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| London Railway Stations Waterloo |
| Waterloo Station was constructed for the London and South Western Railway, extending its service from Nine Elms. The original intention was to extend the railway service to the City, but this was not achieved until 1898 when the Waterloo to City Underground Line (the Drain) opened. Waterloo Station opened on 11 July 1848. It is the largest railway station in the UK, covering some 24.5 acres. The station was originally "Waterloo Bridge" Station because of its proximity to Waterloo Bridge, but the "Bridge" part of the name was soon dropped. Waterloo East, or Waterloo Junction, station opened in 1869, and has ever since caused confusion amongst passengers who do not realise that there are two Waterloos ! At one time there was a line connecting the two stations which ran along part of the concourse, but this was removed in 1911. Between 1900 and 1922 the station was reconstructed to provide 21 platforms and a huge concourse. The main entrance was also rebuilt in the form of a "Victory Arch" - made from Portland Stone - to commemorate the men of the LSWR and later those from the Southern Railway who perished in the two World Wars. I used Waterloo extensively in the late 1950s and early 1960s when I travelled daily from Richmond to Dalston, using the "Drain" to get to the Bank and then a 22 bus to Kingsland Road. The Bank underground was a mess in those days, due to the construction of the world's first "travolator" which removed the necessity of walking a long distance up (or down) a long, miserable, dusty tunnel, and I well remember the smiles when the moving walkway opened in 1959. The bar on Waterloo Station was excellent at that time - I used to have a cheese sandwich and a bottle of Guinness whilst waiting for my train - the sandwich put paid to the rumours about British Rail Sandwiches - as far as I was concerned anyway ! The Necropolis Station. Near to Waterloo, at 121 Westminster Bridge Road, the London Necropolis Railway ran trains from an especially constructed station to Brookwood Cemetery in Surrey. The original station, at a spot near Leake Street, opened in 1854, and the Westminster Bridge Road station followed in 1902. The line was used to carry only the dead and their mourners to a London "overflow" cemetery, and operated from 1854 until 1941 when the station was bombed and never rebuilt. |
| Necropolis Railway Lots of interesting information about this fascinating subject. |
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| Search the internet for more about Waterloo Station - and the battle ! |
| Waterloo Station about 1920. |
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| No date for this one, but have you ever seen it so deserted ? And look at the ladies' dresses - these should give a clue. |