1835 – Part of a proposal by the Great Western Railway under the famous railway engineer wIsambard Kingdom Brunel to be a link with the London to Bristol line – opposed by Abingdon Town Council and local landowners.

1835 – The London to Bristol line obtains Parliamentary approval and work commences.

1840 – The line reaches Steventon, which was Brunel’s mid-point HQ.

1844 – The Didcot to Oxford line via Culham and Radley is completed, and the town of Abingdon realises it has missed an opportunity.

1854 – The Abingdon Railway Company is formed by Major Joseph Haythorne Reed, MP for Abingdon.

1855 – The Company prepares a programme and a proposed Act of Parliament in January. Royal assent is given in June. Work commences on the line via Radley.

1856 – July sees the branch line open for the first passenger traffic. The line is originally broad gauge.

1872 – The branch line is converted to standard gauge.

1904 – The Abingdon Railway Company merges with Great Western Railway.

1908 – The old station building is wrecked when a train fails to stop.

1914 to 1939 – The branch line is well used in support of war efforts but begins to decline after World War II.

1949 – A contract with MG Cars boosts the line’s use.

1956 – The line sees its first Royal Train when Queen Elizabeth II visits Abingdon to open the Guildhall.

1963 – Passenger services cease as part of the Beeching cuts.

1980 – The MG factory closes and the line loses its only big customer.

1984 – On the last day of June, a ‘Last Day’ special train runs in a celebration of the ‘festival of Abingdon’.

Thanks to David Price for this timeline.