Horsham to Petworth - 150 Anniversary

[Claude_Dreyfus]

I originally posted this on the old forum, however as I retained a full copy thought it might be worth reposting here as its period of relevance is limited. I have also taken the opportunity to add a couple more pictures and tidy some of the text.

 

One anniversary more than likely to slip past fairly unnoticed is that of the old branch line linking Horsham with Petworth, in West Sussex. This line in itself remained as it was for only a short period of time before being swallowed up by the Arun Valley route to Arundel and the network of small branch lines serving Midhurst. Hopefully here I can, in my own small way, commemorate this event with a few ramblings on a line which served the small town where I grew up. I still use the section from Pulborough heading north on a regular basis ??“ Saturday 10^th October was also Pulborough station??™s 150 anniversary, however the section heading west from Pulborough towards Petworth and Midhurst is one of those little lines I would dearly loved to have experienced first hand, but sadly never will??¦

 

Petworth was very nearly on the map over thirty years before the line finally came to town on that October Monday morning in 1859. Back in 1823, right at the dawn of the railway age and seven years before the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, a Mr William James published proposals for an ???Engine Railroad??™ to connect the ???Metropolis??™ to the ports of Shoreham, Rochester and Portsmouth. Two lines formed the proposal, one from London to Shoreham and the other linking Portsmouth with Rochester. The plans for the latter would have had a railway line passing immediately to the east of the town, before heading north-west towards Horsham.

 

Unfortunately for Mr James it was not to be. As with so many railway schemes at this time the proposal failed to progress and his grand ambitions were limited to promoting the Canterbury and Whitstable line, opened in 1830.

 

Serious plans for the railway??™s arrival to this part of Sussex began in about 1853, with the promotion of the Weald of Sussex Railway, intended to link Horsham with Midhurst. Shortly after this period the company name was amended to the Mid-Sussex Railway. This in itself was an extension of the branch line linking the town with the London to Brighton main line at Three Bridges.

 

On the 10^th August 1857 the Mid-Sussex railway was incorporated with the initial destination the small market town of Petworth. The line ran for 17.5 miles, due south west of Horsham through the small towns of Billingshurst and Pulborough, at which there would be intermediate stations. The line was originally built as single track however the structures, like all along the LBSCR route (with the later and notable exception of Midhurst tunnel) were built to accommodate double track.

 

Although a separate company, the Mid-Sussex was initially operated by the London Brighton and South Coast Railway until full acquisition in 1862, the year before the link from Hardham Junction to Arundel was opened.

 

Construction of the line took just over two years, with Pulborough and Petworth stations opening to the public on the 10^th October 1859. Billingshurst station followed on five days later. The line was fortunate in being relatively level with few engineering challenges. The largest bridge was the crossing of the Arun flood plain at Pulborough, whereupon the line turned west to follow the Rother valley, traversing the sandy deposits of the Folkestone Beds. The branch was initially served by five trains per weekday, later increased to eight, with two services on Sundays.

 

Even in 1859 it was obvious that a branch line to Petworth itself was not sustainable and in the August of that year the Mid-Sussex and Midhurst Junction was incorporated, with the new goal of Petersfield. This venture was quickly sold to the LBSCR, who curtailed its ambition to Midhurst; honouring a territorial agreement with the rival London and South Western Railway, who opened their line to Midhurst in 1864. Two years later, on 15^th October 1866, the line from Petworth was finally extended to Midhurst. Midhurst remain a frontier town between the two companies until the formation of the Southern Railway in 1923.

 

The stations at Billingshurst and Pulborough were both substantial structures, and still exist today. The current Petworth station building dates from 1892, replacing a much smaller structure constructed for the lines opening. The two other intermediate stations at Christ??™s Hospital and Fittleworth opened in 1902 and 1889 respectively.

 

In terms of motive power initially trains were handled by an assortment of tank and small tender locomotives. At the time of opening, the Locomotive Superintendent at Brighton works, John Chester Craven, has a habit of trying to design engines for specific routes, and Brighton number 213 was duly delivered. This locomotive however proved too heavy for the line and was quickly moved away.

 

After this a progression of Sharpe Stewart designed locomotives handled the traffic until the early 1880s when the motive power was standardised on the Stroudley designed A1 Terrier tank engines.

 

For the seven years that Petworth was the terminal station a locomotive shed was provided, and provides the basis for a story that involves locomotive number 79, one of the many Sharp locomotives that were used by the LBSCR at that time.

 

Less than a fortnight after the line??™s opening, number 79 was being prepared for the morning train. Unfortunately whilst the fire had been lit and she was steaming up, someone had forgotten to close the regulator. As the steam pressure grew, so she started to move. Before anyone knew what had happened she had left the shed and vanished off down the line.

 

Fortunately due to the sparseness of the timetable and lack of junctions at that time, the line from Pulborough to Arundel had yet to be built along with the lines to Horsham and Shoreham branching off the main line at Christ??™s Hospital, 79 had a clear run all the way to Horsham. It was here, running out of steam and with the remains of three sets of crossing gates wrapped around her buffer beam, where a cleaner was able to catch her and finally bring an end to her unauthorised trip!

 

Petworth??™s role as the terminus of the Horsham branch ceased on 3^rd August 1863 when the line from Hardham junction to Arundel was opened, whereupon the single track section from Horsham to Hardham was doubled. Now Petworth was at the end of a short single track line from Pulborough.

 

Following the opening of the line to Midhurst, Petworth station settled down to a quiet life as a wayside station on a typical rural backwater for the next 89 years until the end of passenger services on 5^th February 1955, which also saw the complete closure of the line from Midhurst to Petersfield. Petworth yet again reverted to being a terminus from 18^th October 1964 when the short section to Midhurst closed. All traffic to Petworth finally stopped on 20^th May 1966.

 

Today over half of the original Mid-Sussex branch from Horsham to Petworth still survives in the form of the main Arun Valley line. Of the branch line section to Petworth, a number of bridges still exist as do both the buildings at Fittleworth and Petworth. The track bed is also clearly discernable on any of the satellite image maps available with very limited obstruction.

 

This is the site of the old signal box at Hardham Junction. The design was unusual inasmuch as it was built on stilts, and by the time of closure in May 1966 was the last remaining box to boast this feature. Sadly that did not prevent its demolition shortly after closure. At this point the main line traverses a reverse curve, betraying the fact that the remaining line to Arundel was the later addition.

 

This view shows the site of the line leading away towards Petworth, the actual location where the tracks diverged is where the spare piece of rail is laying.

 

A few miles east of this location, having passed through Fittleworth station, the line passed beneath Shopham Bridge. This must have been a very attractive section of line to have travelled on being right beside the meanderings of the river Rother at this point. Although overgrown the track bed is more or less extant from Hardham to Petworth.

 

Petworth station itself is now most notable for be a rather nice hotel, with additional accommodation being provided by a couple of Pullman carriages, formerly based at Marazion. The building is particularly pleasing architecturally.

 

Pulborough is still a very pleasant station, which retains both its signal box and semaphore signals. During the spring and summer Pulborough box is usually festooned with flowers, which being clearly visible from the platform makes a very attractive sight.

The branch line trains departed from the outer side of the up platform ??“ now referred to as platform 1. Not a brilliant picture unfortunately.

 

Finally a picture of the existing line from Horsham to Pulborough. Pretty much the preserve of class 377 EMUs it is now a major commuter route handling traffic levels far beyond the expectation of the original promoters.

[John M Upton]

I was indeed working the Arun Valley on Saturday 10th and yet there were no fanfares, bunting or indeed anything. In fact the ticket office at Pulborough was shut just after lunchtime if I recall correctly.

 

It was an anniversary that should really have been commerated somehow even if it was only a few souvineer mugs or pens or some such.

 

Now, the day I am looking forward to is 1st June 2014, 150th anniversary of the Barnham to Bognor Branch. Just enough time I reckon to get the 442's cleared and the train crew trained up so we can run one on the Bognor shuttles all day!!!