Newport railway station was established in 1862 with the opening of the Cowes and Newport Railway. It was enlarged in December 1875 when the lines to Ryde and Ventnor were opened. The station was also used by the Freshwater, Yarmouth and Newport Railway from its opening in 1888 until 1913, when that company opened its own station nearby. Upon the formation of the Southern Railway in 1923 reverted to using this station. The station was closed by

British Railways 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 ra ...

in 1966. It was then used as a base for the Wight Locomotive Society until January 1971, when it was demolished.

Isle of Wight Central Railway station

Newport railway station was a pivotal station within the unique railway network on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isl ...

, that began in 1862 when the Cowes and Newport Railway opened for business. Situated in the centre of the town, the station was enlarged in 1875 with the opening of the Ryde and Newport Railway in December 1875, which also connected the station to Ventnor. Traffic was also increased with the opening of the branch to Sandown in 1879, by the Isle of Wight (Newport Junction) Railway. In July 1887 The Cowes and Newport Railway, the Ryde and Newport Railway, and the Isle of Wight (Newport Junction) Railway were merged to form the Isle of Wight Central Railway (IWCR). A major employer on the

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

, it was noted for its busy and purposeful camaraderie. Closed in 1966, the station served as a base for the Wight Locomotive Society until January 1971, when the site was demolished by scrap merchants. The station site is now built over with much of it now lost under the

A3054 The A3054 is an A-Class Road on the Isle of Wight in Southern England. It forms the Northern half of the ''circular'' around-the-Island A-class loop, the southern half being the A3055. It connects Newport and Ryde Ryde is an English s ...

, Medina Way.

Stationmasters

*William Thomas Gubbins ca. 1864 *Mr. Williams ca. 1865 *Henry Thomas ca. 1871 *William B.S. Greenwood 1877 - 1889 (afterwards station master at Cowes) *H. Frank Williams from 1889 (afterwards station master at Merston) *George W. Ranger 1894 - ca. 1906 (formerly station master at Cowes) *Thomas William Blanchfield ca. 1909 - 1911 *Henry Young 1911 - 1927 *A. Holdaway 1928 - 1936 (formerly station master at Petworth) *Percy Hawkins 1936 - 1940 (formerly station master at Ventnor) *Alex Wheway from 1941 (formerly station master at Sandown)

Freshwater Yarmouth & Newport Railway station

The trains of the Freshwater, Yarmouth and Newport Railway's terminated at the IWCR station from the opening of that line in 1888 until 1913, when a separate FYN station opened nearby. However, upon the formation of the Southern Railway, all trains to Newport reverted to using the IWCR station.

Motive power depots

The Ryde and Newport Railway opened a wooden engine shed, with coaling and watering facilities on the eastern side of Newport station on 20 December 1875 The Freshwater Yarmouth and Newport Railway also opened a small shed close to the site of Newport Priory, but this was closed upon the formation of the Southern Railway.

References

External links