Location of the South Coasts, Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Light Railway with the line highlighted in red.
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The Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway (RH&DR) is a 15 in (381 mm) gauge light railway in Kent, England, operating steam and internal combustion locomotives. The 13¾ mile line runs from the Cinque Port of Hythe via Dymchurch, St. Mary's Bay, New Romney and Romney Sands to Dungeness, close to Dungeness nuclear power station and Dungeness Lighthouse. The railway was the dream of millionaire racing drivers Captain John Edwards Presgrave ("Jack") Howey and Count Louis Zborowski. The latter had constructed a railway at Higham Park, his home at Bridge, Kent, and agreed to donate the rolling stock and infrastructure to the project. However, he was killed on 19 October 1924 in a motor racing accident at the Monza Grand Prix before the Romney Marsh site was chosen, and Howey continued the project alone.
The railway was opened on 16 July 1927 by Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp. The locomotives were designed by Henry Greenly who was commissioned by Howey to work on the construction of the entire railway and became the railway's first chief engineer until his abrupt resignation in March 1929. Mountain Class Hercules hauled the inaugural train from Hythe to New Romney, with guests including the mayors of the two towns and General Sir Ivor Maxse.
Howey was not satisfied with just 8¼ miles of track from Hythe to New Romney and plans were in hand for an extension even before the original section had opened. The line was to be extended 5 1⁄2 miles (9 km) from New Romney to Dungeness, double-tracked throughout apart from a balloon loop on which the station at Dungeness was sited.
A Light Railway Order for this extension was applied for and, following a Public Inquiry on 18 April 1928, the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Light Railway (Extension) Order was granted on 12 July 1928. Ahead of this the line between New Romney and The Pilot had actually opened on 24 May 1928 and the rest of the line through to Dungeness opened on 3 August 1928. Since it was laid directly onto the shingle forming the Dungeness peninsula it has been suggested that the extension was the most cheaply constructed railway in the world.
Winston Churchill on turntable, Hythe, R.H.&D. RLY 9324 by Shoesmith & Etheridge Ltd, Hastings, Norman series
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Excel series card used 11 Aug 1934
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Pullman Coaches at Hythe Station. Romney, Hythe, Dymchurch railway 43 Norman series.
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Miniature train crossing Romney Marshes, R.H.&D. RLY 9451 by Shoesmith & Etheridge Ltd, Hastings, Norman series
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RH&DR stamps and Postal History
24 July 1947 sent to Hythe, then posted to Hampstead. The stamps are cancelled ROMNEY HYTHE / & DYMCHURCH RAILWAY with no indication of where it was posted. HJ Jackson recorded this cover and commented that the 3d rate was incorrect and it should have been 4d (from Dec 1940)
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A cover prepared by Capt. HT Jackson, author of "The Railway and Airway Letter Stamps of the British Isles, 1891-1971". He attended the 1958 Philatelic Congress in Folkestone and the cover shown was posted at New Romney. An article on it by Jackson (source unknown) comments "The clerk had no railway letter stamps and used a dog ticket, a bicycle ticket and a platform ticket to make up the postage. This was quite in order as, in October, 1920, the Post Office gave the Railways permission to use parcel or other stamps or labels in lieu of railway letter stamps to the official design, The cover was shown to a postmaster who confirmed that the stamping, although unusual, was quite in order. As the letter was carried to its destination by railway and did not pass through the Post Office, the stamps were cancelled by the railway clerk to prevent them from being used again". Detailed in Jackson's catalogue page 150.
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Various values used from New Romney 19 Sep 1978
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Various values used from Hythe 19 Sep 1978
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