The railway arrived in Kidderminster in 1852 with a service provided by the Oxford Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway – the very  first trains passed through the town on May 1 that year.  The line had been long delayed seeing that the legislation that gave the appropriate permissions for  it, had passed some seven years earlier. Delays were caused by disputes with other companies serving the wider area and also arguments as to whether the lines should be constructed  with broad gauge or a narrow gauge track.

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A few years later after the service through Kidderminster commenced,  legislation for the Severn Valley Railway, running from Hartlebury to Shrewsbury was introduced and this finally came into operation in February 1862.

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A loop line connection from Kidderminster to  the Severn Valley Line at Bewdley was eventually  proposed and the Falling Sands viaduct which was needed to  carry the service was constructed between 1875 and 1878. The viaduct is 121 metres long, 19.5 metres high.

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By the 1960s the Severn Valley service was seen as being no longer commercially viable and it was scheduled for closure event before the celebrated and infamous Beeching report on  the future of the national railway service was published in 1963.

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The Severn Railway Society was formed in 1965 with the aim of preserving and operating at least some elements of the line. This was done progressively and services from Kidderminster to Bridgnorth have now run as an attraction for steam enthusiasts and general tourists  for some forty years.

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The Falling Sands viaduct itself underwent significant restoration work in recent years.

See Falling Sands Viaduct

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For information of some of the towns most celebrated people see Notable Local People 

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