Strood

Strood

By the late 18th Century there was considerable military traffic traversing between Woolwich and Chatham Dockyards, but the journey time between the two was lengthy as a consequence of having to navigate around the whole of the Hoo Peninsula. This circuitous route also made vessels vulnerable to an enemy, should an invasion ensue. A solution outlining how to ''cut out'' the time consuming circumnavigation then came to light in 1778, which suggested that a canal could be excavated from the Gravesend Marshes, through to Strood, providing the Thames and Medway Rivers with a far more direct link from the London direction. It was not until 1800 that excavation had actually begun, the canal reaching Higham in the following year. Severe delays were on the horizon, however, the nature of the terrain causing problems for engineers. A chalk cliff stood between Higham and Strood, some 2¼ miles in thickness - it took a slow eighteen years until engineers fathomed out how to overcome this obstacle. The 1819 plan was to bore a 35 foot wide tunnel through the chalk face, which would become the country's longest. Construction took five years and on opening in October 1824, the Hoo Peninsula became an island.

Unfortunately for the ''Thames & Medway Canal Company'', the canal was little used, it not providing the financial returns originally envisaged, no doubt as a consequence of the sheer amount of time it took to build. Whilst the canal may have been doomed, there was at least hope for the tunnel it ran through. The same company had formed a subsidiary known as the ''Gravesend & Rochester Railway'' in 1844 and on 10th February of that year, had begun running trains through the tunnel, going as far as Denton in the west, and Strood in the east. The route was single-track from the outset and through the tunnel the line was half supported on the tow path and half on wooden stilts, the latter sunk into the canal bed. Despite services initiating in February, it was not until 31st July 1845 that the company legalised the operation, when Parliament's approval was acquired. Meanwhile, the tunnel had since been separated into two sections in 1830, to accommodate a passing place for barges: Higham Tunnel was now 1531 yards in length and Strood Tunnel 2329 yards long.

Termini were provided at both Denton and Strood, both of these boasting trainshed roofs. At strood, the trainshed consisted of two symmetrical pitched spans, the most western of these accommodating two tracks, and the second covering a third track and a single platform face. The SER bought-out the Thames & Medway Canal Company, thus the railway too, at the end of 1845, when it had received the green light for the construction of the North Kent Line. The canal was drained within the tunnel - the Hoo Peninsula now losing its island status - the eight foot deep bed filled in with soil, and double-track laid throughout. The existing terminus at Denton was demolished, this being superseded by a much more conveniently sited through station in Gravesend town centre, but the original station at Strood remained for SER usage - before this it had been the terminus for barges, and adapted by the G & RR for the acceptance of rails. Since it was the end of the line and no major works were required when the North Kent Line opened as a double-track on 30th July 1849, the SER evidently saved itself a handsome sum by avoiding a new build. The terminus was, however, superseded just under seven years later when the SER extended the track southwards to meet the Medway Valley Line at Maidstone West, services commencing through to Paddock Wood on 18th June 1856. For this, the then new Strood station was a through layout, but it was not built to the magnificent architecture its Medway Valley counterparts at Cuxton and Snodland were. Instead, the whole affair was economical clapboard from the outset, perhaps a little unusual in light of the stations along the extension down to Maidstone being constituted of brick, but certainly conforming to later SER policy of building stations on the cheap. Three platform faces were provided here, two of which formed an island, the third (''down'' side) of which played host to the main station building. A two-storey timber signal box was situated at the Maidstone end of the island platform, but this was replaced by a typical SER sash-window signal cabin on the ''down'' platform, again at the Maidstone end, circa 1892. It is interesting to note that whilst the ''down'' platform was built from brick, in common with most stations (excepting halts), the island was instead fabricated from wood. The 1856 extension to Maidstone had also seen the laying of two carriage sidings on the ''down'' side, at the Maidstone end of the layout.

The station gained junction status (although not yet in name) on 29th March 1858, when the East Kent Railway (later LC&DR) opened a connecting spur with the SER line, after extending its own line from Chatham and over the Medway. Consequently, Parliament granted the company running powers into the SER station and indeed, the EKR wanted these powers extended to include the whole of the North Kent Line, allowing the company access to the West End. The SER fought back on the grounds that the route was already running at full capacity, an argument which did not necessarily go in the company's favour, the EKR consequently receiving Parliamentary approval for a separate route to the capital. This it completed to Victoria for through running to commence on 3rd December 1860 - the LC&DR route passed over the SER line by means of a flyover at the Maidstone end of Strood station. The connecting spur remained in situ, but all passenger services completely ceased, only to be reinstated in a limited form on 1st April 1877 after years of campaigns by local residents, led by Mayor Toomer. The Mayor's involvement in the proceedings earned him the privilege of having the connecting spur nicknamed after him: the ''Toomer Loop''. Further SER services also commenced over the spur with the opening of this company's ''Chatham Central'' branch to as far as ''Rochester station'' on 20th July 1891, and to ''Chatham Central'' on 1st March of the following year.

1984

In early 1984, a ten-vehicle EPB formation is seen departing Strood, working a Gillingham to Charing Cross

service. On the right can be seen the now vacated site of the engine shed, which was demolished in 1970. On the

left is Strood Dock Basin, which had not been rail-served since November 1962. Behind the EPB formation can

be seen the quite extensive goods yard, complete with hopper wagons loaded with coal and bound for the power

station at Kingsnorth, on the Isle of Grain. The goods yard was worked by a pair of Andrew Barclay diesel shunters.

Chris

1984

This second 1984 view is taken at ground level, and shows a Class 33 bound for the tunnel portal,

hauling Sheerness Steel scrap wagons. The brick surround of the tunnel portal is of comparatively

recent vintage, and was about twenty years of age at the time of this view. In the foreground is the

redundant dock basin, which was still complete with lock gates (albeit derelict). Sidings still existed

immediately beyond the wooden posts on the left. Chris

1984

This 1984 view of Strood goods yard is full of interest. In the centre is Andrew Barclay diesel shunter

0-4-0 ''Telemon''. An identical diesel, named ''Thalia'', worked at Rochester Goods Yard, and this

example still exists at the preserved Chatham Dockyard . Behind ''Telemon'' is an 0-6-0 shunter,

whilst in the foreground, on the left, is an ICI caustic soda wagon, a traffic which the photographer

does not remember as being frequent at the yard. Chris

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