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Opened on 22 July 1861 as ''Dover Town (Priory)'' by the LCDR, Dover Priory railway station became a through station on 1 November the same year, upon completion of a tunnel through the Western Heights connecting it to LCDR's new Dover Harbour Station in the Western Docks area. The renaming in July 1863 as ''Dover Priory'' led rival SER to adopt the name "Dover Town" for one of its Dover stations. Dover Priory is the only station still open in Dover.
The name ''Dover Harbour'' has been used for two separate stations. The first was opened by the LCDR on 1 November 1861; this was closed in June 1863 when it was replaced by a new station named ''Dover Town and Harbour''. This was renamed ''Dover Harbour'' on 1 July 1899 and closed on 10 July 1927. The LCDR constructed a tunnel through the Western Heights to allow continental traffic to access the Western Docks in 1861, and just south of the tunnel, on the current track to Folkestone, a station was built. Later an extension was also built onto Admiralty Pier. It was closed in 1927 by Southern as part of their rationalisation and modernisation of the Dover area. Although the platforms have been demolished as in March 2017 the station buildings still survive as offices.
Situated on Admiralty Pier for connection to ships, this was constructed on an expanded pier by SECR, finished in 1914, began to be used on 2 February 1915 but was not available for public use until 18 January 1919; in the meantime it had been renamed ''Dover Marine'' on 5 December 1918. It was a large terminus with four platforms covered by a full roof. Platforms were extended to take 12-car trains in February 1959. It was renamed again to ''Dover Western Docks'' on 14 May 1979, and was closed by 
Subterranea Britannica's page on Admiralty Pier
Subterranea Britannica's page on Dover Harbour
Subterranea Britannica's page on Dover Western Docks
Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
, Kent has had numerous railway stations due to the legacy of competition between the South Eastern Railway (SER) and London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) and the subsequent rationalisation attempts by their successors: the South Eastern and Chatham Railway
The South Eastern and Chatham Railway Companies Joint Management Committee (SE&CRCJMC),Awdry (1990), page 199 known as the South Eastern and Chatham Railway (SE&CR), was a working union of two neighbouring rival railways, the South Easter ...
(SECR), Southern Railway and British Rail Southern Region.
Current station
Opened on 22 July 1861 as ''Dover Town (Priory)'' by the LCDR, Dover Priory railway station became a through station on 1 November the same year, upon completion of a tunnel through the Western Heights connecting it to LCDR's new Dover Harbour Station in the Western Docks area. The renaming in July 1863 as ''Dover Priory'' led rival SER to adopt the name "Dover Town" for one of its Dover stations. Dover Priory is the only station still open in Dover.
Former stations
Besides Dover Priory, there have been five other stations in Dover, all of which are now closed.Dover Harbour
The name ''Dover Harbour'' has been used for two separate stations. The first was opened by the LCDR on 1 November 1861; this was closed in June 1863 when it was replaced by a new station named ''Dover Town and Harbour''. This was renamed ''Dover Harbour'' on 1 July 1899 and closed on 10 July 1927. The LCDR constructed a tunnel through the Western Heights to allow continental traffic to access the Western Docks in 1861, and just south of the tunnel, on the current track to Folkestone, a station was built. Later an extension was also built onto Admiralty Pier. It was closed in 1927 by Southern as part of their rationalisation and modernisation of the Dover area. Although the platforms have been demolished as in March 2017 the station buildings still survive as offices.
Dover Town
The SER's original station opened on 7 February 1844 as ''Dover'', and was situated on Shakespeare Beach just east of where the current line from Folkestone turns north towards Dover Priory. This was originally a terminus, but later the line continued onto Admiralty Pier. It was renamed ''Dover Town'' in December 1861, and was closed on 14 October 1914 as part of rationalisation and modernisation of the Dover area by SECR. After closure for passengers the track/platforms were in use for freight/engineers use until the 1990s. After the track was removed the area was used for car parking and some sections of platforms still survive.Admiralty Pier
In 1860 SER started running trains on to the pier, the LCDR following in 1864. This exposed halt was extended and replaced by Dover Marine in 1909. The SER station at ''Dover Admiralty Pier'' opened on 30 August 1864 and closed in August 1914.Dover Prince of Wales Pier
This station was opened in 1902 and closed in 1909.Dover Marine/Dover Western Docks
Situated on Admiralty Pier for connection to ships, this was constructed on an expanded pier by SECR, finished in 1914, began to be used on 2 February 1915 but was not available for public use until 18 January 1919; in the meantime it had been renamed ''Dover Marine'' on 5 December 1918. It was a large terminus with four platforms covered by a full roof. Platforms were extended to take 12-car trains in February 1959. It was renamed again to ''Dover Western Docks'' on 14 May 1979, and was closed by British Rail
British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...
on 26 September 1994 with the demise of boat trains and the opening of the Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel (french: Tunnel sous la Manche), also known as the Chunnel, is a railway tunnel that connects Folkestone (Kent, England, UK) with Coquelles ( Hauts-de-France, France) beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. ...
. It is now a cruise liner terminal.
Regie voor Maritiem Transport used to run ferries until 1994 from here to Oostende railway station which connected into Belgian railway line 50A
The Belgian railway line 50A is a railway line in Belgium connecting Brussels with Ostend through Ghent and Bruges. The section between Ghent and Ostend was completed in 1838. The section between Ghent and Brussels was opened between 1923 and 1933 ...
run by NMBS. There was a fast ferry service using the Jetfoil
The Boeing 929 Jetfoil are passenger-carrying, waterjet-propelled hydrofoils by Boeing.
Boeing adapted many systems used in jet airplanes for hydrofoils. Robert Bateman led development. Boeing launched its first passenger-carrying waterjet-propell ...
as well as conventional ferries.
The Southern Railway opened a large locomotive depot at the site in 1928. This was closed in 1961 and demolished.Griffiths, Roger; Smith, Paul (1999). The directory of British engine sheds: 1. Oxford: OPC., p.61.
See also
* List of railway stations in KentReferences
External links
{{commons category, Railway stations in Dover, KentSubterranea Britannica's page on Admiralty Pier
Subterranea Britannica's page on Dover Harbour
Subterranea Britannica's page on Dover Western Docks
Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
Railway
Railway
Buildings and structures in Dover, Kent
Lists of buildings and structures in Kent