... the West Country, 1873-1888, using maps from the British Library. A fascinating map series for me, as it shows the Somerset and Dorset at a time when the Bath Extension was newly constructed and was still single tracked (though double tracked south of Evercreech Jn as far as Templecombe). It also illustrates the limitations of the 25" series, in that the cartographers were not unduly concerned about the accuracy of the track alignments they drew. For example, here is Burnham from the 1873-1888 series:2129_220454_170000000.png Note the substantial misalignment of the track passing through the train shed, an error that was perpetuated on subsequent 25" plans of the town. Plainly, if you assume that this can form the accurate basis for a Templot plan you are soon going to be in difficulty, so it's better to treat the 25" OS plans more as a guide than as holy writ. Burnham is of particular interest to me, not only because it has been home for most of my life but also because it was chosen by a ...