The station opened as a basic wooden halt on 5 August 1912. Completely rebuilt
in 1938 and then rebuilt at platform level in 2005. The 2005 information is
not at present available.
9 June 1940 The booking hall was flooded to a depth of 5 feet by a storm,
which tore up barriers, overturned the passimeter and lifted the booking clerk
through the roof. The station was closed for 8 hours whilst the water and silt
was pumped out
Architect
1938 Charles Holden
Present station
Engineer
1938 Travers Morgan & Partner
Present station
Contractor
1938 Limmer & Trinidad Lake Asphalte Co Ltd
Roof covering of station building
1938 Hayward Ltd
Collapsible gates
1938 Shanks & Co Ltd
Sanitary fittings
1938 J W Gray & Son Ltd
Lightning conductors
The station building is constructed of multi-red wirecut bricks, and is of
symmetrical design, with matching entrance recesses on each side of the bridge
abutment leading through triple swing doors into the booking hall. The
entrances are flanked by shop units, which were originally identical but
have subsequently been removed and replaced by much poorer quality units. The
entrance canopy projects only a few inches from the frontage. Original
features include the recessed down lighters in concrete soffits in the
entrance areas, the bronze push bars on the entrance doors, the fascia over
the entrance, and the tiled, rendered poster panels.
The symmetry of the booking hall was destroyed when UTS was installed, and the
passimeter was removed. The original cream tiling has been damaged, but a
relatively successful effort has been made to match it with modern
equivalents. The coffered ceiling forms the underside of the bridge.
Features of note in this area are the direction signs fired into the tiles,
with pierced 'Mexican arrow' indicators, the original bronze barriers, and a
unique wall clock with bright orange tile face numeral spots and metal hands.
The booking hall receives natural light from clerestory windows.
Unfortunately, the original 'Bauhaus' globe lighting has been replaced with
modern fluorescent fittings.
Brick-faced staircases, lit by side windows and the clerestories in the
booking hall, lead to the platforms. The staircases retain their original
bronze handrails, inset hardwood 'Duke of York' (lk) seats on half landings,
and tiled poster panels. The balustrades at the head of the staircase have
been disfigured by the addition of crude mesh infill.
(This information is now out of date)
The platforms have a mix of buildings. There are short concrete canopies at
the west end of both platforms, whilst the original (1912) timber frame
waiting shelters, with simple timber benches, also survive. The eastbound
platform also has a modern timber framed waiting room with brick dwarf walls.
The WAY OUT sign on the this platform is modern, but the frame, which hangs
from a special horizontal soffit, dates from the rebuilding of the station.
The suspended platform number signs on both platforms also date from 1938.
