In 1918 there was the official proposal for a railway to ease transport from the bustling market towns of Wycombe and Amersham.

However, the proposals were thrown until a farmer appealing for a transport network found them. He decided to rebuild the plans to link his farm (and many others in the area) and Amersham, where goods could be transported to London. The original plans were extended to be wider and also visit Penn Street. The line was completed in May 1922, and farmers started paying to transport their goods to markets. The locos used were No. 1, an imported American tank from the WW1 effort, and No. 2, the small tank from an abandoned quarry scheme. The stock was simple and cheap, as they weren't sure whether the system would catch on. The original stock consisted of a flat wagon, 2 opens, a van and a brake van as well as various cattle and sheep wagons.

The original farmer, named Alan Jenkins, decided to sell the line in 1924, and the company that took over called itself THE WOODROW LIGHT RAILWAY. In 1925, after refurbishment work, the line opened for the first time to passengers and a small fair and 'heritage farm' was set up in the summer to attract visitors. The line's profits doubled. The passenger stock originally comprised of only a standard closed coach inherited from a nearby railway that went bust because of expanding to quickly. This was very odd looking and railway users nicknamed it 'the chicken house'. Following soon after was an open coach. This was built to the same profile as the Chattenden and Upnor Toast Rack. Both of these coaches survive today and have been used on Vintage trains with the above wagons.

There was the problem of loco power - the lines original 2 locos were only intended for 6 wagon goods - and that was pushing it up the grades on bad conditions. So, the line invested in 'Jonathan', a specially built loco that arrived in time for the start of the 1929 season. The loco was followed in 1936 by a diesel loco - No. 4. This is again specially built and the loco made No. 2 redundant.

No. 9 arrived in 1938. Seriously out of sequence - the number was kept because it was that of the loco in its old company. The loco proved popular - despite being in a ghastly blue livery.

The line was rebuilt again in the first months of 1939, for the passenger trade. The line's intake again doubled, but quickly dropped in September. This was the outbreak of WW2. The railway was absorbed into the munitions industry and stayed like this through most of the war. New stock followed. This was in the form of 6 wagons, comprising of a van, a brake van, 3 open wagons, and a specially built explosives van. Also, a new rake of 5 coaches was acquired. These were very popular and were 2 compartment open, semi-open and open, as well as 3 compartment open and brake coach. These were used on most of the passenger trains. In 1942 No. 9 was repainted in WD Black, to accompany the War Department stock - and to make a clear signal that the line was part of the War effort. No. 3 hauled most passenger trains (with No. 9 working freights), although No. 9 wasn't a 'rare' sight on the passenger stock. No. 4 was usually stationed at Woodrow to shunt the siding - as we had to deal with 4 different types of trains a day - WD, Market, Passenger, and Penn Street Mixed.

A change of ownership happened when the original company went bust just 3 months after VJ day. The line was taken up by the Great Western Railway, and quickly regained its high status, with a possible extension to High Wycombe on the cards.

Due to bombing during the war, a brand new station building, cattle dock and signal box were constructed at Woodrow. A new sheep wagon was also acquired at this point.

In 1946 farmers and businsses in Chalfont St. Giles engaged in talks and agreed to pay 90% of the extension fees - and so an extension to Chalfont St. Giles was built, with a triangle taking it up the stiff climb to Little chalfont and back to Amersham from another direction.

When this was being laid, three contractors engines were used. The first was a charming 0-4-2T 'Christine Mary', now in use on a small strcth of track known as the Big WLR. The second was a small simplex 20hp diesel, which soon proved far too small for what was needed. This was removed, and replaced shortly afterwards by a 4wD diesel named 'Hurricane', which came from the works of Smith & Harrison. The diesel remained on the line after construction until 1950, and even ran in place of No. 1 for a while, at which point it was decided to remove it from the line as it was simply not required. The diesel was sold on to a Mr. Peter Hughes, who took the loco to his private line in Northamptonshire. The engine was then little heard about until 1979, when it emerged again at a county fair, but quickly dissapeard back to another private line, where it is thought it remains today.

Anyway, back on the WLR a shed was built at Chalfont, and housed a loco most of the time. No. 1 'Ruby' found itself popular here, as it was just the right size for the short freights needed. The shed could house 2 engines, and Hurricane was also there most of the time, but No. 9 'Cleeve Abbey' came to the shed, and remained a Chalfont engine from then on.

1948 - the year of nationalisation. The small railway went through the biggest of the changes of ownership with locos gaining BR or a crest, and stock all being laid down or dramatically rebuilt. The stations were drastically cut down. The old station halt building and platform at Penn Street was knocked down. The line had an increasing trade - but was in the worst state it had been during its life.

However, the line was short of locos, so a search was started.

Another abandoned quarry provided us with No.5, an 0-6-0T, which arrived in 1948 and was used to rough treatment hauling the main extracts from the quarry to the nearby docks.

Just 2 months after the arrival of No. 5, the big bogie coach No. 4 was placed in store, as were all of the wagons built that year, except the flat wagon (which is why it was easy to restore).

The line also needed another loco as No. 1 was also laid down at the end of December, 1949, meaning that all items of stock from the original line were now in store, 'surplus to requirements'.

While this was going on, No. 3 'Jonathan' was used by BR for brake trials, and quickly gained a Westinghouse pump. This was no good as the stock did not need air braking! However, BR fixed that, and that meant that No. 3 was the only loco that could operate with a specially rebuilt flat wagon!

A quick hunt around showed the line No. 6, a large 0-6-2 tender engine originating from Fowler in Leeds, but was used in Queensland (Australia).

The engine arrived at Dover docks on the 29th January 1951. The engine, which was dismantled for travel, then was moved by road, arriving at the railway's workshops the next day. The engine was the reassembled, and on February 12th 1951 the engine officially entered service, hauling one of the passenger trains in use that day. The engine was taken back into the paintshop in early March, however, and given BR Crests. The engine re-entered service on 15th March 1951, and proved a popular performer.

The engine, nearly twice as powerful as anything else on the line, proved itself too powerful for off-peak services, and did not run allot until July, from when it ran on mist operating days.

At this point the usual loco allocation was:

Amersham: 8903 (No. 3 'Jonathan'), 8906 (No. 6 'William') and 8904 (No. 4, unnamed at this point, diesel)

Woodrow: 8905 (No. 5 'Judith')

Chalfont St Giles: 8909 (No. 9 'Cleeve Abbey')

Stored at Amersham: No. 1 'Ruby' and No. 2 (both steam, withdrawn due to lack of power) No. 2 was, however, occasionally used for shunting purposes on peak August weekends, but in September the biggest shock of the lines history showed up.

The line, still making a vast amount of profit for a line of its kind, was scrapped by BR for passenger services as it had 'no way forward' - despite being totally refurbished - locos and line - since 1946.

However, that was not the end. A small fleet of wagons, one coach (the 'chicken house') and a loco - No. 3 'Jonathan' were refurbished that winter, all being repainted into BR Black, and were used then from January 1952 until 5th August 1955 every Satuardy and Wednesday, to carry freight to and from the Market. The collapse of the market in 1955 threatened to doom the line, but in February 1956 the line ran 7 days out of 9 when a special farm show in Woodrow required the moving of freight and passengers. Sadly, no passengers were allowed to travel on the line, but the last train actually ran on May 30th 1956, bringing an end to an eventful life.

That March all of the stock was pushed into an old shed except the gunpowder wagon, which was sold on, but recovered at a later date.

In 1992 a small group set about restoring the line after discovering the locos and stock, all tucked inside a shed. The work involved a rebuild to take it just into the standards needed to update it to modern standards.

The first project was assessing the stock. The first thing they did was bought out the rights to the WW1 tank, Ruby, and started on an overhaul, which lasted until 1998. They also removed the original coaches, and set about restoring those.

A lottery-winning millionaire, Jon Potter, bought the line in 1995 (sorry - but I had to put me in it somewhere!). He bought Jonathan (this is, ironically (!) his full name) out of the dusty old building and took it to a private workshop. The lines stock was rebuilt to a period of 1930, and all the locos (except the now privately-owned Ruby) were fully rebuilt and put back together. Unfortunately the trackwork and trackbed was so bad that the extension to Chalfont St. Giles was not possible to be relaid at that time - but a small gang of volunteers are still working hard on the trackbed so it can reopen for its 60th birthday in 2006 - which, ironically, is 10 years of preservation on the line, and the centenary of the nearby Misbourne Valley Railway.

The line reoppened to the public on June 18, 1995 - 10 years this year. The reopening train was not very posh. The loco used was No. 3 'Jonathan', but was still painted in BR Black, as there was only time for touching up prior to the gala, in the same coat as it was when it finished running. The loco still had the Westinghouse pump, but it had been disabled. The coaches were the Chicken House and the toast rack - both were repainted and rebuilt to original condition. Some wagons were also used. Wagons Nos 10, 20, 30 and the matching brakevan were also marshalled in the train. Due to flooding in Woodrow Tunnel the trains could not run the entire circuit, but No. 4, the diesel, which had also been restored, was marshalled a the other end of the train so running round would not be necessary. At the end of the day a demonstration freight train was run, hauled by No. 3, and then the stock was put away, ready for its next turn of duty.

Quickly much more stock was restored, and by 2002 all of the steam locos (except No. 9) has returned for use.

New stock and so on came and the lines intake quickly recovered all of the cash Jon had put in, so he bought new stock (including a diesel) form America. The diesel, No. 7, has been anglicised and now bears the lines diesels Green livery.

The loco was followed in 2004 by a new diesel, No. 8, which is replacing the ageing No. 4 from service. The loco bears a Gardener 6LXB 180hp engine - in fact the same type as used in the Ffestiniog's Hibberd Planets 'Conway Castle/Castell Conway' and 'Upnor Castle'. This engine gives it the sheer power that is needed, and the loco spent some time on hire to the Misbourne Valley Railway, and following that succesful loan the MVR has purchased a chassis that matches ours.

In 1998 the Chalfont trackbed was found and in 2000 2 guys started with hedgecutters and chainsaws on clearing the Chalfont St Giles - Little Chalfont route. By January 2002 around a mile had been cleared and was ready for track. Some track was moved there, along with a privately owned 0-4-0 diesel and two old tipper wagons, for clearing of vegitation and also, when we get that far, ballasting. In November 2002 the bid to buy back the trackbed between Chalfont St Giles and Amersham was successful and the necessary clearing was completed in May 2004. The plans to start tracklaying in December 2004 failed due to a mini-war between us and the council, but we have now fully laid the proper track for about 700 yards. The station is owned at Little Chalfont, and is now open as a tea room and shop. The station at Chalfont St Giles is owned by the WLR, but there is now a house on that site. However, the 1 loco engine shed has been refurbished and is ready to house a loco again, but the majority of locos, even after opening of the extension, will be kept at Woodrow sheds.

The original fair at Woodrow was closed with the railway in 1951, but reopened for Queen Elizabeths corination in 1952/3, but closed again on June 20 1954. The fair was still intact until it became a health risk, and from 2000 the fair was dismantled until the last object - a helter-skelter - left in January 2004. However, the site remains as it did back then and was puchased by the railway in February 2004. Jon Potter is putting in some money to fund a railway museum there, and, after planning permission comes through, a small fair will once again stand alonside Woodrow station.

The new museum will show pictures of the original railway, and nos 1 and 2, along with other wagons, will regularly be on site. The museum will also have its own loco shed, with coal and watering facilities, so that engines don't have to start their day at Amersham.

The original heritage farm, however, was relocated in 1951 and a local farmer is not willing to sell the land to us or reopen this on the site. But, alongside Penn Street halt, a small farm will be slowly built up over the next few years, ready for the railway to become recognized in the heritage centre circles as well.

The line is operated as both a business and as a preservation movement, and most of the work is carried out at the WLR. The WLR also carries out extenisve contract work. 2 wagons hae been delivered to the MVR, and a further wagon is under construction for them - these were all delivered way back in the 1960's.

There is a big group at the moment working on carraige and wagon overhaul. C Potter is funding construction of a large bogie coach, as well as being in charge of the restoration of coach No. 10. J Potter is, on the other hand, working though some of the older stock. We musn't forget the most popular coaches - the 5 wooden bodied nos 5,6,7,8 and 9. Nos 6 and 9 (2-compartment semi-open and 3-compartment brake respectivaly) are now awaiting painting, and No. 5 (a 2-compartment open) was also completed in late 2004. These 3 will be repainted for use in 2005. Nos 7 and 8 (standard 2 and 3 compartments) are now stripped down, and plans to make No. 7 into a railcar have been abolished, meaning completion of the entire rake could happen this year ('05).

The best restoration project on the line so far has probaly been the gunpowder wagon. This left the railway in 1956, and was sent to a private site. Then, apparently, another private owner bought the wagon as a chicken house. The wagon was then found when we were clearing the line from Amersham to Chalfont St. Giles, and quickly became a major project. It was thought that the body could be saved, but dry rot meant that the roof, an end and the floor had to be scrapped. The wheels and axleboxes from its construction were never found, and are thought to have been scrapped, so it now uses axleboxes which were bought for another project. The wagon appeared in 2004 in WD Red, and this year will drop into BR Black - and lettering has been sorted. 

Following completin of the reconstruction of the gunpowder van the railways C&W Dept. has managed to start work on some other wagons. The sheep wagon has been moved in to the works, ready for a relaunch soon. Wagon No. 31 is now completed, and some other stock is due in soon to be reapinted for the reinactment of the opening train to preservation in June 2005.

Woodrow Works is a major outfit. In here we can do any overhaul, and at this present time (May 4 2005) there are six engines in the works. These are in for a variety of reasons. No. 3 'Jonathan' is undergoing a checkup for a return to service hopefully later this month in a new livery - BR black, although whether it is lined or not will depend on how much other things are going on. No. 2 is in all the time, and No. 1 'Ruby' is also in, undergoing work for a return to frontline service for January 2006. A new boiler may be fitted, and larger bore cylinders are expected. Nos 5 & 9 are both in for general checkups, No. 5 will also need a replacement gas jet before returning to use. No. 10 'Helvellyn' is the major project. It is a brand new steam loco, which is going to be used at the WLR for a while, and then will probably go to the Misbourne Valley Railway. However, the cylinders and boiler are still awaited! We also do a large anount of work on the C&W front, with about 12 projects underway at the moment. Contract work has also been done, and the lines engineers have repaired stock (K1 from the MVR) and engines (Russell from the MVR) at the works, as wel as going to Rutton works at the MVR to work on the new diesel, of which the body is entirely WLR made.

In 2005 Chris Potter imported a Zillertalbahn Railway engine foruse on the line. This is a reliable performer, and is good for the tourist trains as it is very economical, and was converted to oil firing prior to coming to the WLR.