Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway
Encyclopedia
Underground Electric Railways Company of London
The Underground Electric Railways Company of London Limited , known operationally as The Underground for much of its existence, was established in 1902. It was the holding company for the three deep-level "tube"A "tube" railway is an underground railway constructed in a circular tunnel by the use...
(UERL) controlled by American financier Charles Yerkes
Charles Yerkes
Charles Tyson Yerkes was an American financier, born in Philadelphia. He played a major part in developing mass-transit systems in Chicago and London.-Philadelphia:...
. The UERL quickly raised the funds, mainly from foreign investors. Various routes were planned but a number of these were rejected by Parliament. Plans for tunnels under Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath is a large, ancient London park, covering . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band of London clay...
were authorised, despite opposition by many local residents who believed they would damage the ecology
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
of the Heath.
When opened in 1907, the CCE&HR's line served 16 stations and ran for 7.67 miles (12.34 km) in a pair of tunnels between its southern terminus at Charing Cross
Charing Cross
Charing Cross denotes the junction of Strand, Whitehall and Cockspur Street, just south of Trafalgar Square in central London, England. It is named after the now demolished Eleanor cross that stood there, in what was once the hamlet of Charing. The site of the cross is now occupied by an equestrian...
and its two northern termini at Archway and Golders Green
Golders Green
Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in London, England. Although having some earlier history, it is essentially a 19th century suburban development situated about 5.3 miles north west of Charing Cross and centred on the crossroads of Golders Green Road and Finchley Road.In the...
. Extensions in 1914 and the mid-1920s took the railway to Edgware
Edgware
Edgware is an area in London, situated north-northwest of Charing Cross. It forms part of both the London Borough of Barnet and the London Borough of Harrow. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
and under the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
to Kennington
Kennington
Kennington is a district of South London, England, mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth, although part of the area is within the London Borough of Southwark....
, serving 23 stations over a distance of 14.19 miles (22.84 km). In the 1920s, the route was connected to another of London's deep-level tube railways, the City and South London Railway (C&SLR), and services on the two lines were merged into a single London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
line called the Northern Line
Northern Line
The Northern line is a London Underground line. It is coloured black on the Tube map.For most of its length it is a deep-level tube line. The line carries 206,734,000 passengers per year. This is the highest number of any line on the London Underground system, but the Northern line is unique in...
.
Within the first year of opening, it became apparent to the management and investors that the estimated passenger numbers for the CCE&HR and the other UERL lines were over-optimistic. Despite improved integration and cooperation with the other tube railways and the later extensions, the CCE&HR struggled financially. In 1933, the CCE&HR and the rest of the UERL were taken into public ownership. Today, the CCE&HR's tunnels and stations form the Northern Line's Charing Cross branch from Kennington to Camden Town, the Edgware branch from Camden Town to Edgware, and the High Barnet branch from Camden Town to Archway.
Origin, 1891–1893
In November 1891, notice was given of a private billLocal and Personal Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom
Local and Personal Acts of Parliament are laws in the United Kingdom which apply to a particular individual or group of individuals, or corporate entity. This contrasts with a Public General Act of Parliament which applies to the entire community...
that would be presented to Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
for the construction of the Hampstead, St Pancras & Charing Cross Railway (HStP&CCR). The railway was planned to run entirely underground from Heath Street in Hampstead
Hampstead
Hampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
to Strand
Strand, London
Strand is a street in the City of Westminster, London, England. The street is just over three-quarters of a mile long. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length...
in Charing Cross. The route was to run beneath Hampstead High Street, Rosslyn Hill
Rosslyn Hill
Rosslyn Hill is a road in London, connecting the south end of Hampstead High Street to the north end of Haverstock Hill. It is the site of the Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel, St. Stephen's Church and the Royal Free Hospital. It is served by the bus routes N5, C11, 46 and 268. Pond Street links it to...
, Haverstock Hill and Chalk Farm Road
Chalk Farm Road
Chalk Farm Road is a street in the Camden Town area of London England. There is a widespread misapprehension that the road that runs through Camden Market is part of Camden High Street, but it is actually Chalk Farm Road...
to Camden Town
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
and then under Camden High Street
Camden High Street
Camden High Street is a short stretch of road in Camden Town, in London, England. It is part of the route from central London to Hampstead. It is the local high street and features major music venues at either end...
and Hampstead Road to Euston Road
Euston Road
Euston Road is an important thoroughfare in central London, England, and forms part of the A501. It is part of the New Road from Paddington to Islington, and was opened as part of the New Road in 1756...
. The route then continued south, following Tottenham Court Road
Tottenham Court Road
Tottenham Court Road is a major road in central London, United Kingdom, running from St Giles Circus north to Euston Road, near the border of the City of Westminster and the London Borough of Camden, a distance of about three-quarters of a mile...
, Charing Cross Road
Charing Cross Road
Charing Cross Road is a street in central London running immediately north of St Martin-in-the-Fields to St Giles Circus and then becomes Tottenham Court Road...
and King William Street (now William IV Street) to Agar Street adjacent to Strand. North of Euston Road, a branch was to run eastwards from the main alignment under Drummond Street to serve the main line stations at Euston
Euston railway station
Euston railway station, also known as London Euston, is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sixth busiest rail terminal in London . It is one of 18 railway stations managed by Network Rail, and is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line...
, St Pancras
St Pancras railway station
St Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
and King's Cross. Stations were planned at Hampstead, Belsize Park
Belsize Park
Belsize Park is an area of north-west London, England, in the London Borough of Camden.It is located north-west of Charing Cross and situated on the Northern Line. It borders Hampstead to the north and west, Kentish Town and Gospel Oak to the east, Camden Town to the south east and Primrose Hill...
, Chalk Farm
Chalk Farm
Chalk Farm is an area of north London, England. It lies directly to the north of Camden Town and its underground station is the closest tube station to the nearby, upmarket neighbourhood of Primrose Hill....
, Camden Town
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
, Seymour Street (now part of Eversholt Street), Euston Road, Tottenham Court Road, Oxford Street, Agar Street, Euston and King's Cross. Although a decision had not been made between the use of cable haulage or electric traction as the means of pulling the trains, a power station was planned on Chalk Farm Road close to the London and North Western Railway
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
's Chalk Farm station
Primrose Hill railway station
Primrose Hill was a railway station at Primrose Hill, in the London Borough of Camden, London, England.It was opened on 5 May 1855 as Hampstead Road, replacing an earlier station of that name . It was renamed Chalk Farm on 1 December 1862 and became Primrose Hill on 25 September 1950...
(later renamed Primrose Hill) which had a coal depot for deliveries.
The promoters of the HStP&CCR were inspired by the recent success of the City and South London Railway (C&SLR), the world's first deep-tube railway. This had opened in November 1890 and had seen large passenger numbers in its first year of operation. Bills for three similarly inspired new underground railways were also submitted to Parliament for the 1892 parliamentary session
Parliamentary session
A legislative session is the period of time in which a legislature, in both parliamentary and presidential systems, is convened for purpose of lawmaking, usually being one of two or more smaller divisions of the entire time between two elections...
, and, to ensure a consistent approach, a Joint Select Committee was established to review the proposals. The committee took evidence on various matters regarding the construction and operation of deep-tube railways, and made recommendations on the diameter of tube tunnels, method of traction, and the granting of wayleaves
Easement
An easement is a certain right to use the real property of another without possessing it.Easements are helpful for providing pathways across two or more pieces of property or allowing an individual to fish in a privately owned pond...
. After preventing the construction of the branch beyond Euston, the Committee allowed the HStP&CCR bill to proceed for normal parliamentary consideration. The rest of the route was approved and, following a change of the company name, the bill received Royal Assent on 24 August 1893 as the Charing Cross, Euston, and Hampstead Railway Act, 1893.
Search for finance, 1893–1903
Although the company had permission to construct the railway, it still had to raise the capitalFinancial capital
Financial capital can refer to money used by entrepreneurs and businesses to buy what they need to make their products or provide their services or to that sector of the economy based on its operation, i.e. retail, corporate, investment banking, etc....
for the construction works. The CCE&HR was not alone; four other new tube railway companies were looking for investors – the Baker Street & Waterloo Railway
Baker Street and Waterloo Railway
The Baker Street and Waterloo Railway , also known as the Bakerloo tube, was a railway company established in 1893 that constructed a deep-level underground "tube" railway in London...
(BS&WR), the Waterloo & City Railway (W&CR) and the Great Northern & City Railway (GN&CR) (the three other companies that put forward bills in 1892) and the Central London Railway
Central Line
The Central line is a London Underground line, coloured red on the tube map. It is a deep-level "tube" line, running east-west across London, and, at , has the greatest total length of track of any line on the Underground. Of the 49 stations served, 20 are below ground...
(CLR, which had received assent in 1891). Only the W&CR, which was the shortest line and was backed by the London and South Western Railway
London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Its network extended from London to Plymouth via Salisbury and Exeter, with branches to Ilfracombe and Padstow and via Southampton to Bournemouth and Weymouth. It also had many routes connecting towns in...
with a guaranteed dividend
Dividend
Dividends are payments made by a corporation to its shareholder members. It is the portion of corporate profits paid out to stockholders. When a corporation earns a profit or surplus, that money can be put to two uses: it can either be re-invested in the business , or it can be distributed to...
, was able to raise its funds without difficulty. For the CCE&HR and the rest, much of the remainder of the decade saw a struggle to find investors in an uninterested market. A share offer in April 1894 had been unsuccessful and in December 1899 only 451 out of the company's 177,600 £10 shares had been part sold to eight investors.
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
of land and the raising of capital. To keep the powers granted by the act alive, the CCE&HR submitted a series of further bills to Parliament for extensions of time. Extensions were granted by the Charing Cross Euston and Hampstead Railway Acts, 1897, 1898, 1900, and 1902.
A contractor was appointed in 1897, but funds were not available and no work was started. In 1900, foreign investors came to the rescue of the CCE&HR: American financier Charles Yerkes, who had been lucratively involved in the development of Chicago's tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
way system in the 1880s and 1890s, saw the opportunity to make similar investments in London. Starting with the purchase of the CCE&HR in September 1900 for £100,000, he and his backers purchased a number of the unbuilt tube railways, and the operational but struggling Metropolitan District Railway
Metropolitan District Railway
The Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
(MDR).
With the CCE&HR and the other companies under his control, Yerkes established the UERL to raise funds to build the tube railways and to electrify
Electrification
Electrification originally referred to the build out of the electrical generating and distribution systems which occurred in the United States, England and other countries from the mid 1880's until around 1940 and is in progress in developing countries. This also included the change over from line...
the steam-operated MDR. The UERL was capitalised
Market capitalization
Market capitalization is a measurement of the value of the ownership interest that shareholders hold in a business enterprise. It is equal to the share price times the number of shares outstanding of a publicly traded company...
at £5 million with the majority of share
Share (finance)
A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...
s sold to overseas investors. Further share issues followed, which raised a total of £18 million (equivalent to approximately £ today) to be used across all of the UERL's projects.
Deciding the route, 1893–1903
While the CCE&HR raised money, it continued to develop the plans for its route. On 24 November 1894, a bill was announced to purchase additional land for stations at Charing Cross, Oxford Street, Euston and Camden Town. This was approved as the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway Act, 1894 on 20 July 1895. On 23 November 1897, a bill was announced to change the route of the line at its southern end to terminate under Craven Street on the south side of Strand. This was enacted as the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway Act, 1898 on 25 July 1898.On 22 November 1898, the CCE&HR published another bill to add an extension and to modify part of the route. The extension was a branch from Camden Town to Kentish Town
Kentish Town
Kentish Town is an area of north west London, England in the London Borough of Camden.-History:The most widely accepted explanation of the name of Kentish Town is that it derived from 'Ken-ditch' meaning the 'bed of a waterway'...
where a new terminus was planned as an interchange with the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
's Kentish Town station
Kentish Town station
Kentish Town station is a London Underground and National Rail station in Kentish Town in the London Borough of Camden. It is at the junction of Kentish Town Road and Leighton Road...
. Beyond the terminus, the CCE&HR line was to come to the surface for a depot on vacant land to the east of Highgate Road (occupied today by the Ingestre Road Estate). The modification changed the Euston branch by extending it northwards from Euston to connect to the main route at the south end of Camden High Street. The section of the main route between the two ends of the loop was omitted. Included in the bill were powers to purchase a site in Cranbourn Street for an additional station (Leicester Square
Leicester Square tube station
Leicester Square is a station on the London Underground, located on Charing Cross Road, a short distance to the east of Leicester Square itself....
). It received Royal Assent as the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway Act, 1899 on 9 August 1899.
On 23 November 1900, the CCE&HR announced its most wide-ranging modifications to the route. Two bills were submitted to Parliament, referred to as No. 1 and No. 2. Bill No. 1 proposed the continuation of the railway north from Hampstead to Golders Green
Golders Green
Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in London, England. Although having some earlier history, it is essentially a 19th century suburban development situated about 5.3 miles north west of Charing Cross and centred on the crossroads of Golders Green Road and Finchley Road.In the...
, the purchase of land and properties for stations and the construction of a depot at Golders Green. Also proposed were minor adjustments to route alignments previously approved. Bill No. 2 proposed two extensions: from Kentish Town to Brecknock Road, Archway Tavern, Archway Road and Highgate
Highgate
Highgate is an area of North London on the north-eastern corner of Hampstead Heath.Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has an active conservation body, the Highgate Society, to protect its character....
in the north and from Charing Cross to Parliament Square
Parliament Square
Parliament Square is a square outside the northwest end of the Palace of Westminster in London. It features a large open green area in the middle, with a group of trees to its west. It contains statues of famous statesmen and is the scene of rallies and protests, as well as being a tourist...
, Artillery Row and Victoria station in the south.
The extension to Golders Green would take the railway out of the urban and suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
an areas and into open farmland. While this provided a convenient site for the CCE&HR's depot it is believed that underlying the decision was Yerkes' plan to profit from the sale of development land previously purchased in the area that would rise in value when the railway opened.
The CCE&HR's two bills were submitted to Parliament at the same time as a large number of other bills for underground railways in the capital. As it had done in 1892, Parliament established a joint committee under Lord Windsor
Robert Windsor-Clive, 1st Earl of Plymouth
Robert George Windsor-Clive, 1st Earl of Plymouth GBE, CB, PC , known as The Lord Windsor between 1869 and 1905, was a British nobleman and Conservative politician.-Background:...
to review the bills. By the time the committee had produced its report, the parliamentary session was almost over and the promoters of the bills were asked to resubmit them for the following 1902 session. Bills No. 1 and No. 2 were resubmitted in November 1901 together with a new bill – bill No. 3. The new bill modified the route of the proposed extension to Golders Green and added a short extension running beneath Charing Cross main line station to the Victoria Embankment
Victoria Embankment
The Victoria Embankment is part of the Thames Embankment, a road and river walk along the north bank of the River Thames in London. Victoria Embankment extends from the City of Westminster into the City of London.-Construction:...
where it would provide an interchange with the existing MDR station
Embankment tube station
Embankment is a London Underground station in the City of Westminster, known by various names during its history. It is served by the Circle, District, Northern and Bakerloo lines. On the Northern and Bakerloo lines, the station is between Waterloo and Charing Cross stations; on the Circle and...
(then called Charing Cross).
Thomas Lister, 4th Baron Ribblesdale
Thomas Lister, 4th Baron Ribblesdale , was a British Liberal politician.-Background:Born in Fontainebleau, France, Ribblesdale was the eldest son of Thomas Lister, 3rd Baron Ribblesdale, and his wife Emma daughter of William Mure, and succeeded his father in the barony in 1876.-Political...
. The sections which dealt with the proposed north-eastern extension from Archway Tavern to Highgate and the southern extension from Charing Cross to Victoria were deemed to not comply with parliamentary standing orders and were struck-out.
Hampstead Heath controversy
A controversial element of the CCE&HR's plans was the extension of the railway to Golders Green. The route of the tube tunnels took the line under Hampstead HeathHampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath is a large, ancient London park, covering . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band of London clay...
and strong opposition was raised, concerned about the effect that the tunnels would have on the ecology of the Heath. The Hampstead Heath Protection Society claimed that the tunnels would drain the sub-soil of water and the vibration of passing trains would damage trees. Taking its lead from the Society's objections, The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
published an alarmist article on 25 December 1900 claiming that "a great tube laid under the heath will, of course, act as a drain; and it is quite likely that the grass and gorse and trees on the Heath will suffer from the loss of moisture ... Moreover, it seems to be established beyond question that the trains passing along these deep-laid tubes shake the earth to its surface, and the constant jar and quiver will probably have a serious effect upon the trees by loosening their roots."
Counsel
A counsel or a counselor gives advice, more particularly in legal matters.-U.K. and Ireland:The legal system in England uses the term counsel as an approximate synonym for a barrister-at-law, and may apply it to mean either a single person who pleads a cause, or collectively, the body of barristers...
disparagingly refuted the objections: "Just see what an absurd thing! Disturbance of the water when we are 240 feet down in the London clay – about the most impervious thing you can possibly find; almost more impervious than granite rock! And the vibration on this railway is to shake down timber trees! Could anything be more ludicrous than to waste the time of the Committee in discussing such things presented by such a body!"
A second railway company, the Edgware & Hampstead Railway (E&HR), also had a bill before Parliament which proposed tunnels beneath the Heath as part of its planned route between Edgware and Hampstead. The E&HR had planned to connect to the CCE&HR at Hampstead but, to avoid the needless duplication of tunnels between Golders Green and Hampstead, the two companies agreed that the E&HR would instead connect to the CCE&HR at Golders Green.
The Metropolitan Borough of Hampstead
Metropolitan Borough of Hampstead
The Metropolitan Borough of Hampstead was a Metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965, when it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of St Pancras and the Metropolitan Borough of Holborn to form the London Borough of Camden....
had initially objected to the line but gave consent on the condition that a station be constructed between Hampstead and Golders Green to provide access for visitors to the Heath. A new station was added to the plans at the northern edge of the Heath at North End where it could also serve a new residential development planned for the area. Once Parliament was satisfied that the extension would not damage the Heath, the CCE&HR bills jointly received Royal Assent on 18 November 1902 as the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway Act, 1902. On the same date, the E&HR bill received its assent as the Edgware and Hampstead Railway Act, 1902.
Construction, 1902–1907
With the funds available from the UERL and the route decided, the CCE&HR started site demolitions and preparatory works in July 1902. On 21 November 1902, the CCE&HR published another bill which sought compulsory purchase powers for additional buildings for its station sites, planned the take-over of the E&HR and abandoned the permitted but redundant section of the line from Kentish Town to the proposed depot site near Highgate Road. This bill was approved as the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway Act, 1903 on 21 July 1903.Tunnelling
Tunnelling shield
A tunnelling shield is a protective structure used in the excavation of tunnels through soil that is too soft or fluid to remain stable during the time it takes to line the tunnel with a support structure of concrete, cast iron or steel...
began in September 1903. Stations were provided with surface buildings designed by architect Leslie Green
Leslie Green
Leslie William Green was an English architect known especially for his design of iconic stations constructed on the London Underground railway system in central London during the first decade of the 20th century....
in the UERL house-style. This consisted of two-storey steel-framed buildings faced with red glazed terracotta blocks with wide semi-circular windows on the upper floor. Each station was provided with two or four lifts
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
and an emergency spiral staircase in a separate shaft.
While construction proceeded, the CCE&HR continued to submit bills to Parliament. The Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway Act, 1904, which received assent on 22 July 1904, granted permission to buy additional land for the station at Tottenham Court Road, for a new station at Mornington Crescent and for changes at Charing Cross. The Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway Act, 1905 received assent on 4 August 1905. It dealt mainly with the acquisition of the subsoil under part of the forecourt of Charing Cross main line station so that the CCE&HR's station could be excavated.
The sale of the building land at North End to conservationists
Conservation movement
The conservation movement, also known as nature conservation, is a political, environmental and a social movement that seeks to protect natural resources including animal, fungus and plant species as well as their habitat for the future....
to form the Hampstead Heath extension in 1904, meant a reduction in the number of residents who might use the station there. Work continued below ground at a reduced pace, and the platform tunnels and some passenger circulation tunnels were excavated, but North End station was abandoned in 1906 before the lift and stair shafts were dug and before a surface building was constructed.
Tunnelling was completed in December 1905, after which work continued on the construction of the station buildings and the fitting-out of the tunnels with tracks and signalling equipment. As part of the UERL group, the CCE&HR obtained its electricity from the company's Lots Road Power Station
Lots Road Power Station
Lots Road Power Station is a disused coal and later oil-fired power station on the River Thames at Lots Road in Chelsea, London in the south-west of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, which supplied electricity to the London Underground system...
, originally built for the electrification of the MDR; the proposed Chalk Farm generating station was not built. The final section of the approved route between Charing Cross and the Embankment was not constructed, and the southern terminus on opening was Charing Cross. After a period of test running, the railway was ready to open in 1907.
Opening
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
, President of the Board of Trade, after which the public travelled free for the rest of the day. From its opening, the CCE&HR was generally known by the abbreviated names Hampstead Tube or Hampstead Railway and the names appeared on the station buildings and on contemporary maps of the tube lines.
The railway had stations at:
- Charing CrossCharing Cross tube stationCharing Cross tube station is a London Underground station at Charing Cross in the City of Westminster with entrances located in Trafalgar Square and The Strand. The station is served by the Northern and Bakerloo lines and provides an interchange with the National Rail network at station...
- Leicester SquareLeicester Square tube stationLeicester Square is a station on the London Underground, located on Charing Cross Road, a short distance to the east of Leicester Square itself....
- Oxford StreetTottenham Court Road tube stationTottenham Court Road is a London Underground station in central London. It is an interchange between the Central line and the branch of the Northern line.On the Central line it is between and , and on the Northern line it is between and...
(now Tottenham Court Road) - Tottenham Court RoadGoodge Street tube stationGoodge Street is a London Underground station on Tottenham Court Road. It is on the Northern Line between Tottenham Court Road and Warren Street, and is in Travelcard Zone 1.-History:...
(now Goodge Street) - Euston RoadWarren Street tube stationWarren Street tube station is a London Underground station, located at the intersection of Tottenham Court Road and Euston Road. It is on the branch of the Northern Line, between and , and the Victoria Line between and Euston. It is in Travelcard Zone 1 and is the nearest tube station to...
(now Warren Street) - EustonEuston tube stationEuston tube station is a London Underground station served by the Victoria Line and both branches of the Northern Line. It directly connects with the Euston mainline station above it. The station is in Travelcard Zone 1....
- Mornington CrescentMornington Crescent tube stationMornington Crescent is a London Underground station in Camden Town in north west London, named after the nearby street. The station is on the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line, between and...
- Camden TownCamden Town tube stationCamden Town tube station is a major junction on the Northern Line and one of the busiest stations on the London Underground network...
Golders Green branch
- Chalk FarmChalk Farm tube stationChalk Farm tube station is a London Underground station near Camden Town in London. The station is on the Edgware branch of the Northern line, between Camden Town and Belsize Park stations, and in Travelcard Zone 2. The station stands at the junction of Chalk Farm Road/Haverstock Hill and Adelaide...
- Belsize ParkBelsize Park tube stationBelsize Park tube station is a London Underground station in Belsize Park, North-West London. The station is on the Edgware branch of the Northern Line, between Chalk Farm and Hampstead stations, and in Travelcard Zone 2. It is located at the northern end of Haverstock Hill...
- HampsteadHampstead tube stationHampstead tube station is a London Underground station in Hampstead, north London NW3 1QG. The station is on the Edgware branch of the Northern Line, between Golders Green and Belsize Park stations, and on the boundary between Travelcard Zone 2 and Zone 3....
- Golders GreenGolders Green tube stationGolders Green tube station is a London Underground station in Golders Green, north London. The station is on the Edgware branch of the Northern Line between Hampstead and Brent Cross...
Highgate branch
- South Kentish TownSouth Kentish Town tube stationSouth Kentish Town tube station is a disused London Underground station which was on the Northern Line between Camden Town and Kentish Town. The surface building still exists on Kentish Town Road, close to the junction with Castle Road, and is currently a retail unit occupied by the Cash Converters...
(closed 1924) - Kentish TownKentish Town stationKentish Town station is a London Underground and National Rail station in Kentish Town in the London Borough of Camden. It is at the junction of Kentish Town Road and Leighton Road...
- Tufnell ParkTufnell Park tube stationTufnell Park tube station is a London Underground station in Islington close to its boundary with Camden . It is on the High Barnet branch of the Northern Line, between Archway and Kentish Town, and in Travelcard Zone 2. It has distinctive Edwardian red tiling and has two lifts between the street...
- HighgateArchway tube stationArchway tube station is a London Underground station in north London, underneath the Archway Tower, at the intersection of Holloway Road, Highgate Hill and Junction Road in the area known as Archway....
(now Archway)
The service was provided by a fleet of carriages manufactured for the UERL by the American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry is a manufacturer of railroad rolling stock. One of its subsidiaries was once a manufacturer of motor coaches and trolley coaches under the brand names of ACF and ACF-Brill. Today ACF is known as ACF Industries LLC and is based in St. Charles, Missouri...
and assembled at Trafford Park
Trafford Park
Trafford Park is an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. Located opposite Salford Quays, on the southern side of the Manchester Ship Canal, it is west-southwest of Manchester city centre, and north of Stretford. Until the late 19th century it was the...
in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. These carriages were built to the same design used for the BS&WR and the GNP&BR and operated as electric multiple unit
Electric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...
trains without the need for separate locomotives. Passengers boarded the trains via folding lattice gates at each end of cars which were operated by Gate-men who rode on the outside platform and announced station names as trains arrived. The design became known on the Underground as the 1906 stock
London Underground 1906 Stock
The 1906 Stock, also known as "Gate Stock", was built for the Yerkes tube lines, Baker Street and Waterloo Railway , Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway , and Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway ....
or Gate stock
London Underground 1906 Stock
The 1906 Stock, also known as "Gate Stock", was built for the Yerkes tube lines, Baker Street and Waterloo Railway , Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway , and Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway ....
.
Co-operation and consolidation, 1907–1910
Despite the UERL's success in financing and constructing the Hampstead Railway in only seven years, its opening was not the financial success that had been expected. In the Hampstead Tube's first twelve months of operation it carried 25 million passengers, just half of the 50 million that had been predicted during the planning of the line. The UERL's pre-opening predictions of passenger numbers for its other new lines proved to be greatly over-optimistic, as did the improvement in passenger numbers expected on the newly electrified MDR – in each case achieving only around fifty per cent of their targets.The lower than expected passenger numbers were partly due to competition between the tube and sub-surface railway companies, but the introduction of electric trams and motor buses, replacing slower, horse-drawn road transport, took a large number of passengers away from the trains. The problem was not limited to the UERL; all of London's seven tube lines and the sub-surface MDR and Metropolitan Railway were affected to a degree and the reduced revenues generated from the lower numbers of passengers made it difficult for the UERL and the other railways to pay back the capital borrowed and pay dividends to shareholders.
In an effort to improve the financial situation, the UERL together with the C&SLR, the CLR and the GN&CR began, from 1907, to introduce fare agreements. From 1908, they began to present themselves through common branding as the Underground. The W&CR was the only tube railway that did not participate in the arrangement as it was owned by the mainline London and South Western Railway.
The UERL's three tube railway companies were still legally separate entities with their own management and shareholder and dividend structures. There was duplicated administration between the three companies and, to streamline the management and reduce expenditure, the UERL announced a bill in November 1909 that would merge the Hampstead Tube, the Piccadilly Tube and the Bakerloo Tube into a single entity, the London Electric Railway (LER), although the lines retained their own individual branding. The bill received assent on 26 July 1910 as the London Electric Railway Amalgamation Act, 1910.
Embankment, 1910–1914
In November 1910, the LER published notice of a bill to revive the unused 1902 permission to continue the line from Charing Cross to Embankment. The extension was planned as a single tunnel, running in a loop under the Thames, connecting the ends of the two existing tunnels. Trains were to run in one direction around the loop stopping at a single-platform station constructed to provide an interchange with the BS&WR and MDR at Embankment station. The bill received assent as the London Electric Railway Act, 1911 on 2 June 1911. The loop was constructed from a large excavation north-west of the MDR station and was connected to the sub-surface line with escalators. The station opened on 6 April 1914 as:- Charing Cross (Embankment)Embankment tube stationEmbankment is a London Underground station in the City of Westminster, known by various names during its history. It is served by the Circle, District, Northern and Bakerloo lines. On the Northern and Bakerloo lines, the station is between Waterloo and Charing Cross stations; on the Circle and...
(now Embankment)
Hendon and Edgware, 1902–1924
In the decade after the E&HR received royal assent for its route from Edgware to Hampstead, the company continued to search for finance and revised its plans in conjunction both with the CCE&HR and a third railway company, the Watford & Edgware RailwayWatford and Edgware Railway
The Watford and Edgware Railway was a railway company established in the 1860s that intended to build a railway that would run between Edgware and Watford, via Bushey...
(W&ER) which had plans to build a line linking the E&HR to Watford
Watford
Watford is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, situated northwest of central London and within the bounds of the M25 motorway. The borough is separated from Greater London to the south by the urbanised parish of Watford Rural in the Three Rivers District.Watford was created as an urban...
.
Following the enactment of the Watford and Edgware Railway Act, 1906, the W&ER briefly took over the powers of the E&HR to construct the line from Golders Green to Edgware. Struggling to find funds, the W&ER attempted a formal merger with the E&HR through a bill submitted to Parliament in 1906, with the intention of constructing and operating the whole of the route from Golders Green to Watford as a light railway
Light railway
Light railway refers to a railway built at lower costs and to lower standards than typical "heavy rail". This usually means the railway uses lighter weight track, and is more steeply graded and tightly curved to avoid civil engineering costs...
but the bill was rejected by Parliament and, when the W&ER's powers lapsed, control returned to the CCE&HR.
The E&HR company had remained in existence and had obtained a series of acts to preserve and develop its plans. The Edgware and Hampstead Railway Acts, 1905, 1909 and 1912 granted extensions of time, approved changes to the route, gave permissions for viaducts and a tunnel and allowed the closure and re-routeing of roads to be crossed by the railway's tracks. It was intended that the CCE&HR would provide and operate the trains and this was formalised by the London Electric Railway Act, 1912, which approved the LER's take over of the E&HR.
No immediate effort was made to start the works and they were postponed indefinitely when World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
started. With wartime restrictions in place, construction work for the railway was prevented. Yearly extensions to the earlier E&HR acts were granted under special wartime powers each year from 1916 until 1922, giving a final date by which compulsory purchases had to be made of 7 August 1924. Although the permissions had been maintained, the UERL could not raise the money needed for the works. Construction costs had increased considerably during the war years and the returns produced by the company could not cover the cost of repaying loans.
HM Treasury
HM Treasury, in full Her Majesty's Treasury, informally The Treasury, is the United Kingdom government department responsible for developing and executing the British government's public finance policy and economic policy...
underwrote
Underwriting
Underwriting refers to the process that a large financial service provider uses to assess the eligibility of a customer to receive their products . The name derives from the Lloyd's of London insurance market...
loans for public works as a means of alleviating unemployment. With this support, the UERL raised the funds and work began on extending the Hampstead tube to Edgware. The UERL group's Managing Director/Chairman, Lord Ashfield
Albert Stanley, 1st Baron Ashfield
Albert Henry Stanley, 1st Baron Ashfield, PC, TD , born Albert Henry Knattriess, was a British-American who was managing director, then chairman of the Underground Electric Railways Company of London from 1910 to 1933 and chairman of the London Passenger Transport Board from 1933 to 1947.Although...
, ceremonially cut the first sod to begin the works at Golders Green on 12 June 1922.
The extension crossed farmland, meaning it could be constructed on the surface more easily and cheaply than a deep tube line below the surface. A viaduct was constructed across the Brent
River Brent
The Brent is a river within Greater London which is a tributary of the River Thames. It is 17.9 miles long, running north-east to south-west, and it joins the Thames on the Tideway at Brentford, Hounslow.- Hydronymy and etymology :...
valley and a short section of tunnel was required at The Hyde
The Hyde
The Hyde is a locality in the London Borough of Barnet in London, United Kingdom. The area is considered to form part of Hendon.-History:The name is first recorded in 1281 as la Hyde meaning the hide of land; the amount of land considered enough to support a family, around .-Geography:It is located...
, Hendon
Hendon
Hendon is a London suburb situated northwest of Charing Cross.-History:Hendon was historically a civil parish in the county of Middlesex. The manor is described in Domesday , but the name, 'Hendun' meaning 'at the highest hill', is earlier...
. Stations were designed in a suburban pavilion style by the UERL's architect Stanley Heaps
Stanley Heaps
Stanley A. Heaps was an English architect responsible for the design of a number of stations on the London Underground system as well as the design of train depots and bus and trolleybus garages for London Transport.-Works:...
. The first section opened on 19 November 1923 with stations at:
- BrentBrent Cross tube stationBrent Cross tube station is a London Underground station located on Highfield Avenue in the Golders Green area of north west London. The station is a Grade II listed building....
(now Brent Cross) - Hendon CentralHendon Central tube stationHendon Central tube station is a London Underground station in North West London on the A41.The station is on the Edgware branch of the Northern Line, between Colindale and Brent Cross stations, and is on the boundary between Travelcard Zone 3 and Zone 4. Its postcode is NW4 2TE...
The remainder of the extension opened on 18 August 1924 with stations at:
- ColindaleColindale tube stationColindale tube station is a London Underground station in Colindale, a suburb of north London. The station is on the north-south Edgware branch of the Northern Line, between Burnt Oak and Hendon Central stations, and in Travelcard Zone 4.-History:...
- Burnt OakBurnt Oak tube stationBurnt Oak tube station is a London Underground station in Burnt Oak, north London, on Watling Avenue, off the A5...
(opened 27 October 1924) - EdgwareEdgware tube stationEdgware tube station is a London Underground station in Edgware, in the London Borough of Barnet, in North London. The station is the terminus of the Edgware branch of the Northern Line and the next station towards central London is . Edgware is in Travelcard Zone 5.-Location:The station is in...
Kennington, 1922–1926
On 21 November 1922, the LER announced a bill for the 1923 parliamentary session. It included the proposal to extend the line from its southern terminus to the C&SLR's station at KenningtonKennington tube station
Kennington tube station is a London Underground station in Newington/ Walworth on Kennington Park Road, on both the Charing Cross and Bank branches of the Northern Line. Its neighbours to the north are Waterloo on the Charing Cross branch and Elephant & Castle on the Bank branch; the next station...
where an interchange would be provided. The bill received Royal assent as the London Electric Railway Act, 1923 on 2 August 1923.
The work involved the rebuilding of the below ground parts of the CCE&HR's former terminus station to enable through running and the loop tunnel was abandoned. Tunnels were extended under the Thames to Waterloo station
Waterloo station
Waterloo station, also known as London Waterloo, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. The station is owned and operated by Network Rail and is close to the South Bank of the River Thames, and in Travelcard Zone 1....
and then to Kennington where two additional platforms were constructed to provide the interchange to the C&SLR. Immediately south of Kennington station, the CCE&HR tunnels connected to those of the C&SLR. The new service was opened on 13 September 1926 to coincide with the opening of the extension of the C&SLR to Morden
Morden tube station
Morden is a London Underground station in Morden in the London Borough of Merton. The station is the southern terminus for the Northern line and is the most southerly station on the Underground network. The next station north is...
. The Charing Cross to Kennington link had stations at:
- WaterlooWaterloo tube stationWaterloo tube station is a London Underground station located at Waterloo station. It is the second busiest station on the network and is served by the Bakerloo, Jubilee, Northern and the Waterloo & City lines...
- KenningtonKennington tube stationKennington tube station is a London Underground station in Newington/ Walworth on Kennington Park Road, on both the Charing Cross and Bank branches of the Northern Line. Its neighbours to the north are Waterloo on the Charing Cross branch and Elephant & Castle on the Bank branch; the next station...
The C&SLR had been under the control of the UERL since its purchase by the group in 1913. An earlier connection between the CCE&HR and the C&SLR had been opened in 1924 linking the C&SLR's station at Euston with the CCE&HR's at Camden Town. With the opening of the Kennington extension, the two railways began to operate as an integrated service using the newly built Standard Stock
London Underground Standard Stock
The Standard Stock title was applied to a variety of Tube stock built between 1923 and 1934, all of which shared the same basic characteristics, but with some detailed differences. This design is also sometimes referred to as 1923 Tube Stock or Pre 1938 Stock...
trains. On tube map
Tube map
The Tube map is a schematic transit map representing the lines and stations of London's rapid transit railway systems, namely the London Underground , the Docklands Light Railway and London Overground....
s the combined lines were shown in a single colour although the separate names continued in use into the 1930s.
Move to public ownership, 1923–1933
Despite improvements made to other parts of the network, the Underground railways were still struggling to make a profit. The UERL's ownership of the highly profitable London General Omnibus CompanyLondon General Omnibus Company
The London General Omnibus Company or LGOC, was the principal bus operator in London between 1855 and 1933. It was also, for a short period between 1909 and 1912, a motor bus manufacturer.- Overview :...
(LGOC) since 1912 had enabled the UERL group, through the pooling of revenues, to use profits from the bus company to subsidise the less profitable railways. However, competition from numerous small bus companies during the early 1920s eroded the profitability of the LGOC and had a negative impact on the profitability of the whole UERL group.
In an effort to protect the UERL group's income Lord Ashfield lobbied
Lobbying
Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...
the government for regulation of transport services in the London area. Starting in 1923, a series of legislative initiatives were made in this direction, with Ashfield and Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
London County Council
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
lor (later MP and Minister of Transport) Herbert Morrison
Herbert Morrison
Herbert Stanley Morrison, Baron Morrison of Lambeth, CH, PC was a British Labour politician; he held a various number of senior positions in the Cabinet, including Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister.-Early life:Morrison was the son of a police constable and was born in...
, at the forefront of debates as to the level of regulation and public control under which transport services should be brought. Ashfield aimed for regulation that would give the UERL group protection from competition and allow it to take substantive control of the LCC's
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
tram system; Morrison preferred full public ownership. After seven years of false starts, a bill was announced at the end of 1930 for the formation of the London Passenger Transport Board
London Passenger Transport Board
The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for public transport in London, UK, and its environs from 1933 to 1948...
(LPTB), a public corporation that would take control of the UERL, the Metropolitan Railway and all bus and tram operators within an area designated as the London Passenger Transport Area. The Board was a compromise – public ownership but not full nationalisation
Nationalization
Nationalisation, also spelled nationalization, is the process of taking an industry or assets into government ownership by a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being...
– and came into existence on 1 July 1933. On this date, the LER and the other Underground companies were liquidated
Liquidation
In law, liquidation is the process by which a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed. Liquidation is also sometimes referred to as winding-up or dissolution, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation...
.
Legacy
- For a history of the line after 1933 see Northern lineNorthern LineThe Northern line is a London Underground line. It is coloured black on the Tube map.For most of its length it is a deep-level tube line. The line carries 206,734,000 passengers per year. This is the highest number of any line on the London Underground system, but the Northern line is unique in...
Finding a suitable name for the combined CCE&HR and C&SLR routes proved a challenge for the LPTB and a number of variations were used including Edgware, Morden & Highgate Line in 1933 and Morden-Edgware Line in 1936. In 1937, Northern Line was adopted in preparation for the uncompleted Northern Heights plan. Today, the Northern line is the busiest on the London Underground system, carrying 206.7 million passengers annually, a level of usage which led it to be known as the Misery line during the 1990s due to overcrowding and poor reliability.