Churchdown
Cheltenham - Paddington express passing Churchdown station in 1961
General information
Location	Churchdown, Tewkesbury England
Grid reference	SO886202
Platforms	4
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Original company	Birmingham and Gloucester Railway
Pre-grouping	Midland Railway/Great Western Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway/Great Western Railway
Key dates
9 August 1842 (1842-08-09)	Opened
27 September 1842	Closed
2 February 1874	Re-opened
2 November 1964	Closed

Churchdown railway station was situated on the main line between Gloucester and Cheltenham Spa. It served Churchdown and surrounding areas.

History

The railway line between Cheltenham and Gloucester opened on 4 November 1840, the final section of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway (B&G) which had been authorised in 1836.^[1] At first, there were no intermediate stations, but on 9 August 1842 the first station at Churchdown was opened by the B&G; it proved to be temporary, being closed again on 27 September.^[2] Less than a year later, on 22 August 1843, a station opened closer to Cheltenham at nearby Badgworth.^[3][4] Both stations were built in response to request from the residents of Badgeworth for a station closer than Cheltenham or Gloucester; Churchdown was the first choice of the railway company since it was closer to the half-way point between the two towns.^[5]

The permanent station at Churchdown was opened on 2 February 1874, and was the joint property of the Midland Railway (successor to the B&G) and the Great Western Railway,^[2][6] who had shared the line since 1847.^[7]

The station closed on 2 November 1964,^[2] as part of the reshaping of British Railways or more commonly known as the Beeching Axe by Dr Beeching.

The site of the station is 89 miles 65 chains (144.5 km) from Derby.^[4] Little remains of the station itself next to what is now Station Close, but through traffic continues on the line.