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The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway, sometimes referred to colloquially as the "Crab and Winkle Line", was an early British
railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
that opened in 1830 between
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
and
Whitstable Whitstable () is a town on the north coast of Kent, England, at the convergence of the The Swale, Swale and the Greater Thames Estuary, north of Canterbury and west of Herne Bay, Kent, Herne Bay. The town, formerly known as Whitstable-on-Se ...
in the county of
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
.


Early history

There are a number of other claimants to the title "first railway in Britain", including the
Middleton Railway The Middleton Railway is the world's oldest continuously working railway, situated in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1758 and is now a heritage railway, run by volunteers from The Middleton Railway Trust Ltd. since 1960. The ...
, the
Swansea and Mumbles Railway The Swansea and Mumbles Railway was the venue for the world's first passenger horsecar railway service, located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. Originally built under an act of Parliament, the Oystermouth Railway or Tramroad Act 1804, to m ...
and the
Surrey Iron Railway The Surrey Iron Railway (SIR) was a horse-drawn narrow-gauge plateway that linked Wandsworth and Croydon via Mitcham, all then in Surrey but now suburbs of south London, in England. It was established by Act of Parliament in 1801, and opened p ...
amongst others. Samuel Lewis in his 'A Topographical Dictionary of England' in 1848, called it the first railway in South of England. In 1823,
William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher and psychologist. The first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States, he is considered to be one of the leading thinkers of the late 19th c ...
visited
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
. He suggested to Canterbury City Council that a railway to link Canterbury and the
Thames Estuary The Thames Estuary is where the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea, in the south-east of Great Britain. Limits An estuary can be defined according to different criteria (e.g. tidal, geographical, navigational or in terms of salinit ...
would help alleviate traffic problems in the city. The initial act of Parliament for the construction of the line, the ( 6 Geo. 4. c. cxx), was passed on 10 June 1825. Three further acts in 1827, 1828 and 1835 allowed for the issue of a further £80,000 of stock. From the beginning, the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway was a public railway, intended for passengers as well as freight. Indeed, the world's first
season ticket A season ticket, or season pass, is a ticket that grants privileges over a defined period of time. History The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' has illustrative quotations which show the term ''season ticket'' used in the United States in 18 ...
was issued for use on the line in 1834, to take Canterbury passengers to the Whitstable beaches for the summer season. Unlike the
Liverpool and Manchester Railway The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the first inter-city railway in the world. It Opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, opened on 15 September 1830 between the Lancashire towns of Liverpool and Manchester in England. It ...
which opened four months later, it used cable haulage by stationary
steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs Work (physics), mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a Cylinder (locomotive), cyl ...
s over much of its length, with
steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...
s restricted to the level stretch. Until the early 19th century, Canterbury's line of supply for goods had been along the River Stour which flows to Pegwell Bay, near
Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town and civil parish in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in eastern Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2021 it had a population of 42,027. Ramsgate' ...
on the eastern coast of Kent. Although this is only as the crow flies, the meandering river journey is around . The river was continually silting up, and the cost of dredging such a length was prohibitive. Although turnpikes had been built, four or five
cart A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by draught animals such as horses, donkeys, mules and oxen, or even smaller animals such as goats or large dogs. A handcart ...
s were needed to carry the load of a single barge. Whitstable, on the coast about due north, was at that time a small fishing village and port with a trade in iron pyrites from the
Isle of Sheppey The Isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England, neighbouring the Thames Estuary, centred from central London. It has an area of . The island forms part of the districts of England, local government district of Borough ...
. The idea for the line came from
William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher and psychologist. The first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States, he is considered to be one of the leading thinkers of the late 19th c ...
who surveyed the route and produced plans for improving the harbour. The immediate problem was that the land between Whitstable and Canterbury rose to a height of and railway haulage on steep gradients was technically very difficult at that time. The only alternative would have been a much longer route through Sturry, Herne and Swalecliffe and land acquisition would have been a major cost. Accordingly, the direct route was chosen, with three steep gradients, two of them to be worked by ropes from stationary steam engines at Clowes Wood and Tyler Hill. From Canterbury North Lane station, the line climbed for at 1 in 46 to Tyler's Hill, where there were two winding engines. At Tyler Hill, there was an tunnel. The gradient eased to 1 in 750 for a further to the summit of the line at Clowes Wood, where there was a winding engine. The line descended for at 1 in 31, followed by a level stretch of before another descent at 1 in 53 for and a final level section of into Whitstable, giving a total length of . Construction began in 1825 with
George Stephenson George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was an English civil engineer and Mechanical engineering, mechanical engineer during the Industrial Revolution. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victoria ...
as the engineer, with the assistance of John Dixon as resident engineer and
Joseph Locke Joseph Locke FRSA (9 August 1805 – 18 September 1860) was an English civil engineer of the nineteenth century, particularly associated with railway projects. Locke ranked alongside Robert Stephenson and Isambard Kingdom Brunel as one of the ...
in charge of track. In 1827, following the boring of Tyler Hill Tunnel, work stopped through a lack of funds.
Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson , (honoris causa, Hon. causa) (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he built on the achievements of hi ...
took charge. Money was raised to enable the completion of the line. Dixon left the company, being replaced by Joshua Richardson. The promoters returned to Parliament three more times to obtain authorisation for the raising of additional funds, obtaining the ( 7 & 8 Geo. 4. c. xi), the ( 9 Geo. 4. c. xxix) and the ( 5 & 6 Will. 4. c. lxxxii). The construction of Whitstable Harbour, under the direction of
Thomas Telford Thomas Telford (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scotland, as well ...
, was completed in 1832. The line finally opened on 3 May 1830, with a single track throughout and passing loops at Clowes Wood and the entrance to Tyler Hill tunnel. The track consisted of fish-bellied iron rails, laid on wooden sleepers at intervals, the more usual alternative of stone blocks being considered too expensive. Initially, Stephenson had recommended the use of stationary engines for the three inclines, with horses for the level sections. However, the promoters insisted on use of a locomotive for the least difficult incline, and ''Invicta'' was procured from
Robert Stephenson and Company Robert Stephenson and Company was a locomotive manufacturing company founded in 1823 in Forth Street, Newcastle upon Tyne in England. It was the first company in the world created specifically to build Steam locomotive, railway engines. Famou ...
, and it was brought to Whitstable by sea. Unfortunately, the short gradient from Whitstable proved too much for it, and a third stationary engine was installed at Bogshole. The original Whitstable Harbour station was north Harbour Street at Whitstable harbour. This caused problems as trains standing at the station held up shunting operations. For the first few years after opening, passengers were carried in open wagons that formed
mixed train A mixed train or mixed consist is a train that contains both passenger and freight cars or wagons. In some countries, the term refers to a freight train carrying various different types of freight rather a single commodity. Although common in the ...
s. The line was visited by
Isambard Kingdom Brunel Isambard Kingdom Brunel ( ; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history", "one of the 19th-century engi ...
in 1835. The purpose of his visit was to conduct some experiments with a view to silencing some of the criticism he had received in relation to his proposals for the
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
, particularly the perceived problems of working a tunnel on a steep gradient, which Brunel wished to do at
Box Tunnel Box Tunnel passes through Box Hill on the Great Western Main Line (GWML) between Bath and Chippenham. The tunnel was the world's longest railway tunnel when it was completed in 1841. Built between December 1838 and June 1841 for the Great We ...
. Also in 1835, ''Invicta'' was modified in order to improve its performance. The modification was unsuccessful and led to the locomotive being taken out of service and trains being hauled only by the stationary engines. in 1838, the line was leased to Nicholson & Bayless. The C&WR tried to sell ''Invicta'' in 1839 in order to clear some of its debts, but no buyer was found. In 1839, passenger services were five daily. Nicholson and Bayless went
bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the de ...
in 1841 and the line was advertised to let. ''Invicta'' was later given to the Canterbury City Corporation, and for many years stood on a plinth in the Dane John Gardens beside the Riding Gate. ''Invicta'' was then displayed, cosmetically restored, at the Canterbury Heritage Museum until 2018 when the museum closed. In 2019, ''Invicta'' was moved to the Whitstable Museum and Gallery and is now on display there.


South Eastern Railway

The line was bedevilled by financial problems and was facing bankruptcy when the South Eastern Railway, which had received royal assent for the South Eastern Railway Act 1844 ( 7 & 8 Vict. c. lxix), agreed to take it over, operating it in isolation from their own line. ''Invicta'' by now was virtually useless and horse traction was being used. When the South Eastern Railway's own network eventually reached Canterbury in 1846, it decided to convert the line for use with its own locomotives throughout, after upgrading the track using standard rails of . Under
George Stephenson George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was an English civil engineer and Mechanical engineering, mechanical engineer during the Industrial Revolution. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victoria ...
's influence, the track had been built to standard gauge, but the loading gauge was small, the height of Tyler Hill Tunnel being only and the South Eastern locomotives were modified with shorter chimneys and lowered boilers. Tayleur's 119 Class 0-6-0 locomotives were used. Passenger services in 1846 were six trains daily, with five on Sundays. Canterbury North Lane station closed to passengers in 1846 and Canterbury West subsequently served the line. The line was never prosperous, even under South Eastern management, and there was a new setback when the
London, Chatham and Dover Railway The London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR or LC&DR) was a railway company in south-eastern England. It was created on 1 August 1859, when the East Kent Railway was given parliamentary approval to change its name. Its lines ran through Lond ...
opened in 1860 offering a better passenger service from Whitstable to
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Sunday trains were withdrawn in 1860. The platform at Whitstable Harbour station was extended in the mid-1870s to take three carriages. In 1883, two
Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...
O class 0-6-0 locomotives received cut down cabs to enable them to work the line. These were replaced by four Stirling R class 0-6-0T locomotives in 1891, which worked the line until closure. Canterbury North Lane closed to freight in 1891. A new station opened at Whitstable Harbour on 3 June 1895. It was located south of Harbour Street thus enabling uninterrupted shunting in the harbour area. In 1898, Sunday trains were reinstated, running during summer only. In 1902, work started on building a spur line at Whitstable to connect with the Herne Bay to Faversham line and a bay platform at station, but the work was stopped when the
Board of Trade The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for Business and Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...
demanded major improvements to the C&W before they would approve the new connection. In 1906, eleven trains a day were run. A halt was opened at Blean and Tyler Hill on 1 January 1908, appearing in timetables from 13 June. South Street Halt opened on 1 July 1911, and Tankerton Halt opened on 1 July 1914. The latter was adjacent to Whitstable Town station and was linked by a footpath. The service in 1914 was eleven trains a day. During the 1920s, the service was eight or nine trains a day. In 1930, there were six trains daily, with ten on Sundays. In 1923, the line became part of the Southern Railway and like many other lines around the country it suffered from competition from bus services. Passenger services were withdrawn after 1 January 1931, due to falling numbers of passengers - from 51,000 in 1925 to 31,000 in 1927 and 23,000 in 1929. There were up to four freight trains daily at this time. The signal box at Whitstable closed on 11 February 1931 and the branch was worked as a siding from then on. It continued to carry coal, grain and roadstone, with munitions to the harbour during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. By 1948, when it became part of
British Rail British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. Originally a trading brand of the Railway Executive of the British Transport Comm ...
ways, Whitstable Harbour had fallen into disuse and what was left of the line's trade had disappeared.


Closure

The final scheduled freight train ran on 29 November 1952. The line closed with effect from 1 December 1952, when R Class locomotive 31010 hauled two brake vans, although there was a short reprieve during the floods of February 1953, the line being reopened from 5 February to 1 March in order for traffic to bypass the main line between Whitstable and Faversham damaged in the flood. Afterwards, track was lifted almost immediately and the associated infrastructure was removed.


Surviving infrastructure

All traces of the Whitstable Harbour stations have been removed and the sites are occupied by public toilets and a medical centre, respectively. The concrete base of the former goods shed that stood between the mid-1920s and 2009 is still visible adjacent to the harbour, with the former entrance gates still displaying the initials "SE&CR" (South Eastern & Chatham Railway). The bridges crossing Teynham Road and the mainline were removed in the 1950s, although their abutments are still in place. The famous bridge at Old Bridge Road (previously Church Road) was demolished in 1969. The track bed leading from the site of the bridge adjacent to Whitstable railway station to the site of South Street Halt was surfaced in 1983 as a designated footpath and cycle track. There is no trace of South Street Halt, although remains of the level crossing gates were visible until the early 1980s. The railway embankment can be clearly seen from the adjacent cycle route bridge as it crosses fields and is cut through by the A299 road. A bridge remains near Bogshole Brook, which dates from the line's construction, although it was almost certainly reconstructed c.1846. A section of trackbed through Clowes Wood is also a footpath where the site of the winding house can be found. The site of Blean & Tyler Hill Halt is occupied by the driveway leading to a bungalow. About a half-mile section of trackbed remains abandoned leading to the visible blocked up tunnel mouths of Tyler Hill Tunnel. At the south end of the tunnel, the blocked up tunnel can be seen with a short section of embankment. South of Beaconsfield Road, there is a short section of embankment near St. Stephen's Pathway. A pedestrian tunnel is preserved, probably built during the 1830s following a death on the line. The site of Canterbury North Lane station was a goods yard until the 1980s when it was closed. A plan was mooted in the 1980s to open a railway museum on the site, but it remained derelict until being sold for housing development and the extension of Station Road West in about 1998. The Goods Shed was restored and became the country's first 6-day farmers' market and restaurant. The original
weighbridge A truck scale (US), weighbridge (non-US) or railroad scale is a large set of Weighing scale, scales, usually mounted permanently on a concrete foundation, that is used to weigh entire Railroad car#Freight cars, rail or road vehicles and their co ...
house and a level-crossing gate into the former goods yard are preserved in the development. The ''Invicta'' has been preserved, having been extensively restored in 1979, and can be seen in the Whitstable Museum and Gallery. The locomotive is not in its original form, since various modifications were made around 1836 in an effort to improve its performance. One of the stationary steam engines also survives, having been in the possession of the University of Kent and is currently (2021) undergoing restoration. Its wheel and engine are visible in Whitstable Museum, Whitstable. Part of the Tyler Hill tunnel collapsed at the beginning of July 1974, causing severe subsidence to some buildings at the University of Kent at Canterbury that had been built on the hill above. The resulting voids were filled over the next year, using fly-ash from Richborough Power Station.


Preservation

In 1997, a charity, The Crab and Winkle Line Trust, was formed to reopen the route as a footpath and cycleway, 'The Crab and Winkle Way'. In 1999, a 7 mile long footpath and cycleway was opened between Canterbury and Whitstable, running along part of the original trackbed. There are plans to allow public access to more of the line. The Winding Pond, which formerly supplied water for the static winding engine which brought trains up the hill from Whitstable, was incorporated into a picnic and rest area for cyclists and walkers on the route.


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * ;Further reading * * * * * * * *


External links


Harbour Heights DVD production on The Canterbury & Whitstable RailwaySustrans Crab and Winkle Way
*The History Files


Crab and Winkle Trust
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canterbury And Whitstable Railway Closed railway lines in South East England Rail transport in Kent History of Canterbury Railway companies established in 1825 Railway lines opened in 1830 City of Canterbury Standard gauge railways in England Railway lines closed in 1952 1825 establishments in England British companies established in 1825 Rail trails in England