Abbots Ripton railway station

Abbots Ripton
Abbots Ripton station site, 1991
General information
Location	Abbots Ripton, Huntingdonshire England
Grid reference	TL222788
Platforms	2
Tracks	4
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Opened	1 November 1885 (as Abbotts Ripton)
Original company	Great Northern Railway
Pre-grouping	Great Northern Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway
Key dates
21 January 1876	Abbots Ripton rail disaster
1938	Renamed Abbots Ripton
15 September 1958	Closed for passengers
5 October 1964	Closed for goods
Location

Abbots Ripton railway station was a railway station on the East Coast Main Line in the English county of Cambridgeshire. Although trains on the now-electrified railway still pass the site, the station closed in 1958. Due to the position of the station in a cutting, it had two platforms which were staggered. They served the fast lines only, and a goods line ran around the back of each platform.

History

The station was opened by the Great Northern Railway (GNR) on 1 November 1885 as Abbotts Ripton. ^[1] The GNR became part of the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) as part of the Grouping on 1 January 1923. Renamed Abbots Ripton in 1938, ^[1] the station passed on to the Eastern Region of British Railways following nationalisation in 1948, and was closed by the British Transport Commission on 15 September 1958. ^[1] Despite the name change in 1938, the signal box nameboards and the lamp casings continued to display the former name throughout the station’s existence

Abbots Ripton rail disaster

On 21 January 1876, an accident occurred at the future site of the station when the southbound Flying Scotsman express train from Edinburgh to London was involved in a double collision during a blizzard. Heavy snow had frozen the semaphore signal arms into their slots in the signal post, causing them to incorrectly indicate "all clear". As a result, the driver of the express was not warned of the presence of a coal train which was backing from the main line into a siding. A collision occurred and, not long after, a northbound express from London to Leeds ran into the wreckage. There were thirteen fatalities, and 53 passengers and six train crew were injured. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Routes

Preceding station	Historical railways			Following station
Huntingdon North Line and station open		Great Northern Railway East Coast Main Line		Holme Line open, station closed

Notes

1. Butt 1995, p. 11.
2. Tyler 1876.
3. Rolt & Kichenside 1982, pp. 114–120.
4. Kichenside 1997, pp. 183–186.

References

• Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN   1-85260-508-1. R508.
• Jowett, A. (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas. Atlantic Publishing. ISBN   0-906899-99-0.
• Kichenside, Geoffrey (1997). Dixon-Spain, Charles (ed.). Great Train Disasters. Avonmouth: Parragon. ISBN   0-7525-2229-9.
• Rolt, L.T.C.; Kichenside, Geoffrey (1982) [1955]. Red for Danger (4th ed.). Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN   0-7153-8362-0.
• Tyler, H.W. (23 February 1876). "The Report of the Court of Enquiry - Double Collision on the Great Northern Railway which occurred at Abbotts Ripton on the 21st January 1876" (PDF). Retrieved 26 May 2008.

External links

• Abbot's Ripton station on navigable O. S. map

52°23′35″N0°12′20″W / 52.39306°N 0.20556°W / 52.39306; -0.20556