Great Western Coffee Shop

From research I was doing on something totally different (not, though, the Spanish Inquisition) ... proof that not all stations last for very long.   Can you identify one each and tell me a bit more about them?

1. It opened in November 1925 and closed to passenger traffic on 31 October 1928. There were plans to extend to [deleted] railway station but permission to run passenger services north of [deleted] was not granted by His Majesty's Railway Inspectorate due to the poor state of repair of the bridge over [deleted]. The platform was north of the road and a passing loop was south of the road.

Sandwich Road - Electric Train

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2. The station was opened in 1903 as the north terminus of the line, situated outside of [deleted], located on the banks of [deleted]. The station cost a total of £348 (equivalent to £39,756 in 2021) to build.  A run round loop was included at this station to allow locomotives to run around to make a return journey. The station building featured a general waiting room, but no public conveniences.  The station was closed on 30 September 1906 due to poor traffic, and the station was dismantled when the track was lifted. Nothing of the station survives today.

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3. On 23 June 1998, after only 126 days, services commenced to [deleted]. Trains no longer called at [deleted], and within ten days the track leading to the station had been dismantled.

Heathrow Junction - Electric Train with a little stuving

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4. The [deleted], [deleted] and [deleted] Railway was built as an extension of the railway but by a separate company. It opened in 1805 and closed in 1838.

CM&GR or the Surrey Iron Railway - Western Pathfinder

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5. The station was, from 1 May 1908, the terminus of a line running some 7½ miles from [deleted]. This line had until 1901 run only as far as [deleted]. Mr Harold Robert Moody was the station master. The station closed on 28 March 1917 when the locomotives were taken away for use in World War 1.

Appledore - Andy E

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6.  ... on the [deleted] branch line on 2 February 1959, and on the same day two halts were opened on that line, at [deleted] and at [deleted] It was built to serve a 17th-century public house, the [deleted]. On 4 April 1964, the last day of operation, when the last passenger train from [deleted] arrived at [deleted], a coffin was loaded onto the train by bowler-hatted mourners. It had been made by the landlord of the pub together with his brother, covered with inscriptions and filled with empty whisky bottles. On arrival at [deleted], the coffin was transferred to a train for [deleted], addressed to Richard Beeching. The last passenger train to [deleted] found its approach to [deleted] blocked by burning hay bales.

Trouble House Halt DR7835

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7. The [deleted] Railway opened as the [deleted] Steam Tramway on 6 June 1879 with two steam tram engines, more being added later. It was later converted to an electric tramway, which began working on 20 February 1892. The system closed on 9 June 1934.

Guernsey Railway - Bradshaw

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8 Opened as [deleted] on 1 April 1886, the station comprised a single platform on the east side of the line. A loop was provided for running round, and the line continued north to an engine shed. Two sidings for the pier curved away to the east.  Its name was changed to [deleted] on 1 October 1895. The station closed to passengers on 9 September 1939, however as the engine shed for the line was located here, the line remained in use.

Loch Tay - Merthyr Imp

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9. [deleted] station was the terminus of the [deleted] rail service from its opening on 14 November 1994 to its closure on 13 November 2007, when it was replaced by [deleted]

Waterloo International - Merthyr Imp

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10. The station was opened by the [deleted] Railway on 18 April 1860.  On 28 January 1861, James Grant, guard, was endeavouring to loosen the connecting screws between two carriages. The engine driver backed up to relieve the strain, and Grant got his arm trapped between the buffers and was hospitalised.  The station closed to passengers on 31 January 1869. Freight services to the station continued on an irregular basis for around another 10 years.

Findhorn - bradshaw

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11. The first experimental service started on 18 August 1983 with the official opening of the line taking place on 22 June the following year. On 4 December 2010, a special "last day" was held. [deleted] supported the last day by offering a special ticket deal to [deleted], and issued commemorative posters. The final train was driven by the line's founders, Martin Eastwood and Graham Ellis. The final trains ran on 1 September 2011 hauled by the steam locomotive Victoria.

Isle of Mull Railway - Western Pathfinder

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12. By 1974, the term "halt" had been removed from British Rail timetables, station signs, and other official documents. The return of the term came in 1978 for the opening of [deleted] Halt, and in the renaming of the two Cornish stations in 2008. The station had its service suspended with effect from 9 December 2018, with [deleted] citing low patronage and anti-social behaviour on the nearby derelict [deleted] site.

IBM - brooklea

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13. The station was officially opened on 10 May 1947 by Lord Middleton.  The station was situated at the end of a short branch line off the [deleted]. It had four long terminus island platforms to cater for ... . The last train service departed on 17 September 1977 with formal closure occurring on 26 November 1977.

Filey Holiday Camp - Merthyr Imp

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14. [deleted] opened on 18 December 1890 and was constructed from a large masonry station tunnel, accessed from the surface by a lift shaft or spiral staircase. Two platforms were provided, one on each side of the single, central track — one for passengers entering and the other for passengers leaving the trains — a system later referred to as the Spanish solution. The station closed from Monday 26 February 1900 when [deleted] opened.

King William Street - stuving

I think 8 is Loch Tay station at the end of the Killin branch line. It closed when the steamer service on the Loch were discontinued.

11 is Filey Holiday Camp, provided for holidaymakers travelling to Butlin's at Filey. It was closed due to people increasingly travelling by car.

9. Must be Waterloo International which was replaced when the new HS1 line was built to St Pancras.

14. is King William Street, the original northern terminus of the City & South London Railway.

11. Isle of Mull Railway.

All correct so far (I think you meant 13 not 11 though for Filey) - and what interesting stories.   I will not say "Wonderful", because a closure is never wonderful (may be "good" if replaced by better, such as King William Street).    But then in 30 years, a Holiday Camp must have seen many, many passengers and perhaps was a big success in its era.

5. Appledore?

12. is IBM

No 3 On 23 June 1998, after only 126 days, services commenced to [deleted]. Trains no longer called at [deleted], and within ten days the track leading to the station had been dismantled.

This is "Goer (Go-a)" station the temporary station build on the HEX just south of the M4 with a bus shuttle into the airport.

"Goer or some referred to it as Go-a" was the project name because BAA wanted to make the service from Paddington a goer

6 the Tetbury branch

Indeed, but which specific station thereon?


Correct - and the station was called ...

Now there's a thing because I was involved in the electrical commissioning of HEX I only really knew it as Goer I have feeling it was Stockley Park

Could 3 be Uckfield?

Heathrow Junction! Stockley Park was (is) the business park being developed at the time north of the main line.

Yes that was it Heathrow Junction, Goer was proposed but was not liked by BAA but as a BR / Railltrack project name its was

There was no pedestrian access or private road vehicle access because it was inside a Ministry of Defence site so the only road access was via the shuttle bus.

The service was operated by Turbos 165/6

Trouble House Halt

I don't know any of the answers but I can add another short-lived service.  It's a station I never visited, though I did travel along the line in the 1980s.

15. The station featured two platforms linked by a footbridge, a waiting room, and a gravel car park. ... The structure used a scaffolding base covered by wooden planks with an anti-slip surfacing. ... Once opened, the station was served by all existing trains and an additional hourly shuttle train. ... This service started on 30 November 2009 and ran until 28 May 2010. It was initially funded by the Department for Transport at a cost of £216,000. All services between [deleted], [deleted], [deleted] and [deleted] were free of charge for this period.

Google Earth has a contemporary photo of the platform, train and buses. Even with that, it's hard to see on the 1999 image how it all fitted in. It was fenced off outside the "government offices" (as the OS map has it), but only a narrow strip of mainly road. Did the buses really have to do a three point turn to exit?

15  Workington North, during the floods.

The MoD permission was quite strict on the use of the site.

The station only had a single platform which was on the DN side ie the east side; today there is a service road into some industrial units which was one of the 2 construction access

Wonderful example of quick work and what CAN be done - the station was provided in response to rainfall on 19th November which swept away the road bridge on 20th.   I wonder what could/would be done if providing transport to Portishead became an emergency.

1, 2, 4, 7 and 10 remain

Talking of short lived servises, was there not a sleeper service to/from Bournemouth at somepoint in the 90's I think?

10 Findhorn Station on the Findhorn Railway, opened 18th April 1860 the three mile line went to Kinloss, officially closed 29th January 1869. However, a storm washed away some of the track overnight on the 28th.
It was not until 1886 that the permanent way materials were advertised for sale.
RAF Kinloss was built over part of the trackbed

7 Guernsey Railway

Brockenhurst? 
http://www.malcolm-smith.com/railways/working/rail/north/motorail/motorail.html
http://www.malcolm-smith.com/railways/working/rail/north/motorail/06-r-08.html

No4 The CM&GR or the Surrey Iron Railway.

Just 1 and 2 to identify - I know it's possible because a member has sent me the solution in a personal message but didn't want to spoil it for the rest of you.   

This has been fascinating research!

There are some very short lived stations in this quiz, with the shortest being 126 days. But there was a station that was only served for three weeks, in April 1874 – and it was GWR!

Yes and that service. found the sleeper. https://www.flickr.com/photos/74384955@N03/7822401796/in/photolist-cVeRwu-2o32GUb-8wsrcf-8wpqHx-8wsr2d

Another short lived station was open from 4/5/1859 TO 27/6/1859.
 Respryn station on Cornish main line, built by Cornish Railway because Bodmin Road wasn't ready for the opening
(From another railway forum)

No1 Sandwich Road on the East Kent Light Railway

But would you want to catch a train for Poison Cross also a short lived station on the same line

Did take a bit of research  ;D

Apparently not enough people did.   

The other end of the line remained open to link Tilmanstone Colliery to the main line at Shepherdswell and is now the remaining section of the East Kent Railway on which you can ride in a preserved third rail electric train - all be it powered by an MLV (Motor Luggage Van) rather than the electric rail.

2 Fort Augustus Pier station

Correct - and that's the last of the original questions answered.  This one was fun to set up - short lived stations that were intended to be such, some that got overtaken by time and one or two which, surely, would not have made a business case!