Kent and East Sussex Railway

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The Kent & East Sussex Railway refers to both an historical private railway company in Kent and Sussex in England, as well as a heritage railway currently running on part of the route of the historical company.

Contents 1 Historical Company 2 Preservation 3 Locomotives 4 See also 5 External links

[edit] Historical Company

The Kent & East Sussex Railway was one of the light railways operated by by Colonel H.F. Stephens, the railway engineer. It was originally opened, in 1900, as the Rother Valley Railway, with its first stretch of line running from Robertsbridge to Tenterden (the station later being renamed Rolvenden). The line extended into nearer to the centre of Tenterden to the Town station in 1903, and the railway's name was changed to the Kent and East Sussex Railway in 1904 in anticipation of extensions to Rye, Cranbrook and Maidstone via Headcorn. The line extended to Headcorn in 1905, but no further extensions were ever built.

The railway was built under the 1896 Light Railways Act, which allowed for cheaper construction methods in return for a speed restriction. The area was fairly sparsely populated with stations serving villages often several miles away. There was some farm traffic inwards and outwards with hops,grain and livestock being transported. Goods sidings served Robertbridge Mills and the Guinness oast house at Junction Road Halt. Two Hawthorne Leslie 2-4-0 tank locomotives were bought new for the service, No.1 'Tenterden' and No.2 'Northiam' (which achieved fame 40 years later as the locomotive 'Gladstone' in the film Oh, Mr Porter! ). A 'terrier' A1 class 0-6-0 tank engine was later purchased second hand and named No 3 'Bodiam'. This engine is still working on the line at the age of 135! Some new coaches were bought at the lines opening. In later years services were maintained using elderly coach stock,including an 1842 Royal coach;an unreliable steam railmotor, Noisy but economic Ford Shefflex petrol railmotors (basically two buses with railway wheels coupled back to back) and locomotives nearing the end of their service lives. One oddity purchased by Colonel Stephens was a powerful 0-8-0T locomotive,'Hecate' bought for the hilly,planned but unbuilt extension to Maidstone. It was too heavy for the much of the line and was little used,being swapped years later for something more useful.

At its fullest extent, it ran nearly 22 miles[35km] from Robertsbridge on the Tonbridge to Hastings main line to Headcorn on the main line between Tonbridge and Ashford, Kent. Between 1905 and closure, the stations on the line, running south to north, were: Robertsbridge Salehurst Halt, Junction Road Halt, Bodiam for Staplecross, Northiam, Wittersham Road, Rolvenden, Tenterden Town, Tenterden St. Michael's, High Halden Road, Biddenden, Frittenden Road and Headcorn.

The company stayed independent after the 1923 Railway Groupings, run from an office by Stephens and after his death by his assistant, William Austin, at Tonbridge ,Kent .Many other light railways in the UK were also run from there. The desk and other items from this office are preserved at the Colonel Stephens museum at Tenterden station.

Due to road competition, the line was unprofitable after the mid-1920s and went into receivership in 1932, and after nationalisation of the railways in 1948, the closure of the line became more likely. It was closed to passenger traffic and completely from Tenterden Town to Headcorn on 2 January 1954, and finally on 12 July 1961, the entire line was closed to all traffic.

[edit] Preservation

In 1974, the line partially reopened as a heritage steam railway, with a section of track between between Tenterden and Rolvenden. The current preserved railway runs between Tenterden Town station and Bodiam where there is the major tourist attraction of Bodiam Castle . The line is a popular tourist attractions in the South East of England, containing an 11 miles (17km) through the rural Rother Valley in vintage coaches usually hauled by a steam engine. A special restaurant car service in Pullman dining cars is run. At Tenterden Town station can be found the Colonel Stephens Railway Museum ,along with a bookshop,coach servicing depot and a restaurant that was once the Maidstone & District Motor Services Ltd coach station building from Maidstone , Kent .The engine works are at Rolvenden station with a special viewing platform.

Additionally at Robertsbridge a separate railway preservation effort is going on with the aim to restore track and services east from the main line railway station to Bodiam. To date (2006) several hundred metres of track have been laid and a platform constructed, although there are no concrete plans to link with the Kent & East Sussex line at Bodiam.

[edit] Locomotives

In keeping with the "Light Railway" theme, most of the Kent & East Sussex Railway locomotives currently operating are small tank engines. The following are in service at the moment.

• Number 3 (TERRIER) Bodiam
• Number 8 (TERRIER) Knowle (Tenterden)
• Number 11 (SE&CR P CLASS 0-6-0T SIDE TANK)
• Number 23 (STANDARD WAR DEPARTMENT 0-6-0) Holman F Stephens
• Number 24 (STANDARD WAR DEPARTMENT 0-6-0) Rolvenden
• Number 25 STANDARD WAR DEPARTMENT 0-6-0) Northiam
• Number 30 (16XX CLASS 0-6-0PT)

[edit] See also

• Colonel Stephens Railways

[edit] External links

The preservation society's website can be found at http://www.kesr.org.uk/ and the museum at http://www.hfstephens-museum.org.uk/ The Robertsbridge based Rother Valley Railway extending the line east can be found on http://www.rvr.org.uk/