Railway Station Crosses
A train station is where the train stops. A bus station is where the bus stops. On my desk, I have a work station...
Railway station cross? Since when have railway stations been places of worship?
This page is mainly for railway buffs, and examines why there are so many 'crosses' in railway station names, but no actual crosses in the stations themselves.
For information about the Passion of Christ devotion, see Stations of the Cross.
Railway Station Crosses
As humans, we have the freedom to choose how we interpret the Meaning of the Cross. Many people revere it as a sacred image, reserved for religious settings. Military campaign medals are often in the shape of a cross - for example, the Victoria Cross and the Military Cross - and it's rather perverse that a religious symbol is awarded to people who have been encouraged to break God's commandment and kill others.
With this heavy thought in mind, assigning 'Cross' to a railway station name seems relatively innocuous.
There are lots of them (railway stations, that is) and many include the word 'Cross' in their name, a well-known one being King's Cross Station in London. The primary objective of a railway station is to dispatch and receive passengers and goods, and there is little apparent connection between it and the Christian cross. Many airports have chapels or prayer rooms, but these are conspicuously absent in railway stations.
In Muslim countries such as Indonesia, most railway stations have a Mushala (small Mosque) for travellers to perform Shalat, one of the obligatory five times to pray each day facing the direction of the Kaaba shrine in Mecca. Yet in Britain, the home of Anglicanism and Methodism; and in Sweden, where 87% are Lutheran; in Spain, arguably the most conservative country for Roman Catholic imagery; and near the heart of Roman Catholicism itself, the Stazione Roma San Pietro (St. Peter's Station of the Vatican State Railway); chapels, prayer facilities and crosses are a rare sight. Even where the station includes the name 'Cross'.
(An exception to this is perhaps the occasional war cenotaph or a memorial erected following a fatal train accident. These are, of course, memorials, and not places of worship. In old Italian railway stations in the countryside, you might find a small cross installed by locals, but these have no official railway company mandate. Many other non-Christian countries lack religious symbols in railway stations, such as the predominantly Shinto and Buddhist Japan, where the strict separation of religion and the state is written into the constitution imposed by America.)
So why do many names of railway stations include that word? One reason is pretty obvious: Stations are often situated where a road and railway track cross. Another reason is where the station serves railway lines that cross in different directions (Europe's largest station, the Berlin Hauptbahnhof, for example). And a third reason is their distant association with a particular Christian cross. But this is rare.
Brent Cross Station - England
Try asking here "What time does the next train leave Brigantia, please?" Or if you really want to puzzle the station staff, ask them where the cross is.
Bridgeton Cross Station - Scotland
Bromley Cross Station - England
There was an old monument known as Kershaw's Cross in the area. So why 'Bromley'? And where is the cross?
Charing Cross Station - England
Clay Cross Station - England
Fosss Cross Station - England
Gerrards Cross Station - England
Harmans Cross Station - England
Hatton Cross Station - England
Hatton was originally called 'Heath'. Coincidentally, the station is now adjacent to one of the world's busiest airports called 'Heathrow'.
Hautere Cross Station - New Zealand
Hunts Cross Station - England
A dearth of actual crosses at other stations, yet this area boasts several: At Hunts Cross, Cronton Cross, Woolton Cross, and Garston Cross.
King's Cross Station - Australia and England
Kirby Cross Station - England
New Cross Station & New Cross Gate Station - England
Despite its rather side facade, New Cross station has a great wealth. The original 'cross' was golden.
Poison Cross Station - England
Legends abound. Who knows if any of these inspired the Brazilian feminist Inez Haynes Irwin for her 1936 mystery novel The Poison Cross
Red Cross Station - French Alps
Ooops! You've come here by mistake. This is an emergency first aid station, not a railway station!
Southern Cross Station - Australia
This station roof has made some people very cross
There is more than one Southern Cross Station in Australia, and each one is named after the biggest cross to be seen. (But only at night!)
Vauxhall Cross Station - England
There is a place called Vauxhall Cross, but is there a Vauxhall Cross Station? Is there indeed any Cross there?
Waltham Cross Station - England
One thing we have discovered in building this page, is that railway enthusiasts have very deep knowledge in their subject. And they are pretty accurate with their facts, too. If you notice any errors or omissions on this page, please email us. And if you know of other 'Cross' stations anywhere in the world, please email us, including any information you have about the name's origin.
