Elham railway station is a disused railway station on the

Elham Valley Railway The Elham Valley Railway was a line connecting Folkestone and Canterbury in Kent, England. It opened between 1887 and 1889 and closed in 1947. The line was originally proposed by the independent Elham Valley Light Railway Company in the mid-19 ...

which served the village of Elham in

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 ...

and the surrounding villages. Situated to the east of Elham the clapboard station was opened in 1887 and closed completely in 1947.

History

The station opened on 4 July 1887 with the opening of the Elham Valley Railway from Cheriton Junction, on the

South Eastern Main Line The South Eastern Main Line is a major long-distance railway route in South East England, UK, one of the three main routes crossing the county of Kent, going via Sevenoaks, Tonbridge, Ashford and Folkestone to Dover. The other routes are the ...

as far as . A public siding was located at Ottinge, just over south of Elham. It was controlled by a ground frame. Initially, there were six passenger trains per day. By 1906 there were nine trains a day, with five on Sunday. Between 1912 and 1916, a summer only

railmotor Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Commonwealth for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it. Steam railcars ...

service provided an additional four trains a day between and Elham. The service had been reduced to eight trains a day by 1922 and five trains a day by 1937. In 1931 the line was singled and one platform was closed. Passenger services between and were withdrawn on 1 December 1940 and the line was placed under military control. Two rail-mounted 12-inch

howitzer The howitzer () is an artillery weapon that falls between a cannon (or field gun) and a mortar. It is capable of both low angle fire like a field gun and high angle fire like a mortar, given the distinction between low and high angle fire break ...

s were stationed at Elham during the war. The track had to be strengthened to cope with the recoil when the guns were fired. The station remained open to freight during the war. Military control was relinquished on 19 February 1945. In 1946 the line was reopened for goods traffic but a year later this service ceased and the Elham Valley Railway closed on 1 October 1947. The station building was demolished in 1964. After closure the station building was demolished but one platform still exists forming a retaining wall of a garden for a house now built on the station site.

References

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External links

Station on 1947 OS Map
{{Closed stations Kent Disused railway stations in Kent Former South Eastern Railway (UK) stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1887 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1940 1887 establishments in England 1940 disestablishments in England