1. Railways

Cambridge-St Ives-March

This collection is dedicated to the memory of the late Steve Wilkinson of Histon who fought tirelessly in conjunction with the Railway Development Society (Rail Future) to re open the Cambridge- St Ives line.

Timeline:-
Chesterton Junction to St Ives- opened 17th August 1847.
St Ives to March South Junction- opened 1st February 1848.

The fifteen and a half mile line from St Ives to March South Junction closed on 6th March 1967 when freight traffic declined. The passenger service was also recommended for closure in the Beeching Report of 1963. Little trace of this section of the line exists today. Long sections have been converted to road and the various cuttings to landfill. Many thanks to Stewart Ingram for permission to include some of his pictures from the last day of working. The passenger service from St Ives to Cambridge closed on 5th October 1970, but fortunately the line stayed open for freight traffic to Chivers at Histon until 1983 and a long term sand contract from ARC at Fen Drayton ensured the line stayed open until May 1992. This section of the line has been totally destroyed by the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway which opened on 7th August 2011. Here are a few photos to show how it looked in it's final operational days plus a few relics. The line was once a very busy freight route to March, Whitemoor Yard and the Yorkshire coalfields with over 70 workings a day, the line being open all night.

Maps used in this gallery. Ordnance survey- 1" to a mile. Sheet 135 Cambridge and Ely (1954) and Sheet 134 Huntingdon and Peterborough.
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Extract from British Railways Freight Working Timetable. Nov 1959- June 1960.  This shows the distance between signal boxes and capacity of the various goods loops. Of interest is the box at Milton which controlled the sidings at the American/WD army camp, located about where the Cambridge Science Park is now. The box closed in September 1959.
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Extract from British Railways Freight Working Timetable. Nov 1959- June 1960. This shows the distance between signal boxes and capacity of the various goods loops. Of interest is the box at Milton which controlled the sidings at the American/WD army camp, located about where the Cambridge Science Park is now. The box closed in September 1959.

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  • Histon Station and Staff in 1900. The Station Master, Charles Paige, is the man with the beard. Photo Alice Paige. With thanks to Mrs Eleanor Whitehead.
  • The  River Ouse Bridge. Photo Steve Parker
  • Class 37 D6723 passes Windmill Bridge with the last up parcels to use this route,  4th March 1967. Photo with kind permission of Stewart Ingram.
  • 6773 with pre TOPS Number, later 37073 at Girton Road Crossing in April 1973
  • The three arch Bluntisham Heath Road bridge between St Ives and Somersham viewed from inside the cutting in September 1972. In three years time the process of land fill would begin here and soon the bridge would disappear from sight.
  • Original station running in board. <br />
<br />
Image with kind permission of Barry Saunders.
  • Chatteris
  • Chatteris facing March.
  • Chatteris Up platform.
  • Compared to the previous photo, this is a contemporary view of the same location. The track bed is now the A141 Fenland Way. The only remaining recognisable feature is the building to the extreme right.<br />
<br />
Image:-  Barry Saunders.
  • Chatteris Dock.
  • A rather nice original totem from Chatteris.<br />
<br />
Image:- Thanks to Edd Bird.
  • Chatteris
  • Chatteris, buildings on the Up Platform. To the right is the W.H. Smith bookstall.
  • Chivers siding c1911. The goods office is to the left.
  • Chatteris
  • Extract from British Railways Freight Working Timetable. Nov 1959- June 1960.  This shows the distance between signal boxes and capacity of the various goods loops. Of interest is the box at Milton which controlled the sidings at the American/WD army camp, located about where the Cambridge Science Park is now. The box closed in September 1959.
  • 47115 waits at Girton Road Crossing. Date and photographer unknown.
  • Chivers Sidings c1903.  Photo thanks to Mrs Eleanor Whitehead.  The sidings closed in 1967. At the end of steam traction c 1962 regular visitors to the sidings were Cambridge based Ivatt 2MTs notably 46465/6.
  • Railway Correspondence and Travel Society special arriving at Histon.  7th May 1979.  This consisted of a Cravens E51265 and a Birmingham RCW 56189 two car set.
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