
Speaker: Laurence Waters
Subject: Chipping Norton Branch Line
Upwards of 70 members and guests enjoyed another successful and informative evening, once again featuring a topic of great local interest.
Laurence’s talk introduced us to the Chipping Norton Branch line in the context of the historic rail link from Banbury to Cheltenham which was completed in stages to 1887. He illustrated the story with a fine selection of photographs mainly by the renowned local photographer Frank Packer.
These images took us station by station ( and halts) on the journey. A feature of many of the stations was the obvious care and attention to their upkeep, with shrubs and flowers often in abundance.
The completion of the ‘through route’ from from Banbury to Cheltenham was a final phase, building successfully on earlier developments. Important among these was the opening in 1855 of the Chipping Norton connection to Kingham, and thus to the Oxford to Worcester line.

Laurence briefly referenced how the ‘Gauge War’ between GWR’s broad gauge and other companies’ narrow gauge delayed progress. Narrow gauge prevailed in 1846, allowing the branch line’s authorisation in 1854. Constructed in under a year, it connected Chipping Norton Junction to a station near Bliss’s mill.
[ See also Ralph Mann’s talk on the rise and fall of Bliss Mill here ]

The next chapter in the story took place on the western side of the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway. Encouraged by the success of the Chipping Norton venture, a branch was proposed from the Junction to Bourton-on-the Water with an extension to Cheltenham. This was opened in 1861 as a branch from Chipping Norton Junction to Bourton, with an intermediate station at the foot of the hill near Stow-on-the-Wold.
But with Hook Norton remaining isolated, a particular driver for a final development was the discovery of Ironstone deposits around Hook Norton, Bloxham, and Adderbury. This phase was completed in 1877 and was aptly illustrated by Laurence with a number of images of the iron works, and also the attendant development of viaducts, tunnels and railway architecture.

Laurence also took us through the story of the steady decline – through reduced passenger numbers and industrial decline – and ultimate closure of the line. By the early 1960s, the decision was made to close the Chipping Norton Branch Line as part of the Beeching cuts. The Chipping Norton Branch Line officially closed to passengers on March 18, 1962, and freight services ceased shortly thereafter.
About Laurence Waters
Laurence Waters is a retired Photography Teacher with an interest in local railway history particularly in Oxfordshire. He has written a number of books on the subject and is the Honorary Photo Archivist for the Great Western Trust at Didcot Railway Centre