The Lee on Solent Railway Part 2
| Author: Peter Keat | Published: 2nd July 2008 06:01 |
The only known picture of the first station on the line Gomer Halt
After the opening of the pier moves ro form a railway company were soon started and it was only a short step to the formation of the ‘Lee on the Solent Railway Company' ( it appears that the ‘the' in the towns title was never used in the railway company's name). There were five original promoters of the line, Harry Emans Pollard, Charles Edward Morgan, Charles Langley Whetham, William Stephens Cross and James Edward Hunter, These five engaged Mr R.H.Tigg to conduct a survey of the line and to submit an estimate of cost
Mr. Tiggs produced a survey and an estimate of cost of £22,052-8s-0p for construction that included £1868-8s-0d for contingencies. With this information to hand application was made for the Parliamentary powers for the construction of the line. Powers were granted on 14th April 1890 the "Railway Construction Facilities Act of 1864", The Lee on Solent line was one of the very few lines built under this Act, the other local example being the Selsey Tramway, Now the Lee on Solent Railway Company was ready to build the 3 mile line single line branch from Fort Brockhurst to Lee on the Solent, The contract for the construction, and equipping of the line was let to Messrs, David Laing and Sons, with Mr. Gilham being appointed Engineer. At this point Mr, R.H.Tigg seems to disappear completely from the scene.
The financial agreement with Laing's was enough to let them subcontract the work along the foreshore at Lee itself to a local smaller Company, However it is reported that Mr, Gilham, the Engineer, tendered his resignation to the board of the Lee on Solent Railway Company on 17th November 1891, this was not surprising as he had already left the country for some months in the April of that year and in his place Mr, P,W. Meik was appointed Engineer but this was not until February 1893. Who took over the responsibility of the construction of the line between the resignation of Mr.Gilham. and the subsequent appointment of Mr .Meik does not appear to have been recorded.
The slow speed of the construction of the line was a cause of great concern to the Railway Company Board, for it appears that by November 1891 work on the line had not yet begun and the Board instructed the Company Secretary to write to the contractor Laing to demand the immediate commencement of the work. In the spring of the following year, 1892, the Directors visited the line and their report indicates that they were happy with the progress But over the following flew months the situation most have changed very dramatically because it is reported that ''proceedings" were being taken out again three of thee directors.. The reason for these poceedings is a little unclear but one assumes the reasons were financial, probably in dealings with the contractor because of the position that the company was left in it was unable to afford to complete the line plus it could not interest any other investors to risk their money in the project.
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