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Chatham Central railway station

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Coordinates: 51°23′05.10″N 0°30′45.00″E / 51.3847500°N 0.5125000°E / 51.3847500; 0.5125000
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Chatham Central
Site of Chatham Central railway station
General information
LocationChatham, Borough of Medway
England
Operated bySouth Eastern Railway
Managed bySouth Eastern Railway
Transit authorityNone
Platforms1[1]
Train operatorsSouth Eastern Railway
ConnectionsStrood railway station, Rochester Common
Construction
Structure typeTimber viaduct over LCDR goods yard
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companySouth Eastern Railway[2]
Pre-groupingSouth Eastern and Chatham Railway
Key dates
1 March 1892Opened[2]
1 October 1911Closed

Chatham Central railway station was a former terminus of the South Eastern Railway’s (SER)[3][4] Rochester & Chatham[5] Extension from Strood, serving the Medway towns of Chatham and Rochester. The line was opened by the SER to give it its own route to Rochester/Chatham, parallel to the rival London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) route. Chatham Central station opened on 1 March 1892, built by the SER[6] on a wooden viaduct (in the Chatham Intra area of Rochester).

An excerpt from the Journal of the Railway & Canal Historical Society, Volume XXVII No. 4, March 1982, states that "the SER did eventually reach Chatham in 1892, at its own station, Chatham Central. The branch line, although a LCDR undertaking, was taken only as far as the Gillingham Gate."[7]

Chatham Central railway station consisted of a single platform with associated timber buildings.[8] The extension ran north-east of the existing LCDR line and required its own bridge over the River Medway.[9]

Timeline of key dates:

  • 1 March 1892: Chatham Central station opened at the end of the extension.[11]
  • 1 January 1899: The SER and LCDR entered a working union (forming the South Eastern & Chatham Railway, SE&CR).[12][13]
  • 1 October 1911: The Chatham extension (and Chatham Central station) closed as a redundant line.[14][15]

History

[edit]

The SER had reached Strood by 1845,[16] but had no direct line beyond Rochester until late in the 19th century. To compete with the LCDR, the SER built the Rochester & Chatham Extension. On 20 July 1891 this line opened from Strood to Rochester (with Rochester Common station), and on 1 March 1892 it was extended to Chatham Central. In March 1892, the South Eastern Railway (SER) inaugurated its Chatham Central branch,[17] including a new iron-girder bridge over the River Medway built on masonry piers[18] to carry all SER traffic between Strood and Rochester Common station. Until then, the rival London, Chatham & Dover Railway (LCDR) had served Rochester via its own bridge[19] into Rochester Banks station—opened in 1892 and later renamed Rochester Main Line[20]—creating two parallel river crossings.[21] The 1892 SER bridge remained the primary route for Chatham Central branch trains even after a much later, although brief, 1911 "Toomer Loop" connection linked the two lines;[22] its robust construction and alignment made it the favoured structure for through traffic.

In 1899 the rival companies agreed to work jointly as the South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SE&CR).[23] The SE&CR quickly moved to eliminate duplication. Chatham Central’s line duplicated the nearby LCDR Chatham station,[24] and was deemed redundant. On 1 October 1911, after only 19 years of service, Chatham Central (and the extension) was closed.[25] Rochester Common station which was on the same branch closed the same day.)[26] The track was soon removed.

In June 1919, a fire destroyed the SER bridge’s timber decking, forcing all services onto the older LCDR bridge until repairs were completed.[27] Over the next three years, strengthening and repair works, such as reinstating the deck, were undertaken on the SER bridge by the ‘’Cleveland Bridge Company’’, and the bridge was later reopened on January 1922.[28] The new line ran largely parallel to the existing LCDR route and crossed the Medway on its own iron bridge.[29] According to heritage records, “Chatham Central [was] so peripheral to Chatham it was actually in Rochester”, and the entire branch proved to be a "white elephant".[30] Indeed, the LCDR had even built a goods yard[31][32] (Blue Boar Yard) in the path of the extension, forcing the SER to carry its track on a timber viaduct to pass over it.

On 9 July 1927, South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SECR)—the post-Grouping amalgamation of SER and LCDR[33]—opened a new connecting line at Strood that rerouted every Strood–Rochester service onto the 1892 SER bridge.[34] This strategic rationalisation ended regular use of the LCDR structure, as the SR sought to eliminate inherited route duplications . Although the older LCDR piers remained standing (and were even maintained "in readiness" during World War II), no further scheduled traffic ever crossed them.

Today, the 1892 SER bridge[35] continues in daily use on the North Kent line between Strood and Rochester,[36] while vestiges of the LCDR crossing still mark the riverbank as a testament to the once-rival lines.

Station layout and location

[edit]

Chatham Central station lay in the Chatham Intra area (then part of Rochester),[37] near Doust Way.[38][39] The station’s single platform and buildings were carried on a long wooden trestle viaduct, built to span the LCDR goods yard below.[31] Contemporary accounts note that Chatham Central "was not really central to Chatham, nor within the town's boundaries at all".[9][40] Beyond the platform, the line curved into Chatham; the station likely had only basic facilities and a small station building (no photographs of the station building are known to survive). Apart from the viaduct, the extension had few structures of note.

Closure and aftermath

[edit]
Rochester Bridge across the River Medway (eastbound carriageway), originally built in 1892 for the SER Strood–Chatham. This bridge remains in use today as part of the A2 road.

After closing in 1911,[41] the station lay derelict and was eventually demolished in 1933. No station buildings or trackworks survived. Today no trace of the original station remains: its site is completely covered by later development.[42][43] The only surviving remnant of the extension is the Medway bridge at Rochester. This 1892 iron bridge was retained[44][45] and now carries the eastbound (A2) carriageway over the river.[46][36]

Medway Towns
Legend
North Kent Line & HS1
to London Bridge & St Pancras
Chatham Main Line
to Victoria & Blackfriars
Medway Valley Line
to Maidstone West
 Halling
Cuxton
Strood
Rochester Bridge | Strood (1st)
Rochester Bridge
Goods station
Rochester Common
Rochester
(2015–)
 Rochester
(1892–2015)
 Chatham Central
River Medway
 Chatham
Gillingham
Rainham
Chatham Main Line
to Faversham, Dover & Ramsgate
Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Rochester Common
Line and station closed 		  South Eastern Railway
Chatham Extension 		  Terminus

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Adrian Gray (1984). The London Chatham and Dover Railway. Meresborough Books. ISBN 0-905270-88-6.
  2. ^ a b Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
  3. ^ "1.2 Chatham Main Line". London Faversham High Speed (PDF). RailSimulator.com Ltd. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 May 2025 – via Steam's content delivery network (CDN), operated by Valve Corporation. The SER lines ran into a separate terminus at Rochester, named Chatham Central Provided by Dovetail Games.
  4. ^ Branch Line Society. "2. Former LCD route until 1927". England – Stations & Stops HS1, South Eastern & Chatham (Southern Railway) (PDF). Based on Bradshaws Guides, company timetables and personal research, with extra information from the RCHS. Branch Line Society. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2025.
  5. ^ Council, Kent County (25 January 2008). "Exploring Kent's Past". Exploring Kent's Past. Kent County Council. Kent Historic Environment Record. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025. Its terminus, Chatham Central, was so peripheral to Chatham it was actually in Rochester .... the new bridge became the new route linking Strood and Rochester.
  6. ^ Historic Environment Record, Kent County Council. "TQ 76 NW 421 - Chatham Central Station - Historic Environment Record". Kent Historic Environment Record. Kent County Council. Kent Historic Environment Record. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  7. ^ Railway & Canal Historical Society (4 March 1982). "RAILWAYS IN MILITARY INSTALLATIONS". Journal of the Railway & Canal Historical Society (PDF). Vol. XXVII (No. 4 ed.). Railway & Canal Historical Society. p. 34. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2025.
  8. ^ Medway, Visit. Chatham INTRA Heritage Trail Map | Visit Medway (PDF). Written by Rob Flood and designed by Mark Barnes. Medway Council. 1. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 May 2025. On the site of Doust Way once stood South-Eastern Railway's rather mis-named Chatham Central Railway Station. Built on a wooden viaduct and opened in 1892, it was closed in 1911 and demolished in 1933.
  9. ^ a b Lines, Medway. "Old Medway Stations". Medway Lines. Medway Lines. Medway Lines. p. 1. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  10. ^ "South Eastern Railway - Kent Past". www.kentpast.co.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2025. Probably the most wasteful competitive venture by the SER was a second bridge over the River Medway between Strood leading to a branch to Rochester and Chatham, which opened in July 1891.
  11. ^ Rail, Kent. "Chatham – Kent Rail". Kent Rail. Kent Rail. Kent Rail. p. 1. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025. The company had begun contemplating operating services to Chatham .... with the latter's Chatham Central opening on 1st March 1892
  12. ^ "Short History of SECR". South Eastern & Chatham Railway Society. © 2025 South Eastern & Chatham Railway Society. South Eastern & Chatham Railway Society. p. 1. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025. The SECR was formed in 1899 by a legal union between the two existing companies, the South Eastern Railway and the London, Chatham & Dover Railway whose rivalry had been damaging to profits and investment.
  13. ^ Arkell, John. "South Eastern & Chatham Railway". Historical Model Railway Society (HMRS). Historical Model Railway Society (HMRS). p. 1. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025. Brief History: The SE&CR was formed in 1899 by the creation of a committee to jointly manage the South Eastern Railway and the London Chatham & Dover Railway.
  14. ^ Kent Historic Environment Record (Kent HER). Monument record TQ 76 NW 744 – Chatham central branch line. Kent County Council. p. 1. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025.
  15. ^ "Rival and Competing Routes in Kent – even in 2020.". The History of the Railway at Charing (Part 1) (PDF). 1. Charing and District Local History Society (CDLHS). p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 May 2025. Chatham Central closed 1911, route diverted to present Rochester and Chatham's stations Overseen by the Kent Community Rail Partnership.
  16. ^ Perdue, David A. "Charles Dickens Rochester/Chatham Map". The Charles Dickens Page. David A. Perdue. The Charles Dickens Page. p. 1. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025. Strood Station (Map: C-5) The South Eastern Railway (SER) reached Strood in 1845
  17. ^ "ser". www.kenelks.co.uk. Archived from the original on 27 May 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
  18. ^ "Rochester Bridge | Castellogy". 29 August 2020. Archived from the original on 27 May 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
  19. ^ "Railway Structures". sremg.org.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2025. Renamed the London, Chatham & Dover Railway, the East Kent soon opened its own line to London, from Rochester Bridge Junction on the west bank of the River
  20. ^ "A New Railway Station For Rochester | City Of Rochester Society". city-of-rochester.org.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2025. Not to be outdone, the LCDR opened their own Rochester Banks (later Rochester Main Line and now simply Rochester) on the site of the present station, though it only had two platforms until widening in 1911 added a further two
  21. ^ "Railway Structures". sremg.org.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2025. This involved construction of a completely new bridge over the Medway, downstream of the LCDR one.
  22. ^ "RailRef Line Codes SE". The Signalling Record Society. Signalling Record Society. Signalling Record Society. SE034. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  23. ^ Darent Valley Community Rail Partnership (2023). "TIMELINE 1862-1922". Otford Station and Junction: A Historical Overview (1862–1922) (PDF). Kit Boyd, commissioned by DVCRP to produce the poster artwork. Tim Higginson of Queste Design, who completed the final poster layout and bleed specifications. Darent Valley Community Rail Partnership. p. 1. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 May 2025. The two rival companies, the London, Chatham and Dover, and the South Eastern establish a joint working agreement under the name the South Eastern and Chatham Railway.
  24. ^ Mat17 (3 April 2024). "Beeching Cuts and the Big Four". RailUK Forums. RailUK Forums. RailUK Forums. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025. It is notable that the formerly competing South Eastern, and London Chatham & Dover, who between them managed to run duplicate lines into every town of consequence in Kent, have lost hardly any of this duplicated mileage.
  25. ^ Register of Closed Railways. "1911 connection - Chatham (Central); Strood Jct. (SER) - Rochester Bridge Jct. (Toomer Loop)". Register of Closed Railways. Register of Closed Railways. Register of Closed Railways. p. 1. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025. Date Closed to Passenger Services .... 1 Oct 1911
  26. ^ Railway Chronology Newsletter – Issue 26 (January 2001) (PDF). Railway & Canal Historical Society. 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2025. Rochester Common .... 1 October 1911 PRO support
  27. ^ "Railway Structures". sremg.org.uk. Archived from the original on 27 May 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
  28. ^ Glasspool, David. "Strood – Kent Rail". Kent Rail. Kent Rail Ltd. Kent Rail Ltd. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  29. ^ “Interesting Bridges” (PDF). Rochester Bridge Trust (Education & Outreach team). 2023. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 May 2025. This bridge was .... made of cast iron cylinders sunk through the riverbed to the rock underneath, hidden behind stone walls.
  30. ^ Stenhouse, Helen. "Chatham Intra - REPORT | Kent Family History Society". Kent Family History Society. Kent Family History Society © 2025 Kent Family History Society. All Rights Reserved. Kent Family History Society. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025. Chatham Central station, a complete white elephant which didn't even survive for twenty years.
  31. ^ a b Tom Burnham, Rochester goods yard in 1979 | Flickr, retrieved 26 May 2025
  32. ^ The Clock Tower – Issue 13 (February 2009) (PDF). Friends of Medway Archives and Local Studies Centre (FOMA). p. 22. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2025. In the 1880s the LCDR used the land to the east of the line at Rochester to build a goods yard and warehouse.
  33. ^ Duggan, Jamie (24 May 2025). "SECR L Class and SR L1 Class steam locomotives - Lost Class". RailAdvent. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  34. ^ "title is unknown". Railway Age. Vol. 83, no. 2. Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation (published 7 July 2021). 1927 [1927-07-09]. ISSN 0033-8826 – via Internet Archive. another connecting line was put in between the former SER and LCDR … this enabled the LCDR's bridge to be taken out of use
  35. ^ "Rochester, the Bridge c1955". The Francis Frith Collection. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  36. ^ a b Edwards, Jade (11 July 2016). "Road works closes bridge". Kent Online. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  37. ^ Godfrey Maps, Alan. "Chatham 1907 | Stanfords". Stanfords (The Godfrey ed.). Edward Stanford Ltd. Edward Stanford Ltd. Details. ISBN 9781841513638. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  38. ^ Caldwell, David. "Explore Doust Way in Rochester in the town of Rochester". Street List. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
  39. ^ Council, Medway (January 2024). "The 19th Century". Star Hill to Sun Pier Conservation Area Appraisal 2024 | Medway Council (PDF). Medway Council. p. 10. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 April 2025. South East Railway were in competition with East Kent Railway, and as a response constructed Chatham Central Station in the same year, located in the vicinity of the present-day Doust Way.
  40. ^ "Chatham". www.kentrail.org.uk. Archived from the original on 27 May 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2025. The SER named its then new terminus Chatham Central, although it was neither central in Chatham, nor within the town's boundaries at all!
  41. ^ "Railway History". Saturday Walkers Club. Club Saturday Walkers. p. 1. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025. 1911 led to closure of the SER's line through Rochester and Chatham
  42. ^ "Rochester Riverside Phase 7". Housing Design Awards. Archived from the original on 27 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  43. ^ Thompson, Nigel. "Geograph:: Chatham Central railway station (site),... © Nigel Thompson". www.geograph.org.uk. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  44. ^ "1911 connection - Chatham (Central); Strood Jct. (SER) - Rochester Bridge Jct. (Toomer Loop) | Register of Closed Railways". registerofclosedrailways.co.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  45. ^ "Construction Gallery". The Rochester Bridge Trust. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
  46. ^ "A general view of Rochester Bridge, showing the railway bridge that carries the Chatham and Dover Railway over the River Medway, most likely from the south-east (EHC01/314/52/04) Archive Item - English Heritage(EH):Archive Collection | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Archived from the original on 26 May 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.

51°23′05.10″N 0°30′45.00″E / 51.3847500°N 0.5125000°E / 51.3847500; 0.5125000

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