Gamlingay railway station

Gamlingay railway station was a railway station on the Varsity Line which served the small village of Gamlingay in Cambridgeshire, England. The station opened in 1862 and was located in a rural area that saw little passenger traffic; it closed together with the line in 1968.

Gamlingay
The station in 1967
Location
PlaceGamlingay
AreaSouth Cambridgeshire
Grid referenceTL247518
Operations
Original companyBedford and Cambridge Railway
Pre-groupingLondon and North Western Railway
Post-groupingLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
London Midland Region of British Railways (1948–1958)
Eastern Region of British Railways (1958–1968)
Platforms2
History
1 August 1862Opened
19 April 1965[1]Closed to goods
1 January 1968[2]Closed to passengers
Disused railway stations in the United Kingdom
Closed railway stations in Britain
A B C D–F G H–J K–L M–O P–R S T–V W–Z

History
The station buildings in 1998

The first station after Potton, Gamlingay marked the start of the distinctly rural section of the Varsity Line, where industrial landscapes gave way to the rolling fields, tall trees and wide-open skies of Cambridgeshire. The station, slightly to the south-east of Gamlingay village, was situated just before a two-mile climb of 1 in 150 to Hayley Wood. The station had two platforms lit by old lamps right up until its closure,[3] the substantial station buildings being situated on the Down platform, whilst a timber and slate waiting shelter was to be found on the Up side.[4] A goods yard was located to the west of the station buildings, consisting of three sidings plus a cattle pen and a goods shed. The station layout changed little during its lifetime, yet the community which it served decreased from 1,722 inhabitants in 1901 to 1,622 in 1961.[5]

Four years after the station's opening in 1862, a brick siding was opened just before the milepost 30 to the west of Gamlingay which was known as "Dennis's Brick Siding" and trailed from the Up line across the Down through a gate to a brickworks. By January 1909, the siding was known as "Belle Vue Brickworks Siding" and remained in service until 20 April 1936. The siding was controlled by a 19-lever signal box named "Belle Vue". The siding was used again during the Second World War for ammunition storage.[6]

Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Potton
Line and station closed		   British Railways
Varsity Line		   Old North Road
Line and station closed

Present day

The main station building has survived as a private residence, surrounded by other newer houses.[7] An industrial estate has been built on the trackbed immediately to the west, including the former goods yard site.

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References
  1. Clinker, C.R. (October 1978). Clinker's Register of Closed Passenger Stations and Goods Depots in England, Scotland and Wales 1830-1977. Bristol: Avon-AngliA Publications & Services. p. 50. ISBN 0-905466-19-5.
  2. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations, Patrick Stephens Ltd, Sparkford, ISBN 1-85260-508-1, p. 101.
  3. Mitchell, V.; Smith, K. (February 2007). Bletchley to Cambridge featuring Bedford St. Johns. Midhurst, West Sussex: Middleton Press. pp. plate 94. ISBN 978-1-904474-94-4.
  4. Simpson, Bill (1981). Oxford to Cambridge Railway (Vol. 2). Poole, Dorset: Oxford Publishing Co. p. 120. ISBN 0-86093-121-8.
  5. Mitchell, V. and Smith, K., plate XXV.
  6. Mitchell, V. and Smith, K., plate XXIV.
  7. "Closed Stations, page 14". Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 23 April 2009.

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