Three Bridges

infobox UK place
country = England
official_name= Three Bridges
latitude= 51.117101
longitude=-0.161000
population =
shire_district= Crawley
shire_county = West Sussex
region= South East England
constituency_westminster= Crawley
post_town= Crawley
postcode_district= RH11
postcode_area=RH
dial_code= 01293
os_grid_reference= TQ285375

Three Bridges is a neighbourhood within the town of Crawley, in the county of West Sussex in England.

History

Three Bridges was a tiny hamlet, which first began to grow with the coming of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway in 1841. Despite beliefs to the contrary, the village was not named after rail bridges, but rather for three much older crossings over the streams in the area (River Mole tributaries).

The hamlet became the site of an important railway junction in 1848 with the opening of the branch line to Horsham and thence to Portsmouth. The railway established a motive power depot and marshalling yards to the south of the village. A further branch line to East Grinstead was opened in 1855. The village changed radically with the coming of the New town development in the Crawley area in the late 1940s. Three Bridges was one of the first group of neighbourhoods to be built. There are currently 13 neighbourhoods.

Three Bridges railway station

Three Bridges continues to be the site of an important rail station at the intersection of the London to Brighton line and the London to Portsmouth Line (Arun Valley Line via Horsham), but the branch line to East Grinstead closed on 1 January 1967.

Three Bridges motive power depot and goods yard

The first engine shed was opened in the village in July 1848 on a site to the west of the station. This was closed in 1909 to make way for the enlargement of the station and a new depot was established in the fork between the Brighton and Horsham railway lines. A larger brick built depot was completed nearby in 1911, and this remained open until June 1964. The small goods yard in the village was greatly extended during the First World War and was used as a collection and mashalling yard for munitions trains heading for the Continent.

Hazelwick School

Hazelwick School is a comprehensive school located in Three Bridges. It was opened as a Secondary Modern School in 1953, which became a Comprehensive school in the mid 1960s. It is also (since 1998) designated as a Technology and Humanities College. Hazelwick has over 110 teachers and more than 2100 pupils. Many former school pupils later became famous including Gareth Southgate, Eugene Sully and Chico Slimani.

It also educated two of the controversial Fertilizer Bomb plotters, Omar Khyam and Jawad Akbar who were arrested, charged and imprisoned for life sentences due to Government Home Security surveillance during Operation Crevice.

Local sports

Football

Three Bridges Football Club play in Division 1 of the Sussex County League.

Cricket

Three Bridges Cricket Club play in the Sussex Cricket League.

External links

* [http://www.threebridgesfc.com/ Three Bridges Football Club]
* [http://www.crawleytennis.co.uk/ Crawley Lawn Tennis Club]
* [http://threebridges.play-cricket.com Three Bridges Cricket Club]
* [http://www.crawley.gov.uk/ Crawley Borough Council]
* [http://www.hazelwick.w-sussex.sch.uk Hazelwick School]
* [http://www.southernrailwayuk.com/threebridges.html Three Bridges Station] (Unofficial)