Goudhurst railway station

Disused railway station in Kent

Goudhurst
A postcard view of Goudhurst station in the 1900s
General information
LocationGoudhurst, Tunbridge Wells, Kent
England
Grid referenceTQ709373
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyCranbrook and Paddock Wood Railway
Pre-groupingSouth Eastern Railway
Post-groupingSouthern Railway
Southern Region of British Railways
Key dates
1 October 1892Station opened as Hope Mill for Goudhurst and Lamberhurst
1 December 1892Renamed Goudhurst
12 June 1961Station closed
Goudhurst station, 1948
Legend
To Horsmonden
River Teise
A262
to Cranbrook
Legend
Running line
Sidings

Goudhurst is a closed railway station on the closed Hawkhurst Branch in Kent, England.[1]

History

The station originally opened on 1 October 1892 as Hope Mill, for Goudhurst & Lamberhurst,[2] when the line was opened from Paddock Wood.[3] It was named after the parish, but following the presentation of a petition to the Cranbrook & Paddock Wood Railway Company in November 1892,[4] the name was changed to Goudhurst on 1 December 1892.[2][5] The station was the terminus of the line for just over eleven months, until the extension to Hawkhurst was opened on 4 September 1893.[3][6] The station was approximately one mile to the west of the village of Goudhurst which was some 250 ft higher than the station, presenting a somewhat daunting task for a baggage-laden passenger.[4] The station achieved some degree of fame when it appeared in the 1950s children's television series "The Old Pull and Push".[7] It also featured in the 1953 children's film Adventures in the Hopfields.

The station was closed with the line on 12 June 1961.[3][5] The fine station building was demolished in the 1960s and replaced with a private dwelling called "Haltwhistle" which is situated on the area where the goods yard would have been. The property is surrounded by high conifer trees and a swimming pool has been put in between part of the former platforms. The old station lights line the drive to the house.[7]

Accidents

On 18 February 1948, SECR C class 0-6-0 No. 1225 was wrongly despatched into the north sidings at Goudhurst and derailed.[8]

References

  1. ^ Conolly, W. Philip (January 1976). British Railways Pre-Grouping Atlas and Gazetteer (5th ed.). Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 6 section D5. ISBN 0-7110-0320-3. EX/0176.
  2. ^ a b Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 123. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  3. ^ a b c Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. London: Guild Publishing. p. 183. CN 8983.
  4. ^ a b Harding, Peter A. (1998). The Hawkhurst Branch line. Woking, Surrey: P.A. Harding. p. 9. ISBN 0-9523458-3-8.
  5. ^ a b Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 107. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  6. ^ Vallance, H.A. (February 1955). "Through the Wealden Hills to Hawkhurst" (PDF). The Railway Magazine. Vol. 101, no. 646. Westminster: Tothill Press. p. 122. ISSN 0033-8923. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
  7. ^ a b Oppitz, Leslie (2003). Lost Railways of Kent. Newbury, Berks: Countryside Books. p. 124. ISBN 978-1-85306-803-4. OCLC 52565653.
  8. ^ Scott-Morgan, John (2008). Branches & Byways – Kent. Hersham: Oxford Publishing Co. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-86093-616-9.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Goudhurst railway station.
  • Goudhurst railway station Disused Stations
  • Goudhurst station on navigable 1946 O. S. map
  • Signal diagram, 1948


Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Horsmonden   British Railways
Southern Region
Hawkhurst Branch 		  Cranbrook

51°06′33″N 0°26′21″E / 51.1093°N 0.4392°E / 51.1093; 0.4392

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Locations in the
parish of GoudhurstBuildingsPeopleSchools
  • Bethany School
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Closed railway stations in Kent
Canterbury and Whitstable Railway
Elham Valley Railway
Hawkhurst branch line
Hundred of Hoo Railway
Kent and East Sussex Railway
Sheppey Light Railway
East Kent Light Railway
Westerham Valley branch line
Gravesend West Line
Sandgate Branch
South Eastern Main Line
Dover area
Marshlink line
Dungeness branches
Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway
SER & LCDR merger remodelling
Other lines
Ashford to Ramsgate
via Canterbury West
Chatham Main Line
Kent Coast line
Maidstone East line
Medway Valley line
Sheerness line