In message , Phil Clark
writes

Travelling this morning on an engineering work special - which
travelled from Wimbledon to Clapham Junction via the District Line,
East Putney and Wandsworth Common - set me wondering - has this line
ever been used as a regular route?

It certainly has. I don't have complete dates to hand, but the Southern
Railway service from Waterloo to Wimbledon via East Putney is shown as
basically hourly (with additional peak hour services) in my 1928
Bradshaw (some services terminated at Wimbledon Park). This service is
shown as suspended in the 1942 Bradshaw.

And would it be any use if it was?

Faster than the District Line into Waterloo and even Bank/Monument
(providing you knew the times, of course).

I suppose it would connect Clapham Junction to the tube, but only to a
relatively remote part of it.

I think it was the direct service to Waterloo that was the attraction.

And do SWT services via the District ever stop at any of the District
stations?

Signalling and power supply on the line are provided by National Rail
(the line was, I think, the first to be electrified by LSWR), but (and I
may be wrong) I don't think NR trains normally stop on the line these
days.

--
Paul Terry