Railway Act of Parliament (1843)

Post date: Apr 24, 2017 5:59:24 PM

Held in Kent Archives, Maidstone, as reference Q/Rum.238, is a copy of the 1843 Act of Parliament

“To enable the South-Eastern Railway Company [SER] to make a Branch Railway to the Town of Maidstone”. It is 30 pages (56 clauses) in length plus an additional 7 pages being the attached Schedule of properties referred to in the Act (i.e. affected by the making of the railway.)There is a cross section attached showing the inclination of the track. There is a plan of the Maidstone area but no overall plan of the line’s route.

The introduction cites various Acts of Parliament starting with the one “An Act for making a Railway from the London and Croydon Railway to Dover, to be called the South-Eastern Railway” passed in 6^th year of King William IV together with various amendment acts.

It notes that railway to Ashford has been completed and the remainder to Dover is nearly completed with opening to the Public expected later that year.

“And whereas it would be attended with great local and public advantage if a Branch Railway were made from the said Railway leading to the Town of Maidstone, in the said County of Kent; and the said Company are willing to make the said Branch Railway. “

1. Lawful for SER to make and maintain railway as per plan, starting at Brenchley and going through East Peckham, Yalding, Nettlested, Wateringbury, Teston, West Barming, West Farleigh, East Farleigh, Barming and Maidstone.

2. Provisions of previous Acts in relation to SER extend to this Act.

3. Deposited plan, section and Book of reference to be open for inspection.

4. Any errors in plans discovered may be referred by SER to 2 J.P.s to determine if accepted.

5. Plan and Book of Reference to be accepted in all courts of law.

6. SER to have certain powers to deviate from line indicated on plan.

7. Houses &c. not to be used unless entered in schedule (or agreed by owner).

8. SER’s compulsory purchase powers to cease after 3 years and power to construct line after 5 years .

9. If SER cuts owner’s land in two must make a communication

10. SER authorised to buy additional land with anyone willing to sell for purpose of stations and approaches to stations.

11. Parties legally disabled from selling land excluded from preceding clause.

12. SER empowered to temporarily take undeveloped land near to railway to deposit spoil or obtain materials (clay, stone, gravel, etc.,).

13. SER to give 6 weeks notice to landowner/occupier if lands specified in above clause need.

14. Owner entitled to object (to 2 J.P.s ) to such use if can show other land could be used more beneficiall.

15. 2 J.P.s empowered to summon other landowners.

16. SER to give to owner a bond of £50 per acre if requiring such lands (under clause 12).

17. SER to separate such lands by a fence.

18. Owner has right to require SER to purchase such lands.

19. SER to compensate land owners (under clause 12) and pay rent.

20. Turnpike roads and public carriage ways are not to be crossed at a level (i.e. bridge or tunnel required).

21. “And whereas the Line of the said Railway, as shown on the Plans and Sections thereof deposited as aforesaid, is laid down so as to intersect in two places the Line of the Turnpike Road from Peckham to Wateringbury, in the parishes of Nettlested and W, but in order to avoid the crossing of the said Road it is proposed to divert the same in manner shown on the said Plans and Sections: And whereas a certain Public Highway, leading from Wateringbury Bridge into the Turnpike Road aforesaid, is intended to be crossed over by the said Railway, in the said Parish of Nettlested , which Highway communicates with the Turnpike Road on the same level near the point where the said Railway will cross; and inasmuch as the said Turnpike Road and Public Highway are both subject to frequent and most inconvenient floods at and near the said point, it would be advantageous to the Public if the level of the said Railway as shown in the said Sections were partially lowered, and if the said Turnpike Road and Public Highway were raised to the level thereof, so as to carry the same out of the floods, and if the latter were crossed by the said Railway on the same level, which would afford facilities for making a Station convenient for the Public at or near to the said point: And whereas the owners and occupiers of the lands adjoining the said Railway, where the levels thereof, as shown on the said Sections, would require to be altered for the purpose aforesaid, are willing that such alteration should be made: Be it therefore enacted , That not withstanding any thing in this or the said recited Acts, or any of them, contained or implied to the contrary, it shall be lawful for the said Company to carry the said Railway across the said Public Highway from Wateringbury Bridge into the Turnpike Road leading from Peckham to Wateringbury , in the parish of Nettlested, on the same level thereof, in lieu of crossing over the same; and it shall be lawful for the Company to lower the levels of the said Railway as shown in the said Sections, and to raise the levels of the said Turnpike Road and of the said Highway, to such extent as may be necessary for effecting such level crossing, and so as to carry the said Turnpike Road out of the floods for the whole distance that the same may be diverted by the Company up to the point where the said Road is of such level as to be at present above such floods.

22. Minimal specification for bridges over roads.

23. Minimal specification for bridges over railway.

24. If road are narrower than average then so can bridge.

25. Before any raod interfered with temporary road to be put in place.

26. If no substitute road SER to pay £20 a day.

27. If road cannot be restored as was then SER to cause a new equally convenient road.

28. Penalty for SER failing to restore road.

29. And

30. All fares charged to be equal by person for same distance or tonnage by category of goods.

31. Repeal of previous law regarding penalties for obstructing railway to be replaced for general laws of larceny.

32. SER to make good any lost land tax or Poor rates.

33. And

34. And

35. Series of clauses preserving the rights of the Company of Proprietors of the Navigation of the River Medway

36. Specific clause regulating SER’s works at Barming Bridge.

37. Railway not to come with certain minimal distance of river or towing path.

38. SER to make sufficient arches and culverts to deal with flooding.

39. Penalties if SER obstructs River Medway navigation or towing paths.

40. Medway Navigation company to be permitted to construct branches or sidings to railway for transport of goods

41. SER may create new shares to finance –up to £120,000.

42. Shares created to pay interest .

43. Owners of shares may opt after 6 months to get dividends rather than interest.

44. New shares part of SER’s general capital.

45. SER empowered to borrow up to £37,000.

46. SER may repay and reborrow

47. SER empowered to create mortgages.

48. And

49. And

50. Rights of mortgagees

51. SER empowered to convert loan into shares.

52. Votes of new shareholders equal to old.

53. SER to pay costs of passing act.

54. Act re conveyancing of troops to apply.

55. General railway act to apply.

56. Act is a Public act

Schedule

Parish of Wateringbury

In Kent archives (reference Q/Rum.140 ) is a book of reference, dated 1836, which contains for the branch line from Postern park in Tonbridge parish to Maidstone the details of the property owners affected by a plan to build the branch line. It relates to a plan (and section) which shows that the railway mainly avoids Wateringbury by crossing the Medway (from the north to south bank) within Nettlestead before crossing back just within Wateringbury but very close to the border with Teston. The plan, entitled Plan of the South Eastern and Maidstone Railway, was surveyed under the direction of W. A. Provis, Civil Engineer, by R.A. Ranger and is dated 30^th November 1836.

The book indicates that George Langridge was an owner affected in Tuddeley and Capel parish and Mathias prime Lucas in Hadlow, East Peckham and Wateringbury.

In Kent archives (reference Q/Rum. 212) is a book of reference, dated 1841, which contains for the branch line from Postern park in Tonbridge parish to Maidstone the details of the property owners affected by a plan to build the branch line. The [cross] section is prepared by Robert Stephenson and Joseph Cubitt engineers. The plan also bears the notation that "by Robert Stephenson and Joseph Cubitt engineers" as well as R.A. Ranger . The plan now is for the railway to keep north of the Medway in Wateringbury. The list of owners/lessees/ occupiers affected in Wateringbury is now substantially the same as in the final act of Parliament of 1843.