Steventon railway station

Steventon
Location
Place Steventon
Area District of Vale of White Horse
Grid reference SU472916
Operations
Original company Great Western Railway
Pre-grouping GWR
Post-grouping GWR
Western Region of British Railways
Platforms 2
History
1 June 1840 Opened
7 December 1964 Closed
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
UK Railways portal

Steventon railway station was built when the Great Western Railway extended their main line from Reading to the village of Steventon, opening the line on 1 June 1840.[1] Two months later, on 20 July, it was extended to Faringdon Road,[2] and in December of that year, to Swindon.

Station for Oxford

For four years stagecoaches transported passengers between Steventon and Oxford, until 1844 when a branch was built to the city from Didcot; despite this, mail trains from the West continued to call at Steventon, rather than Didcot, in order to drop off mails for Oxford - this practice did not end until March 1962.[3]

On 7 December 1964 British Railways withdrew passenger services from Steventon and all other intermediate stations between Didcot and Swindon.[3] The station was demolished soon after closure and there is now no evidence remaining.

Headquarters of the GWR

Steventon was briefly the headquarters of the GWR: in October 1841, the Board decided to merge the previously-separate London and Bristol committees. Steventon was chosen as a suitable new location because it was close to the half-way point of the line (56 miles 22 chains from the old station at Paddington, 61 miles 71 chains from the old station at Bristol[4]). After a delay of several months, during which the accommodation was made ready, the weekly board meetings were held at Steventon from 21 July 1842 until 5 January 1843, when the permanent headquarters was established at Paddington.[5]

Route

Preceding station Historical railways Following station
Didcot
Line and station open		   British Rail
Western Region
Great Western Main Line		   Wantage Road
Line open, station closed

Notes

  1. ↑ MacDermot Vol. I Part I, p.102
  2. ↑ MacDermot Vol. I Part I, p.103
  3. 1 2 Gardner, p.43
  4. ↑ MacDermot Vol. I Part II, p.857
  5. ↑ MacDermot Vol. I Part I, pp.160-1

References

Coordinates: 51°37′17″N 1°19′08″W / 51.6215°N 1.3188°W / 51.6215; -1.3188

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