Gravesend West Line
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The Gravesend West Line was a short railway line 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 ...
that branched off the Swanley to Chatham line at Fawkham Junction and continued for a distance of 5 miles (8 km) to
Gravesend Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the Bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Roche ...
where the railway company constructed a pier to connect trains with steamers. It was opened in 1886 and closed to passenger services in 1953, remaining open to freight until 1968 before reopening briefly between 1972 and 1976. Part of the railway's former alignment was incorporated into the
Channel Tunnel Rail Link High Speed 1 (HS1), officially the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), is a high-speed railway linking London with the Channel Tunnel. It is part of the line carrying international passenger traffic between the United Kingdom and mainland Euro ...
.


History

Authorisation to construct the Gravesend West Line was obtained by the Gravesend Railway Company in the shape of the ( 44 & 45 Vict. c. cxliv) which received
royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...
on 18 July 1881. The act envisaged a junction with the
Chatham Main Line The Chatham Main Line is a railway line in England that links London VictoriaQuail Map 5 – England South ages 2–13Sept 2002 (Retrieved 14 December 2011) and Dover Priory / Ramsgate, travelling via Medway (of which the town of Chatham is ...
near the village of Pinden which lies between the larger settlements of
Farningham Farningham is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It is located south-east of Swanley. It has a population of 1,314. History Farningham is believed to be home to Neolithic human occupancy – flint and othe ...
and
Fawkham Fawkham is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. Fawkham is defined as a hamlet by Sevenoaks District Council, with a population of 429. Fawkham is a low density, linear settlement along the bottom of a dry cha ...
from which a line would run to Gravesend, a town already well-served by the railway. The project was driven by Sir Sydney Hedley Waterlow, Bart., the
Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...
Member of Parliament for
Gravesend Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the Bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Roche ...
and Deputy Chairman of 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 ...
(LCDR) which had built the Chatham Main Line. The LCDR's great rival, the South Eastern Railway (SER), attempted to block the scheme by seeking parliamentary authorisation for a loop line towards
Northfleet Northfleet is a town in the borough of Gravesham in Kent, England. It is located immediately west of Gravesend, and on the border with the Borough of Dartford. Northfleet has its own railway station on the North Kent Line, just east of Ebbsf ...
and
Snodland Snodland is a town in the borough of Tonbridge and Malling in Kent, England. It lies on the River Medway, between Rochester and Maidstone, and from central London. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 10,211. History "Snoddinglan ...
which would take in land required by the Gravesend Railway. The latter successfully petitioned against the SER's bill and obtained approval for its own scheme. The 1881 act sanctioned the construction of a double-track line from the LCDR's Main Line to a terminus which was said to be "Near the Ragged School" at Gravesend and initial plans had it sited in Princes Street. The initial capital of the railway company was £200,000 and it had powers to borrow a further £55,000. The line had to be completed within five years after which it would be worked by the LCDR. The construction works were put out to tender and eventually the offer of £108,000 from a Mr G. Barclay-Price was accepted on 3 August 1881. There was some internal discussion over the eventual siting of the terminus which was changed to Bath Street and then finally to Stuart Road. Around the same time, the
London, Tilbury and Southend Railway The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway (LT&SR), was a British railway company, whose network connected Fenchurch Street railway station, Fenchurch Street station, in central London, with destinations in east London and Essex, including , , , T ...
proposed to link with the Gravesend Line and the SER via a tunnel under the
Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...
from
Tilbury Tilbury is a port town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. The present town was established as separate settlement in the late 19th century, on land that was mainly part of Chadwell St Mary. It contains a Tilbury Fort, 16th century fort ...
, but this was never realised. A second act of Parliament was obtained on 24 July 1882; the ( 45 & 46 Vict. c. cliii) authorised construction of a pier on the Thames and the extension of the line to serve it. The railway company's capital was increased by £50,000 and its borrowing rights by £16,600. The contractor, Barclay-Price, submitted a revised tender of £143,000 to complete the line and pier. By 29 June 1883 works were sufficiently advanced for the LCDR to take over formal control of the Gravesend Railway Company, holding a ceremony the following day at Stuart Road where the first sod was formally cut. The line was officially opened on Saturday 17 April 1886, the date coinciding with the opening of the Tilbury Docks. The first train departed Fawkham Junction with Lady Waterlow being assisted to drive the train to Gravesend where the guests then went on to visit Tilbury Docks. Public services commenced the following Monday. There were stations at
Longfield Longfield is a village in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located 6 miles south east of Dartford and the same distance south-west of Gravesend. History The place in Kent is recorded as ''Langanfelda'' in the Saxon Charters of 96 ...
,
Southfleet Southfleet is a small village and civil parish in the borough of Dartford in Kent, England. The village is located three miles southwest of Gravesend, while the parish includes within its boundaries the hamlets of Betsham and Westwood. Southfl ...
,
Rosherville Gardens Rosherville Gardens was a 19th-century pleasure garden in a disused chalk pit in Northfleet, Kent, England. After being laid out in 1837, it stood for seventy years, and was finally closed to the public just before the First World War. Structu ...
and Gravesend West Street (later called Gravesend West).Channel Tunnel Rail Link Photographic Project
/ref>


Operations


Passenger services

In 1886 the service consisted of 14 trains in each direction on weekdays (a cheap rate was available for four of them) and 8 on Sundays. All services ran through from London, the journey time being around 70 minutes, the same time which the SER took to complete the journey via its
North Kent Line The North Kent Line is a railway line which branches off the South East Main Line at St Johns junction west of Lewisham station in Greater London and runs to Rochester Bridge Junction near Strood, Medway where it links to the Chatham Main ...
. The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway ran a rather shorter service in 52 minutes by using a river crossing. It was from the West Street Pier that the ill-fated sailed on 3 September 1878. In 1916, at the height of the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the Dutch Batavia Line introduced a steamer service from the West Street Pier to
Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...
. A "Continental Express" boat train service from
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...
was laid on to connect with the steamers, and signs in Dutch began to appear at some intermediate stations; in Dutch, Gravesend West Street was "Heeren" and Rosherville "Gents". The Prince Consort of Holland was said to have occasionally used the service.Kent Archaeological Review, Autumn 1971.
/ref> Services on the line were later increased to 10 each way on weekdays, 12 on Saturdays and 6 on Sundays. This went up again following the 1923
grouping Grouping generally refers to the creation of one or more groups, or to the groups themselves. More specifically, grouping may refer to: * Shot grouping in shooting sports and other uses of firearms * the use of symbols of grouping in mathemati ...
which saw the Southern Railway take over the line and laying on 12 services per day on weekdays. Five services ran from
Swanley Junction Swanley is a town and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England, southeast of central London, adjacent to the Greater London boundary and within the M25 motorway periphery. The population at the 2021 census was 17,826. History I ...
, one from
Bickley Bickley is a district and a local government electoral ward in South East London, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is located 10.4 miles (16.7 km) south east of Charing Cross, bordering Elmstead to the north, Chislehurst to the n ...
, one boat train at 17:45 from Victoria (with intermediate stops at Penge East,
Beckenham Junction Beckenham Junction is the main railway and tram station in Beckenham in the London Borough of Bromley, south London. The railway stop is on the Chatham Main Line, down the line from and situated between and . The tram stop is one of the easte ...
,
Shortlands Shortlands is a suburb of South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It has been part of Greater London since 1965, and was previously part of the historic county of Kent. It is located between west of Bromley and east o ...
and Bromley South), four from
Holborn Viaduct Holborn Viaduct is a road bridge in London and the name of the street which crosses it (which forms part of the A40 road, A40 route). It links Holborn, via Holborn Circus, with Newgate Street, in the City of London, England financial distri ...
, one ordinary service from Victoria and one from
Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Since the early 19th century, Charing Cross has been the notional "centre of London" and became the point from which distances from London are measured. ...
via the Chislehurst loop. The closure of Rosherville Pleasure Gardens in 1910 meant that there was not enough traffic to sustain Rosherville which closed in 1933. The Batavia Line service ceased in 1939 following the outbreak of the
Second World War 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 ...
and when it resumed its services after the war, it transferred its activities to Tilbury where there were better facilities. The wartime service of five trains each way (three in the morning, two in the evening) continued after the war. The Saturday service remained, however, strong at ten services each way, enabling Farningham Road residents subject to petrol rationing to reach Gravesend. During the late 1940s till 1966, General Steam Navigation ran pleasure trips from the West Street Pier, using a pleasure steamer called the "Royal Daffodil". In more recent years,
White Horse Ferries White Horse Ferries is a company that previously operated a ferry on the English south coast. It is a member of the ''White Horse'' group of sister companies. Hythe Pier, Railway and Ferry They operated the Hythe Pier, Railway and Ferry#Hyth ...
operated services from the pier using
trimaran A trimaran (or double-outrigger) is a multihull boat that comprises a main hull and two smaller outrigger hulls (or "floats") which are attached to the main hull with lateral beams. Most modern trimarans are sailing yachts designed for recrea ...
s. Passenger services were withdrawn from Monday 3 August 1953, the last train having run the previous Saturday. There were attempts during the 1960s to have services restored, notably by local authorities, but
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 ...
(BR) rejected these calls on the basis that it would mean electrifying the line and pointing out that it would be a longer and slower service to London than that provided by the North Kent Line. This argument did not take account of the fact that towns such as
Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...
,
Orpington Orpington is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is 13.4 miles (21.6 km) south east of Charing Cross. On the south-eastern edge of the Greater London Built-up Area, it is south of St Mary Cray, sou ...
and even Rochester have one route to Victoria and another to Charing Cross and
Cannon Street Cannon Street is a road in the City of London, the historic nucleus of London and its modern financial centre. It runs roughly parallel with the River Thames, about north of it, in the north of the City. It is the site of the ancient London S ...
.


Freight

Early freight consisted of fruit and other agricultural produce from Southfleet and from Chambers
siding Siding may refer to: * Siding (construction), the outer covering or cladding of a house * Siding (rail) In rail terminology, a siding is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line, branch lin ...
between Fawkham Junction and Southfleet. Coal and cement was also carried. A network of sidings developed around Gravesend West Street principally to serve the Red Lion Chalk and Whiting Company, the Imperial Cement Works Ltd, the Crown and London Cement Works and a paper mill. The post-1918 years saw a decline in the freight traffic and the closure of the industrial sidings. The Southern Railway concentrated goods traffic on the West Branch, thereby relieving Gravesend Central and the North Kent Line. The Southern's programme of electrification in the 1930s did not extend to the line, although an electricity cable did have to be laid under the line from the
Central Electricity Board The United Kingdom Central Electricity Board (CEB) was established by the Electricity (Supply) Act 1926. It had the duty to supply electricity to authorised electricity undertakers, to determine which power stations would be 'selected' stations ...
at Northfleet to railway substations at Denton and Fawkham. By the 1950s, freight traffic was down to one service a day, no doubt helping the line win a competition in 1950 for the best-maintained section of track. In 1959, the line was singled and much of its now surplus equipment, including station buildings and signalboxes, were removed. By 1967, BR's plan to withdraw local wagon load freight facilities was well under way, and later that year the line lost its regular freight service. On 24 March 1968 the freight service entirely ceased and the line closed; the last service to run had been that of the Locomotive Club of Great Britain on 3 March as part of their "Invicta" railtour. The north end of the line was physically disconnected from the rest of the branch and by September only remained beyond Southfleet. The extant section of the line briefly reopened between 1972 and 1976 to serve APCM's coal concentration depot at Southfleet.


Attempted preservation

It was the chance discovery in 1980 that the track remained intact that led to an attempt to reopen the Gravesend West Branch as a
heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (U.S. usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) ...
. Notices were placed in the local press which eventually led to the setting up of the North Downs Steam Railway Society to operate a section from Fawkham Junction to Southfleet as a steam-worked line. The scheme attracted support and membership of the society grew to over 500. Negotiations were opened with the British Railways Property Board for the grant of a lease and purchase of the track; it was not possible for the society to purchase the route of the line due to the presence of an electricity supply cable. The former goods yard at Higham was used as a depot from March 1981 where the pride of the society's collection, a
Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns Ltd (RSH) was a locomotive builder with works in North East England. History The company was formed in September 1937, when Darlington based Robert Stephenson and Company took over the locomotive building depar ...
'
0-6-0 is the Whyte notation designation for steam locomotives with a wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels. Historically, this was the most common wheel arrangement used o ...
T No. 7846 of 1955, was stabled. To keep up Chatham traditions, an LCDR 3rd class carriage, 4 wheel coach body, from 1870 was also acquired. A magazine, "The Downs Line", was published regularly and meetings were held at St. Mark's Church Centre in Rosherville. In November 1982 BR asked for a down payment of £25,000 for the track, with £5,000 to be paid up front as an indication of the society's intention to lease the land. The society raised £2,500 from its members and its bank agreed to loan a further £5,000 if certain points in the lease were settled. A cheque for £2,500 was sent to BR who promptly returned it and terminated negotiations. Around the same time, the society received notice to quit Higham by 31 May 1983. It now sought to relocate to Southfleet. Unknown to the society, a third party – Resco (Railways) Ltd – a professional restoration company, had been looking to set up a museum in the Kent area which would feature exhibits of rural transport around 1914. Attracted by the presence of a ready-established preservation society on the Gravesend Branch, Resco began negotiations with BR for the purchase of the track and an option for a lease on the land, subject to them obtaining a
light railway order The Light Railways Act 1896 ( 59 & 60 Vict. c. 48) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. History Before the act each new railway line built in the country required a specific act of Parliament to ...
. Resco met with the society on 9 March 1983 when it invited the society to run the line on its behalf. The society, fearing a loss of identity if it proceeded, put the question to an extraordinary general meeting held on 15 April at which Resco's managing director emphasised that the society had not been ' gazumped'. In the event, the society voted 2 to 1 not to join the Resco scheme and relocated its activities to
Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham, Kent, Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham, Kent, Gillingham; at its most extens ...
. It later found a permanent home at Tunbridge Wells West where it amalgamated with the Tunbridge Wells and Eridge Preservation Society in 1996 and operates services as the
Spa Valley Railway The Spa Valley Railway (SVR) is a Standard-gauge railway, standard gauge heritage railway in the United Kingdom that runs from Tunbridge Wells West railway station in Royal Tunbridge Wells to High Rocks railway station, High Rocks, Groombri ...
. Resco now began discussions with Southfleet Parish Council which had reservations about the effects of a heritage railway on the area, particularly concerning the likelihood of increased traffic on the country lanes around Southfleet. The project made no further progress.


The line today

As part of section 1 of the
Channel Tunnel Rail Link High Speed 1 (HS1), officially the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL), is a high-speed railway linking London with the Channel Tunnel. It is part of the line carrying international passenger traffic between the United Kingdom and mainland Euro ...
(CTRL) the remaining rails on the Gravesend West Branch around Southfleet were lifted during the autumn of 1998 and works began to excavate a new track bed. CTRL services would follow a route running alongside the M2 and A2 as far as Pepper Hill between Gravesend and Southfleet before curving south on a spur just before the B262 Station Road to join the alignment of the Gravesend Line along as far as Fawkham Junction where it joins the Chatham Main Line and proceeds to
Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces * Waterloo, Belgium Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Australia * Waterloo, New South Wale ...
. The trackbed to the north of the CTRL spur remains traceable as far as Vale Road when it is taken over by the A2260 Thames Way. Gravesend Borough Council has announced in its local plan its attention to seek agreement with BR to convert the remaining section of the line within the town into recreational use. The station buildings have, in the main part, been swept away in subsequent redevelopments of the area. Only the stationmaster's house at Southfleet and the Gravesend West Pier now remains. The majority of Gravesend West itself was demolished in 1991, with the remaining section of viaduct and bridge over West Street going in September 2006, having previously been reprieved in 2001. The North Downs Railway Society managed, however, to recover the platform canopy from Gravesend West station and this has been installed at
Groombridge Groombridge is a village of about 1,600 people. It straddles the border between Kent and East Sussex, in England. The nearest large town is Royal Tunbridge Wells, about away by road. The main part of the village ("New Groombridge") lies in t ...
. In addition, some track materials were recovered from the line in 1988 by the
Kent and East Sussex Railway The Kent and East Sussex Railway (K&ESR) refers to both a historical private railway company in Kent and East Sussex in England, as well as a heritage railway currently running on part of the route of the historical company. The railway runs b ...
.The Tenterden Terrier, "Rural Rails to Gravesend", Spring 1988, p. 37-41.
/ref> Regular passenger services ceased in 2007 over the Channel Tunnel Rail Link between Fawkham Junction and Pepper Hill (occupying the former Gravesend West Line) when phase 2 of the CTRL route to St. Pancras International was opened. The route is still maintained for occasional empty stock trains.


References

{{Reflist


External links

* Kent Rail's page o

an


Subterranea Britannica's page on Gravesend West

Subterranea Britannica's page on Rosherville Halt

Subterranea Britannica's page on Southfleet
Eurostar Rail transport in Kent Closed railway lines in South East England Railway lines opened in 1886