Preserving the past

A walk around Ropley, the engineering hub of the Watercress Line

- Fiona Barltrop

Situated a few miles east of New Alresford, south of the A31, the attractive village of Ropley is surrounded by peaceful rolling countryside, crisscrossed with paths providing scope for a variety of enjoyable walks.

The centre of the village is a Conservation Area with many picturesque old buildings. The oldest part is around St Peter’s Church, which was severely damaged by fire in 2014. However rebuilding is now underway – donations are much appreciated.

Ropley Station is one of the four stations on the Mid Hants Railway, known as the Watercress Line. It is located just north of the A31 about a mile from the village. The line first opened in 1865, and although it survived the Beeching cuts of the 1960s it was thereafter closed by British Rail in 1973. A preservation society was formed and thanks to the work of dedicated volunteers and enthusiasts the Mid Hants Railway was re-opened to visitors as a heritage railway in 1977, initially from Alresford to Ropley, with the line later extended to Alton, a distance of ten miles in total. In the past the line was used to transport quantities of locally grown watercress (nearby Alresford being the centre of the watercress industry) to London’s Covent Garden market, which gave it its nickname.

Ropley Station, notable for its 130-year-old topiary, is the engineering hub of the Watercress Line and well worth looking round. As well as the carriage restoration and loco shed viewing galleries there is the King’s Cross footbridge (used in Harry Potter films, dismantled and removed from King’s Cross in 2008) and a miniature railway. Most of those who work on the line – station staff, guards, signalmen and locomotive crews – are volunteers.