Chatham Central railway station
Chatham Central | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Site of Chatham Central railway station, now leading into the Rochester Riverside development | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Chatham, Borough of Medway England | ||||
| Operated by | South Eastern Railway | ||||
| Managed by | South Eastern Railway | ||||
| Transit authority | None | ||||
| Line | Chatham Main Line | ||||
| Platforms | 1 | ||||
| Train operators | South Eastern Railway | ||||
| Connections | Strood railway station, Rochester Common | ||||
| Construction | |||||
| Structure type | Timber viaduct over LCDR goods yard | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Status | Disused | ||||
| History | |||||
| Opened | 1 March 1892 | ||||
| Closed | 1 October 1911 | ||||
| Original company | South Eastern Railway | ||||
| Pre-grouping | South Eastern and Chatham Railway | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 1892-1911 | Opened | ||||
| 1 October 1911 | Closed | ||||
| |||||
Chatham Central railway station was a former terminus of the South Eastern Railway’s (SER) Rochester & Chatham Extension from Strood, serving the Medway towns of Chatham and Rochester. The line was opened by the SER to give it its own route to Rochester/Chatham, parallel to the rival London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) route. Chatham Central station opened on 1 March 1892, built by the SER on a wooden viaduct (in the Chatham Intra area of Rochester).
An excerpt from the Journal of the Railway & Canal Historical Society, Volume XXVII No. 4, March 1982, states that "the SER did eventually reach Chatham in 1892, at its own station, Chatham Central. The branch line, although a LCDR undertaking, was taken only as far as the Gillingham Gate."
Chatham Central railway station consisted of a single platform with associated timber buildings. The extension ran north-east of the existing LCDR line and required its own bridge over the River Medway.
Timeline of key dates:
- 20 July 1891: First section of the Strood–Chatham extension opened to Rochester (Rochester Common station).
- 1 March 1892: Chatham Central station opened at the end of the extension.
- 1 January 1899: The SER and LCDR entered a working union (forming the South Eastern & Chatham Railway, SE&CR).
- 1 October 1911: The Chatham extension (and Chatham Central station) closed as a redundant line.