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Woodford Halse is a village in the Daventry district of Northamptonshire in England, and is situated approximately 10 miles (16 km) south-west of Daventry and 15 miles (24 km) north-east of Banbury. The village is one of three in the parish of Woodford cum Membris, the other two being Hinton and West Farndon; these are separated from Woodford Halse by the infant River Cherwell. The parish as a whole had a population of 3,456 at the 2001 census; Woodford Halse on its own accounted for less than half of this figure, Hinton being the largest of the three villages. West Farndon lies on the route on the Jurassic Way long distance footpath. Woodford Halse also contains a primary school, Woodford Halse C of E School. The school has one of the largest playing fields of any Northamptonshire School, and holds an annual cross country race, attracting over 700 competitors from more than thirty schools.
The village became notable for the role it played as an important railway centre. Originally it seemed destined not to have a railway at all, as its nearest stations were at Byfield (about two miles west), and Moreton Pinkney (three miles south east), both on the East and West Junction Railway (later part of the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway), opened in July 1873, and no other lines seemed likely ever to be built in such a thinly populated area. However, in the late 1890s the village found itself on a major trunk route, the Great Central Railway, the last main line to be constructed from the north of England to London, opened in March 1899. The station was originally called Woodford & Hinton, but was renamed Woodford Halse in November 1948.
As well as making connections with the Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway mentioned above, there was also an important section built to connect the GCR with the Great Western Railway at Banbury. Additionally, a major locomotive depot and marshalling yards were also sited at Woodford Halse (plans to locate carriage sheds there too were dropped), and to house the railway workers several rows of terraced dwellings and a street of shops were built, all of this giving a once small village an industrial look that seemed alien to its surroundings. The parish population eventually peaked at just under 2,000, at which time Woodford Halse even had its own cinema.
In timetables of the Metropolitan Line of the London Underground, Woodford Halse was shown as the final stop of occasional trains until the early 1960s. This made the station the furthest point from London associated with the Underground.
The GCR was at times a very busy route, and the depot and yards at Woodford Halse a hive of activity, but this was not enough to guarantee survival when the Beeching purges of the 1960s took place. The Stratford-upon-Avon and Midland Junction Railway had already closed, in April 1952; in September 1966 most of the GCR, including all the remaining lines converging on Woodford Halse, were axed. All tracks and most railway buildings were later cleared, leaving behind a barren wasteland.
The population fell sharply as well, as many former railway workers and their families left the area, but new developments in recent decades have brought the population up to its present levels. However, where the GCR line, depot and yards were sited there is now a tree plantation and a small modern industrial estate. Woodford Halse is once again a very quiet place, but one can still see evidence of its railway past.
To visit the school website go to http://www.woodfordhalse.northants.sch.uk