Downham and Stoke Ferry Railway

The Downham and Stoke Ferry Railway was a branch line in western Norfolk, England.

Downham and Stoke Ferry Railway

Overview
Locale	King's Lynn and West Norfolk
Dates of operation	1882–1898
Successor	Great Eastern Railway
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length	7 miles (11 km)

v t e Downham & Stoke Ferry Railway
Legend
Fen line to King's Lynn Downham Denver Fen line to Ely Ryston Abbey and West Dereham Wissington Light Railway Stoke Ferry

History

The Downham and Stoke Ferry Railway (D&SF) was just over 7 miles (11 km) long.^[1] It was authorised on 24 July 1879, and opened on 1 August 1882, being worked by the Great Eastern Railway (GER).^[1] It ran from a junction with the GER at Denver (to the south of Downham), to a terminus at Stoke Ferry.^[2] There were two intermediate stations: Ryston and Abbey (latterly known as Abbey and West Dereham).^[3]

Ownership changes

On 6 August 1897 an Act of Parliament authorised the GER to absorb the D&SF, which they did on 1 January 1898.^[1] Being part of the GER, the line passed to the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) at the Grouping on 1 January 1923.^[4]

When the railways were nationalised in 1948 operation of the line became the responsibility of British Railways Eastern Region.

Closure

The LNER withdrew the passenger service on 22 September 1930.^[1]

Freight services were withdrawn from Denver (13 July 1964) Ryston (28 December 1964) Abbey (31 January 1966) and Stoke Ferry (19 July 1965).^[5][6]

The section between Abbey and Stoke Ferry was abandoned in 1965 but traffic continued to the Wissington Railway until 1982.

Wissington Light Railway

At Abbey and West Dereham, a privately owned line, the Wissington Light Railway, branched off. It opened c. 1905, mostly closed in 1957,^[7] and finally closed in 1982.^[8]