On 5th and 6th April, we are celebrating 25 years since the re-opening of the Bodiam Railway Station. Every year, Bodiam played host to thousands of families from the East End of London who would arrive by train for the summer holidays to pick Hops for the Guinness Brewery. Including a re-creation of a typical Hop-Pickers Hut, Bodiam Station is also home to a beautiful flower, vegetable and hop garden, typical of the time, and celebrates being part of 200 years of railway history.
As the first Light Railway in the UK, the Kent and East Sussex heritage railway is often nicknamed The Farmers’ Line as it hauled fresh produce and hops from the gardens of Kent and East Sussex to feed the nation and its food industry. Passengers were a secondary consideration in Colonel F Stephen’s rural railway that in the early days would run a mixed load of passengers and goods.
On our Anniversary weekend, we will recreate the events of April 2000 with the breaking of a ribbon and cutting of a train-shaped cake in honour of all those who worked tirelessly to re-create this part of our heritage line. A video plotting the history of the reopening will be on display in the Waiting Room and guests will be invited to celebrate as we entertain with speeches, a local choir, the Anderida Morris Dancers, and bus trips to tour the building of the Robertsbridge Station, currently under construction. Bodiam Castle are kindly donating 25 free tickets for entry to the castle over the weekend. We look forward to a weekend of celebrations and remembrance!
Bodiam is also usually home to the Cavell Van, commemorating the contribution of nurse Edith Cavell, but this is currently on loan heading for Dover for the 200th Anniversary Celebrations.