Tank Colours Again

Came upon these pictures for sale on E-Bay.   They are of the Midland Railway's station at Elsecar:

PICTURE 1

click to enlarge

Elsecar is an area of brick, as opposed to stone, buildings and the station and associated bridge walls appear newer and cleaner than those in the picture below:

PICTURE 2

There isn't much in it but the tree above the bridge has grown a bit and the railway uniforms seem slightly more modern in picture 2.   The telegraph pole to the right has an extra arm and advertising has appeared on the end of the building below it.

The water tower has changed colour between the two pictures!   IF picture 1 is older than picture 2 that hints at the light inner and dark outer colour scheme being original, the dark single colour of picture 2 being later.

The tower is of very plain brickwork and very functional in appearance.

I do wonder if these rather gaudy Midland water tanks might have been over-painted in wartime to make them less conspicuous targets or markers in the landscape.   Perhaps that over rates the Luftwaffe's bombing accuracy and eyesight!

Elsecar still has a railway station.   This picture, presumably taken from the road bridge, is from 2005 and shows a glorified bus stop, a pale shadow of former times.   The water tower would have been somewhere in the trees to the right.