The Beverley Farm Footpath Arch

The Beverley Farm Footpath Arch

A railway bridge constructed by 1830 as part of the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway. George Stephenson was the major engineer from 1826, with Joseph Locke and John Dixon as his assistants.

The arch is constructed of red brick, laid partly in stretcher bond and partly in header bond. It forms a round-headed pedestrian arch positioned about twenty feet from the south-eastern end of a section of earthen former railway embankment in St Stephen's Field. The arch comprises voussoirs formed of three courses of handmade red bricks. At the time of survey in 2010, only the top of the arch remained visible due to later rubble back-filling. The inside of the arch was visible across its entire width. The north-eastern side of the arch was in good condition, but the south-eastern side showed greater decay. The original parapet above the arch has not survived, though the arch itself is likely to survive substantially intact beneath the back-filling, possibly with original brick buttresses as shown in a 1953 photograph.

Historical Context

The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway, affectionately known as 'The Crab and Winkle Line', was a pioneering early railway representing an intermediate stage between early mining tramways and the Liverpool and Manchester Railway of 1830. Proposals were put forward by William James, and a Parliamentary Act authorising its construction was obtained in 1825. Construction had begun by 1826 under George Stephenson's direction.

A memorandum of agreement dated 10 December 1829 between George Baker of the parish of St Stephen's, Kent, and the company of proprietors of the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway recorded that in return for £1400, George Baker permitted the company to continue their railway through his land and premises, with provisions for stopping-up and diverting certain footpaths. Although not specifically named in this document, the Beverley Farm Footpath arch would have been included. The area was originally part of Beverley Dairy Farm, and the footbridge was used by pedestrians and as a cattle crossing from the opening of the line.

The six-mile-long line opened on 3 May 1830, linking Canterbury to a specially constructed harbour at Whitstable. It was the country's first passenger and freight railway, becoming especially popular in summer months for seaside excursions to Whitstable's Tankerton beach, as noted in W J Cox's Guide to Whitstable and its Surroundings, published in 1876. Trains were hauled by a combination of horses, ropes operated by fixed engines, and a locomotive. There were originally two stationary steam engines to haul trains along the steeper gradients, with a third winding engine installed in 1832 because the Invicta, the railway's single locomotive (now displayed in Canterbury), proved incapable of hauling trains on the steeper gradients.

The line was taken over by the South Eastern Railway in 1844. The track was re-laid and the method of propulsion was changed to locomotive propulsion throughout. Passenger traffic ceased in 1931 and the line closed entirely in 1953. A photograph of the Beverley Farm Footpath Arch was taken by J W Sparrowe in that year. The footpath arch remained in use until approximately 1966, when it was back-filled with rubble.