To find this cache a stroll down a section of the South Holderness Rail Trail is necessary. The South Holderness Rail Trail starts in East Hull and runs for 12 miles to the village of Patrington. The trail can be used by walkers, cyclists and horseriders and is accessible by wheelchairs. Some sections can be muddy during the winter months or after wet weather. The Countryside Access Team of the East Riding of Yorkshire Council is responsible for the maintenance and management of this trail and thanks go out to them for giving kind permission to place this cache.
The cache is located down the stretch of disused railway between Staithes Road and Preston Road (B1240). Free parking is available at the mini recycling centre / former Hedon Printers located on Preston Road, opposite Rushlyvars fishing lake. The cache is about a 10 minute walk from here. Adjacent to the car park is the former Hedon Railway Station which is now a residential property. The station platform is still recognisable.
BRIEF HISTORY
The Hull and Holderness Railway was opened in June 1854 and linked the city of Hull with the seaside village of Withernsea.
The construction of this line had been promoted by Hull businessman Anthony Bannister to provide Hull with links to the rich agricultural area of South Holderness and to develop Withernsea as a new seaside resort . The silting up of Patrington Haven was also another incentive for the railway. Several vessels operated from the Haven to trade corn with Hull and London and many vessels were used in the coal and lime trade with the West Riding of Yorkshire. The build-up of silt in the Haven meant it had no long term future but trade could still be undertaken with a rail link.
In the early 1960’s, Richard Beeching / Baron Beeching published his report, “The Reshaping of British Railways” commonly referred to as, “The Beeching Report” and this resulted in the cessation of the passenger service on the Hull to Holderness Railway. The last passenger train ran on October 19th 1964. Goods traffic continued to use the whole line until May 1965 after which it only operated between Hull and Hedon and this lasted until June 1968. The goods service to Marfleet lasted until 1972.
As you walk down the track towards Hull you will notice a large field on your left. These days the field is used for grazing cows but it has had a much more interesting history. In 1888 a race course with a grand stand was set up here and it is reputed to have had the longest “straight” in the country. The race course was served by its own railway station which was only used on race days. For many years the race course was very popular but by 1909-10 interest had waned and racing stopped along with the closure of its railway station.
The longest “straight” was then found attractive in the eyes of aviators and this led to the development of Hedon Aerodrome. It operated in the years before the 1st World War and then re-opened after the war. On August 11th 1930 Amy Johnson landed at the airfield in front of a large crowd. For footage of this event :
www.yorkshirefilmarchive.com/film/amy-johnson-hedon
The government requisitioned the airfield at the outbreak of the 2nd World War and after this it was never used for flying again.
In the late 1940’s a speedway track was developed and the Hedon race course railway station was briefly re-opened and renamed Hedon Halt to serve the speedway meetings.