SHMRC

South Hants Model Railway Club

Hope-under-Dinmore - GW and LNWR joint in Herefordshire

Hope-under-Dinmore (4mm scale, EM gauge)

The Shrewsbury and Hereford Railway

The Shrewsbury & Hereford Railway Company obtained an Act of Parliament in 1846 to build a narrow gauge (4’ 8½” gauge) railway from Shrewsbury to Hereford.  The line covered a distance of 50.5 miles and work commenced in 1850.  The line opened from Shrewsbury to Ludlow on the 21st April 1852. The Hereford section of the line opened on the 30th July 1853 for goods traffic and for passengers on December.

In 1862 the Shrewsbury and Hereford Railway was jointly leased by the London & North Western Railway (LNWR), the Great Western Railway (GWR) and the West Midland Railway (WMR). By 1871 the WMR had amalgamated with the GWR, so the LNWR and the GWR jointly acquired the Shrewsbury & Hereford line.

In 1887 the traffic levels on the line were increased by the opening of the Severn Tunnel and in May 1892, the conversion of the broad gauge lines to standard gauge to the west of Exeter meant even longer distance through services on the line.

A station was built to the south of Dinmore tunnel, Dinmore, which was closed in 1958.

About the Hope layout

The layout is based on a fictitious station that is assumed to be at the north end of the tunnel, close to the village of Hope-under-Dinmore.

The layout has a double-track main line, and a single track branch.

The Track is to EM gauge (18.2mm) using a mixture of C&L plain track and hand built turnouts. Turnouts are operated by “Tortoise” point motors.

Signals are based on LNWR design and are operated by “The Bouncer” system which utilises programmed model aircraft servos.

There are two signal boxes that are based on the signal box at Leominster. The station building is a mirror image of that at Dinmore that still exists as a private house.

The layout is set in the pre-grouping period 1904 to 1920. Trains are operated to a schedule and are a mixture of LNWR and GWR.

Exhibition Managers Notes

Contact: David Bridges
Email:

  • Model: 6.0 m (19ft 8in) long and 3.35m (11ft) wide
  • Space required (approx) 7m x 5m
  • One table and two chairs required, placed behind the layout
  • Six operators
  • Operated from inside
  • Transport: hired van and two cars required

Video by Black and Decker Boy – Expo EM North September 2014

Hope assembled in 2 minutes at TrainWest (video by David McCarthy)

Hope-under-Dinmore image carousel

New movement created at Peterborough Show 2018 - Picnic Saloon Sandwich - Photo by Tony Witts

Where to see Hope-under-Dinmore


Friday 3 May 2024 until Sunday 5 May 2024
Thornbury Leisure Centre, Thornbury

Saturday 14 Sep 2024 until Sunday 15 Sep 2024
STEAM – Museum of the Great Western Railway, Swindon