The Railway Dogcast Series Two: Episode Four – 

It was an absolute honour to visit the legendary Lynton & Barnstaple Railway recently to meet Henry the railway collecting dog and his nephew Bertie, along with their owner John Bond and record an episode of The Railway Dogcast. Sitting in the gardens of Woody Bay Station Tea Rooms, John outlined the fascinating history of railway collecting dogs which began in the last quarter of the nineteenth century as larger railway companies sought to help finance orphanages which they managed. One such company, the London and South Western Railway (LSWR), established a railway orphanage in Clapham in 1885 which relocated to new accommodation in Woking in 1909. In the years before the Great War, the LSWR employed twenty-two railway collecting dogs all doing their part to raise funds for the orphanage.

John also tells the dramatic story of what happened when one of the dogs who collected at Waterloo, London Jack, was stolen in 1899!

Golden Retriever Henry stepped up to continue the 130 year old tradition of LSWR Railway Collecting Dogs at Woody Bay station, itself of Southern Railway heritage, in the summer of 2024. You can see Henry most Tuesdays and Saturdays at Woody Bay during the operational season.

The Lynton & Barnstaple are a Dog Friendly Railway – and welcome well behaved dogs and their owners at their stations and on their trains. In addition, dogs travel free provided that their owners have purchased a ticket and other passengers do not object. Yoshi certainly enjoyed his train trip when we visited!

The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway: https://www.lynton-rail.co.uk

Follow London Jack (Henry) on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/8132038423563194

Hentis Rail:

http://www.youtube.com/@HentisRail

http://facebook.com/HentisRail

The Railway Dog:

https://youtube.com/@therailwaydog?si=-6JrEeOQl62IuTHn

https://www.facebook.com/therailwaydog.co.uk