Felixstowe station in Suffolk to celebrate 125th birthday

The town’s mayor Seamus Bennett will welcome a group of Brownies arriving from Derby Road in Ipswich at 10.24am on Saturday, July 1, on a special ‘Seaside Bucket and Spade’ train.

He will then take a tour of a public exhibition about the history of the station, which will take place in the original 1898 town station building before going on to join the celebrations at the Orwell Hotel, close to the station.

The station was opened by Great Eastern Railway on July 1, 1898 and the original Grade-II listed station building is still standing, housing the Great Eastern Square shopping centre, while the current station is further along Great Eastern Square.

A range of organisations, including Felixstowe Travel Watch, the Felixstowe Society, the Orwell Hotel, East Suffolk Lines Community Rail Partnership and Greater Anglia have joined together to organise events to mark the anniversary.

Richard Holland, chair of Felixstowe Travel Watch, said: “We were formed in 1972 to campaign for the retention of the passenger service as there was a real threat of closure at that time, even though it had survived the widespread axing of branch lines following the Beeching Report in 1963.

“Thankfully, the line has survived with a secure future for visitors and commuters. Together with the Felixstowe Society, Felixstowe Travel Watch is pleased to participate in celebrating the 125th anniversary of the historic Felixstowe Town station.”

The station building was designed by J Wilson and the Great Eastern Railway’s architect, W N Ashbee.

The Felixstowe Society led a campaign in 1983 to have the building listed and saved from demolition.

The Orwell Hotel opened the same day as the station in 1898 and is believed to be the oldest business in the town still operating from its original building.

All events at the station and Orwell Hotel are open to the public.

References

1. ^{^} Suffolk: Wreath remembers demolition of Felixstowe station (www.eadt.co.uk)
2. ^{^} Felixstowe news (www.eadt.co.uk)
3. ^{^} Suffolk news (www.eadt.co.uk)