Woodford Halse railway station
Encyclopedia
Woodford Halse railway station stood on the Great Central Railway
(GCR) main line
, the last main line to be built from the north of England to London. The station opened with the line on 15 March 1899 under the name Woodford and Hinton and served the adjacent villages of Woodford Halse
to the east and Hinton
to the west, both in Northamptonshire
. The station was renamed Woodford Halse on 1 November 1948.
(about two miles west), and Moreton Pinkney
(three miles south-east), both on the East and West Junction Railway (later part of the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway
), opened in July 1873, and no other lines seemed likely to be built in such a thinly populated area. However, in the late 1890s the village found itself on a major trunk route, the Great Central Railway's London Extension
.
The station was a variation on the standard island platform design typical of the London Extension, here the less common "embankment" type reached from a roadway (Station Road), that passed beneath the line. It differed from the usual design in that since it served what was effectively a four-way junction, it was provided with a more extensive range of platform buildings and facilities beneath a longer awning.
The station was situated near Woodford Halse North Curve Junction linking the GCR with the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway (SMJ) route between Stratford-upon-Avon
and Towcester
, and a separate platform was provided on the west side for SMJ trains, a timber structure later replaced by a concrete slab construction although still referred to as the "wooden platform". Further south however was the more important Culworth Junction, divergence point for a stretch of line 8.25 miles (13.3 km) in length linking the GCR with the Great Western Railway
at , enabling some extensive and varied cross-country workings to take place.
To the north of the station, a major locomotive depot housing up to 30 locos with space to double that number, also wagon and sheet repair shops, plus extensive marshalling yards, were also sited at Woodford Halse (plans to construct carriage sheds there too were dropped). The originally intended location for these facilities was Brackley
until local opposition forced a change in plans and the site moved to Woodford Halse. Much of this was located on top of a vast embankment covering some 35 acres (14.2 hectares), formed mainly from spoil taken from Catesby Tunnel a few miles to the north. The infant River Cherwell
flowed (and still flows) beneath this embankment in a north-east to south-west direction in a culvert
approx. 165 yards (150 metres) in length. Several roads containing 136 terraced dwellings to house the railway workers were built on the east side of the embankment, together with a street of shops. This gave a small previously rural village an industrial look that seemed alien to its surroundings. The Woodford-cum-Membris parish's population eventually peaked at just under 2,000, at which time Woodford Halse had its own cinema and railway workers' social club.
The GCR was, at times, a busy route and the depot and yards at Woodford Halse were a hive of activity, but not busy enough to ensure survival when the Beeching Axe
closures of the 1960s took place. The Stratford & Midland Junction
had already closed on 7 April 1952 although the Woodford North to West Curve which gave access to it had actually gone earlier, on 31 May 1948. It was originally hoped that the line south of Woodford Halse to Aylesbury would remain open, but it was not to be. On 5 April 1965 the marshalling yards closed, and on 5 September 1966, most of the GCR was closed completely, including all remaining lines converging on Woodford Halse.
All tracks and most railway buildings were later cleared leaving behind a wasteland (in 1971 one building withstood four attempts by the Royal Marines
to blow it up - they only succeeded in removing its roof). The population fell sharply too, as many former railway workers and their families left the area, but new developments in later decades have increased it (the parish's population was 3,456 at the 2001 UK census).
Woodford Halse is once again a quiet place, though visitors can still see evidence of its railway past. The twin bridges over Station Road can still be seen; below and between them is the bricked-up station entrance, but up on top everything has gone - the station site itself is now a temporary winter home for travelling showmen. To the north, where the depot and yards were sited, is now a tree plantation and the Great Central Way Industrial Estate, currently being enlarged to create the Manor Business Park. Further north still, one solitary railway structure survives amid fields: the water tower that served the Charwelton
Watertroughs
.
, the rail operator of the remaining southern section of the GCR (Marylebone-Aylesbury) have hinted that they want to connect to Birmingham via Rugby Central
and Woodford Halse. This is unlikely to happen before 2013.
Great Central Railway
The Great Central Railway was a railway company in England which came into being when the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway changed its name in 1897 in anticipation of the opening in 1899 of its London Extension . On 1 January 1923, it was grouped into the London and North Eastern...
(GCR) main line
Great Central Main Line
The Great Central Main Line , also known as the London Extension of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway , is a former railway line which opened in 1899 linking Sheffield with Marylebone Station in London via Nottingham and Leicester.The GCML was the last main line railway built in...
, the last main line to be built from the north of England to London. The station opened with the line on 15 March 1899 under the name Woodford and Hinton and served the adjacent villages of Woodford Halse
Woodford Halse
Woodford Halse is a village about south of Daventry in Northamptonshire. It is in the civil parish of Woodford cum Membris, which includes also village of Hinton and hamlet of West Farndon...
to the east and Hinton
Hinton, Northamptonshire
Hinton is a village about south of Daventry in Northamptonshire. The village is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Woodford cum Membris, the others being the village of Woodford Halse and hamlet of West Farndon.-History:...
to the west, both in Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
. The station was renamed Woodford Halse on 1 November 1948.
History
The village of Woodford Halse became notable for the role it played as an important railway centre. Originally it had seemed destined not to have a railway at all, as the nearest stations were at ByfieldByfield, Northamptonshire
Byfield is a village and civil parish forming part of the Daventry district in Northamptonshire, England.- History :Byfield, with Westhorp, was mentioned in the Domesday Book. It has been close to many of the important events in history. During the Wars of the Roses, in 1469 the battle of Edgecote...
(about two miles west), and Moreton Pinkney
Moreton Pinkney
Moreton Pinkney is a village and civil parish in South Northamptonshire, about north of Brackley.-Parish church:The earliest evidence of Christianity in the parish is a fragment of an Anglo-Saxon stone cross in the churchyard of the Church of England parish church of St Mary the Virgin...
(three miles south-east), both on the East and West Junction Railway (later part of the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway
Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway
The Stratford Upon Avon & Midland Junction Railway was a small independent railway company which ran a line across the empty, untouched centre of England. It visited the counties of Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire and a little of Buckinghamshire, only existing as the SMJR from 1909 to...
), opened in July 1873, and no other lines seemed likely to be built in such a thinly populated area. However, in the late 1890s the village found itself on a major trunk route, the Great Central Railway's London Extension
Great Central Main Line
The Great Central Main Line , also known as the London Extension of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway , is a former railway line which opened in 1899 linking Sheffield with Marylebone Station in London via Nottingham and Leicester.The GCML was the last main line railway built in...
.
The station was a variation on the standard island platform design typical of the London Extension, here the less common "embankment" type reached from a roadway (Station Road), that passed beneath the line. It differed from the usual design in that since it served what was effectively a four-way junction, it was provided with a more extensive range of platform buildings and facilities beneath a longer awning.
The station was situated near Woodford Halse North Curve Junction linking the GCR with the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway (SMJ) route between Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
and Towcester
Towcester
Towcester , the Roman town of Lactodorum, is a small town in south Northamptonshire, England.-Etymology:Towcester comes from the Old English Tófe-ceaster. Tófe refers to the River Tove; Bosworth and Toller compare it to the "Scandinavian proper names" Tófi and Tófa...
, and a separate platform was provided on the west side for SMJ trains, a timber structure later replaced by a concrete slab construction although still referred to as the "wooden platform". Further south however was the more important Culworth Junction, divergence point for a stretch of line 8.25 miles (13.3 km) in length linking the GCR with the Great Western Railway
Chiltern Main Line
The Chiltern Main Line is an inter-urban, regional and commuter railway, part of the British railway system. It links London and Birmingham on a 112-mile route via the towns of High Wycombe, Banbury, and Leamington Spa...
at , enabling some extensive and varied cross-country workings to take place.
To the north of the station, a major locomotive depot housing up to 30 locos with space to double that number, also wagon and sheet repair shops, plus extensive marshalling yards, were also sited at Woodford Halse (plans to construct carriage sheds there too were dropped). The originally intended location for these facilities was Brackley
Brackley
Brackley is a town in south Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Oxford and miles form Northampton. Historically a market town based on the wool and lace trade, it was built on the intersecting trade routes between London, Birmingham and the English Midlands and between Cambridge and Oxford...
until local opposition forced a change in plans and the site moved to Woodford Halse. Much of this was located on top of a vast embankment covering some 35 acres (14.2 hectares), formed mainly from spoil taken from Catesby Tunnel a few miles to the north. The infant River Cherwell
River Cherwell
The River Cherwell is a river which flows through the Midlands of England. It is a major tributary of the River Thames.The general course of the River Cherwell is north to south and the 'straight-line' distance from its source to the Thames is about...
flowed (and still flows) beneath this embankment in a north-east to south-west direction in a culvert
Culvert
A culvert is a device used to channel water. It may be used to allow water to pass underneath a road, railway, or embankment. Culverts can be made of many different materials; steel, polyvinyl chloride and concrete are the most common...
approx. 165 yards (150 metres) in length. Several roads containing 136 terraced dwellings to house the railway workers were built on the east side of the embankment, together with a street of shops. This gave a small previously rural village an industrial look that seemed alien to its surroundings. The Woodford-cum-Membris parish's population eventually peaked at just under 2,000, at which time Woodford Halse had its own cinema and railway workers' social club.
The GCR was, at times, a busy route and the depot and yards at Woodford Halse were a hive of activity, but not busy enough to ensure survival when the Beeching Axe
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
closures of the 1960s took place. The Stratford & Midland Junction
Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway
The Stratford Upon Avon & Midland Junction Railway was a small independent railway company which ran a line across the empty, untouched centre of England. It visited the counties of Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire and a little of Buckinghamshire, only existing as the SMJR from 1909 to...
had already closed on 7 April 1952 although the Woodford North to West Curve which gave access to it had actually gone earlier, on 31 May 1948. It was originally hoped that the line south of Woodford Halse to Aylesbury would remain open, but it was not to be. On 5 April 1965 the marshalling yards closed, and on 5 September 1966, most of the GCR was closed completely, including all remaining lines converging on Woodford Halse.
All tracks and most railway buildings were later cleared leaving behind a wasteland (in 1971 one building withstood four attempts by the Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
to blow it up - they only succeeded in removing its roof). The population fell sharply too, as many former railway workers and their families left the area, but new developments in later decades have increased it (the parish's population was 3,456 at the 2001 UK census).
Woodford Halse is once again a quiet place, though visitors can still see evidence of its railway past. The twin bridges over Station Road can still be seen; below and between them is the bricked-up station entrance, but up on top everything has gone - the station site itself is now a temporary winter home for travelling showmen. To the north, where the depot and yards were sited, is now a tree plantation and the Great Central Way Industrial Estate, currently being enlarged to create the Manor Business Park. Further north still, one solitary railway structure survives amid fields: the water tower that served the Charwelton
Charwelton
Charwelton is a village and civil parish about south of Daventry in Northamptonshire, England. Its toponym is derived from the River Cherwell beside which the village stands....
Watertroughs
Track pan
A track pan or water trough is a device to enable a steam railway locomotive to replenish its water supply while in motion...
.
Routes
Future
Woodford Halse may once again become a railway hub as Chiltern RailwaysChiltern Railways
Chiltern Railways is a British train operating company. It was set up at the privatisation of British Rail in 1996, and operates local passenger trains from Marylebone station in London to Aylesbury and main-line trains on the Chiltern Main Line to Birmingham Snow Hill with its associated branches...
, the rail operator of the remaining southern section of the GCR (Marylebone-Aylesbury) have hinted that they want to connect to Birmingham via Rugby Central
Rugby Central Railway Station
Rugby Central was a railway station serving Rugby in Warwickshire on the former Great Central Main Line which opened in 1899 and closed in 1969....
and Woodford Halse. This is unlikely to happen before 2013.