Disused Stations:Botley Station

[Source: Nick Catford]

Botley Station Gallery 3: Mid 1960s - August 2011

The date of this picture is recorded as c1960 but is probably later. The Bishops Waltham bay platform is clearly still being used although not necessarily by branch trains. Coal wagons are seen in the goods yard so it is clearly still open at this time - the yard closed in 1967. The two-storey goods warehouse and adjacent goods shed have been demolished and replaced bwith a new single storey building and a large building with a curved corrugated roof. The original yard buildings are still shown on the 1964 OS map so this picture must date from the second half of the 1960s. The new buildings were to be short-lived as the yard was cleared in the early 1970s prior to the construction of the Foster Yeoman aggregate depot

photo from John Mann collection

A test train of sheeted-down Procor wagons hauled by Class 52 ‘Western Rifleman’ beneath the newly-built hopper at Botley early in 1973. The hopper has been built over the Bishops Waltham branch line.
Photo from Foster Yeoman

The west end of Botley's down platform seen from a passing train in August 1973 shortly after the opening of the Foster Yeoman aggregate terminal. Stone is unloaded into the hopper above the Bishops Waltham branch and is then taken by conveyor over the main line to the processing plant in the old goods yard. BR Southern Region green signage has now been removed and replaced with bland black-and-white Corporate Identity signs.
Photo by Ian Nolan from his Flickr photostream

Looking north-west from the up platform at Botley station in July 1981. Following the demolition of the station buildings c1973, the top deck of the footbridge was extended onto the approach road and this is now the station entrance. A stone train is seen beneath the hopper over the Bishops Waltham line.
Photo by John Mann

Botley station down platform seen from a passing westbound train in June 1986. The waiting shelter is original but substantially shortened.
Photo by Alan Young

Botley station up platform seen from a passing westbound train in June 1986. The Foster Yeoman aggregate depot, which is on the site of the goods yard, towers above the station.

Photo by Alan Young

The L&SWR Type 1 signal box at Botley opened in October 1873 and closed on 20 July 1982. Despite 33 years of disuse the box is still standing at the time of writing. The box is seen here in August 2006.
Photo by Peter Facey, reproduced from Geograph under creative commons licence

Crowds gathered at Botley on 20 June 2010 to see LNER Peppercorn Class A1 60163 ‘Tornado’ during Steam Dreams' ‘The Cathedrals Express’ (Fathers' Day Evening Circular Tour). The tour had a 15-minute stopover at Botley.

The track into the Bishops Waltham bay platform at Botley has been retained as part of Foster Yeoman's long siding. It is seen here in February 2011.

Photo by Basher Eyre, reproduced from Geograph under creative commons licence

Botley station looking north-west from the footbridge in August 2011. The original down platform shelter and the 1970s up platform bus shelter have been replaced with two brushed-steel and glass shelters.
Photo by David Martin, reproduced from Geograph under creative commons licence