A Victorian brass horn reputed to have been used when the first passenger train in May 1885 departed from Swanage to Wareham, is to be sounded again at a 140th anniversary ceremony at Swanage station in Dorset.
The public is being invited to attend the special event – dressing in Victorian costume if they wish – from 1 pm on Saturday 17th May 2025.
A special train trip will mark 140 years of the Swanage Railway
Special 140th anniversary steam train
The Swanage Town Band will play on the platform to welcome dignitaries and other guests – just as their predecessors did in May 1885 – including the Lord-Lieutenant of Dorset Michael Dooley, Swanage town mayor Tina Foster, and Swanage Railway Trust patron Sir Philip Williams.
After speeches from Swanage Railway Trust chair Frank Roberts and dignitaries, the London and South Western Railway brass horn will be blown at Swanage station to mark the departure at 2 pm of a special 140th anniversary steam train bound for Herston Halt, Harman’s Cross, Corfe Castle and Norden.
With the dignitaries and other guests riding in a 1940s ‘Devon Belle’ Pullman observation carriage, the special train will be hauled by the Swanage Railway Trust’s unique Victorian T3 class steam locomotive No. 563 which was built at Nine Elms, in London, during 1893. The T3s hauled trains from London to Corfe Castle and Swanage from the 1890s to the 1930s.
Public admission to the 140th anniversary ceremony at Swanage station is free but members of the public wishing to travel on the special steam train departing Swanage at 2 pm will need to purchase travel tickets.
The pin badge is a collector’s item to treasure
Commemorative badge
Swanage Railway volunteers attending the special 140th anniversary ceremony – as well as those volunteers on duty on the heritage line on Saturday 17th May 2025, will be presented with a special commemorative badge designed by Swanage Railway Trust director and volunteer Clive Hardy who is organising the special event.
Clive Hardy said:
“The event marking the 140th anniversary of the Swanage Railway’s opening will reflect the celebrations that accompanied the arrival in Swanage of a special train that brought the Swanage Railway Company’s directors from London to the seaside town on Saturday 16th May 1885, as well as the departure of the first public passenger train from Swanage to Corfe Castle and the main line at Wareham on Wednesday 20th May 1885.
“In 1885, the new 25 minute train journey from Swanage to Wareham cost eleven pence compared with a traditional horse and carriage journey taking one and a half hours at a ticket price of two shillings and sixpence.
“The opening of the Swanage branch line was historic and a seismic change for the Isle of Purbeck – turning Swanage from a fishing and quarrying town into a popular seaside resort and the picturesque village of Corfe Castle into a desirable daytrip destination.”
Swanage Railway Trust director and volunteer Clive Hardy has organised the commemorative event
200th anniversary of the UK’s railways
The Swanage Railway’s special anniversary comes in the year of Rail 200 – a national celebration, by both heritage railways and the national railway system, marking the 200th anniversary of passenger rail travel in England, Scotland, Wales as well as on the Isle of Man.
Chair of Swanage Railway Trust Frank Roberts said:
“It’s apt the 140th anniversary of the Swanage branch line’s opening in May 1885, falls in the year of the national Rail 200 celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the UK’s railways – celebrating the UK’s railways past, present and future.
“We are delighted that His Majesty the King’s representative in Dorset – the Lord-Lieutenant Michael Dooley – as well as the Mayor of Swanage Tina Foster, Swanage Railway Trust patron Sir Philip Williams and other guests from the Isle of Purbeck community are able to join us for what will be a very special celebration marking the 140th anniversary of the first train leaving Swanage for Corfe Castle and the main line at Wareham in May 1885.
“The blowing of the London and South Western Railway brass horn 140 years after it was sounded at Swanage station to mark the departure of that first passenger train in 1885 will have great historical resonance and be a stirring link with the past.”
The Victorian T3 continues to chug through the Purbeck countryside thanks to the restoration of the Swanage branch line
“Branch line nearly disappeared forever”
Chair of Swanage Railway Company Gavin Johns added:
“It is important to mark the 140th anniversary of the Swanage Railway’s opening because the branch line nearly disappeared forever after British Rail ran the last train from Wareham to Corfe Castle and Swanage in 1972 and lifted most of the tracks.
“Since 1976, several generations of dedicated volunteers have worked tirelessly and selflessly to relay the tracks and rebuild the infrastructure required to operate, develop and link to the national railway network the vibrant community heritage railway that we enjoy today.”
The Victorian London and South Western Railway brass horn was donated in 2010 to the Swanage Railway Trust’s museum at Corfe Castle station
Further information
- More about Swanage Railway
