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Kelmscott and Langford railway station

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Coordinates: 51°42′50″N 1°38′13″W / 51.71387°N 1.63689°W / 51.71387; -1.63689
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Kelmscott and Langford
Road bridge at the eastern end of the station site.
General information
LocationLangford, West Oxfordshire
England
Coordinates51°42′50″N 1°38′13″W / 51.71387°N 1.63689°W / 51.71387; -1.63689
Grid referenceSP253018
Platforms1
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyGreat Western Railway
Pre-groupingGreat Western Railway
Post-groupingGreat Western Railway
Key dates
4 November 1907Station opens
18 June 1962Station closes

Kelmscott and Langford railway station was a railway station south of the village of Langford on the Oxford, Witney and Fairford Railway, between Oxford and Fairford.[1]

History

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The station was opened on 4 November 1907 by the Great Western Railway,[2][3][4] the only one to be opened on the line during peacetime by the Great Western.[5] It was shown in early timetables as "Kelmscott and Langford Platform", which also appeared in the Official Handbook of Stations until 1949.[3] It was supposed to serve the villages of Langford and Kelmscott but in reality was a considerable distance from both.[6][7] Langford is 0.5 mi to the north, and Kelmscott is 1.5 mi to the south.[8]

It was essentially a staffed railway halt with minimal passenger facilities.[9] Situated in rural countryside next to the Langford to Kelmscott road, the station comprised a 300-foot (91 m) long concrete platform and an unusual station building made from two standard corrugated iron Pagoda huts which were bolted together.[10] This was probably the longest building of its type in the country.[5] A single siding operated from the nearby ground frame was brought into use behind the platform for the purpose of loading and unloading cattle traffic and farm machinery on 9 July 1928.[9][8][11][12] No signals, goods shed or crane were provided and the small goods yard was only able to handle cattle and coal class traffic in full wagonloads.[13][14][12]

Perhaps owing to its inconvenient location, the station was the least used on the line.[6] Just 3,038 tickets were issued in 1913 and 3,654 in 1923, by some distance the lowest.[15] The station was closed along with the East Gloucestershire Railway on 18 June 1962.[2][3][16][17][18]


Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Lechlade
Line and station closed 		  Great Western Railway
East Gloucestershire Railway 		  Alvescot
Line and station closed

Present day

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Although traces of the station's platform, lampposts and nameboard posts remained in September 1987,[14] the site has now been entirely cleared by the local farmer except for a pole which once held the station's lighting.[19][7] Large stretches of the trackbed towards Alvescot do however remain intact.[19] The station's access road remains in use by the farmer.[7]

References

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Notes

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  1. ^ Conolly (1976), p. 9, section E5.
  2. ^ a b Butt (1995), p. 129.
  3. ^ a b c Quick (2009), p. 229.
  4. ^ Simpson (1997), p. 182.
  5. ^ a b Mitchell, Smith & Lingard (1988), fig. 81.
  6. ^ a b Jenkins (1985), p. 99.
  7. ^ a b c Stretton (2006), p. 92.
  8. ^ a b Mitchell, Smith & Lingard (1988), fig. 80.
  9. ^ a b Jenkins (1985), p. 60.
  10. ^ Jenkins (1985), pp. 60, 99.
  11. ^ Simpson (1997), p. 181.
  12. ^ a b Clark (1976), Kelmscott & Langford.
  13. ^ Jenkins (1985), p. 100.
  14. ^ a b Mitchell, Smith & Lingard (1988), fig. 82.
  15. ^ Jenkins (1985), p. 52.
  16. ^ Jenkins (1985), p. 112.
  17. ^ Clinker (1988), p. 68.
  18. ^ Waters (1986), p. 28.
  19. ^ a b Jenkins (1985), p. 147.

Sources

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  • 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.
  • Clinker, C. R. (1988) [1978]. Clinker's Register of Closed Passenger Stations and Goods Depots in England, Scotland and Wales 1830–1980 (2nd ed.). Bristol: Avon-Anglia Publications & Services. ISBN 978-0-905466-91-0. OCLC 655703233.
  • Conolly, W. Philip (January 1976). British Railways Pre-Grouping Atlas and Gazetteer (5th ed.). Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0320-3. EX/0176.
  • Clark, R.H. (1976). An Historical Survey of Selected Great Western Stations: Layouts and Illustrations. Vol. 1. Headington: Oxford Publishing. ISBN 0-902888-29-3.
  • Jenkins, Stanley C. (1985) [1975]. The Fairford Branch. Headington: Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-853613-16-8. LP86.
  • Mitchell, Victor E.; Smith, Keith; Lingard, Richard (April 1988). Branch Line to Fairford. Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN 0-906520-52-5.
  • Quick, Michael (2009) [2001]. Railway passenger stations in Great Britain: a chronology (4th ed.). Oxford: Railway & Canal Historical Society. ISBN 978-0-901461-57-5. OCLC 612226077.
  • Simpson, Bill (1997). A History of the Railways of Oxfordshire; Part 1: The North. Witney: Lamplight Publications. ISBN 978-1-89924-602-1.
  • Stretton, John (2006). British Railways Past and Present: Oxfordshire; A Second Selection. Kettering: Past & Present Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85895-203-1. No. 55.
  • Waters, Laurence (1986). Rail Centres: Oxford. London: Ian Allan. ISBN 978-0-7110-1590-6.
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