Denmark Hill
Architecturally, this is very much a ‘’Brighton’’ station, but it nevertheless
qualifies as a South Eastern Division site. It joins Wandsworth Road and Clapham
stations on a list of sites where two alternate routes ran side-by-side, served
by separate platform faces. Even today, it remains an impressive spectacle, with
a substantial main building straddling four tracks and an equal number of
platform faces.
The first rails laid through the area were those of the ‘’Crystal Palace & South
London Junction Railway’’ (CP&SLJR), which forged a double-track branch line to
its namesake from LC&DR metals at Brixton. Public services between Victoria and
Crystal Palace commenced on 1st August 1865. At this time, the LB&SCR was in the
process of forming a circuit line between Victoria and London Bridge (the
‘’South London Line’’), which eventually ran parallel with LC&DR metals between
Wandsworth Road and Peckham Rye. Public services over the South London Line were
set to commence between London Bridge and Loughborough Park (latterly East
Brixton) on Monday 13th August 1866. Contemporary newspaper adverts show that
Denmark Hill in fact came into use earlier, with the Crystal Palace line. The
full circuit between the two London termini finally came into operation on 1st
May 1867.
At Denmark Hill, four tracks were located within a deep cutting, the northern
pair forming the Crystal Palace line, the southern pair forming the South London
Line. The LB&SCR opted for an arrangement whereby the main building straddled
the cutting at right angles to the running lines and platforms. This set-up
allowed easy access to platforms and provided greater flexibility for the below
track layout: ‘’if the level of the rails and platforms was below that of the
adjacent streets, that system could be conveniently arranged, as at the new
Metropolitan Station at Farrington Street, by carrying the transverse gangways
over the rails, and giving easy access to different platforms’’ [Minutes of
Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers: Volume 25 – Page 278].
Substantial buildings of the same architectural outline were brought into use at
York Road (Battersea Park), Denmark Hill, and Peckham Rye stations – although
this was an unromantic inner suburban line, it nevertheless became an extremely
busy rail artery south of the Thames. These buildings, which housed lofty
booking halls and living quarters for the Station Master, were of crème brick
construction, had distinctive curved rooftops, and came complete with arched
red-brick
frames housing sash-style windows. Indeed, these were also features common to
LC&DR buildings, albeit styled in an alternate fashion. The aforementioned
LB&SCR stations on the circuit route were not alone in their appearance: a
number of Victorian sewage pumping houses were built in a virtually identical
style. One of these still survives alongside Grosvenor Bridge, on the Thames’
northern bank. Similarities amongst railway and sewage buildings were the result
of a common architect, Charles Henry Driver (1832 - 1900). He was responsible
for numerous LB&SCR station buildings, in addition to various sewage pumping
stations around the capital.
Down at ground level, the four platform faces extended for about 580-feet – two
of these formed a centrally-positioned island, sandwiched in-between
‘’Brighton’’ and ‘’Chatham’’ routes. They were all linked by a splendid enclosed
footbridge, fully glazed and 90-feet in length. All structures upon the
platforms were again the product of the LB&SCR, even those surfaces which just
served LC&DR trains. Splendid timber canopies, 185-feet in length, were in
evidence on all platforms. They featured attractive jagged valances and
wrap-a-round ends, the latter of which were fabricated from tongue-and-groove
timber and made the canopies look like giant waiting shelters. These canopies
have since been much simplified in their appearance, but happily, the intricate
valance design which once adorned them can still be seen in evidence at
Battersea Park. By 1872, porters on the South London Line platforms were paid 16
shillings a week (£51.22 at 2007 prices).
The station site was located in-between two tunnels, those of Denmark Hill and
Grove. Denmark Hill Tunnel, 63-yards in length, was situated just beyond the
western end of the platforms, and in fact comprised two separate bores,
segregating LB&SCR and LC&DR lines. Grove Tunnel was of similar arrangement, at
the eastern end of the site, and its two bores extended for 132-yards. There
were no crossovers between any of the four tracks, but the station commanded two
signal boxes: one of these cabins was positioned at the western end of the
island platform, whilst the second could be found at the eastern end of the
LC&DR’s ‘’down’’ platform. This arrangement was altered in about 1880, when the
existing signal boxes were abolished and replaced by a single one erected at the
eastern end of the island platform. This controlled both ‘’Chatham’’ and
‘’Brighton’’ lines. In addition, a trailing crossover was installed between the
two tracks of the LC&DR line, again at the eastern ends of the platforms.
As mentioned in the Wandsworth Road section, electrification of the entire
LB&SCR network was sanctioned in 1903, based on an overhead wire system carrying
6,700 Volts A.C. The South London Line effectively became the guinea pig and
during 1908, lattice gantries were erected along the route’s entirety.
Naturally, only the southern pair of platforms at Denmark Hill were straddled by
these structures, and the wires became ‘’live’’ in the following year, public
electric services commencing between London Bridge and Victoria on 1st December
1909. As part of this scheme, a trailing crossover was installed between South
London Line tracks at the eastern end of the Denmark Hill site, in-between the
platforms and the portal of Grove Tunnel.
Under the Southern Railway, it was eventually decided to abandon the ex-LB&SCR’s
overhead wires and standardise on the 660-volt D.C. system pioneered by the LSWR.
Public electric services on the South London Line changed over to D.C. operation
on 17th June 1928, but the gantries remained in situ for some time afterwards.
Many of these lattice structures were eventually recycled, some being shipped
over to the Isle of Wight in 1930 to form the framework of a new engine shed at
Ryde St Johns Road. At the same time, a light changing exercise occurred at
Denmark Hill, whereby the Victorian gas lamps were replaced by electric lights,
the latter sporting the SR’s trademark hexagonal shades and ‘’Target’’ name
signs.
A series of signalling alterations took place under British Railways, instigated
by the Kent Coast Electrification Scheme. Colour light signals came into use on
‘’Chatham’’ metals between Factory Junction and Croton Park on 8th March 1959.
On the same date, colour lights replaced semaphore signals on the South London
Line between Factory Junction and Denmark Hill. Thereafter, Denmark Hill signal
box controlled the South London Line tracks through the station only. The cabin
even ceased in this function and closed on 16th December 1962, when the section
of line between Denmark Hill and Peckham Rye (of which was 1650-yards distant)
was brought under the control of three-aspect colour lights.
Far into the BR era, Denmark Hill remained a fine example of an original South
London Line station, complete with its substantial main building and splendid
platform canopies. Indeed, the same could be said of Battersea Park, which, too,
retained much of its original finery. Even Peckham Rye had managed to keep its
enormous main building, although the station’s platforms had been completely
rebuilt during 1961. However, in March 1980, disaster struck when Denmark Hill’s
high-level building was gutted by fire through an arson attack. Apparently, no
railway building was insured at that time against fire, because of the high cost
of premiums. The British Rail culture had for long been one of dispensing with
historic buildings of a bygone age, thus it was left to the 1970-formed
‘’Camberwell Society’’ to campaign for a restoration to take place. £150,000 was
eventually raised through a mixture of donations from the Camberwell Society,
British Rail, Southwark Environment Trust, the Historic Buildings Council, and
the Greater London Council. It was decided to convert the majority of the
booking hall into a pub, and this opened in June 1984. The latter was part of
the ‘’Firkin’’ chain of pubs, and was named the ‘’Phoenix & Firkin’’. In
addition to restoration of the station building, alterations were also made at
platform level. The canopies were reduced in length by 70-feet and the timber
valances simplified. Period lighting was installed on all surfaces, swan neck
lamps – reminiscent of the SR era – making an appearance on the ''down''
platform of the ''Chatham'' lines. These installations replaced
Southern Region concrete bracket lampposts, which dated from the early 1960s.
The 21st Century is set to bring a new wave of changes to Denmark Hill, in a
strive by Network Rail and local authorities to bring step-free access to
station platforms. It has been planned to erect a new glass and concrete
footbridge at the eastern ends of the platforms, attached to a trio of lift
shafts. Indeed, its construction will result in the abolition of the majority of
period lampposts which were installed as part of the aforementioned restoration.
Denmark Hill: 1914
Ordnance Survey of 1914, showing Denmark Hill Tunnel at the bottom left of the map and Grove Tunnel nearer
the top right. Position of the 1880 signal box is indicated, as are the trailing crossovers, but no links between
SE&CR and LB&SCR routes existed at this point.
19th April 2006
After a fire gutted much of the interior in 1980, British Rail was keen to demolish the main ''high-level'' building.
Happily, it was instead splendidly restored, the majority of the structure becoming a pub. Architecture of this ilk
still exists at ex-LB&SCR stations Peckham Rye and Battersea Park. David Glasspool
19th April 2006
This westward view is set to disappear soon, as plans are underway to construct a new glazed footbridge across
the platforms' eastern ends. Nevertheless, at the time of this photograph, the station still retained a Victorian
aura. In the background, the four lines can be seen ascending through Denmark Hill Tunnel, towards Cambria
Junction. David Glasspool
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