Wheathampstead railway station

Wheathampstead railway station was a railway station serving Wheathampstead on the Great Northern Railway branch line to Dunstable. While little of it remains now, east of Wheathampstead is the Ayot Greenway which follows what was the line towards Welwyn Garden City.

Wheathampstead
The station in the early twentieth century
General information
Location	Welwyn Garden City, Welwyn Hatfield England
Platforms	1
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Original company	Hertford, Luton & Dunstable Railway
Pre-grouping	Great Northern Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway
Key dates
1 September 1860	Station opens
26 April 1965	Station closed for passengers
26 July 1965	Closed for freight

The station opened with the rest of the Hatfield section of the line on 1 September 1860. Although a small goods yard and cattle dock were built, the close proximity of the road and housing meant that it remained a single platform only, with no passing loop unlike the stations at Harpenden East and Ayot. The station closed to passengers in 1965^[1][2] with the track lifted a short time afterwards.

Local volunteers, with financial support from the Parish Council, local businesses and local residents, have restored the platform. A short length of railway line has been laid, together with a restored wagon, a platform shelter, information boards and a picnic table. The site is included in the Wheathampstead Village Centre Heritage Trail.^[3]

Routes

Preceding station		Disused railways		Following station
Harpenden East Line and station closed		Great Northern Railway Dunstable Branch		Ayot Line and station closed

References

1. Quick, M. E. (2002). Railway passenger stations in England, Scotland and Wales – a chronology. Richmond: Railway and Canal Historical Society. p. 453. OCLC 931112387.
2. Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 247. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
3. "Wheathampstead Heritage: Village Centre Trail". Wheathampstead Heritage. 2013. Retrieved 8 April 2023.

External links

• Wheathampstead railway station entry on Subterranea Britannica Disused Sites website
• Wheathampstead station on navigable 1946 O. S. map

51.8153°N 0.2927°W / 51.8153; -0.2927 (ex-Wheathampstead station)