Michael Mather

In this second volume the support crew present more stories about 60009 Union of South Africa and also John Cameron’s second locomotive, 61994 The Great Marquess, which he acquired in 2003. This much smaller locomotive could go to places barred to 60009, such as the West Highland line, the line it was built for. It has also run on many heritage lines, where it has proved very popular. As before, the ups and downs of main-line running are included, as well as fascinating anecdotes and memories. Richly illustrated with more previously unpublished images, this book provides a wonderful insight to this marvellous hobby, something that has ended now that both locomotives are safely resting in John Cameron’s Museum.

Pastor Mike Mather arrived in Indianapolis thinking that he was going to serve the poor. But after his church's community lost nine young men to violence in a few short months, Mather came to see that the poor didn't need his help-he needed theirs.This is the story of how one church found abundance in a com-munity of material poverty. Viewing people-not programs, finances, or service models-as their most valuable resource moved church members beyond their own walls and out into the streets, where they discovered folks rich in strength, talents, determination, and love.Mather's Having Nothing, Possessing Everything will inspire readers to seek justice in their own local communities and to find abundance and hope all around them.

In this, his second book on Fife’s railways, local enthusiast and photographer Michael Mather delves into the past with a selection of photographs mainly from the 1950s and 1960s, but also dating back to the beginning of the twentieth century, along with some from more recent years, covering the main, secondary and branch lines, locomotives, trains and infrastructure of the county’s railways, most of which has now disappeared. While steam locomotives predominate, first generation diesels, most of which are now history, are also featured, along with industrial systems and their locomotives, accidents, Scotland’s first preserved railway at Lochty and a selection of railwayana.

Across Scotland there are remnants of many disused railway lines, reminders of the wider network that once served a variety of locations. Some fascinating examples are to be found in eastern Scotland and, although many are now fields, footpaths, and cycle ways, others have left more tangible traces of what they once were. Using a fascinating collection of photographs, Michael Mather explores the disused railways of east Scotland, bringing them to life with contemporary images, photographs revealing what remains of the railway infrastructure, and some shots of the views that passengers might have had from the trains travelling along these lines or of points of interest along the way. Also included are a selection of historical photographs; some taken when the lines were still open, and some just after their closure. Lines covered include: Ellon to Fraserburgh, Ballater, the Speyside Railway, Dundee to Newtyle, the Strathmore Route and its branches, the Aberfeldy Branch, Comrie to Lochearnhead, Glenfarg, the Fife & Kinross Railway, the Devon Valley Railway, Dalry to Leith, Scotland Street to Granton, the Penicuik Branch, Peebles, the Border Counties Railway and the Waverley Route.

CELEBRATING FIFE’S RAILWAYS. By the end of the nineteenth century Fife, like most of central Scotland, had a fairly extensive railway network serving the towns and country, moving the people and products of its varied industries and agriculture around. In this comprehensive book, local photographer and railway enthusiast Michael Mather examines the railways of Fife, looking at the network over the period from the end of steam traction to the present day. The Railways of Fife covers the stations and locomotives on the main line through the kingdom from the Forth Bridge to the Tay Bridge, the Dunfermline Branch and the Perth line before looking at freight, closed lines, preservation and steam specials, giving a cross-section of how things have changed on the railways in Fife since the 1960s.