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Dover: Lock and Key of the Kingdom
Railways in Dover - A Brief History
Dover’s first rail connection with London was established by
the South Eastern Railway (SER) on 7 February 1844, when it
opened (from Folkestone) the final section of its main line to
Dover Town Station. One of the main reasons for building the
line to Dover was to link with the cross-Channel steamers
plying from the harbour. In 1862 the SER opened an
extension from the Town Station to connect with rails laid by
the Admiralty on the Admiralty Pier. This allowed trains to be
run onto the pier alongside the steamers, which had been
docking there since 1851.
On 22 July 1861 Dover got its second rail link with London
when the London, Chatham & Dover Railway (LCDR) opened a
temporary terminus at Dover Priory Station. Between the
Priory Station and the harbour it was necessary to drive a
685-yard tunnel under the Western Heights. This was
completed a few months later and the Harbour Station was
opened on 1 November 1861. Arrangements were made in
1862 to build a junction with the Admiralty Pier line and from
30 August 1864 boat trains of both companies used the pier.
For seven years a substantial advantage in distance lay with
the LCDR but the opening of the new SER main line via
Sevenoaks secured equality, the LCDR 78 miles from London
Victoria to Dover Harbour, via the Medway Towns and
Canterbury, being matched by the SER 76½ from Charing
Cross to Dover Town.
On 15 June 1881 a direct link between the SER Town and
LCDR Harbour Stations was opened. This was a joint line of
the two companies, built as part of the Dover and Deal Joint
Railway, which connected the existing SER terminus at Deal
with the LCDR main line at Buckland Junction.
The two competing companies could never agree to a
complete merger but in 1899 economic necessity forced them
into a ‘Working Union’. In this union the companies retained
their separate existence but for operating purposes their lines
were managed as one railway. The new grouping went by the
name South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SECR) but it was
never a company in its own right.
In 1909 work began on the new Marine Station, was nearing
completion when the First World War broke out, and from 2
January 1915 it was used for ambulance and other military
traffic. Most of this traffic approached from the LCDR route,
as a landslide between Folkestone and Dover in December
1915 closed the SER route until August 1919. Public use of
the Marine Station (for Continental traffic) began in January
1920 with full domestic passenger services introduced by
1922.
In January 1923 the SER and LCDR were grouped, along with
other railway companies in the South of England, to form the
Southern Railway. After the grouping the railway layout of
Dover was simplified, passenger traffic for Dover itself was
concentrated on the Priory Station. The old Harbour Station
closed (the Town Station had closed to civilian passengers in
October 1914), and the approach lines to the Marine Station
were remodelled. The old engine sheds at Dover Priory and
Dover Town were closed and consolidated into the new sheds
built near the site of the old Town Station. In 1936 a new
Train Ferry Dock was opened, enabling a sleeping car service
between London and Paris, the ‘Night Ferry’, to be introduced.
During the Second World War Dover’s railways played and
important role and suffered much damage. The Marine
Station saw heavy traffic during the evacuation of Dunkirk,
handling hundreds of special troop and ambulance trains.
Both the Marine and Priory Stations were damaged by
bombing and shelling during the war.
After the war services got back to normal with luxury services
like the ‘Night Ferry and the ‘Golden Arrow’ being
reintroduced and cross-Channel traffic increasing. In 1961 the
lines around Dover were electrified as part of the final phase
of Kent Coast electrification and steam haulage came to an
end. The one exception to this was on the Promenade Railway
where use of third-rail electrification would not have been
safe. Passenger traffic for Dover is now handled exclusively
by the Priory Station after the Marine Station closed in 1994.
In December 2009 high-speed trains started running from
Dover Priory to London St Pancras. From Ashford
International the new Javelin trains use the high-speed line
built for the Eurostar Channel Tunnel services. Passengers
are now able to reach London in 1 hour 6 minutes, saving at
least 30 minutes on the previous quickest journey time.
the South Eastern Railway (SER) on 7 February 1844, when it
opened (from Folkestone) the final section of its main line to
Dover Town Station. One of the main reasons for building the
line to Dover was to link with the cross-Channel steamers
plying from the harbour. In 1862 the SER opened an
extension from the Town Station to connect with rails laid by
the Admiralty on the Admiralty Pier. This allowed trains to be
run onto the pier alongside the steamers, which had been
docking there since 1851.
On 22 July 1861 Dover got its second rail link with London
when the London, Chatham & Dover Railway (LCDR) opened a
temporary terminus at Dover Priory Station. Between the
Priory Station and the harbour it was necessary to drive a
685-yard tunnel under the Western Heights. This was
completed a few months later and the Harbour Station was
opened on 1 November 1861. Arrangements were made in
1862 to build a junction with the Admiralty Pier line and from
30 August 1864 boat trains of both companies used the pier.
For seven years a substantial advantage in distance lay with
the LCDR but the opening of the new SER main line via
Sevenoaks secured equality, the LCDR 78 miles from London
Victoria to Dover Harbour, via the Medway Towns and
Canterbury, being matched by the SER 76½ from Charing
Cross to Dover Town.
On 15 June 1881 a direct link between the SER Town and
LCDR Harbour Stations was opened. This was a joint line of
the two companies, built as part of the Dover and Deal Joint
Railway, which connected the existing SER terminus at Deal
with the LCDR main line at Buckland Junction.
The two competing companies could never agree to a
complete merger but in 1899 economic necessity forced them
into a ‘Working Union’. In this union the companies retained
their separate existence but for operating purposes their lines
were managed as one railway. The new grouping went by the
name South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SECR) but it was
never a company in its own right.
In 1909 work began on the new Marine Station, was nearing
completion when the First World War broke out, and from 2
January 1915 it was used for ambulance and other military
traffic. Most of this traffic approached from the LCDR route,
as a landslide between Folkestone and Dover in December
1915 closed the SER route until August 1919. Public use of
the Marine Station (for Continental traffic) began in January
1920 with full domestic passenger services introduced by
1922.
In January 1923 the SER and LCDR were grouped, along with
other railway companies in the South of England, to form the
Southern Railway. After the grouping the railway layout of
Dover was simplified, passenger traffic for Dover itself was
concentrated on the Priory Station. The old Harbour Station
closed (the Town Station had closed to civilian passengers in
October 1914), and the approach lines to the Marine Station
were remodelled. The old engine sheds at Dover Priory and
Dover Town were closed and consolidated into the new sheds
built near the site of the old Town Station. In 1936 a new
Train Ferry Dock was opened, enabling a sleeping car service
between London and Paris, the ‘Night Ferry’, to be introduced.
During the Second World War Dover’s railways played and
important role and suffered much damage. The Marine
Station saw heavy traffic during the evacuation of Dunkirk,
handling hundreds of special troop and ambulance trains.
Both the Marine and Priory Stations were damaged by
bombing and shelling during the war.
After the war services got back to normal with luxury services
like the ‘Night Ferry and the ‘Golden Arrow’ being
reintroduced and cross-Channel traffic increasing. In 1961 the
lines around Dover were electrified as part of the final phase
of Kent Coast electrification and steam haulage came to an
end. The one exception to this was on the Promenade Railway
where use of third-rail electrification would not have been
safe. Passenger traffic for Dover is now handled exclusively
by the Priory Station after the Marine Station closed in 1994.
In December 2009 high-speed trains started running from
Dover Priory to London St Pancras. From Ashford
International the new Javelin trains use the high-speed line
built for the Eurostar Channel Tunnel services. Passengers
are now able to reach London in 1 hour 6 minutes, saving at
least 30 minutes on the previous quickest journey time.
