The day the railway line came to Bognor

For the residents of Bognor a train journey, if they could afford it, would have necessitated a journey to Woodgate to catch the train '“ next to the railway crossing where we now sit and fume, waiting for the barriers to rise.

Those who were rich enough would have availed themselves of the regular '˜fly' service to and from the station (today a taxi). For the less well-off, a walk into town was called for. Of course, the traffic on this country lane would have been very different to today's heavy transport.

While Bognor was expanding, there were many reputed talks of bringing the railway into the centre of the town, and local newspapers became quite exasperated with the lack of progress and in many cases false hopes that regularly emanated from the nearby railway companies.

One complaint in 1861 stated: 'What does the Board mean to do with poor Bognor '“ the town is growing very much and only wants railway accommodation to make it a popular watering place'.

One line was proposed in 1845, another in 1853 and a further suggestion in 1855.

We can only surmise that the resort was not large enough or considered a profitable venture for a branch line to be built. Of course, provision of annual holidays to workers didn't exist then.

The suggestion of the 1845 line would have been interesting, as the proposed route was '˜crossing a public highway in the parish '“ leading from Bognor to Felpham', according to the report, and includes a reference to Gloucester Road.

Another report in 1860 suggested finishing at a dock-like area at the seaward end of West Street. Think how different the town would have been had these plans materialised.

Eventually work commenced on this branch and on June 1, 1864, the line was opened, the Barnham site was opened, and Woodgate was closed because of this line opening '“ interesting when today there is talk of maybe opening certain stations again.

What was there in the town at this time? The Pier had not been built. There were houses in West Street, The Steyne and Waterloo Square. We had the Norfolk Hotel and the Bath House. Streets were being developed. A number of religious groups were opening churches at this time. Pubs were opening, and the population of Bognor was around 3,000.

The area in which the station was built was at the end of Dorset Gardens. It was at that time outside the town. However, it was not long before the town grew out to its new station.

The station was a wooden construction, so it was inevitable it would succumb to various ills, such as a hurricane that blew the construction down. Finally the station burnt down, after a coat had been left to warm on one of the stoves in the waiting room in October, 1899.

The Bank Holiday Act in 1871, which fixed holidays for Christmas, helped to increase rail traffic in the season. Excursion trips to the seaside became a part of the lives of millions of people.

National newspapers were advertising cheap day trips to Bognor and the Daily News of May 28, 1900, announced all its arrangements for trains over the Whitsuntide holidays, including late trains for those working in London on Saturdays.

The Brighton and South Coast Railway stated eight to 15-day cheap tickets would be issued. So much was the interest in cheap trips to the seaside, its service was detailed in the national press.

Having welcomed the railway to the town, a new station was built and opened in 1902, no doubt amid fanfare.

It was the dawn of a new era, and passengers arrived to enjoy the town.

However, by 1907 there were rumblings in the local press and within the urban district council about asking the railway companies to discontinue the day excursions to the town during August.

The arrival of the excursions in June and July brought in substational amounts of money, but the season, which commenced on August 1, brought a '˜certain class of people' and the excursion type of person was not wanted in the town.

Tradespeople in the town were dependent on a good class of visitor, as were the best hotels and boarding houses. It was therefore felt there was no suitable accommodation for '˜cheap trippers in August when the tide was up' '“ whatever that meant.

'Their presence was a serious matter which might ruin the summer season.'

In 1910 the return fare from London was three shillings (15p) and because of this, high numbers continued to come into the town. In 1913 it was reported that on Wednesday, July 9, there were 4,350 day visitors in the town.

By 1918 it was reported there were insufficient trains over the Easter holiday for those wishing to travel to the resort.

Thomas Cook reported that in 1918 there had been more than 35,000 visitors to the town '“ hard to believe, especially when the population was only 8,500.

Mr R C Sherriff wrote a book called The Fortnight in September which was published in 1931 and described a family visit to the seaside, which was Bognor Regis.

In this book he says: 'If you were taken blindfold to Bognor Station, you would know directly your eyes were unbound that you were by the seaside. For although, in common with all good seaside stations, the sea is carefully hidden from your view, you would notice that bleached, dry appearance about everything and the freshness of the platform'¦ it would be poor showmanship on the part of Bognor to reveal the sea to you, in all its glory, directly you stepped from the train.'

I am sure today's traders would welcome to the resort the large number of visitors we had prior to the first world war, but of course now we travel abroad and the majority of one-day rail excursion trips are almost lost forever.

I have met so many people who over the years enjoyed their first visit to the town, via their Sunday school outings. As a result of these trips, many people have now settled in the town. Therefore the railway and the excursion trips proved a great way to increase both trade and the population of any seaside resort.