Grid reference TQ077351 Platforms in use 2 | 2 October 1865 Station opened | |
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Post-grouping Southern RailwaySouthern Region of British Railways Similar | ||
Baynards was a railway station on the Cranleigh Line. The line was single track and opened on 2 October 1865.
Contents
The station comprises the stationmaster's house, two waiting rooms, covered platforms, storesheds, a booking hall, a porch and a large goods shed. The station covers in all 0.45 acres (0.18 ha).
History
It was built for Lord Thurlow, the owner of nearby Baynards Park, whose land was on the route of the proposed railway line. As a condition of sale, Lord Thurlow insisted on having a station built to serve his estate, despite there being no nearby settlement. The station was also used as the local post office in times when up to 30 horses and carts would queue outside on market days.
Near the station was the Baynards Brick and Tile Works which was served by its own private siding. In early years it was a brickworks, producing Fuller's earth for the wool industry, and then foundry clay in later years. It then became a chemical processing works, receiving annually 400 tons of goods by rail (including sulphur from Italy via the Thames docks, tin from Swansea and packaging from Sittingbourne), whilst also sending out its own goods, from seed dressings to polishing compounds.