đ Cheltenham Leckhampton Railway Station
You are standing on the site of a long-forgotten railway station. Once a vital stop on Cheltenhamâs southern edge, now completely erased from the landscape. Beneath todayâs homes and industrial units once lay the platforms of Cheltenham Leckhampton Station, a place where locals, holidaymakers, and even soldiers once boarded steam trains bound for destinations near and far.
The station originally opened on 1 June 1881 under the name Leckhampton, built by the Great Western Railway as part of the Banbury and Cheltenham Direct Railway. In 1906, it was renamed Cheltenham South and Leckhampton to reflect its growing suburban role, and again in 1952 to the simpler Cheltenham Leckhampton.
From 1891, the station also hosted services from the Midland and South Western Junction Railway (M&SWJR). This line created a direct rail link from Cheltenham to Swindon, Andover, and the south coast, transforming the station into an important junction in Gloucestershireâs rural rail network.
Leckhamptonâs importance grew during both World Wars, serving as a key route for troop trains, wounded soldiers en route to the nearby Leckhampton Court Red Cross Hospital, evacuees, and military supplies. It was a place of comings and goings, quiet goodbyes, and hopeful returns.
The station itself had two platforms, a small brick station building, and modest goods sidings. But as road travel became more dominant in the post-war years, passenger numbers declined. The station closed to passengers on 15 October 1962, part of a wave of closures that swept across Britainâs railways.
Today, no visible trace remains. The site now lies beneath Old Station Drive and the Liddington Park Industrial Estate. Street names are the only hints of what once stood here, but for those who know where to look, the railwayâs ghost still lingers.
