Tollesbury Quay
Owner: Michael Gurton
Gauge: O
Scale: 7mm/1ft
Area Modelled: Essex Coast
Era / Period: 1930s
Size of Layout: 7ft x 2ft
Total Operating Area: 9ft x 5ft
Number of Operators: 2
Insurance Value: £3,000
Cost of Transport: Fuel for one car
Power Requirements: 240 volt supply
Other Notes: The layout is DC control, but background sound is used (seagulls, etc)
Layout Description
The model is based on the supposition that a short goods line was constructed from Tollesbury station, on the Kelvedon, Tiptree and Tollesbury Light Railway, to the quayside in order to serve the local businesses and provide transport links for such produce as fish and seafood to Billingsgate in London. Tollesbury was one of the prime Essex locations for fishing smacks during the 19th and 20th Centuries.
The model depicts a boatyard and slipway, a fish packing shed and the Tollesbury Granary (which still actually exists), which had a multitude of uses for local growers and producers as well as transhipment using sailing barges.
The period is the 1930s when horse-drawn carts and wagons were still in use. The J68 loco is a model of one that was actually used on the Light Railway between Kelvedon and Tollesbury. Other locos are present, because I like them!