The Tottenham and Forest Gate Railway was a

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 ...

line in north

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 ...

, formed by the ( 53 & 54 Vict. c. clviii) and built as joint venture between the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 in rail transport, 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had ...

and 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 ...

. It officially opened on 1 July 1894 with passenger serviced commencing eight days later and was taken over entirely by the Midland Railway in 1912.

History

The line was authorised at the request of Sir Courtenay Warner, a

property developer Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw Real Estate, land and the sale of developed land or parce ...

who owned land in

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a town within the London Borough of Waltham Forest in east London. The town borders Chingford to the north, Snaresbrook and South Woodford to the east, Leyton and Leytonstone to the south, and Tottenham to the west. At ...

, in order to serve the new developments there. Much of the route crossed many existing roads, and the area had already been extensively built on, so the line was built on top of a long brick

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide ...

. Many houses were demolished to make way and there was considerable local opposition to the railway. The line opened to passengerson 9 July 1894 between

South Tottenham South Tottenham is an area of the London Borough of Haringey, north London. Location South Tottenham occupies parts of the N postcode area, N15 and N postcode area, N17 London postal district, postal districts. It is bordered in the south by St ...

and Woodgrange Park where it joined the existing LTSR line to Barking and beyond. On the same date a curve was opened allowing

East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Essex, East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a ...

to be served as an alternative to Barking. Trains did not terminate at South Tottenham but continued westwards to various destinations via the

Tottenham and Hampstead Junction Railway The Tottenham & Hampstead Junction Railway was a railway line in north London, formed by an act of Parliament, the (25 & 26 Vict. c. cc) of 28 July 1862, which today is mostly part of the Gospel Oak to Barking line. It was effectively part of ...

, much as the Gospel Oak to Barking line does today.

Stations

The line had the following stations (listed from west to east using the original station names): * South Tottenham & Stamford Hill (existing) * Blackhorse Road (new) *

(new) *

Leyton Leyton ( ) is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the Ri ...

(new) *

Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...

(new) *

Wanstead Park Wanstead Park is a municipal park covering an area of about 140 acres (57 hectares), in Wanstead, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It is also a district of the London Borough of Redbridge, which was in Essex until 1965. It is administered as ...

(new) * Woodgrange Park (new) :* Branch:

(new, line abandoned 1958) *

Barking Barking may refer to: Places * Barking, London, a town in East London, England ** London Borough of Barking, 1965–1980 ** Municipal Borough of Barking, 1931–1965 ** Barking (UK Parliament constituency) ** Barking (electoral division), Greater ...

(existing)

Current status

The line now forms part of the Gospel Oak to Barking line, and is served by

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, it now serves a large part of Greate ...

passenger trains.

References

External links

History of the Barking to Gospel Oak line

A Brief History of Forest Gate
History of rail transport in London London, Midland and Scottish Railway constituents Railway lines opened in 1894 {{England-rail-transport-stub