A RELIC from the early days of the West Somerset Railway branch line, and which was rescued when it was axed in the 1970s, is to go on public display for the first time.
The now-tattered ledger was kept at Minehead station and was used for more than 60 years to record many thousands of items that were found after being left behind by forgetful passengers between 1904 and 1968.
Lost property ranged from false teeth to guns, farm machinery to jewellery, bowler hats to swimming costumes, and picnics to Christmas crackers.
The register was originally saved by a railwayman who was afraid that otherwise it would have been dumped when the line was closed.
Now it has been handed to the West Somerset Railway Steam Trust, which runs the museum at Bishops Lydeard station. The very first entry was made 114 years ago in now-faded pencil: “November: package containing pig net” which had been left on a train from Taunton and was never claimed.
The last one, as services were being run down and staff made redundant, said simply: “Umbrella 8/5/68”.
Full feature in this week’s Free Press