Holmsley is a closed railway station in the county of

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

which served rural settlements in the

New Forest The New Forest is one of the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in Southern England, covering southwest Hampshire and southeast Wiltshire. It was proclaimed a royal forest by William the Conqueror, featu ...

History

The station was opened in 1847 as "Christchurch Road" by the

Southampton and Dorchester Railway The Southampton and Dorchester Railway was an English railway company formed to join Southampton in Hampshire with Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester in Dorset, with hopes of forming part of a route from London to Exeter. It received Parliamentary au ...

. Sited next to a bridge carrying the

A35 road The A35 is a major road in southern England, connecting Honiton in Devon and Southampton in Hampshire. It is a trunk road for some of its length. Most of its route passes through Dorset and the New Forest. It originally connected Exeter and Sou ...

over the line, it was initially the nearest station for the towns of

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

and

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

. Coaches served these places until the construction of direct lines, from firstly Ringwood and then

Brockenhurst Brockenhurst is the largest village by population within the New Forest in Hampshire, England. The nearest city is Southampton some to the North East, while Bournemouth is also nearby, South West. Surrounding towns and villages include Beaul ...

. The station's name was changed to Holmsley on 13 November 1862. The station fell under the control of the

London and South Western Railway The London and South Western Railway (LSWR, sometimes written L&SWR) was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Originating as the London and Southampton Railway, its network extended to Dorchester and Weymouth, to Salisbury, Exeter ...

before becoming part of the Southern Railway in the 1923 railway grouping. The station closed in 1964, a casualty of the programme of closures advocated by the

Beeching Report Beeching is an English surname. Either a derivative of the old English ''bece'', ''bæce'' "stream", hence "dweller by the stream" or of the old English ''bece'' "beech-tree" hence "dweller by the beech tree".''Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames' ...

The site today

Former railway station platform, Holmsley (geograph 5615916)

The Burley to

road passes under the A35 through the platforms, using the former trackbed for some distance. However, remains of the platforms can be seen, and the station house survives as a restaurant at the road junction.Holmsley Station on Subterranea Britannica
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References

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External links

Disused railway stations in Hampshire Former London and South Western Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1847 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1964 Beeching closures in England 1847 establishments in England {{SouthEastEngland-railstation-stub