Denvilles halt

Coordinates: 50°51′28″N 0°58′10″W / 50.85778°N 0.96944°W / 50.85778; -0.96944

Denvilles Halt was a station located between Havant and Rowlands Castle on the Portsmouth Direct Line. It was a temporary platform, erected by the L&SWR, as that company's adoption of the Portsmouth Direct line started a dispute with the LB&SCR.

Battle of Havant

In 1858, the two local railway companies started the "Battle of Havant". The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway ran the Brighton to Portsmouth Line, and refused to allow the London and South Western Railway to use their tracks to reach Portsmouth from the junction near Havant. The LB&SCR blocked the line just north of the junction, obliging the L&SWR to open a temporary halt at Denvilles as the previous station at Rowlands Castle was thought to be too far away. Passengers would travel from Denvilles in a horse drawn omnibus to Hilsea Halt, just south of the problem area. The passengers could then carry on into Portsmouth by train. After two years the companies came to an agreement and the L&SWR were allowed access to the disputed line.^[1]

The Site Today

Nothing remains of the station today; the site is marked only by some old semaphore signal posts, some slates and a platelayers' hut. The station was the only one on the line built of blue bricks. The area was not developed at the time of the station's existence so having fulfilled its political function it closed, in 1859.

Ironically, the LB&SCR opened a station to the east of Havant in 1907, calling it Denville Halt. However, the name was changed to Warblington within the month.

See also

• Frog wars

References

1. ^ Buriton Heritage Bank Information Sheet No 9, DJ August 2001

• Map sources for Denvilles halt
• Recollections of the station
• Southern E-Group's page including details of the battle
• The Directory of railway stations R.V.J. Butt Patrick Stephens LTD. 1995 ISBN 1-85260-508-1