Museums Archives - mhalaise

Today we decided to visit Swanage Railway, a heritage line that runs from Swanage all the way to Wareham (although most of the time it stops at a place called Norden).

We parked at Norden (a park-and-ride car park there with access to Norden station).

However, before going to the station, we took a small diversion to the Purbeck Mineral and Mining museum…

Clock-wise top left to bottom left:

Mine cart tracks
Narrow-gauge railway tracks (with a heritage railway behind)
Narrow-gauge railway and shed
Entrance to the mine works/museum
Battery charging bank
Mining safety gear

Clock-wise top left to bottom left:

Examples of products made with ball clay from where this mine museum is located
Electrical test equipment
Carts containing logs and a general view of the museum
Another general view, and the entrance to the mine ramp
The mine ramp, leading to a mine tunnel
The mine tunnel

The main mineral mined here was Purbeck Ball Clay, the main concentration of which was here at Norden. Purbeck Ball Clay is sedimentary in origin, and formed from decomposed granite. More info can be found here.

On to the railway…

After visiting the mining museum, we moved on to Norden station to await our train. With time to spare, coffee was the order of the hour…

At Norden station. Clock-wise top left to bottom left:

From Norden station platform, some railway cranes
Looking northwards towards Wareham
Waiting area
Steam locomotive ‘Eddystone’ coming into Norden with our train
On the train, heading to Corfe Castle
Another view from the train of Corfe Castle

At Corfe Castle station. Clock-wise top left to bottom left:

Off the train at Corfe Castle station
On the footbridge, looking towards Swanage
On the footbridge, looking back towards Norden, the castle in view
On the footbridge, looking towards platform one, and the railway museum
The Corfe Castle station signal box
Corfe Castle looming over the trees

At Swanage station. Clock-wise top left to bottom left:

Detail of the ‘Eddystone’ locomotive
More detail
Yet more detail
A diesel shunter

I have a friend down for a few days, today was the first full day of the visit. Today, we decided to go to the Tank Museum at Bovington. The day started with a big, naughty, full English breakfast at Toby Carvery. And then we were off…

Entrance and on to The Trench Experience (France 1916). Clockwise, top left to bottom left:

The entrance to the museum, with its observation tower
A tank outside the entrance (sorry, I don’t as yet know what it is – there will be lots of images like this with no detail but I will try to gradually fill in that detail)
A mock-up WW1 conscription desk. Will you sign up?
British Mark I tank, the first tank to see “action”. This is the last surviving example of a Mark I (more info here)
Another view of the Mark I
A mock-up of a trench, infamous in WW1

Tank Men (The Story of the First Tank Crews). Clockwise, top left to bottom left:

a 77mm “Feldkanone”, this was a “trophy” taken by Albert Baker
A Mark IV tank, seen here with a large bundle of sticks (‘fascine’) that could be dropped into a trench, allowing the tank to cross…
A Mark V (male) tank
A Mark V (female) tank
A selections of medals, a newspaper (The Daily Mirror, from 1917) and some letters
How tanks communicated with each other in the days before radio

Tank Men (The Story of the First Tank Crews) continuing. Clockwise, top left to bottom left:

Um, a tank…
Inside the tank (general view)
Inside the tank (the engine)
Various weapons and armour used in “tank busting”
Silk postcards
A general view of the “Tank Men” exhibit

Warhorse to Horsepower (The Rise of the Tank) and on to WW2: War Stories (Royal Armoured Corps 1939-1945). Clockwise, top left to bottom left:

Light tank MK IIA
Matilda I
Comet I
Mock-up cinema and some of the armoured vehicles that might be seen protecting the streets (Babygiraffe, Bison and Rolls Royce Armoured Car)
A better look at the Rolls Royce Armoured Car)
A mock-up of a “living room” at the start of WWII)