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A
Short History Of The Line
The
line was originally two separate schemes: the Tottenham &
Hampstead Junction Railway (authorised 1862) and the Tottenham
& Forest Gate Railway (sanctioned 1890). The T&HJR was planned
to run from Tottenham Hale to Gospel Oak, and opened in July
1868 from Tottenham Hale to Highgate Road, just short of Gospel
Oak. Most trains ran to & from Fenchurch Street - a very roundabout
route! Not surprisingly the service was not a success and
was withdrawn in 1870. By now the T&HJR was in financial difficulty
and the final section to Gospel Oak was still not finished.
After much argy-bargy with neighbouring railway companies,
it was agreed that the new line could extend to Gospel Oak
but not join the North London Line there. Instead a spur was
built down to Kentish Town, and later in 1870 a passenger
service commenced from Moorgate via Kentish Town to Crouch
Hill, extending to South Tottenham in 1872. The same year,
new stations opened at Hornsey Road and Junction Road (both
now closed). Green Lanes opened in 1880 and St Ann's Road
(also now closed) in 1882.
Towards
the end of the 19th Century Sir Courtenay Warner, developer
of much of the land around Walthamstow (the Warner Estate)
wanted a railway line to serve his new developments. He was
a prime mover behind the Tottenham and Forest Gate Railway,
which opened in 1894. Much of the area it passed through had
already been built over, which is why much of the route is
on viaduct (386 arches!) crossing innumerable streets (the
cut-off ends of the terraces nearest the viaduct show clearly
where demolition had to take place to put the railway line
through). This must have been as big an upheaval locally as
the building of the M11 Link Road decades later. At opening,
the intermediate stations were Black Horse Road, Walthamstow,
Leyton, Leytonstone and Wanstead Park. Woodgrange Park was
added subsequently, as was a curve to East Ham which some
passenger trains used until 1958. You can still see the bay
platform they used there, behind the eastbound District Line
platform.
Various
other services came & went over the years: Moorgate-East Ham,
St Pancras-Southend, St Pancras-Tilbury boat trains, Gospel
Oak-Southend, St Pancras-Norwich, Gospel Oak-Chingford were
a few examples. The Palace Gates-North Woolwich service interchanged
with our line at South Tottenham but that service ended in
1963. Eventually the basic service settled down as Kentish
Town-Barking, with odd trains running to/from St Pancras.
Meanwhile the line developed as a key freight route, and a
number of the stations had goods yards, now long gone. That
at Leytonstone High Road was an oddity, because the restricted
space meant wagons had to be lowered from the goods line (behind
the eastbound platform) to ground level by means of an hydraulic
hoist.
Not
all the stations survived the passage of time: Highgate Road
High Level closed in 1915, Low Level following in 1918. St
Ann's Road closed in 1942, and both Hornsey Road and Junction
Road followed suit in 1943. For years we and Islington Council
have been keen to see Junction Road reopened, as it would
give a useful Tube interchange with Tufnell Park as well as
serving its local area. The road alongside is still called
Station Road - one day it may once again be true!
The 1960s
saw the line proposed for closure to passengers, which saw
the predecessor of this User Group formed to fight the threat.
(That must make us one of the longest-lived passenger groups
in the country). The line went into a kind of decaying limbo:
trains were formed of hand-me-down stock with varying degrees
of reliability, one by one the crumbling station canopies
and buildings were demolished and replaced with basic structures
(and then progressively destaffed). The next major change
came in 1981: the planned electrification from St Pancras
to Bedford meant our chugging diesel units could no longer
be accommodated at Kentish Town, and from Jan 5th they were
diverted to Gospel Oak, which hadn't seen a regular service
to Barking for many years.
The
line continued to trundle along in limbo, and privatisation
brought no improvement. Indeed, by the late 90s it had the
oldest diesel units on the network and reliability was appalling
(nobody present will forget Transport Minister Steve Norris's
visit to the line, which saw him shivering on the platform
at Harringay while distraught railway officials tried to find
out why the service had collapsed yet again and when a train
might be expected to materialise). Recent years have seen
significant improvements, with newer trains, refurbished (though
still basic) stations, and improvements to services. The User
Group has played a major part in securing these.
A major step-change in the line's fortunes took place in November
2007, when Transport for London (TfL) took it over as part of the
newly-created London Overground. From Day One, stations were restaffed
for the first time in years - in itself a major improvement. The
line appeared on the Tube map, and Oyster Pay-As-You-Go became valid.
In December 2007 the timetable was enhanced with later evening services
and an earlier start on Sundays (though still not early enough!).
Subsequently new trains were introduced (though regrettably still
only two-car, not the three-car units we had urged from the outset),
and frequencies were doubled to four trains an hour. A major programme
of long-overdue infrastructure improvements also began, including
bridge and track renewals and signalling upgrades.
The net result of all these very welcome enhancements was a major
boost to the line's public profile, resulting in a big increase
in usage. Its most pressing problem became chronic overcrowding
in the rush hours, with no immediate prospect of significant relief.
Hand in hand with this, the case for electrifying this isolated
diesel-only section of route became more and more obvious (from
both passenger and freight viewpoints), but after years of neglect
it was not initially on the industrys or governments
radar as a route of any significance. The Group built a carefully-researched
and well-argued case and pressed it at every opportunity to anyone
who would listen (and those who were reluctant to do so!), from
the railway press to politicians (local and national), the Department
for Transport and the London Assembly. Disappointed but undeterred
by its subsequent omission from the Chancellors spending plans,
the Group redoubled its efforts and stepped up its lobbying, which
were eventually rewarded by the announcement in Summer 2013 that
the line would at last be electrified. The necessary work to achieve this
has gone far from smoothly, but 4-car electric trains are scheduled to begin
operating during the first few months of 2018
But the battle does not end there.
We want to see further improvements to stations, and there
are good cases for new or reopened stations at Junction Road (Tufnell
Park), Leyton (Bakers Arms) and Cann Hall. After decades as the
Cinderella Railway, the line is now experiencing its
most successful period for decades, if not in its whole history
- but we're not there yet, and our work is far from done
Station
To Station - Opening Dates, Closure Dates (where applicable)
and odd bits of ephemera
Much of the information in this section is taken from
"The Tottenham Joint Lines" by J E Connor (Connor & Butler,
1993 - £5 95) - this contains many fascinating photos of the
line and its stations as they used to be and is highly recommended.
In case of difficulty ordering via a bookshop, you can order
it from the publishers at 25 Colchester Business Centre, 1
George Williams Way, Colchester C01 2JS (please add £1 to
cover postage & packing).
Gospel
Oak
Branch station partially built 1868, but abandoned before
completion due to financial problems and demolished 1870.
New branch platform opened 4th June 1888. Closed 6th Sept
1926, but used on summer bank holidays till 7th Aug 1939.
Present platform opened 5th Jan 1981 when trains were diverted
there from Kentish Town.
Highgate
Road High Level
Opened 21st July 1868. Temporarily closed from 31st Jan
1870 to 1st October 1870. Closed for good on 1st October 1915.
Remains are still visible (rear platform walls either side
of the bridge over Highgate Road, plus some platform railings).
Highgate Road Low Level was directly below it on the spur
down towards Kentish Town; this opened 17th Dec 1900 and closed
1st March 1918.
Junction
Road for Tufnell Park
Opened 1st Jan 1872. Closed 3rd May 1943. Demolished
in the 50s; no remains but the road alongside is still called
Station Road. The nearby signal box rejoiced in the name Junction
Road Junction. Reopening the station is a longtime aim of
both ourselves and Islington Council.
Between
here and Upper Holloway was the extensive Tufnell Park
Goods Depot, opened on 15th Feb 1886 largely to serve
the Metropolitan Cattle Market. Cattle were unloaded here
and driven on foot (!) along Tufnell Park Road to the market
at Caledonian Road. The depot closed on 6th May 1968.
Upper
Holloway
Opened 21st July 1868, temporarily closed between 31st Jan
1870 and 1st Oct 1870. Distinctive curved corrugated-iron
platform canopies demolished around the late 60s. Old booking
office survives by westbound entrance. Goods depot opened
circa 1870 and closed on 6th May 1968.
Hornsey
Road
Opened 1st Jan 1872, closed 3rd May 1943. Situated on the
west side of the road bridge. Little remains except some lengths
of iron railings marking the course of the platform access
ramps down the sides of the cutting.
Crouch
Hill
Opened 21st July 1868. Temporarily closed between 31st
Jan 1870 and 1st Oct 1870. Had similar platform canopies to
Upper Holloway, which were demolished in the late 60s. The
old booking office and station house survive at street level.
Harringay
Green Lanes
Opened 1st June 1880 as plain "Green Lanes". Renamed
a number of times:
Harringay Park, Green Lanes (1883)
Harringay Park 18th June 1951
Harringay Stadium 27th Oct 1958
Harringay East 12th May 1990
Harringay Green Lanes 8th July 1991
The wooden platform buildings were replaced by brick & concrete
structures in the 50s, though the booking office at street
level survived and in recent times was used as a café. This
is now closed and we are urging TfL to take the building over
and bring it back into railway use for the station staff.
To cope with the stadium traffic, very long platforms were
provided, but these were shortened in late 2003 as they were
subsiding. Just west of the station was the goods yard; this
closed on 3rd Feb 1964 and is now a nature reserve.
St
Ann's Road
pened 2nd October 1882, closed 9th August 1942. The wooden platforms and buildings are long gone,
and the street-level booking office was demolished a few years ago after surviving for many years as a shop.
Today, the only remaining relic of the station's existence is a lone decapitated iron lamp-post, situated
partway up the course of the old access path on the westbound side, which is only visible in winter when
the surrounding trees have lost their leaves.
South
Tottenham
Opened 1st May 1871 as South Tottenham & Stamford Hill,
with wooden platforms and wooden buildings on the westbound
side, brick-built buildings on the eastbound. Lost its Stamford
Hill suffix in 1949. The Palace Gates-Seven Sisters-Stratford-North
Woolwich service also called here until 7th Jan 1963, providing
a useful interchange. Hopefully one day a Stratford-Enfield
line service will restore some of those links again. Both
platforms suffered from subsidence; in the 90s the westbound
one was shortened at the eastern end and extended at the western
end to compensate, while the eastbound had to be completely
demolished and rebuilt. Short-sightedly, this was only done to 2-car length,
necessitating further extension for the longer electric trains. Goods
depot closed 4th July 1966.
Black
Horse Road
Opened 9th July 1894, the original station was on the
opposite side of the road to the present one, and had a neat
brick booking office on the bridge and long covered ramps
leading down to the platforms. These, like all the stations
from here to Wanstead Park inclusive, were covered by generous
long saw-tooth-pattern wooden canopies, which in later years
gave them a decaying grandeur until they were progressively
demolished from 1970 onwards. Black Horse Road (it was usually
spelt as three words, not two) closed altogether on 14th Dec
1981 and was replaced by the present platforms entered via
the 1968 Tube station. A side effect of this was the adoption
of the two-word spelling of the name. The goods depot here
closed on 7th Dec 1964 and was roughly where the platforms
are now.
Walthamstow
Queens Road
Opened as plain "Walthamstow" on 9th July 1894, it was renamed
"Walthamstow Queens Road" on 6th May 1968 - presumably to
avoid confusion with Walthamstow Central, which had been called
Hoe Street until the Victoria Line was opened. Its buildings
included a handsome covered and glazed footbridge. The choice
of Queens Road as a new name is both a puzzle and highly misleading,
as Queens Road itself is a good hike away. Maybe it took the
name from the nearby goods & coal depot, which closed the
day the station was renamed! The depot site is now a housing
estate. We and others would like to see a more accurate name,
such as Walthamstow Town or (if we ever get a direct subway/footpath
under the Chingford branch) Walthamstow Market. For now, the
most direct walking route to the heart of the Market is straight
ahead down Exmouth Road, then turn right at the end. After much delay,
a direct footpath link between Queens Road and Central stations was finally built
and opened in 2014. The Group had pressed for this link for many years, none more
tirelessly or persistently than long-time member Ray Dudley. At the Group's instigation,
the Council agreed to name the new link Ray Dudley Way.
Leyton
Midland Road
Opened 9th July 1894 as plain Leyton, renamed Midland Road
on 1st May 1949. Like Leytonstone High Road and Wanstead Park,
the booking office here was built into the viaduct arch, but
by the 80s all the old buildings had gone - although the Greater
London Council built a nice new booking office on Midland
Road itself. A few years later that was closed, as like other
stations it became unstaffed, and it too was demolished. The
goods yard was just beyond the station, and closed on 6th
May 1968.
Leytonstone
High Road
Opened 9th July 1894 as plain Leytonstone and renamed High
Road on 1st May 1949. Its wooden buildings were badly damaged
by fire in the late 50s and it was rebuilt in the modern style
of the day with long flat canopies. These too were badly damaged
by fire and vandalism in the 80s; there was controversy when
an initial denial that the damaged buildings constituted an
asbestos hazard was found to be inaccurate. Here the goods
yard was directly behind the eastbound platform, but was down
at street level; wagons had to be moved up and down by means
of a hoist. For many years passengers waiting on the westbound
platform on Saturday afternoons could take in the action at
Leytonstone FC's ground next door; Leytonstone eventually
became one of the four clubs which merged to form Dagenham
& Redbridge and the ground is now a housing estate.
Wanstead
Park
Opened 9th July 1894, this was the first on the line
to have its wooden awnings demolished (in 1970). The booking
office in the archway was replaced by a Portakabin, but after
a fire in the late 80s the station became unstaffed. Originally
the wide covered staircases were towards the Barking end of
the station, but in the late 90s new stairs were built at
the other end, leading directly out onto the main road. The
station's name is rather misleading as Wanstead Park is a
fair old hike away across Wanstead Flats - either that or
Forest Gate North would be more accurate.
Woodgrange
Park
Opened 9th July 1894, this was a London Tilbury & Southend
Railway construction and was of a different design with long
flat awnings. The platform buildings were demolished in the
70s but their back wall survives on the eastbound side. A
new booking office was built at the westbound entrance, but
after destaffing and a period of dereliction this was demolished
in the 90s. To the east of the station was a goods yard; this
opened in late 1894, closed on 7th Dec 1964, and is now a
housing estate.
Barking
Opened on 13th April 1854, as a basic small 2-platform
station at East Street level crossing. At this time Barking
was just a small fishing village. The station was enlarged
slightly over the years, but by 1902 the District line had
reached it, the area was fast becoming built up, and the little
station could no longer cope. (You can see a picture of it
in the bar of the Spotted Dog pub nearby). The level crossing
was replaced by a bridge in 1906, with an entrance building
of brick and wood spanning the tracks. Down below it had four
island platforms giving eight platforms in total. It was rebuilt
again in the 50s when the Tilbury & Southend line was electrified,
including the present booking hall which - some feel incredibly
- is now a listed building. In late 2004 further improvements
were carried out on the footbridge including the provision
of toilets.
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