South Kentish Town tube station

Last updated

South Kentish Town
South Kentish Town station 2020.jpg
The station building in 2020
Camden London UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
South Kentish Town
Location of South Kentish Town in London Borough of Camden
Location Kentish Town
Local authority Camden
Number of platforms2
Railway companies
Original company Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway
Key dates
22 June 1907 (1907-06-22)Opened
5 June 1924 (1924-06-05)Closed
Other information
Coordinates 51°32′43″N0°08′30″W / 51.54528°N 0.14167°W / 51.54528; -0.14167
Underground sign at Westminster.jpg  London transportportal

South Kentish Town is a disused London Underground station located in Kentish Town, north London, on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line.

Contents

It was opened in 1907 by the Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway but closed in 1924 due to low passenger usage. Latterly, it was on what is now the Northern line's High Barnet branch between Camden Town and Kentish Town stations. The surface building survives on Kentish Town Road near its junction with Castle Road and is currently a retail unit. The Underground station is now an Escape Room https://www.missionbreakout.london/.

History

South Kentish Town station was opened on 22 June 1907 by the Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway (CCE&HR) on its branch to Highgate (now Archway). [1] The station was planned to be called Castle Road; however, this was changed just before it opened. The Castle Road name had already been fired into the original Leslie Green tiles inside the station, so after the name change they were painted over with the revised name.

On 20 April 1924, trains of the City & South London Railway began to call at the station as the connection between the CCE&HR and C&SLR at Camden Town allowed the C&SLR to extend its services northwards along the CCE&HR's northern branches. This situation would only last for seven weeks. The station was temporarily closed following unofficial strike action at Lots Road Power Station during the afternoon of 5 June 1924. It was decided not to re-open the station after the power was restored, due to the very low number of passengers using it; in fact, since as early as 1908 some trains did not stop there. [2] During the Blitz in the Second World War it was adapted for use as an air-raid shelter.

There have been occasional proposals to rebuild the platforms and the station as part of the redevelopment plans for Camden Town. The layout of South Kentish Town is similar to Kentish Town (also originally a CCE&HR station); with two 23 ft (7.0 m) diameter lift-shafts and an 18 ft (5.5 m) diameter spiral staircase. South Kentish Town now serves as an access point for permanent way works and as an emergency egress point for passenger services.

A 1951 short story called South Kentish Town by John Betjeman told the fictional story of a passenger who became trapped in the disused station. It was based on a true incident where a train stopped at the station and mistakenly opened its doors, but in reality nobody became trapped. [2]

As of 2016, the station building housed a retail unit and a yoga studio. [3] From 2021, it contained three escape rooms themed to its heritage as both a former Underground station (with the aforementioned John Betjeman story being a crucial plot point) and a World War 2 air-raid shelter. [4]

Former service
Preceding station Underground no-text.svg London Underground Following station
Kentish Town
towards Highgate
Northern line
(June 1907–April 1924)
Camden Town
towards Charing Cross
Northern line
(April–June 1924)
Camden Town

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern line</span> London Underground line

The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, two southern branches and two northern branches. Despite its name, it does not serve the northernmost stations on the Underground, though it does serve the southernmost station at Morden, the terminus of one of the two southern branches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charing Cross tube station</span> London Underground station

Charing Cross is a London Underground station at Charing Cross in the City of Westminster. The station is served by the Bakerloo and Northern lines and provides an interchange with Charing Cross mainline station. On the Bakerloo line, it is between Piccadilly Circus and Embankment stations and on the Charing Cross branch of the Northern line, it is between Leicester Square and Embankment stations. The station is in fare zone 1.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embankment tube station</span> London Underground station

Embankment is a London Underground station in the City of Westminster, known by various names during its history. It is served by the Bakerloo, Circle, District and Northern lines. On the Bakerloo line and the Charing Cross branch of the Northern line, the station is between Charing Cross and Waterloo stations; on the Circle and District lines, it is between Westminster and Temple and is in Travelcard Zone 1. The station has two entrances, one on Victoria Embankment and the other on Villiers Street. The station is adjacent to Victoria Embankment Gardens and is close to Charing Cross station, Embankment Pier, Hungerford Bridge, Cleopatra's Needle, the Royal Air Force Memorial, the Savoy Chapel and Savoy Hotel and the Playhouse and New Players Theatres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camden Town tube station</span> London Underground station

Camden Town is a London Underground station in Camden Town. It is a major junction for the Northern line, as it is where the Edgware and High Barnet branches merge from the north, and is also where they split to the south into the Bank and Charing Cross branches for the journey through Central London. It is particularly busy with visitors to the Camden markets at weekends, and, until 2019, was exit-only on Sundays to prevent overcrowding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elephant & Castle tube station</span> London Underground station

Elephant & Castle is a London Underground station in the London Borough of Southwark in south London. It is on the Bank branch of the Northern line between Borough and Kennington stations. It is also the southern terminus of the Bakerloo line and the next station towards north is Lambeth North. The station is in both Travelcard Zones 1 and 2. The Northern line station was opened in 1890 by the City and South London Railway (C&SLR) while the Bakerloo line station was opened sixteen years later by the Baker Street and Waterloo Railway (BS&WR). There is an out-of-station interchange with the nearby Elephant & Castle National Rail station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Euston tube station</span> London Underground station

Euston is a London Underground station. It directly connects with its National Rail railway station above it. The station is in Travelcard Zone 1.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angel tube station</span> London Underground station

Angel is a London Underground station in the Angel area of the London Borough of Islington. It is on the Bank branch of the Northern line, between King's Cross St. Pancras and Old Street stations, in Travelcard Zone 1. The station was originally built by the City & South London Railway (C&SLR) and opened on 17 November 1901. The station served as a terminus until the line was extended to Euston on 12 May 1907.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennington tube station</span> London Underground station

Kennington is a London Underground station on Kennington Park Road in Kennington within the London Borough of Southwark. The station is served by the Northern line and is at the junction of the Charing Cross and Bank branches to the north and the Morden and Battersea Power Station branches to the south. Northbound, the next stations are Waterloo on the Charing Cross branch and Elephant & Castle on the Bank branch. Southbound, the next stations are Oval towards Morden and Nine Elms towards Battersea Power Station respectively. The station is in both Travelcard Zones 1 and 2.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kentish Town station</span> London Underground and railway station

Kentish Town is an interchange station located in Kentish Town in the London Borough of Camden for London Underground and National Rail services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archway tube station</span> London Underground station

Archway is a London Underground station at the intersection of Holloway Road, Highgate Hill, Junction Road and Archway Road in Archway, north London, directly underneath the Vantage Point building. It is on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line, between Highgate and Tufnell Park stations, in Zones 2 and 3.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tufnell Park tube station</span> London Underground station

Tufnell Park is a London Underground station in Islington, close to its boundary with Camden. It is located in the Tufnell Park neighbourhood. It is on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line, between Archway and Kentish Town stations, and in Travelcard Zone 2.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chalk Farm tube station</span> London Underground station

Chalk Farm is a London Underground station near Camden Town in the London Borough of Camden. It is on the Edgware branch of the Northern line between Belsize Park and Camden Town stations. For ticketing purposes, Chalk Farm falls in Travelcard Zone 2. With slightly under five million entries and exits in 2011, Chalk Farm is one of the busiest stations on the Edgware branch of the Northern line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City and South London Railway</span> Underground railway company in London

The City and South London Railway (C&SLR) was the first successful deep-level underground "tube" railway in the world, and the first major railway to use electric traction. The railway was originally intended for cable-hauled trains, but owing to the bankruptcy of the cable contractor during construction, a system of electric traction using electric locomotives—an experimental technology at the time—was chosen instead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway</span> Underground railway company in London

The Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway (CCE&HR), also known as the Hampstead Tube, was a railway company established in 1891 that constructed a deep-level underground "tube" railway in London. Construction of the CCE&HR was delayed for more than a decade while funding was sought. In 1900 it became a subsidiary of the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (UERL), controlled by American financier Charles Yerkes. The UERL quickly raised the funds, mainly from foreign investors. Various routes were planned, but a number of these were rejected by Parliament. Plans for tunnels under Hampstead Heath were authorised, despite opposition by many local residents who believed they would damage the ecology of the Heath.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Electric Railway</span> United Kingdom legislation

The London Electric Railway (LER) was an underground railway company operating three lines on the London Underground. It was formed in 1910 and existed until 1933, when it was merged into the London Passenger Transport Board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North End tube station</span> Unopened London Underground station

North End is a never-completed underground station, on the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway. The station was to have been built at North End on the boundaries of Hampstead Heath and Golders Hill Park and is located on the Edgware branch between Hampstead and Golders Green.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A400 road (Great Britain)</span> Road in London

The A400 road is an A road in London that runs from Charing Cross to Archway in North London. It passes some of London's most famous landmarks.

The transport system now known as the London Underground began in 1863 with the Metropolitan Railway, the world's first underground railway. Over the next forty years, the early sub-surface lines reached out from the urban centre of the capital into the surrounding rural margins, leading to the development of new commuter suburbs. At the turn of the nineteenth century, new technology—including electric locomotives and improvements to the tunnelling shield—enabled new companies to construct a series of "tube" lines deeper underground. Initially rivals, the tube railway companies began to co-operate in advertising and through shared branding, eventually consolidating under the single ownership of the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (UERL), with lines stretching across London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Borough of Camden</span> London borough in United Kingdom

The London Borough of Camden is a London borough in Inner London, England. Camden Town Hall, on Euston Road, lies 1.4 mi (2.3 km) north of Charing Cross. The borough was established on 1 April 1965 and includes the former Central London borough of Holborn, and St Pancras and Hampstead.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Underground Electric Railways Company of London</span> Holding company for underground railways and bus operators in London

The Underground Electric Railways Company of London Limited (UERL), known operationally as the Underground for much of its existence, was established in 1902. It was the holding company for the three deep-level "tube" underground railway lines opened in London during 1906 and 1907: the Baker Street and Waterloo Railway, the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway and the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway. It was also the parent company from 1902 of the District Railway, which it electrified between 1903 and 1905. The UERL is a precursor of today's London Underground; its three tube lines form the central sections of today's Bakerloo, Northern and Piccadilly lines.

References

  1. Rose, Douglas (1999). The London Underground, A Diagrammatic History. Douglas Rose/Capital Transport. ISBN   1-85414-219-4.
  2. 1 2 Connor, J.E. (1999). "South Kentish Town". London's Disused Underground Stations. Capital Transport. pp. 22–25. ISBN   1-85414-250-X.
  3. Londonist (23 December 2016). "Abandoned Tube Stations (Pt. 1)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021.
  4. "Mission Breakout: Immersive escapes from South Kentish Town ghost station - Kentishtowner".