Waddesdon railway station

Waddesdon is a closed station that served the village of Waddesdon and its manor, to the north of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England. The station is not to be confused with Waddesdon Road railway station at the other end of the Waddesdon Manor estate on the Brill Tramway.

Waddesdon
Waddesdon is located in Buckinghamshire
Waddesdon
Waddesdon
Location of Waddesdon in Buckinghamshire
LocationWaddesdon
Local authorityBuckinghamshire
Grid referenceSP757180
Number of platforms2
Railway companies
Original companyAylesbury and Buckingham Railway
Pre-groupingMetropolitan and Great Central Joint Railway
Post-groupingMetropolitan and Great Central Joint Railway
Key dates
1 January 1897 (1897-01-01)Opened as Waddesdon Manor
1 October 1922Renamed Waddesdon
6 July 1936 (1936-07-06)Station closed
Other information
Coordinates51°51′19″N 0°54′08″W / 51.8554°N 0.9021°W / 51.8554; -0.9021
London transport portal

History

edit
 
A 1911 Railway Clearing House map of railways in the vicinity of Waddesdon (shown here as Waddesdon Manor)
 
Railway stations and populated areas in the vicinity of Waddesdon, 1903. Waddesdon station is shown here as Waddesdon Manor.

The station was first opened as Waddesdon Manor by the Metropolitan Railway on 1 January 1897.[1] "Manor" was dropped from the name on 1 October 1922.[1] It was the first station north of Aylesbury on the section of the Metropolitan Railway between Aylesbury and Verney Junction.

The Metropolitan Railway amalgamated with several other transport companies to form the London Passenger Transport Board in 1933. The station was closed on 6 July 1936[2] when their services were curtailed at Aylesbury.[1]

While open, the station was also served by former Great Central Main Line (running on the same tracks as the Metropolitan line as far as Quainton Road) which was not itself closed to passengers until 1966, under the Beeching Axe.

Today one platform of the station (on the side remote from the remaining track) remains; the other has been demolished. Until 2021 the line was used for a daily freight train carrying waste from London to Calvert, as well as special services between Aylesbury and Quainton Road for events at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre.

Because of its association with the Metropolitan line this station is considered to be one of the Closed London Underground stations although it is 42.5 miles (68.4 km) from London and is not underground.

Routes

edit
Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Quainton Road
Line and station closed
  Great Central Railway
London Extension
  Aylesbury
Line closed, station open
  Metropolitan Railway
Until 1936
 

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Rose, Douglas (1999). The London Underground, A Diagrammatic History. Douglas Rose/Capital Transport. ISBN 1-85414-219-4.
  2. ^ Quick, M. E. (2002). Railway passenger stations in England, Scotland and Wales – a chronology. Richmond: Railway and Canal Historical Society. p. 438. OCLC 931112387.
edit