Bloxham railway station
Encyclopedia
Bloxham railway station served the village of Bloxham
in northern Oxfordshire
, England
.
, which was taken over by the Great Western Railway
before its opening.
The station had two platforms, a passing loop and a signal box of Gloucester Wagon Company design. There was a goods shed and two-siding goods yard.
In 1907 signalling changes were made utilising re-assembled equipment originally from Bays Hill, Cheltenham. Hemmings states that a new signal box was provided in this year, Jenkins dates the box to 1890-5 and suggests that only the frame and locking were installed in 1907.
The station acquired fame in the 1920s for its extensive gardens which included “Lawns, paths and treillage, rose borders and rock gardens”. The gardens were the creation of the Station Master
, Herbert Lloyd, and regularly won the GWR Worcester Division garden competition.
By 1938 passenger numbers were small with an average of only two or three tickets per day sold in that year After the outbreak of the Second World War
, Bloxham, Hook Norton
and Adderbury
stations came under the control of a single station-master.
When Britain's railways were nationalised in 1948
the B&CDR became part of the Western Region of British Railways
. On 2 June 1951 British Rail
ways withdrew passenger services from the line through Bloxham. On 4 November 1963 BR closed the railway to freight traffic and some time thereafter the line was dismantled.
produced a film “On the Track” including scenes showing a GWR express seen from the windows of the signal box. No copies of this film are believed to have survived. The documentary film “Twenty-four Square Miles” (1946) includes a scene showing a passenger train departing from Bloxham.
Bloxham
Bloxham is a village and civil parish in northern Oxfordshire on the edge of the Cotswolds, southwest of Banbury.-Early settlement:Under Roman rule between the 1st and 5th centuries there were several farms and a burial site in the Bloxham area....
in northern Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
History
The station was built by the Banbury and Cheltenham Direct RailwayBanbury and Cheltenham Direct Railway
The Banbury and Cheltenham Direct Railway is a former railway in the Cotswold Hills in Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, England.-Origins and development:...
, which was taken over by the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
before its opening.
The station had two platforms, a passing loop and a signal box of Gloucester Wagon Company design. There was a goods shed and two-siding goods yard.
In 1907 signalling changes were made utilising re-assembled equipment originally from Bays Hill, Cheltenham. Hemmings states that a new signal box was provided in this year, Jenkins dates the box to 1890-5 and suggests that only the frame and locking were installed in 1907.
The station acquired fame in the 1920s for its extensive gardens which included “Lawns, paths and treillage, rose borders and rock gardens”. The gardens were the creation of the Station Master
Station master
The station master was the person in charge of railway stations, in the United Kingdom and some other countries, before the modern age. He would manage the other station employees and would have responsibility for safety and the efficient running of the station...
, Herbert Lloyd, and regularly won the GWR Worcester Division garden competition.
By 1938 passenger numbers were small with an average of only two or three tickets per day sold in that year After the outbreak of the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Bloxham, Hook Norton
Hook Norton railway station
Hook Norton railway station served the village of Hook Norton in northern Oxfordshire, England.-History:The station was built for the Banbury and Cheltenham Direct Railway, which was operated by the Great Western Railway before complete takeover in 1897...
and Adderbury
Adderbury railway station
Adderbury railway station served the village of Adderbury in Oxfordshire, England.- History :The station was built by the Banbury and Cheltenham Direct Railway, which was taken over by the Great Western Railway before its opening...
stations came under the control of a single station-master.
When Britain's railways were nationalised in 1948
Transport Act 1947
The Transport Act 1947 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Under it the railways, long-distance road haulage and various other types of transport were acquired by the state and handed over to a new British Transport Commission for operation...
the B&CDR became part of the Western Region of British Railways
Western Region of British Railways
The Western Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s and was wound up at the end of 1992...
. On 2 June 1951 British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
ways withdrew passenger services from the line through Bloxham. On 4 November 1963 BR closed the railway to freight traffic and some time thereafter the line was dismantled.
Film appearances
In 1931 1st Bloxham ScoutsScouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
produced a film “On the Track” including scenes showing a GWR express seen from the windows of the signal box. No copies of this film are believed to have survived. The documentary film “Twenty-four Square Miles” (1946) includes a scene showing a passenger train departing from Bloxham.