Martin Mill
Encyclopedia
Martin Mill is a village in east Kent
, England
. It takes its name from the nearby village of Martin
. Martin Mill railway station
is on the Dover
to Deal
railway line.
The windmill which gives Martin Mill its name was operating commercially until about 1923 when Sydney Hogben, the owner and former operator, took it into his head to saw off the sails by his own hand. This caused outrage in the community and took the mill out of commission forever. The ruins were finally demolished in the 1960s.
The original Martin Mill railway was constructed and operated by Pearson & Son in 1897 for the construction of the Admiralty harbour. The line was laid to standard gauge from Martin Mill station and needed very little earth works until it reached the cliffs where terraces with a gradient of about 1 in 25 where cut into the cliff face to form a switch back path down to the harbour. The line was in use until completion of the harbour and eventually dismantled in 1937 after the intention of using it as a passenger line failed.
During the second world war the line was relaid again to standard gauge following the original course to a point north of Fan Bay Battery, from there two new lines where laid eastwards either side of the Dover to St Margaret's road and both terminating at St Margaret's. The northern line supplied the 14" guns Winnie and Pooh and was also laid with two curved firing spurs for the 13.5" rail mounted guns Gladiator, Scene Shifter and Piece Maker.
The railway guns where 13.5" ex naval guns on WW1 mountings with a maximum elevation of 39 deg, traverse was by using the guns on a curved spur with the degrees marked along the tracks, a large arrow was mounted on the guns bogies to line up with the marks. Recoil was absorbed by special brakes acting on the wheels. Scene Shifter was later converted to an 18" Howitzer gun in November 1943. Maintenance and barrel changing was carried out at the disused Stone Hall Colliery sidings Lydden.
The southern most line had a curved firing spur close to Fan Bay The line then continued to Wanston battery where two spurs where laid in front of the guns Clem & Jane for barrel changing. The barrels being transported by rail to Woolwich Arsenal where they were re-sleeved. There was also a short bypass loop north of the line. The line continued passing South foreland battery to the 13.5" hypervelocity gun Bruce and would have also have served St Margaret's Battery.
The line was entirely worked by diesel electric shunting locomotives requisitioned from the LMS (London Midland Scottish) and SR (Southern Railway), three from the SR and six from the LMS the smoke from a steam locomotive being visible above the cliffs would have given the guns positions away. The LMS locomotives being a long way from home where on an exchange basis if a locomotive failed it was immediately replaced from LMS stock, repaired at Derby works and worked on the LMS until required again. The SR locomotives being on home turf where quickly repaired at Ashford works. As the locomotives shared the same English Electric diesel engines it is probable minor engine repairs for the LMS locos could be carried out at Ashford. Whilst on the MMMR the locomotives where stabled at the shed in Martin Mill station Yard.
The line was again lifted just after the end of the war.
The construction of a large harbour at Dover had been recommended in 1883, but this particular plan was not adopted. The specifications for the harbour, much as it is today, were drawn up in 1897. The tender from S. Pearson and Son was accepted on 5th April 1898. Pearson planned to use concrete blocks for construction of the breakwaters of the harbour and, in order to make these, he built blockyards at either side of the chosen harbour site. The eastern one was where the docks now stand, below the Visitor Centre. The sand and gravel needed for the concrete came from Sandwich, at first by sea, but soon by train. Pearson constructed a railway from Martin Mill, on the passenger line between Dover and Deal, to a terminus just above the eastern docks. The route was pegged out within two months of him gaining the contract, and the line was in use by mid-1899. A lease with the Earl of Guilford, who owned most of the land, specified, among other things, that the line was to be single track, standard gauge, that approval was to be obtained for the carriage of passengers, and a passenger station should be built at Langdon Hole (it never was !).
From Martin Mill, the mineral railway ran parallel to the main line for about a mile, then turned south towards the cliff edge. It ran around the curve of the cliff above Langdon Hole on a ledge (now the footpath towards St. Margaret’s) – the indentation of sleepers and, in some places, the wood of the sleepers themselves, can still be seen. It continued on a shingle embankment, outside the walls of the prison then on site (see Walk No. 2 – Langdon Convict and Military Prison), to its terminus (just below the turning off the road onto National Trust Land), where sidings and a ballast unloading shed were built.
To start with, the sand and gravel were just tipped down the cliff face, but within a year, a balanced lift installation (like a funicular railway) was built, and the materials were lowered in narrow gauge, side tipping skips, the weight of the full skips serving to raise the empty ones. Once at the bottom, they were pushed by hand along narrow gauge track, and emptied into huge concrete mixers.
All that remains of this funicular today is an indentation in the cliff edge. It was dismantled in 1909, upon completion of the harbour construction. The section of line from the cliff top terminus to a point in front of Langdon Battery (now the site of the modern Coastguard station) was lifted in 1917-18 to supply track for the seafront railway. The rest of the mineral railway remained intact until 1937, when it was taken up by the army for scrap, only to be relaid, for part of its route in 1940, when it became the Martin Mill Military Railway. Instead of coming to the cliff edge, the new route curved away towards St. Margaret’s Bay, before reaching Langdon Hole. It served two batteries and several gun emplacements (see Walk No. 5 – Coastal Defences).
Part of the original lease with the Earl of Guilford stipulated that approval should be obtained for the carriage of passengers on this railway. Pearson did nothing about this. However in 1901, he, with Sir John Jackson and Sir William Crundall, formed the Dover, St. Margaret’s and Martin Mill Light Railway Company. They applied for a Light Railway Order for a 3 foot 6 inch gauge electric tramway (not standard gauge, as had been specified by the lease). The Light Railway Order was finally made in 1909. The planned route was from the town, up the cliffs on a ‘new road’, round Langdon Hole, across the cliffs to St. Margaret’s and then inland to the existing Martin Mill passenger railway station. This tramway would serve the proposed new development (Sir William Crundall had recently received planning permission for an extensive building programme near the South Foreland) of ‘Dover on the Cliffs’, which, fortunately, was never built.
In May, 1909, Pearson had also obtained another contract, to reclaim land at the new Western Docks, for the Marine Station. The station is now the cruise liner terminus. Pearson planned to infill with chalk quarried from the cliffs above the Eastern Docks. Starting from ground level at the docks, he cut a wide ledge at a gentle gradient, laying down rails as he went, in order to transport the chalk down to the water, where it was loaded into barges, and taken across to the Western Docks. He also erected fencing to prevent chalk falling into the harbour below. In this way, Pearson cut his ‘new road’ for the tramway. The lower end has since been cut away to allow further dock development, but it is possible to walk the rest of this ‘new road’ - it finishes on the inland slopes of Langdon Hole, on the old parish boundary between Westcliffe and St Margaret’s (detached).
These 1909 works cut through the route of the dismantled funicular- the indentation in the cliffs above cane easily be seen from the lower section of the ‘new road’ – effectively removing the possibility of delivering materials direct from Martin Mill to the Eastern Docks. Pearson therefore constructed another track, climbing backwards from his ‘new road’. This link thus restored the connection between cliff top and ground level, and because of the (relatively) shallow gradients created by the zig- zag, it would be possible to bring locomotives and rolling stock, not just materials, from the main line down to the Eastern Docks.
Pearson also tendered for a seafront railway, to connect the Eastern and Western Docks by rail; the Western were already directly linked to the main line from Dover to Folkestone. The track was lifted from the now redundant section of the original mineral railway in 1917-18, and relaid along the seafront. The railway, on one side of, but not separated from, the road, was still operating in the 1960s.
The tramway up the cliffs was never built, and the ‘new road’ was only ever used as a track for vehicular traffic However, the Dover, St. Margaret’s and Martin Mill Light Railway Company sought, and was granted, repeated extensions of time for the Order, up to 1949; the Company was not wound up until 1952.
It is interesting, and worrying, to note that in the 1930s, there were also plans to develop the land from Nelson Park, in St. Margaret’s, to Kingsdown. Nothing was built, but the proposed roads are shown on an Ordnance Survey map, dated approximately 1937. But if both the proposed developments had gone ahead, there would be continuous housing estates, along the cliffs, from Dover to Deal.
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, 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...
. It takes its name from the nearby village of Martin
Martin, Kent
Martin is a village north-east of Dover in the county of Kent in England. The nearby village of Martin Mill is situated on the railway between Dover and Deal....
. Martin Mill railway station
Martin Mill railway station
Martin Mill railway station serves Martin Mill in Kent. The station and all trains serving it are operated by Southeastern.-Service: the typical off-peak service from the station is one train per hour to Ramsgate and one train per hour to London Charing Cross via Dover Priory and...
is on the Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
to Deal
Deal, Kent
Deal is a town in Kent England. It lies on the English Channel eight miles north-east of Dover and eight miles south of Ramsgate. It is a former fishing, mining and garrison town...
railway line.
The windmill which gives Martin Mill its name was operating commercially until about 1923 when Sydney Hogben, the owner and former operator, took it into his head to saw off the sails by his own hand. This caused outrage in the community and took the mill out of commission forever. The ruins were finally demolished in the 1960s.
See also
- MartinMartin, KentMartin is a village north-east of Dover in the county of Kent in England. The nearby village of Martin Mill is situated on the railway between Dover and Deal....
The original Martin Mill railway was constructed and operated by Pearson & Son in 1897 for the construction of the Admiralty harbour. The line was laid to standard gauge from Martin Mill station and needed very little earth works until it reached the cliffs where terraces with a gradient of about 1 in 25 where cut into the cliff face to form a switch back path down to the harbour. The line was in use until completion of the harbour and eventually dismantled in 1937 after the intention of using it as a passenger line failed.
During the second world war the line was relaid again to standard gauge following the original course to a point north of Fan Bay Battery, from there two new lines where laid eastwards either side of the Dover to St Margaret's road and both terminating at St Margaret's. The northern line supplied the 14" guns Winnie and Pooh and was also laid with two curved firing spurs for the 13.5" rail mounted guns Gladiator, Scene Shifter and Piece Maker.
The railway guns where 13.5" ex naval guns on WW1 mountings with a maximum elevation of 39 deg, traverse was by using the guns on a curved spur with the degrees marked along the tracks, a large arrow was mounted on the guns bogies to line up with the marks. Recoil was absorbed by special brakes acting on the wheels. Scene Shifter was later converted to an 18" Howitzer gun in November 1943. Maintenance and barrel changing was carried out at the disused Stone Hall Colliery sidings Lydden.
The southern most line had a curved firing spur close to Fan Bay The line then continued to Wanston battery where two spurs where laid in front of the guns Clem & Jane for barrel changing. The barrels being transported by rail to Woolwich Arsenal where they were re-sleeved. There was also a short bypass loop north of the line. The line continued passing South foreland battery to the 13.5" hypervelocity gun Bruce and would have also have served St Margaret's Battery.
The line was entirely worked by diesel electric shunting locomotives requisitioned from the LMS (London Midland Scottish) and SR (Southern Railway), three from the SR and six from the LMS the smoke from a steam locomotive being visible above the cliffs would have given the guns positions away. The LMS locomotives being a long way from home where on an exchange basis if a locomotive failed it was immediately replaced from LMS stock, repaired at Derby works and worked on the LMS until required again. The SR locomotives being on home turf where quickly repaired at Ashford works. As the locomotives shared the same English Electric diesel engines it is probable minor engine repairs for the LMS locos could be carried out at Ashford. Whilst on the MMMR the locomotives where stabled at the shed in Martin Mill station Yard.
The line was again lifted just after the end of the war.
The construction of a large harbour at Dover had been recommended in 1883, but this particular plan was not adopted. The specifications for the harbour, much as it is today, were drawn up in 1897. The tender from S. Pearson and Son was accepted on 5th April 1898. Pearson planned to use concrete blocks for construction of the breakwaters of the harbour and, in order to make these, he built blockyards at either side of the chosen harbour site. The eastern one was where the docks now stand, below the Visitor Centre. The sand and gravel needed for the concrete came from Sandwich, at first by sea, but soon by train. Pearson constructed a railway from Martin Mill, on the passenger line between Dover and Deal, to a terminus just above the eastern docks. The route was pegged out within two months of him gaining the contract, and the line was in use by mid-1899. A lease with the Earl of Guilford, who owned most of the land, specified, among other things, that the line was to be single track, standard gauge, that approval was to be obtained for the carriage of passengers, and a passenger station should be built at Langdon Hole (it never was !).
From Martin Mill, the mineral railway ran parallel to the main line for about a mile, then turned south towards the cliff edge. It ran around the curve of the cliff above Langdon Hole on a ledge (now the footpath towards St. Margaret’s) – the indentation of sleepers and, in some places, the wood of the sleepers themselves, can still be seen. It continued on a shingle embankment, outside the walls of the prison then on site (see Walk No. 2 – Langdon Convict and Military Prison), to its terminus (just below the turning off the road onto National Trust Land), where sidings and a ballast unloading shed were built.
To start with, the sand and gravel were just tipped down the cliff face, but within a year, a balanced lift installation (like a funicular railway) was built, and the materials were lowered in narrow gauge, side tipping skips, the weight of the full skips serving to raise the empty ones. Once at the bottom, they were pushed by hand along narrow gauge track, and emptied into huge concrete mixers.
All that remains of this funicular today is an indentation in the cliff edge. It was dismantled in 1909, upon completion of the harbour construction. The section of line from the cliff top terminus to a point in front of Langdon Battery (now the site of the modern Coastguard station) was lifted in 1917-18 to supply track for the seafront railway. The rest of the mineral railway remained intact until 1937, when it was taken up by the army for scrap, only to be relaid, for part of its route in 1940, when it became the Martin Mill Military Railway. Instead of coming to the cliff edge, the new route curved away towards St. Margaret’s Bay, before reaching Langdon Hole. It served two batteries and several gun emplacements (see Walk No. 5 – Coastal Defences).
Part of the original lease with the Earl of Guilford stipulated that approval should be obtained for the carriage of passengers on this railway. Pearson did nothing about this. However in 1901, he, with Sir John Jackson and Sir William Crundall, formed the Dover, St. Margaret’s and Martin Mill Light Railway Company. They applied for a Light Railway Order for a 3 foot 6 inch gauge electric tramway (not standard gauge, as had been specified by the lease). The Light Railway Order was finally made in 1909. The planned route was from the town, up the cliffs on a ‘new road’, round Langdon Hole, across the cliffs to St. Margaret’s and then inland to the existing Martin Mill passenger railway station. This tramway would serve the proposed new development (Sir William Crundall had recently received planning permission for an extensive building programme near the South Foreland) of ‘Dover on the Cliffs’, which, fortunately, was never built.
In May, 1909, Pearson had also obtained another contract, to reclaim land at the new Western Docks, for the Marine Station. The station is now the cruise liner terminus. Pearson planned to infill with chalk quarried from the cliffs above the Eastern Docks. Starting from ground level at the docks, he cut a wide ledge at a gentle gradient, laying down rails as he went, in order to transport the chalk down to the water, where it was loaded into barges, and taken across to the Western Docks. He also erected fencing to prevent chalk falling into the harbour below. In this way, Pearson cut his ‘new road’ for the tramway. The lower end has since been cut away to allow further dock development, but it is possible to walk the rest of this ‘new road’ - it finishes on the inland slopes of Langdon Hole, on the old parish boundary between Westcliffe and St Margaret’s (detached).
These 1909 works cut through the route of the dismantled funicular- the indentation in the cliffs above cane easily be seen from the lower section of the ‘new road’ – effectively removing the possibility of delivering materials direct from Martin Mill to the Eastern Docks. Pearson therefore constructed another track, climbing backwards from his ‘new road’. This link thus restored the connection between cliff top and ground level, and because of the (relatively) shallow gradients created by the zig- zag, it would be possible to bring locomotives and rolling stock, not just materials, from the main line down to the Eastern Docks.
Pearson also tendered for a seafront railway, to connect the Eastern and Western Docks by rail; the Western were already directly linked to the main line from Dover to Folkestone. The track was lifted from the now redundant section of the original mineral railway in 1917-18, and relaid along the seafront. The railway, on one side of, but not separated from, the road, was still operating in the 1960s.
The tramway up the cliffs was never built, and the ‘new road’ was only ever used as a track for vehicular traffic However, the Dover, St. Margaret’s and Martin Mill Light Railway Company sought, and was granted, repeated extensions of time for the Order, up to 1949; the Company was not wound up until 1952.
It is interesting, and worrying, to note that in the 1930s, there were also plans to develop the land from Nelson Park, in St. Margaret’s, to Kingsdown. Nothing was built, but the proposed roads are shown on an Ordnance Survey map, dated approximately 1937. But if both the proposed developments had gone ahead, there would be continuous housing estates, along the cliffs, from Dover to Deal.