Northampton railway station
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Northampton | |||
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|---|---|---|---|
| Location | |||
| Place | Northampton | ||
| Local authority | Northampton | ||
| Operations | |||
| Managed by | Silverlink | ||
| Platforms in use | 5 | ||
| Annual Passenger Usage | |||
| 2004/05 ** | 1.855 million | ||
| History | |||
| Key dates | Opened 1859 | ||
| National Rail - UK railway stations | |||
| Annual passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Northampton. | |||
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Northampton (Castle) railway station is the railway station that serves Northampton and the south of Northamptonshire.
The station is served by Silverlink County local services to London and Central Trains services to Birmingham New Street, on the Northampton loop of the West Coast Main Line. At morning peak period, Virgin Trains also run 2 commuter services. For northbound InterCity services, passengers have to change at Rugby. About 5 Central Trains services also run to and from London Euston via Northampton.
[edit] History
At one time there were three railway stations in Northampton: Northampton (Bridge Street), Northampton (St. John's Street), and Northampton (Castle). The latter was named after the castle which formerly occupied the site and now survives as the town's only station.
Bridge Street station was the first station in Northampton, which opened in 1845. The first railway line to be built in to Northampton was a branch line off the London and Birmingham Railway from Blisworth to Peterborough. Northampton was served on this line by Bridge Street station.
Castle station (as it is still known to this day) was the second station to be opened, on the site of the historic castle. It first opened in 1859 but was originally only a minor station serving the branch line to Market Harborough.
The third station was St Johns's Street station, which was opened in 1872, and was the terminus of the Midland Railway's branch line from Bedford, and was completely separate from the other stations.
With the construction of the Northampton loop off the West Coast Main Line in the late 1870s, Castle station was dramatically expanded and soon became Northampton's main station, serving the main line to London and Birmingham. The enlargement of the station completely demolished the surviving remains of the castle, with the exception of a "postern gate" which is incorporated into a boundary wall.
St John's station was an early victim of closure, closing to passengers and freight in 1939. Bridge Street station survived until 1964, when the Northampton to Peterborough line was closed, leaving only Castle station serving the town.
The current station was the result of a rebuilding in the 1960s, as part of the modernisation of the West Coast Main Line that saw its electrification.
The 2005 film Kinky Boots featured a station named 'Northampton', although the scenes were filmed at nearby Wellingborough.
[edit] References
- The Last Days Of Steam In Northamptonshire, by John M.C. Healy (1989) ISBN 0-86299-613-9
- History of Northampton
[edit] External links
- Train times and station information for Northampton railway station from National Rail
- Street map and aerial photo of Northampton railway station from Multimap.com
| Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolverton | Silverlink County London-Northampton |
Terminus | ||
| Terminus or London Euston Limited service |
Central Trains Northampton-Birmingham |
Long Buckby | ||
| London Euston | Virgin Trains¹ London-Northampton |
Terminus | ||
 Heritage railways |
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| Northampton & Lamport Railway (5 miles away) | ||||
¹ One non-stop commuter service and one calling at Milton Keynes Central and London Euston only during morning peak periods only.
