Disused Stations: Quy Station

In July 1969 we find ourselves at Quy crossroads. The sign still points the way to Quy station and the main part of the village is a further quarter-mile along the road to Cambridge. The name 'Quy' is said to derive from 'Cowey Island', an Anglo-Saxon name meaning 'The Hill with Cows'. Like the Isle of Ely, what is today Quy was once an island. The full title Stow-cum-Quy is said to date from the 11th century and the result of an ecclesiastical merger of two parishes. Fingerposts, as signs such as that at Quy are known, date back to the 17th century and were either of wood or, latterly and more familiarly, cast metal. The cast metal versions, which had raised lettering and numerals, often continued to point the way to railway stations long after the latter had closed but usually with the wording overpainted. At Quy in 1969, the fingers were of a more modern printed or painted type. The fingerpost no longer exists, having been replaced by Worboys type signs, but fortunately many do still remain as their replacement was never made compulsory and today they are part of our heritage yet still perform the function intended for them. The word ‘Station’ is of note in itself. At one time that word on its own was good enough as everybody knew it meant railway station. Today this is not always the case and sadly there are people who do not even know what a railway station is.
Photo by John Mann

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