THE proposal to run passenger trains on the Cowley freight line revives memories of its earlier history.

The short stretch to the BMW Mini plant was once part of a longer route, which stretched from Oxford to Princes Risborough and served communities for nearly 100 years.

There were nine stations along the single-track route – Iffley, Littlemore, Morris Cowley, Horspath, Wheatley, Tiddington, Thame, Towersey and Bledlow.

Stopping trains ran every day, and occasionally the route would be used as a diversion for mainline services when the Oxford- Paddington line was closed for engineering work.

Memory Lane this week

The line from Princes Risborough to Thame opened on August 1, 1862, and from Thame to Kennington junction, south of Oxford, on October 24, 1864.

The line’s busiest period was during the Second World War when trains with 12 coaches came from east coast ports to deliver injured servicemen to the military hospital at Holton Park.

Other wartime traffic included war vehicles leaving the Cowley factory and the remains of crashed aircraft arriving for melting down.

In peacetime, apart from regular passenger services, there were also freight trains carrying timber, milk, livestock, coal and general merchandise.

Villagers along the route would use the trains to get to work or spend an evening in Oxford.

However, passengers heading for early morning trains at Wheatley were advised to steer well clear of the cottage at 5 Farm Close Lane as they walked towards the station.

Miss Russell, who lived there, was in the habit of emptying her chamber pot out of the window every morning!

Other passengers recalled a night when a train driver picked up the token from the signalman which gave him access to the single track, and dropped it.

Everyone had to jump off the train and forage through the undergrowth to help him find it before they could proceed.

The last passenger train ran on a nostalgic night on January 6, 1963. It was hauled by steam tank engine 6111 and had five coaches, instead of the usual two, to cope with the large number of passengers.

At Wheatley, the party which boarded the train for the final journey included a man in deep mourning, complete with frock coat and top hat.

Another man wore the scarlet and blue gown of a Doctor of Philosophy. Asked his name, he replied: “Dr Beeching” – a reference to man responsible for closing the line.

All along the route, fog detonators were set off to provide a noisy farewell. When the train reached Princes Risborough, a portable gramophone played Land of Hope and Glory.

Oxford Mail:

  • The final passenger train on the Oxford to Princes Risborough line ran in January 1963. Pictured are some of those who got on at Wheatley including a man in the gown of a Doctor of Philosophy, who said he was ‘Dr Beeching’ - a reference to the man responsible for closing the line

On the way back, passengers broke into song – “If you miss this one, you’ll never get another one” – and at Wheatley, the farewell offering was Auld Lang Syne.

The line remained opened for goods, but the poor state of Horspath tunnel brought an end to through services in 1967. Oil trains continued to run from Princes Risborough to Thame until 1991.

In 2000, Chiltern Railways considered reopening the line to provide a new route to London, but dropped the idea in favour of the upgrade now under way via Bicester.

But part of the old line could have a new lease of life if the company’s plans to restore passenger services to the Oxford-Cowley section come to fruition.

The story of the Oxford-Princes Risborough line is told in Lost Railways of Oxfordshire, compiled by Terry Moors and published by Countryside Books.

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