Golden Sands Halt railway station
Encyclopedia
Golden Sands Halt railway station was a private station on the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway
in St Mary's Bay, Kent
, England
.
Trains ran past this location for some 21 years before the private Golden Sands Halt opened in the summer of 1948. The post-war
boom in south coast holiday camp
tourism had brought huge demand to the area, and the Golden Sands holiday camp (located down Dunstall Lane and backing onto the railway line) saw the potential for entertaining its guests by the simple provision of a station on the existing railway line. The camp, originally owned and built by Robert Briggs, was sold to Maddiesons in the late 1950s.
The nature of British
holiday making
changed greatly over the ensuing decades, but Golden Sands Holiday Camp continued to evolve, and its private railway station remained a feature, as a request stop for service trains on the mainline.
By the early 1980s use of the station had been considerably reduced, and it was largely only special train services (provided for campers) which made use of the station. Golden Sands Halt appeared to have reached the end of its life, and indeed the 'camp' side of the station became (in the late 1980s) a storage area for the private collection of vintage fire engines owned by a director of the holiday camp; however, the 1990s saw the holiday camp enter into new ownership, with a revival of use of the private station. The new owners renamed the camp, and the station followed suit, becoming Reunion Halt.
The somewhat patchy life of this station is not surprising given that:
a) it is in private ownership;
b) its fortunes are totally bound up with the fortunes of the holiday camp;
c) St Mary's Bay Station
is located just a quarter of a mile further south, and is a fully open public station for all.
Today the Reunion campsite has been closed and the site is awaiting re-development. This means that the station is effectively closed, although no public notice has been issued to that effect, and none is required either, given the private ownership of the station. All of the buildings at the campsite have been demolished including the original 1948 station. Its single platform (on the 'down' line) is very short; in 1948 it would have accommodated just two of the short-wheelbase coaches then in use; today it is barely long enough to accommodate even a single passenger coach of modern design. The short platform still survives, whose white-painted edge may still just be made out, with a concrete wall all around, and a wooden gate providing access to and from the derelict campsite, as a reminder of a former era of holiday making.
Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway
The Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway is a gauge light railway in Kent, England. The line runs from the Cinque Port of Hythe via Dymchurch, St...
in St Mary's Bay, Kent
St Mary's Bay, Kent
St Mary's Bay is a coastal village in Kent, England. On the coast, situated on Romney Marsh, St Mary's Bay has a long sandy beach which stretches north to Dymchurch and south to Littlestone-on-Sea. It has a station on the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway. Local website -History:During the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Trains ran past this location for some 21 years before the private Golden Sands Halt opened in the summer of 1948. The post-war
Post-war
A post-war period or postwar period is the interval immediately following the ending of a war and enduring as long as war does not resume. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum when a war between the same parties resumes at a later date...
boom in south coast holiday camp
Holiday camp
Holiday camp, in Britain, generally refers to a resort with a boundary that includes accommodation, entertainment and other facilities.As distinct from camping, accommodation typically consisted of chalets – small buildings arranged either individually or in blocks. Some had three or four storeys,...
tourism had brought huge demand to the area, and the Golden Sands holiday camp (located down Dunstall Lane and backing onto the railway line) saw the potential for entertaining its guests by the simple provision of a station on the existing railway line. The camp, originally owned and built by Robert Briggs, was sold to Maddiesons in the late 1950s.
The nature of British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
holiday making
Holiday
A Holiday is a day designated as having special significance for which individuals, a government, or a religious group have deemed that observance is warranted. It is generally an official or unofficial observance of religious, national, or cultural significance, often accompanied by celebrations...
changed greatly over the ensuing decades, but Golden Sands Holiday Camp continued to evolve, and its private railway station remained a feature, as a request stop for service trains on the mainline.
By the early 1980s use of the station had been considerably reduced, and it was largely only special train services (provided for campers) which made use of the station. Golden Sands Halt appeared to have reached the end of its life, and indeed the 'camp' side of the station became (in the late 1980s) a storage area for the private collection of vintage fire engines owned by a director of the holiday camp; however, the 1990s saw the holiday camp enter into new ownership, with a revival of use of the private station. The new owners renamed the camp, and the station followed suit, becoming Reunion Halt.
The somewhat patchy life of this station is not surprising given that:
a) it is in private ownership;
b) its fortunes are totally bound up with the fortunes of the holiday camp;
c) St Mary's Bay Station
St Mary's Bay railway station
St. Mary's Bay railway station is a small station in St Mary's Bay, Kent, England, between the larger stations of New Romney and Dymchurch, on the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway....
is located just a quarter of a mile further south, and is a fully open public station for all.
Today the Reunion campsite has been closed and the site is awaiting re-development. This means that the station is effectively closed, although no public notice has been issued to that effect, and none is required either, given the private ownership of the station. All of the buildings at the campsite have been demolished including the original 1948 station. Its single platform (on the 'down' line) is very short; in 1948 it would have accommodated just two of the short-wheelbase coaches then in use; today it is barely long enough to accommodate even a single passenger coach of modern design. The short platform still survives, whose white-painted edge may still just be made out, with a concrete wall all around, and a wooden gate providing access to and from the derelict campsite, as a reminder of a former era of holiday making.