I live in one of the cottages fronting the station and I have always wanted to take a trip on the train. It has been a good harvest this year so I have a few extra pennies in my pocket, for my family and me to go for a ride.

We walk across the street and enter the station by way of these lovely wide steps. I purchase our tickets and we wait on the platform for the train to arrive which it soon does. The engine is a small tank engine with four driving wheels and there are two small but adequate coaches which are all that is needed on a short branch line here.

The guard blows his whistle and waves his green flag, and so our train departs on time. The train crosses the level crossing on the road to Weston Turville and as we pass the Bell public house in front of which we see some of our neighbours, obviously in deep discussion. The carter has released his horse and leads him to the water trough.

Our journey takes us past the back of The Bell and there is Molly the maid going indoors with a selection of vegetables from the garden. Oh dear and there is young Fred running for the privy again, after too many pints I expect, no wonder the veg patch is so lush!

Just round the bend in the track is the local brick works. The yard is quite empty so they must be out with a delivery. In front of the brick works the track branches off to our right and into the loading bay and platform to the station. When our Lord of the Manor travels by train, he and his lady do not sit in our lowly carriages but travel in their posh road carriage. Apparently the landed gentry will not sit on seats used by others so they travel in their own carriage which is loaded onto a flat wagon. with their horse & groom travelling behind in another wagon.

As we travel on we next see the Goods Shed and a flat wagon waiting for His Lordship. In the shed is Bill the carter loading up his wagon with produce recently arrived by rail for local delivery. His son is leading the horse over to the water trough for a well-earned drink before resuming his work.

Next to the Goods Shed is the cattle pen and then the coal staithes, so very important to rural village life - we depend on our coal supply for heating and cooking.

Around the curve we see the “Atora” shredded suet factory. There is a regular source of beef cattle locally from which the suet comes. And there in front is one of their local delivery vans drawn by two oxen – well what else! Those lazy oxen respond very promptly when the driver calls out “beef suet”! In front of the suet factory the railway branches off back to the Goods shed.

It is not long before we arrive back at Aston Clinton station and return to our little cottage after our great adventure.