TheWest End of London and Crystal Palace Railway (WELCPR) was an early railway company in southLondon betweenCrystal Palace station andWandsworth, which was opened in 1856. The line was extended in 1858 toPimlico station at Battersea Wharf, near the bridge toPimlico. Throughout its brief existence the railway was operated by theLondon Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) to which it was leased in 1858 and sold in 1859. This relatively short line was of considerable importance to the history of railways of south London as it was the first line to create a corridor from the south and east towardsWestminster and led to the development ofLondon Victoria railway station.
| West London and Crystal Palace Railway Act 1853 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Citation | 16 & 17 Vict. c. clxxx |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 4 August 1853 |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| West London and Crystal Palace Railway Act 1856 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act for authorizing Traffic Arrangements between the West End of London and Crystal Palace and the London Brighton, and South Coast Railway Companies, the Regulation and Increase of Capital, and for other Purposes. |
| Citation | 19 & 20 Vict. c. lxxxvii |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 14 July 1856 |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| West London and Crystal Palace Railway Act 1858 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act for enabling the Battersea Park Commissioners to sell and the West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway Company to purchase Pieces of Land situate near the South End of the new Bridge leading from Chelsea to Battersea Park, for Lease of Undertaking to the London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway Company, for extending the Time for completing Extension to Farnborough; and for other Purposes. |
| Citation | 21 & 22 Vict. c. civ |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 12 July 1858 |
To coincide with the reopening ofthe Crystal Palace at Sydenham Hill on 10 June 1854, the LB&SCR opened a short spur line linking a newCrystal Palace station toSydenham station on theBrighton Main Line fromLondon Bridge. The WELCPR was an independent company that aimed to create an additional line fromWandsworth to the LB&SCR station at Crystal Palace and thence toNorwood Junction, whence it would haverunning powers over the LB&SCR toEast Croydon railway station.[1] The line would also continue in an easterly direction towardsBeckenham andBromley. The intention was also to link the northern end of the railway to theLondon and South Western Railway at a point south east ofClapham Junction, whence trains would continue toWaterloo. The first part of the line, from New Wandsworth to Crystal Palace, opened 1 December 1856 and the extension to Norwood in 1857.
The original stations were:
The planned connection to the L&SWR never happened, and the railway continued parallel to the L&SWR line and then turned north to the misleadingly namedPimlico railway station, opened on 29 March 1858. This was at Battersea Wharf, on the south bank of theRiver Thames, and was connected to the actual district ofPimlico, on the north bank, by the recently completedVictoria Bridge (a road bridge, later renamed Chelsea Bridge).
From the beginning the railway was operated by the LB&SCR in return for 42.5% of the gross receipts, less an annual fee of £8,000 to allow the LB&SCR to run its own trains over the line.[2] Soon afterwards this line was leased to the LB&SCR.
| West London and Crystal Palace Railway (Extension to Farnborough) Act 1854 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act to enable the West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway Company to make a Railway from Norwood to Bromley and Farnborough, and for other Purposes. |
| Citation | 17 & 18 Vict. c. ccx |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 31 July 1854 |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| West London and Crystal Palace Railway (Extension of Time) Act 1859 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act to extend the Powers of the West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway Company for the Purchase of Lands and Completion of their authorized Extension to Farnborough Railway, and for other Purposes. |
| Citation | 22 & 23 Vict. c. xcviii |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 8 August 1859 |
| West of London and Crystal Palace Railway (Transfer of Farnborough Extension and Dissolution of Company) Act 1860 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act for the Transfer of the Farnborough Extension Railway to the London, Chatham, and Dover Railway Company, and for the Dissolution of the West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway Company; and for other Purposes. |
| Citation | 23 & 24 Vict. c. clxxiv |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 23 July 1860 |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
On 3 May 1858 the company opened the first stage of its projectedFarnborough Extension toShortlands railway station (then called Bromley) from Bromley Junction near Norwood Junction viaBeckenham Junction station and a short-lived station atPenge (on the site of the present Beckenham Road tram stop). This line connected with theEast Kent Railway, which then obtained running powers over the WEL&CPR, providing it with an entry into London. In 1860, the East Kent changed its name to become theLondon, Chatham and Dover Railway (LC&DR). Passenger services between Crystal Palace and Shortlands were provided by the WELCPR, with a locomotive and stock bought from the LB&SCR from May 1858 to December 1860 and thereafter by the LC&DR.
The original WELCPR line from Pimlico to Norwood Junction via Crystal Palace was sold to the LB&SCR in 1859 and from Bromley Junction to Shortlands to the LC&DR, but were operated by the WELCPR until the opening of the LCDR line to Beckenham in 1860. The remainder of the Farnborough Extension was never constructed.[3]
In 1860 the former WELCPR line atPimlico was connected to theVictoria Station and Pimlico Railway, giving both the LB&SCR and the LC&DR access to the newVictoria terminus. Until 1863 this short section of line was a part of both the Brighton Main Line and theChatham Main Line toDover.