Established 1983

May 4th 2008 Looking at a membership form for the 1 May 2000 (Monday) that is still taped up on the inside of a cupboard door gives a reminder that it is now the eight years since our demise from the museum at Sandtoft. However we do have a huge selection of photographs of the railway at Sandtoft in better times some of which I thought it might be appropriate to just have a look at these.

Steam always played an import role on the railway. Left: Our member  Stuart Lamming and his mother booked the  for a day for his friends and family and friends for his 11th Birthday.  Right: Wilf Hawden is about to depart from Sandtoft Central in the summer of 1996

Driver Ron Hawksworth and Guard Rose Hawksworth (his mother) with train hauled by the electric locomotive "Mufta" at the new developing Haxey Halt station. Raymond Nowells approaches Sandtoft Central with his passengers. This photograph illustrates that the railway was also very popular with adults too.

SMR member Martin Hulks gives a talk to a school group on how the "Wheel" changed our way of life not only in transport but the many other aspects of life. To the right there were times when we had our work cut out to keep the queues down . A very busy scene at Sandtoft Central proves that the railway was a very popular attraction. 

Eight years earlier "Remus" was operating on the tracks at The Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft. May Day Holiday Weekend. David Stubbins in 2008 is getting ready to take "Remus" round the circuit at Thorne for the first steam train of the day. James Newton (to the right) is one of the new drivers to qualify for the 2008 season at Thorne. On  Monday 26th May 2008 we are planning to celebrate the first day of "Remus" operating at Thorne some eight years earlier on the Late Spring Bank Holiday Monday. 

Once on the same date our members would have been at Sandtoft operating most of the rolling stock you see in the photographs above, but alas at the moment this is not possible. Left SMR member Stuart Lamming prepares "Reg" for the "Marquee Special" on the day the model tent was erected in the park.  Right our SMR member David Stubbins takes "Remus" around the inner circuit at Thorne. Below left Paul steams up "Princess Sarah" again this was once a locomotive that operated at Sandtoft. Below right "Princess Sarah" built by Paul on test at Sandtoft in 1987 with Harold Dyson checking the steam pressure.

For further photographs of the 2008 Summer Festival click here

A brief "Journey Back in Time" on the tracks at Sandtoft with the Intercity 125 and Tich 1, The Last Train of 1999, our last full year at the museum and finally Harold Dyson at the controls of "Koppel" which he built along with "Remus" just to the right in the Sandtoft Central Station. "Koppel" is travelling through the passing loop in the station that was added so that trains could make more than one circuit even if there was another station in the main platform. 

Saturday 20th September 2008
We held the meetings to commemorate the 25th Anniversary Year in The Barn at the rear of the Bay Horse Pub. Tea, coffee and biscuits were put on for the members.   After the light refreshments our member Stephen Hobbs operated the projector whilst I gave the commentary for "The History of the Sandtoft Miniature Railway" PowerPoint  presentation. It was a trip down memory lane for us to see how it all started to the railways final days in 2000.
After the slide show and bidding a farewell to those members who had to return we transferred to the Green Tree Inn for a meal. Ironically the brown sign for the "Transport Museum" points down the Sandtoft Road a road that for many of us had been a journey we had made regularly for 30 years.
It was a very enjoyable occasion for us to meet again the members who had done so much to build what had become a first class attraction at the museum and also to help transform the museum from just being a circular set of overhead wires to operate preserved trolleybuses.

5th November 2008 I have never known time go so fast since the get together in 2008. We have been very busy at Thorne ensuring that the miniature railway in Thorne Memorial Park keeps going even through what must be one of worst seasons when the rain just keeps coming down. Tonight a group of us who are also members of the Thorne-Moorends Community Radio group are helping with the PA for Thorne Councils firework display and guess what the weather forecast is for cloudy damp conditions. Never mind we will do our best to ensure that the firework display will be a success.
Our members who are involved with the Friends of Doncaster Grand Theatre are still busy working behind the scenes both with the re-opening of the theatre and a show in January 2009. For more information about the Grand Theatre group click here or on the poster.

5th November 2008 During the months ahead I am hoping to reformat this web site with the help of Gordon Sharpe from Thorne Moorends Community Radio so that it operates better when being viewed on different screen sizes, plus some new graphics.
Another new photo feature I am hoping to add is from the slide, photo and negative archives of Sandtoft from 1967 - 2000. In the meantime are some photographs taken at Thorne some showing the rainy days I am afraid.

Well not quite all rain. The sun did shine in August (2008) on one of the Saturdays. Rachel who used to drive both the steam and electric locomotives at Sandtoft is seen here with me as guard with a train full of passengers using the SMR coaches.

Our members were busy again on the Thorne Memorial Park Miniature Railway for the Santa Special. A very cold frosty start to the day just as the sun starts to rise behind the trees on the park.  After a few hours of setting up Santa arrives at 10.45 am for the first train of the day which was not scheduled until 11 am. With a thick frost still on the grass and on the tracks Santa ventures around the circuit with the first passengers.