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My earliest memoriesMy earliest memories of the LT&SR go back to a few occasions. One I have and remember a little about, was getting on at Laindon, where I was born and going to Fenchurch Street in the days of steam. Upon our arrival at Fenchurch Street and the then platform 1, Dad asked the driver if my brother and I could get up on the fooplate and see where the work was done, with much pleasure to me, we were allowed. I wanted to stay, but my brother wanted to disappear fast as it was hot on there.
Another memory I have, is getting a train early one Sunday morning and going the opposite way and right to Shoeburyness, because Mum and Dad wanted to go cockling there. We had taken some old pillowcases and filled them almost to the top, but upon getting to the station, one pillowcase split and there were cockles all over the platform and some on the track. Once we reached home again with what was left, Mum had a great big metal bowl about the width of the cooker and poured the cockles into it, then filled it with water and cooked them. We had cockles for a few days afterwards, but never went again.
Many a Sunday during the summers, Dad would wake us up and ask if we wanted to go to Southend. We were generally out of bed a darn site quicker than when we were going to school. Depending on the weather, we would get off at Leigh-on-Sea, walk out the station and to the cockle sheds and stop for some cockles on the way. We would walk along and occasionally run down on the beach at perhaps Chalkwell or Westcliff, before getting just under the pier at Southend, crossing over and getting a Rossis ice cream, then spend the day there. We even did it on the day of the Carnival. When it was time to come back home, we would walk up to Southend Central and catch the next train home. I was by this time, mad on trains and collecting the numbers, but always seemed to see the same trains and numbers.
When we didn't go to Southend, we would go to our relatives in Dagenham changing at Upminster and for the District Line. Everytime we did this, I used to ask why can't we get off our train from Laindon at Dagenham East and get the next train to Dagenham Heathway? I only asked because by this time I was realising that Dagenham East had a BR platform. Then I got told it was for parcels use only and many years later, one of our cousins became a delivery driver for BR and drove a 3-wheeled Scammel.
During our school holidays, many a day I would 'go out to play' and end up down the station watching the trains. On one occasion I was there, I noticed a different type of loco pass through fast. It took me many years to get this confirmed and it turns out it was a holiday special that had started from West London somewhere. If ever our parents wanted us and we were not around home, they would look down near Laindon station and find us. One day my brother and I were out with the kid next door, but this time we weren't down the station. We had cycled to Southend. Upon getting home, I got a very sore backside and sent to bed. After that, I only ever went to Southend with our parents and by train.
Have you any memories like these and you would like to share?
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