. The black & white negatives number around 500 of the S&D with another 500 taken elsewhere in the south of England.

Ian was particularly keen to support this major addition to our collections as he was brought up in Highbridge and travelled on the S&D in its final two years.

Rod Ormston, Communications Director of S&DRT Ltd., said “The Trust has a wide variety of photographic collections of the S&D – and beyond – which are steadily being scanned, conserved and made available in digital form to meet both personal and professional interest.

The chairman and I were delighted to meet Mrs. Richardson and her late husband’s work is a very significant addition to our collections. It will now be scanned, catalogued and made available as a matter of priority.”

Anthony was brought up in the village of Fontmell Magna, Dorset, just a few miles from Shillingstone station on the S&D. He started railway photography in 1958, in this way getting to know driver Donald Beale and fireman Peter Smith through whom he was often able to request special displays of smoke and steam to enhance the atmosphere of his photographs. At first cycling to S&D locations, he later bought a second-hand moped which enabled him to widen his horizons.

It was indeed through Peter Smith – assisted by Mike Arlett – that we became aware of the collection.