Bishopsbourne
Photograph of Bishopsbourne station building
Bishopsbourne station, 16 April 1963
General information
LocationBishopsbourne, Kent
England
Coordinates 51°13′44″N 1°07′41″E / 51.228942°N 1.128170°E / 51.228942; 1.128170
Grid referenceTR 185 524
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Pre-groupingSouth Eastern Railway
South Eastern and Chatham Railway
Post-groupingSouthern Railway
Key dates
1 July 1889Opened
1 December 1940Closed to passengers
1 October 1947Closed to freight

Bishopsbourne was a station on the Elham Valley Railway. It opened in 1889 and closed to passengers in 1940 and freight in 1947.

History

The station opened on 1 July 1889. It was situated on the extension of the Elham Valley Railway from Barham to Harbledown Junction, on the Ashford to Ramsgate line.[1] A 16-lever signal box was provided.[2] Initially, there were six passenger trains per day. By 1906 there were nine trains a day, with five on Sunday. This had reduced to six trains a day by 1922.[3] The double track between Lyminge and Harbledown Junction was reduced to single track from 25 October 1931 and the signal boxes between those points were abolished.[4] Services had been reduced to five trains a day by 1937.[3]

The Boche Buster firing near Bishopsbourne on 7 May 1941.

Passenger services between Canterbury West and Lyminge were withdrawn on 1 December 1940 and the line was placed under military control.[1] The military established block posts at Canterbury South and Bishopbourne, under the control of the Royal Corps of Signals.[5] The station remained open to freight during the war.[6] A passing loop was installed in Bourne Tunnel, 3⁄4 mile (1.21 km) south of Bishopsbourne on which was kept a BL 18-inch railway howitzer, nicknamed the "Boche Buster". It had a range of 50 miles (80 km).[7] A curved siding was constructed at Charlton Park, south of Bishopsbourne from which the gun was fired.[8] Military control was relinquished on 19 February 1945.[6] The War Department ground frames and points were decommissioned on 2 May 1946.[9] The Elham Valley Railway closed on 1 October 1947.[6] After closure the station has been converted to a private house.

Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Bridge   Southern Railway
Elham Valley Railway		   Barham

References

Citations
  1. 1 2 Mitchell & Smith 1995, Historical Background.
  2. ↑ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 107.
  3. 1 2 Mitchell & Smith 1995, Passenger Services.
  4. ↑ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 104.
  5. ↑ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 105.
  6. 1 2 3 Mitchell & Smith 1995, Historical background.
  7. ↑ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 109.
  8. ↑ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 108.
  9. ↑ Mitchell & Smith 1995, Illustration 110.
Sources
  • Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (1995). Branch Lines Around Canterbury. Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN 1-873793-58-8.
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