Grove Ferry and Upstreet railway station

Disused railway station in Kent, England

51°19′27″N 1°12′24″E / 51.32408°N 1.20675°E / 51.32408; 1.20675Grid referenceTR 2352 6321Platforms2Other informationStatusDisusedHistoryOriginal companySouth Eastern RailwayPre-groupingSouth Eastern and Chatham RailwayPost-groupingSouthern RailwayKey dates13 April 1846Opened as Grove Ferry20 September 1954Renamed Grove Ferry and Upstreet30 April 1960Station closed to freight3 January 1966Station closed to passengers

Grove Ferry and Upstreet was a railway station in east Kent. It was opened by South Eastern Railway (SER), on the Ashford to Ramsgate (via Canterbury West) line between Sturry station and Minster station.

History

Grove Ferry station opened on 13 April 1846,[1] the rural station was built to serve the village of Upstreet and the ferry crossing of the Great Stour until 1966, when a bridge was built.[2] The nearby "Grove Ferry Inn" owned the rights to the ferry and farmed 17 acres (6.9 ha) of lavender,[3] creating a popular day trip destination up until the Second World War; this is now part of the Grove Ferry Picnic Area. The public level crossing and goods sidings leading to the ferry were operated from a small signal box.[4]

The station was renamed Grove Ferry & Upstreet in September 1954.[5] Goods traffic ceased on 30 April 1960,[6] The railway between Ashford and Minster was electrified on 9 October 1961.[1] A concrete footbridge was built at the station in preparation for this change.[5] The signal box closed on 14 March 1964,[6] and the level crossing was converted to automatic half barriers on 3 January 1966. The station closed the same day,[7] shortly before the introduction of a bus service over the new Grove Ferry Bridge, which would have undermined the low patronage.

Remains today

The station buildings and up platform have been demolished and only a few traces remain of the down platform. The broad steps leading to the footpath connecting the station to the village, although overgrown, can still be seen. Grove Ferry and Upstreet Station lives on in model form due to the efforts of the Ashford Model Railway Club, with the model occasionally being taken on tour.[8]


Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Chislet Colliery Halt   British Rail
Southern Region
Ashford to Ramsgate
(via Canterbury West) line 		  Minster

References

Citations
  1. ^ a b Mitchell & Smith 1995, Historical Background.
  2. ^ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 64.
  3. ^ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 62.
  4. ^ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 63.
  5. ^ a b Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 66.
  6. ^ a b Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 65.
  7. ^ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustrations 64 & 66.
  8. ^ "Layouts - Grove Ferry & Upstreet". Ashford Model Railway Club. 2009. Archived from the original on 30 July 2009. Retrieved 30 December 2009.
Sources
  • Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (1995). Branch Lines Around Canterbury. Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN 1 873793 58 8.
  • v
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Closed railway stations in Kent
Canterbury and Whitstable RailwayElham Valley RailwayHawkhurst branch lineHundred of Hoo RailwayKent and East Sussex RailwaySheppey Light RailwayEast Kent Light RailwayWesterham Valley branch lineGravesend West LineSandgate Branch
South Eastern Main LineDover areaMarshlink line
Dungeness branchesRomney, Hythe and Dymchurch RailwaySER & LCDR merger remodellingOther lines
Ashford to Ramsgate
via Canterbury West
Chatham Main Line
Kent Coast line
Maidstone East line
Medway Valley line
Sheerness line