GWR Route: Moreton-in-Marsh to Shipston-on-Stour

Moreton-in-Marsh to Stratford upon Avon Tramway: gwrmt3136

William James promoted the Central Junction Railway from Stratford-on-Avon to London via; Moreton-in-Marsh, Oxford, Thame and Uxbridge. The Stratford Canal which had been completed in 1816 would provide a link to the canal network that served the industrial Midlands, while a branch line to Shipston-on-Stour was planned to be extended to the Warwickshire coalfields. William James had acquainted himself with the latest available railway technology, which was being used on colliery lines in the north-east of England. He planned to use steam locomotives designed by George Stephenson on the route and recommended malleable iron track. A quote for £33,500 from Thomas Baylis for the construction of the section of railway between the Stratford Canal Terminus and Moreton-in-Marsh had been received and the required share capital was therefore fixed at this amount. On 28th May 1821 the Stratford & Moreton Railway Act of incorporation received Royal Ascent (This was just six weeks after the Stockton & Darlington Railway Act). The Act did not stipulate the mode of traction or the gauge of the railway, but it did specify the line would be completed in five years.

John Rastrick, who had been appointed Company Surveyor in 1822, raised concerns about the suitability of steam locomotives over the proposed gradients on the line and also estimated an increase in the construction costs to £37,500 (Before completion the construction costs would rise to over £48,700). The construction work progressed, but it became necessary to obtain a second Parliamentary Act (dated 22nd June 1825) both to; reconcile the financial discrepancies (including the failure to raise almost £8,000 from defaulting subscribers) and extend the period for completion of the works by another five years. The opportunity was also taken to repeal the original provisions regarding the plans for the Shipston-on-Stour branch to leave the main line near Darlingscott and replace these with new provisions for a branch from Stretton-on-Fosse. An unfortunate additional stipulation of this second Act was that steam locomotives were now to be expressly prohibited on the railway line where it ran alongside the public road (north of Newbold) and through the village of Alderminster.

William James had also suffered from financial difficulties and was declared a bankrupt in 1823. At the request of the proprietors he parted company with the Stratford & Moreton Railway, but was awarded a gift of £200. His dream of steam locomotives operating between Stratford and London on the Central Junction Railway was unfulfilled, as the Stratford & Moreton Railway opened as a horse tramway on Tuesday 5th September 1826.

Robert Ferris

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