Constructed under the terms of the Light Railways Act of 1896, the Rother Valley Railway from Robertsbridge to Tenterden opened in April 1900. Extended north to Headcorn in 1905, its name was changed at that time to the Kent & East Sussex Railway. Surviving as an independent line through to nationalisation, passenger services were withdrawn in January 1954 when the Tenterden to Headcorn section was also closed completely. The southern part of the line survived until 1961. There then followed a long struggle to preserve the line. Today services operate as far as Bodiam although there are plans to restore the connection to the main line at Robertsbridge.
The line will be forever associated with the redoubtable Colonel Stephens, that great advocate of light railways who ran this line and a number of others for several decades using second hand locos and rolling stock. With the KESR now firmly established as a leading heritage railway, this detailed examination of its history in the era before preservation will find a ready audience amongst those who have visited the railway in recent times, the many fascinated by light railways and those interested in the local history of this part of Kent and Sussex.
Author: John Scott-Morgan Format: HB 160 pages Publisher: OPC Pub date: Feb 2007 ISBN: 9780860936084
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