Bletchington railway station

Bletchington railway station is a disused station in Oxfordshire at Enslow, England, a hamlet 1.25 miles (2 km) west of the village of Bletchingdon. The station had a number of names during its period of operation: 'Woodstock', 'Woodstock Road', 'Kirtlington' and finally 'Bletchington'.

Bletchington
The station in 1961
General information
LocationBletchington, Cherwell
England
Grid referenceSP482182
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyOxford and Rugby Railway
Pre-groupingGreat Western Railway
Post-groupingGWR
Key dates
1850Station opens
2 November 1964Station closes for passengers
21 June 1965closed for goods

History

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The Oxford and Rugby Railway planned a railway between those two points, which was authorised on 4 August 1845;[1] construction began in 1846,[2] but before any portion was open, it was absorbed by the Great Western Railway. The line opened as far as Banbury on 2 September 1850, and there were three intermediate stations,[3][4] the southernmost being Woodstock Road.[3][4] Upon the opening of a different station named Woodstock Road in 1855, this station was renamed Kirtlington;[3][5][6] and following rebuilding it was renamed for a final time on 11 August 1890, becoming Bletchington.[3][5][6] It is possible that the original name of this station was Woodstock, becoming Woodstock Road in May 1851[5] or 1852.[7]

British Railways closed the station to passengers on 2 November 1964[8][7] and to goods on 21 June 1965.[8] The station building survives but much of the station site is now occupied by an industrial estate.

Preceding station Historical railways Following station
Tackley
Line and station open
  Great Western Railway
Oxford and Rugby Railway
  Kidlington
Line open, station closed

Notes

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  1. ^ MacDermot 1927, p. 229.
  2. ^ MacDermot 1927, p. 295.
  3. ^ a b c d MacDermot 1927, p. 300.
  4. ^ a b Simpson 1997, p. 60.
  5. ^ a b c Mitchell & Smith 2003, fig. XVIII.
  6. ^ a b Simpson 1997, pp. 61, 85.
  7. ^ a b Simpson 1997, p. 85.
  8. ^ a b Mitchell & Smith 2003, fig. 81.

References

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  • MacDermot, E.T. (1927). History of the Great Western Railway. Vol. I (1st ed.). Paddington: Great Western Railway.
  • Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (February 2003). Didcot to Banbury. Western Main Lines. Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN 1-904474-02-0.
  • Simpson, Bill (1997). A History of the Railways of Oxfordshire. Vol. Part 1: The North. Banbury and Witney: Lamplight. ISBN 1-899246-02-9.
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51°51′38″N 1°18′03″W / 51.86059°N 1.30091°W / 51.86059; -1.30091