Southern Railway (GB)
The Southern Railway (SR), sometimes shortened to 'Southern', was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent. The railway was formed by the amalgamation of several smaller railway companies, the largest of which were the London & South Western Railway (LSWR), the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LBSC) and the South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SECR). The construction of what was to become the Southern Railway began in 1838 with the opening of the London and Southampton Railway, which was renamed the London & South Western Railway.
The railway was noted for its astute use of public relations and a coherent management structure headed by Sir Herbert Walker.[1] At 2,186 miles (3,518 km), the Southern Railway was the smallest of the Big Four railway companies and, unlike the others, the majority of its revenue came from passenger traffic rather than freight. It created what was at that time the world's largest electrified main line railway system and the first electrified InterCity route (London—Brighton). There were two Chief Mechanical Engineers; Richard Maunsell between 1923 and 1937 and Oliver Bulleid from 1937 to 1948, both of whom designed new locomotives and rolling stock to replace much of that which was inherited in 1923. The Southern Railway played a vital role in the Second World War, embarking the British Expeditionary Force, during the Dunkirk operations, and supplying Operation Overlord in 1944; because the railway was primarily a passenger network, its success was an even more remarkable achievement. It continued to ply the lucrative cross-channel route as its predecessors had done.
SR Letter Stamps and Postal History
printing | date | colour | perf | controls | Paper | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1923 | 4d yellow green | 14 | 10309 - 10728 | cream surfaced | no point after railway |
2 | 1925 | 4d olive green | 10 | none | cream | transfer 1 |
3 | 1925 | 4d bright green | 12 | none | greyish | transfer 1 |
4 | 1925 | 4d dullish green | 12 | none | grey | transfer 1 |
5 | 1925 | 4d dark green | 14 or 14x12 | none | grey | transfer II |
6 | 1927 | 4d pale green | 12 | none | grey | transfer II but very worn |
7 | 1928 | 3d on 4d | opt in red | |||
8 | 1928 | 3d on 4d | opt in black |
Roger de Lacy-Spencer (The Railway Letter Stamps of Great Britain & Ireland 1891-1947, the author, 2000, ISBN 1-903633-01-X) suggests printings 2 & 3 were issued for the South-Eastern & Chatham section whilst printing 4 was for the London & South Western Section.
SR Parcel Stamps
Combination usage of first issue 1/- with a South East & Chatham 10d 18 June 1924.
First issue? Number below and boxes for number, weight and rate.
Large numbers in the middle.
Small numbers in the middle
Numbers at base
In use: