British quarrying and mining narrow gauge railways
Encyclopedia
British industrial narrow gauge railways are narrow gauge railways in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...

 that were primarily built to serve one or more industries. Some offered passenger services for employees or workmen, but they did not run public passenger trains. They are listed by the primary industry they served.

Cement works

Many of the cement
Cement
In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...

 works and their associated chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....

 pits had narrow gauge railways, particularly those in the South East of England. The Associated Portland Cement Manufacturers Ltd. (APCM, (Blue Circle Industries
Blue Circle Industries
Blue Circle Industries was a British public company manufacturing cement. It was founded in 1900, and was bought out by the French company Lafarge in 2001.-History:...

), now part of Lafarge
Lafarge
Lafarge is a French industrial company specialising in four major products: cement, construction aggregates, concrete and gypsum wallboard. In 2010 the company was the world's second-largest cement manufacturer by mass shipped behind Holcim.-History:...

) was the major producer of cement in the United Kingdom in the second half of the twentieth century and many of their plants used railways.
Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
APCM Cliffe Works 1934 ? 1959 Cliffe-at-Hoo, England Extensive diesel-hauled chalk pit railway.
APCM Bevans Works ? after 1962 Northfleet
Northfleet
Northfleet is a town in the Borough of Gravesham in Kent, England. Its name is derived from North creek , and the settlement on the shore of the River Thames adjacent to Gravesend was known as Norfluet in the Domesday Book, and Northflet in 1201...

, England
Short line operating on a riverside wharf
APCM Harbury Works ? after 1961 Harbury
Harbury
Harbury is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. In the 2001 census it had a population of 2,485....

, England
Quarry line worked with a rare Fowler 2-4-0 diesel locomotive
APCM Holborough Works 1923 1969 Snodland
Snodland
Snodland is a small town in the county of Kent, England, located on the River Medway between Rochester and Maidstone. It has a population of about 12,000 people....

, England
Steam- and diesel- hauled railway at the Associated Portland Cement Manufacturers Ltd's cement plant at Holborough.
APCM Sittingbourne Brickworks before 1898 after 1963 Sittingbourne
Sittingbourne
Sittingbourne is an industrial town about eight miles east of Gillingham in England, beside the Roman Watling Street off a creek in the Swale, a channel separating the Isle of Sheppey from mainland Kent...

, England
Internal brickworks railway
APCM Rodmell Works before 1910 1975 Beddingham
Beddingham
Glynde and Beddingham is a civil parish in the Lewes district of East Sussex.-Governance:On a local level, Glynde and Beddingham is governed by Glynde and Beddingham Parish Council. Council meetings are held every two months in the Beddingham Reading Room. Their responsibilities include footpaths,...

, England
Short line serving a cement works
APCM Sittingbourne Works ? 1971 Sittingbourne
Sittingbourne
Sittingbourne is an industrial town about eight miles east of Gillingham in England, beside the Roman Watling Street off a creek in the Swale, a channel separating the Isle of Sheppey from mainland Kent...

, England
Cement works line with the last narrow gauge steam locomotive in that industry.
APCM Kent Works 1877 1927 Greenhithe
Greenhithe
Greenhithe is a town in Dartford District of Kent, England. It forms part of the civil parish of Swanscombe and Greenhithe.Greenhithe, as it is spelled today, is located where it was possible to build wharves for transshipping corn, wood and other commodities; its largest cargoes were of chalk and...

, England
Steam-hauled railway at the Associated Portland Cement Manufacturers Ltd's cement plant at Greenhithe.
APCM Sundon Works ? 1974 Luton
Luton
Luton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....

, England
Cement works line.
British Standard Cement Works 1912 1932 Rainham
Rainham, Medway
The town of Rainham is a part of the Medway Towns conurbation, under the unitary authority of Medway, in South East England, and part of the ceremonial county of Kent. Historically, Rainham was a separate village until, in 1928, it was added to the Municipal Borough of Gillingham, which had itself...

, England
Notable as the only industrial line in Britain to use an ex-WDLR
War Department Light Railways
The War Department Light Railways were a system of narrow gauge trench railways run by the British War Department in World War I. Light railways made an important contribution to the Allied war effort in the First World War, and were used for the supply of ammunition and stores, the transport of...

 Baldwin locomotive.
Broom Bank 1933 1962 Lower Twydall, England Steam hauled cement works and clay pit line
Chinnor Cement & Lime 1962 Chinnor
Chinnor
Chinnor is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire about southeast of Thame. The village is a Spring line settlement on the Icknield Way below the Chiltern escarpment...

, England
Locomotive and cable worked lines serving the chalk quarry and washmills.
Smeed Dean & Co. 1900 1949 Lower Twydall, England Chalk pit line
Francis & Co. 1871 1920 Cliffe
Cliffe
Cliffe could be*Cliffe, Kent, Kent*Cliffe, Richmondshire, North Yorkshire*Cliffe, Selby, North Yorkshire*Jess Cliffe , Valve Software*The Cliffe a residence in Peppermint Grove, Western Australia...

, England
Steam-worked chalk quarry railway
Gillingham Portland Cement Co. 1870s? 1910 Gillingham, England Early cement works line
I. C. Johnson & Co.
Isaac Charles Johnson
Isaac Charles Johnson was a British cement manufacturer, and a pioneer of the Portland cement industry.He was born in London. His father was a charge-hand at Francis & White's "Roman Cement" plant in Nine Elms. He himself worked there as a labourer from age 16 while studying chemistry...

before 1872 1928 Greenhithe
Greenhithe
Greenhithe is a town in Dartford District of Kent, England. It forms part of the civil parish of Swanscombe and Greenhithe.Greenhithe, as it is spelled today, is located where it was possible to build wharves for transshipping corn, wood and other commodities; its largest cargoes were of chalk and...

, England
Internal steam hauled railway, replaced by a standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...

 line.
J. B. White & Bros - Swanscombe Works 1825 1929 Swanscombe
Swanscombe
Swanscombe is a small town, part of the Borough of Dartford on the north Kent coast in England. It is part of the civil parish of Swanscombe and Greenhithe.-Prehistory:...

, England
Steam locomotive worked from 1875 onwards. Internal works line with rare outside flanged rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...

Knight, Bevan & Sturge 1873 ? 1928 Northfleet
Northfleet
Northfleet is a town in the Borough of Gravesham in Kent, England. Its name is derived from North creek , and the settlement on the shore of the River Thames adjacent to Gravesend was known as Norfluet in the Domesday Book, and Northflet in 1201...

, England
Extensive chalk quarry system, eventually superseded by a standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...

 line
Queensborough Cement Works 1896 1930? unknown Queensborough
Queensborough
Queensborough may refer to:*Queensborough Community College in the City University of New York system, New York City, USA*Queensborough, British Columbia, a neighbourhood in New Westminster, Canada...

, England
Line worked by two Aveling and Porter
Aveling and Porter
Aveling and Porter was a British agricultural engine and steam roller manufacturer. Thomas Aveling and Richard Thomas Porter entered into partnership in 1862, developed a steam engine three years later in 1865 and produced more steam rollers than all the other British manufacturers combined.-The...

 steam locomotives
RPCM Barrington Cement Works by 1979 Barrington
Barrington
- Australia :* Barrington, New South Wales* Barrington River * Barrington Tops National Park, New South Wales* Barrington, Tasmania* Barrington, Queensland- Canada :* Barrington, Nova Scotia* Barrington Head, Nova Scotia...

, England
Short locomotive-worked line
RPCM Rochester Works ? 1952 Halling
Halling, Kent
Halling is a village on the North Downs in the northern part of Kent, England, covering 7.1 square kilometres of land. Consisting of Lower Halling, Upper Halling and North Halling, it is scattered over some along the River Medway parallel to the Pilgrims' Way running over Kent.The origin of the...

, England
Extensive cement works railway
RPCM Southam Works ? 1956 Southam
Southam
Southam is a small market town in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a population of 6,509 in the town.The nearest sizeable town to Southam is Leamington Spa, located roughly 7 miles to the west...

, England
Steam locomotive worked railway
Tolhurst & Sons 1860s before 1948 Gravesend
Gravesend, Kent
Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, on the south bank of the Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. It is the administrative town of the Borough of Gravesham and, because of its geographical position, has always had an important role to play in the history and communications of this part of...

, England
Large internal chalk quarry system

Lime works

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Barn Hill Quarry railway 1928 1938 Chipping Sodbury
Chipping Sodbury
Chipping Sodbury is a market town in the county of South Gloucestershire, south-west England, founded in the 12th century by William Crassus . The villages of Old Sodbury and Little Sodbury are nearby...

, England
800 yards (732 m) long locomotive worked line; locomotive transferred to Penlee Quarry railway
Penlee Quarry railway
The Penlee Quarry railway was an industrial narrow gauge railway serving the Penlee Quarry at Newlyn in Cornwall. It was Cornwall's most westerly railway and one of the last operating narrow gauge industrial railways in the UK.- History :...

 in 1947
Black Rock Quarry before 1919 1949 Portishead
Portishead, Somerset
Portishead is a coastal town on the Severn Estuary within the unitary authority of North Somerset, which falls within the ceremonial county of Somerset England. It has a population of 22,000, an increase of over 3,000 since the 2001 census, with a growth rate of 40 per cent, considerably in excess...

, England
Steam locomotive worked tramway connecting the Black Rock and Nightingale quarries with the Weston, Clevedon and Portishead Railway
Weston, Clevedon and Portishead Railway
The Weston, Clevedon and Portishead Light Railway was conceived and built initially as a tramway to link the three small North Somerset coastal towns of Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon and Portishead in the 1880s.-Overview:...

British Quarrying Co Ltd Allington Quarry railway 1928 1956 ? Maidstone
Maidstone
Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...

, England
Locomotive worked internal quarry system
British Quarrying Co Ltd Borough Green Quarry railway before 1921 1956 Borough Green
Borough Green
Borough Green is a large village and civil parish in the Tonbridge and Malling District of Kent, England. The main village is situated on the A25 road between Maidstone and Sevenoaks in Kent.-History:...

, England
Internal quarry system for "Kentish Ragstone". Originally horse worked, Simplex
Motor Rail
Motor Rail was a British locomotive-building company, based in Bedford. Formed in 1911 as The Motor Rail & Tramcar Co Ltd, they built petrol and diesel engined locomotives, mainly narrow gauge. During World War I over 900 locos were supplied for use on temporary military supply railways...

 locomotive introduced in 1921
Brockham Lime Works 1870s (?) 1936 Dorking
Dorking
Dorking is a historic market town at the foot of the North Downs approximately south of London, in Surrey, England.- History and development :...

, England
Lime pits and works railway, later home of the Brockham Museum
Buriton Lime Works before 1897 after 1936 and Buriton
Buriton
Buriton is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England, 2 miles south of Petersfield. It lies just east of the A3 road....

, England
Diesel locomotive worked railway
Butserhill Lime Works before 1932 by 1945 Butser Hill
Butser Hill
Butser Hill is a chalk hill and one of the highest points in Hampshire. It is also the highest point on the chalk ridge of the South Downs and the second highest point in the South Downs National Park after Blackdown in the Western Weald. Although only high, it qualifies as one of England's...

, England
Cauldon Low Quarry before 1906 1933 Waterhouses
Waterhouses, Staffordshire
Waterhouses is a village in the south of the Staffordshire Peak District.It is around 8 miles from Leek and Ashbourne, being nearly the halfway point between the two towns on the A523 road, which roughly follows the southern boundary of the Peak District National Park...

, England
Limestone quarry with an internal steam-worked railway system
Dorking Greystone Lime Co. 1880 1954 and Betchworth
Betchworth
Betchworth is a village and civil parish in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England. The village lies on the north bank of the River Mole, off the A25 road, about three miles east of Dorking and three miles west of Reigate. The village lay within the Reigate hundred.It was home to the now...

, England
Well-known steam hauled internal limeworks line.
Dunball Quarry before 1930 1954 Dunball
Dunball
Dunball is a small hamlet west of the village of Puriton and close to the town of Bridgwater, Somerset, England.Just north of Dunball is Down End which is the site of Down End Castle a motte-and-bailey castle, which has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.Located on the A38, adjacent to...

, England
Steam locomotive worked tramway connecting the Dunball quarry with the lime works
Flagstaff Quarry 1941 Anglesey
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...

, Wales
Internal incline-worked quarry line
Little Ormes Head Quarry tramway
Little Ormes Head Quarry tramway
The Little Ormes Head Quarry tramway was an industrial narrow gauge railway operating at three levels within the extensive limestone quarry on the Penrhyn Bay side of the Little Orme at Llandudno on the North Wales coast.- Locomotives :...

1889 1931 Porth Dyniewyd, Wales Internal limestone quarry railway.
Milton Quarry early 1900s 1966 Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare is a seaside resort, town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, which is within the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located on the Bristol Channel coast, south west of Bristol, spanning the coast between the bounding high ground of Worlebury...

, England
Small limestone quarry with cable-hauled railway
Oxstead Greystone Lime Co. before 1912 1971 Oxstead, England Internal railway of lime quarry and works.
Parc-y-Meirch quarry railway 1923 1958 St. Asaph, Wales Locomotive-worked line connecting the limestone quarry with the standard gauge Kinmel Camp Railway
Kinmel Camp Railway
The Kinmel Camp Railway was a long standard gauge railway built to serve Kinmel Camp near Rhyl in north Wales.- History :Kinmel Camp was a training camp opened by the British Army in 1915 to train soldiers during the First World War...

Peak Forest Tramway
Peak Forest Tramway
The Peak Forest Tramway was an early horse- and gravity-powered industrial railway system in Derbyshire, England. Opened for trade on 31 August 1796, it remained in operation until the 1920s. Much of the route and the structures associated with the line remain...

1794 1923 Chapel en le Frith, England Early tramway that was horse and chain hauled throughout its life.
Whitehaven Quarry 1932 1953 Oswestry
Oswestry
Oswestry is a town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483, and A495 roads....

, Wales
A series of rope-hauled inclines and steam locomotive worked tramways.

Brickworks

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
A. Hone & Sons Ltd. Ewhurst Brickworks after 1971 Cranleigh
Cranleigh
Cranleigh is a large village, self-proclaimed the largest in England, and is situated 8 miles south east of Godalming in Surrey. It lies to the east of the A281 which links Guildford with Horsham; neighbouring villages include: Ewhurst, Alfold and Hascombe....

, England
Diesel and battery-electric locomotive worked line
Albrook Brickworks before 1939 after 1968 Eastleigh
Eastleigh
Eastleigh is a railway town in Hampshire, England, and the main town in the Eastleigh borough which is part of Southampton Urban Area. The town lies between Southampton and Winchester, and is part of the South Hampshire conurbation...

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line
Alne Brick Co. Ltd. Alne Brickworks after 1979 Easingwold
Easingwold
Easingwold is a small market town and a civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 4,233.It is located north of York, at the foot of the Howardian Hills....

, England
Locomotive-worked brickworks railway.
Alne Brick Co. Ltd. Hemingbrough Brickworks after 1979 Selby
Selby
Selby is a town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. Situated south of the city of York, along the course of the River Ouse, Selby is the largest and, with a population of 13,012, most populous settlement of the wider Selby local government district.Historically a part of the West Riding...

, England
Locomotive-worked brickworks railway.
Baxters Brickworks railway 1888 1969 Bexhill
Bexhill-on-Sea
Bexhill-on-Sea is a town and seaside resort in the county of East Sussex, in the south of England, within the District of Rother. It has a population of approximately 40,000...

, England
Short line serving the clay pit and brickworks.
Bilsthorpe Brick Co. Bilsthorpe Brickworks after 1979 and Bilsthorpe
Bilsthorpe
Bilsthorpe is a village and civil parish in the Newark and Sherwood district of Nottinghamshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 3,076. It is about five miles south of Ollerton, and near the junction of the A614 and A617....

, England
Two lines serving the brickworks
Buckley Tramroad 1780s 1862 Connah's Quay
Connah's Quay
Connah's Quay is the largest town in Flintshire, North Wales, lying on the River Dee, near the border with England. It can be accessed by road from the A550, by rail from the nearby Shotton station and also lies on the National Cycle Network Route 5. It is situated near the region's industrial...

, Wales
Early horse-worked plateway carrying coal and bricks from a canal wharf.
Butterley Brick Ltd. Cherry Orchard Lane Works ? 1993 Rochford
Rochford
Rochford is a small town in the Rochford district of Essex in the East of England. It is sited about 43 miles from Central London and approximately 21 miles from the Essex county town, Chelmsford...

, England
Short line serving the clay pit and brickworks.
Butterley Brick Ltd. Star Lane Brickworks ? 1991 Great Wakering
Great Wakering
Great Wakering is a village in Essex, England. The nearest large town is Southend which is approximately four miles to the west of the village...

, England
Short line serving the clay pit and brickworks.
Carbis Brickworks Tramway 1883 1942 Bugle
Bugle, Cornwall
Bugle is a village in central Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is in the parish of Treverbyn and is situated about five miles north of St Austell on the A391 road....

, England
Hand and gravity worked line, 350 yards (320 m) long.
Castle Firebrick Company about 1865 after 1920 (?) Northrop
Northrop Corporation
Northrop Corporation was a leading United States aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1939 until its merger with Grumman to form Northrop Grumman in 1994. The company is known for its development of the flying wing design, although only a few of these have entered service.-History:Jack...

, England
Internal brickworks line, worked by steam locomotives after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

.
Cattybrook Brickworks railway before 1900 after 1975 Cattybrook, England Line connecting clay pit to brickworks via an incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

 and diesel worked sections
Chilton Trinity Brickworks railway after 1962 Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...

, England
Locomotive worked clay pit line
Crowborough Brickworks before 1930 1980 Crowborough
Crowborough
The highest point in the town is 242 metres above sea level. This summit is the highest point of the High Weald and second highest point in East Sussex . Its relative height is 159 m, meaning Crowborough qualifies as one of England's Marilyns...

, England
Internal line at the brickworks, latterly worked by battery-electric locomotives.
Coronation Brickworks 1935 after 1969 Elstow
Elstow
Elstow is a village and civil parish in the English county of Bedfordshire. John Bunyan, was born here - at Bunyan's End, which lay approximately halfway between the hamlet of Harrowden and Elstow's High Street.-History:...

, England
London Brick Co Ltd brickworks near Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...

Cuckmere Brickworks railway ? about 1956 Berwick Station
Berwick (Sussex) railway station
Berwick railway station is located in Berwick Station, East Sussex and also serves Berwick, the village located nearby to the south of the A27 road. The station is on the East Coastway Line, and train services are provided by Southern...

, England
Clay pit line worked by internal combustion locomotives
DSF Refractories Ltd. Friden Brickworks after 1979 Hartington
Hartington
Hartington is a village in the Derbyshire Peak District, England, lying on the River Dove close to the Staffordshire border. According to the 2001 census, the parish of Hartington Town Quarter, which also includes Pilsbury, had a population of 345...

, England
Brickworks line worked by internal combustion locomotives
Gatwick Brick Co. Ltd. Hookwood Brickworks 1968 Gatwick, England 100 yards (91 m) long diesel locomotive worked line
George Jennings
George Jennings
George Jennings was an English sanitary engineer and plumber who invented the first public toilets.Josiah George Jennings was born on 10 November 1810 in Eling, at the edge of the New Forest in Hampshire. He was the eldest of seven children of Jonas Joseph Jennings and Mary Dimmock...

 South Western Pottery
before 1937 1963 Parkstone
Parkstone
Parkstone is an area of Poole, Dorset. It is divided into 'Lower' and 'Upper' Parkstone. Upper Parkstone - "Up-on-'ill" as it used to be known in local parlance - is so-called because it is largely on higher ground slightly to the north of the lower-lying area of Lower Parkstone - "The Village" -...

, England
Locomotive-worked line between the clay pit and the pottery
Gillingham Pottery, Brick & Tile Co. Ltd. before 1901 1970 Parkstone
Parkstone
Parkstone is an area of Poole, Dorset. It is divided into 'Lower' and 'Upper' Parkstone. Upper Parkstone - "Up-on-'ill" as it used to be known in local parlance - is so-called because it is largely on higher ground slightly to the north of the lower-lying area of Lower Parkstone - "The Village" -...

, England
Locomotive-worked line between the clay pit and the pottery
Goxhill Building Products Ltd. Barrow Haven Works after 1979 Barrow Haven
Barrow Haven
Barrow Haven is a hamlet and small port in North Lincolnshire, England. Site of a former ferry crossing to Hull, which now handles timber imports from Riga and Tallinn. Barrow Haven railway station is on the Barton Line. It was a convenient place for ships and boats crossing the Humber to moor away...

, England
Brickworks line worked by internal combustion locomotives
Halstow Creek Brickworks before 1900 1920s Lower Halstow
Lower Halstow
Lower Halstow is a village located in Kent, England. The village is situated on the banks of the Medway Estuary and it has a long and interesting history, with evidence of constant occupation since the iron age. Being so close to the water, Lower Halstow has been a village that has made its...

, England
Served claypit and brickworks. Originally horse worked, one of the first electric locomotives was introduced here in 1902.
Hambledon Lane Brickworks ? after 1983 Nutbourne
Nutbourne
Nutbourne may refer to:* Nutbourne, Horsham, West Sussex, England* Nutbourne, Chichester, West Sussex, England...

, England
Henry Oakland and Son Ltd. Escrick Tileworks after 1979 York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...

, England
Internal locomotive-worked line
Innes Lee Industries Campbell Brickworks by 1979 Staveley
Staveley
Staveley could refer to several places:*Staveley, Cumbria*Staveley-in-Cartmel*Staveley, Derbyshire*Staveley, North Yorkshire*Staveley, New Zealand, a locality in the Ashburton District-Surname:...

, England
Brickworks line worked by internal combustion locomotives
Littlethorpe Potteries  present Littlethorpe
Littlethorpe, North Yorkshire
Littlethorpe is a village and a civil parish in the Harrogate District, in the English county of North Yorkshire. It is near the small city of Ripon. Littlethorpe has a place of worship. It is near Ripon Canal.-External links:...

, England
0.5 mile (0.80467 km) long hand-worked line connecting the clay pits to the pottery
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company is a leading British manufactuer of bricks. It is owned by Hanson plc.- History :The London Brick Company owes its origins to John Cathles Hill, a developer-architect who built houses in both London and Peterborough...

 No. 2 Works
after 1979 Whittlesey
Whittlesey
Whittlesey, historically known as Whittlesea as the name of the railway station is still spelt, or Witesie, is an ancient Fenland market town around six miles east of Peterborough in the county of Cambridgeshire in England...

, England
Locomotive-worked brickworks railway
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company is a leading British manufactuer of bricks. It is owned by Hanson plc.- History :The London Brick Company owes its origins to John Cathles Hill, a developer-architect who built houses in both London and Peterborough...

 Arlesey Works
after 1979 Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...

, England
Short locomotive-worked line on top of clay kilns
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company is a leading British manufactuer of bricks. It is owned by Hanson plc.- History :The London Brick Company owes its origins to John Cathles Hill, a developer-architect who built houses in both London and Peterborough...

 Clock House Works
after 1968 , and Capel
Capel
- People :* Arthur Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Hadham * Henry Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Tewkesbury * Edward Capell * Capel Lofft * Mgr Thomas John Capel , English Roman Catholic Priest...

, England
Electric and diesel locomotive worked lines
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company is a leading British manufactuer of bricks. It is owned by Hanson plc.- History :The London Brick Company owes its origins to John Cathles Hill, a developer-architect who built houses in both London and Peterborough...

 Fletton Works
1889? after 1960 Peterborough
Peterborough
Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...

, England
Claypit and brickworks line of unusual gauge
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company
The London Brick Company is a leading British manufactuer of bricks. It is owned by Hanson plc.- History :The London Brick Company owes its origins to John Cathles Hill, a developer-architect who built houses in both London and Peterborough...

 Warboys Works
1984 Warboys
Warboys
Warboys is a village in Huntingdonshire , England, near Ramsey and north east of Huntingdon.-History:Warboys is a large parish and village on what was the eastern side of Huntingdonshire bordering on Cambridgeshire. It was returned in the Domesday survey of 1086 amongst the lands of St...

, England
Locomotive-worked brickworks railway
Ludlay Brick & Tile Co. ? 1965 Berwick, England Internal brick works railway at Berwick in Sussex.
Lytchett Brick Co. Ltd. before 1901 after 1966 Upton
Upton, Dorset
Upton is a village in south east Dorset, England. It is the second largest village in Purbeck-Geography:The village is built around a road junction where the Blandford to Hamworthy road crosses the main Poole to Dorchester road. The Poole suburbs of Hamworthy and Turlin Moor adjoin the village to...

, England
Locomotive-worked line between the clay pit and the pottery
Manfield Brickworks before 1955 after 1963 Cranleigh
Cranleigh
Cranleigh is a large village, self-proclaimed the largest in England, and is situated 8 miles south east of Godalming in Surrey. It lies to the east of the A281 which links Guildford with Horsham; neighbouring villages include: Ewhurst, Alfold and Hascombe....

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line, converted to cable haulage in 1955
Midhurst Whites after 1913 1980 Midhurst
Midhurst
Midhurst is a market town and civil parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England, with a population of 4,889 in 2001. The town is situated on the River Rother and is home to the ruin of the Tudor Cowdray House and the stately Victorian Cowdray Park...

, England
Brickworks with three separate narrow gauge lines
Napton Brickworks railway after 1961 Napton, England Hand worked clay pit line
No. 5 Fireclay Mine railway ? after 1968 Micklam, England Diesel locomotive worked line operated by the British Steel Corporation
North Holmwood Brickworks ? 1981 Dorking
Dorking
Dorking is a historic market town at the foot of the North Downs approximately south of London, in Surrey, England.- History and development :...

, England
Internal system for the Redland Brick Co.'s clay pit and brickworks using diesel, battery-electric and incline cable haulage
Nutbourne Brickworks after 1980 Hambledon, Surrey
Hambledon, Surrey
Hambledon is a small and scattered village in Surrey, south of Guildford. It is tucked away amongst fields and woodland between Witley and Chiddingfold....

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line connecting the brickworks and clay pits
Ockley (Surrey) Brick, Tile and Pottery Company Smokejacks Brickworks after 1968 Cranleigh
Cranleigh
Cranleigh is a large village, self-proclaimed the largest in England, and is situated 8 miles south east of Godalming in Surrey. It lies to the east of the A281 which links Guildford with Horsham; neighbouring villages include: Ewhurst, Alfold and Hascombe....

, England
Battery-electric and diesel locomotive worked line
Ospringe Brickworks railway after 1968 Faversham
Faversham
Faversham is a market town and civil parish in the Swale borough of Kent, England. The parish of Faversham grew up around an ancient sea port on Faversham Creek and was the birthplace of the explosives industry in England.-History:...

, England
Extremely short line with one diesel locomotive
Rookley Brickworks 1972 Newport
Newport, Isle of Wight
Newport is a civil parish and a county town of the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of England. Newport has a population of 23,957 according to the 2001 census...

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line in clay pit
Rosemary Brickworks railway ? after 1970 Cheslyn Hay
Cheslyn Hay
Cheslyn Hay is a former mining village in south Staffordshire, between Cannock and Walsall.Station Street is the main street with some small shops.A major employer in the village is B.S. Eaton Ltd, a manufacturer of concrete products...

, England
Locomotive worked line in clay pit leading to an incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

 to the brickworks
Rowlands Castle Brickworks before 1932 after 1964 Rowlands Castle, England Hand-worked line in clay pit leading to cable hauled incline to brickworks
Smithbrook Brickworks (1936) Ltd. after 1965 Cranleigh
Cranleigh
Cranleigh is a large village, self-proclaimed the largest in England, and is situated 8 miles south east of Godalming in Surrey. It lies to the east of the A281 which links Guildford with Horsham; neighbouring villages include: Ewhurst, Alfold and Hascombe....

, England
Mainly hand-worked line, with occasional use of a Lister diesel locomotive
Standard Brick & Sand Co. Ltd. Holmethorpe Brickworks before 1911 1963 Holmethorpe
Holmethorpe
Holmethorpe is a suburb of Redhill, Surrey in England.-Etymology:The village's name is from Middle English holm "island, cognate with Old Norse holmr and Old English throp/þrop, cognate with Old Norse thorp/þorp....

, England
An extensive steam and diesel locomotive worked clay tramway
Strensall Brickworks railway by 1975 Strensall
Strensall
Strensall is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of the City of York in North Yorkshire, England, on the River Foss north of York and north-east of Haxby. Prior to 1996 it had been part of the Ryedale district. It covers an area of 2,908 acres....

, England
Locomotive worked clay pit line
Storr Hill Brickworks railway 1869? 1981 Wyke
Wyke
Wyke is a Ward in Bradford Metropolitan District in the county of West Yorkshire, England, named after the village of Wyke....

, England
An unusual chain-worked double track plateway
Plateway
A plateway is an early kind of railway or tramway or wagonway, with a cast iron rail. They were mainly used for about 50 years up to 1830, though some continued later....

 only 250 yards (229 m) long.
Swallow's Tiles (Cranleigh) Ltd. before 1953 after 1966 Cranleigh
Cranleigh
Cranleigh is a large village, self-proclaimed the largest in England, and is situated 8 miles south east of Godalming in Surrey. It lies to the east of the A281 which links Guildford with Horsham; neighbouring villages include: Ewhurst, Alfold and Hascombe....

, England
Mainly hand-worked clay pit line with cable hauled incline, and occasional use of a diesel locomotive
Warnham Brickworks before 1909 1965 Horsham
Horsham
Horsham is a market town with a population of 55,657 on the upper reaches of the River Arun in the centre of the Weald, West Sussex, in the historic County of Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester...

, England
Internal line serving the brickworks and clay pit.
W. H. Collier Marks Tey Brickworks after 1979 Marks Tey
Marks Tey
Marks Tey is a large village in Essex, England located six miles west of Colchester.Marks Tey railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line, and is a junction for the Sudbury Branch Line to Sudbury...

, England
Internal locomotive-worked line serving the brickworks.
Wheatly and Co. Ltd. Springfield Tileries after 1979 Stoke on Trent, England Locomotive-worked railway
William Blythe
William Blythe
William Blythe may refer to:*Bill Blythe , former member of the Texas House of Representatives*William Jefferson Blythe, Jr. , father of Bill Clinton...

 Barton Brick & Tile Yard
after 1979 Barton-on-Humber, England Locomotive-worked line
William Blythe Far Ings Tileries after 1979 Barton-on-Humber, England Locomotive-worked line
Woodside Brickworks before 1949 by 1967 ? Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...

, England
Internal brickworks railway notable for its two Sentinel
Sentinel Waggon Works
Sentinel Waggon Works Ltd was a British company based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire that made steam-powered lorries, railway locomotives, and later, diesel engined lorries and locomotives.-Alley & MacLellan, Sentinel Works, Jessie Street Glasgow:...

 high-pressure steam locos.

Clay extraction

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
APCM Alkerden Works before 1900 1943 Swanscombe
Swanscombe
Swanscombe is a small town, part of the Borough of Dartford on the north Kent coast in England. It is part of the civil parish of Swanscombe and Greenhithe.-Prehistory:...

, England
Large steam-worked clay pit line
BPCM Bean Works 1920 1964 Bean, Kent
Bean, Kent
Bean is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Dartford in Kent, England. The village, the centre of the parish, is about three miles east of Dartford town centre. The parish is bounded on the north by the A2 road , and on the other three sides by ancient woodlands...

, England
Short line serving a clay pit on the banks of the Thames
Bridgemarsh Brickfields Company 1870 1892 unknown Bridgemarsh Island
Bridgemarsh Island
Bridgemarsh Island is in the tidal part of the River Crouch in the English county of Essex, three miles upstream from Burnham-on-Crouch. To the north it is bounded by Bridgemarsh Creek and to the south by the River Crouch....

, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...

, England
Connected work to pier for transhipment onto Thames barges
Far Ings Tileries 1905 2001 Barton-upon-Humber
Barton-upon-Humber
Barton-upon-Humber or Barton is a small town and civil parish in North Lincolnshire, England located on the south bank of the Humber Estuary, and at the end of the Humber Bridge. It lies east of Leeds, southwest of Hull and north northeast of the county town of Lincoln...

, England
Late survivor of the clay tramways, including a cable-hauled
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

 incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

 and (diesel) locomotive worked sections.
Fayle's Tramway 1905 1971 until 1948
after 1948
Norden, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...

, England
Clay tramway that replaced the Middlesbere and Newton tramways. Remaining section around Norden regauged in 1948 to suit ex-WHR
Welsh Highland Railway
The Welsh Highland Railway is a long restored narrow gauge heritage railway in North Wales, operating from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, and passing through a number of popular tourist destinations including Beddgelert and the Aberglaslyn Pass. At Porthmadog it connects with the Ffestiniog Railway...

 locomotive Russell and various diesels
Furzebrook Railway
Furzebrook Railway
The Furzebrook Railway, also known as the Pike Brothers' Tramway, was a narrow gauge industrial railway on the Isle of Purbeck in the English county of Dorset...

1830 1968 until 1866
after 1866
Furzebrook, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...

, England
Horse-hauled clay plateway
Plateway
A plateway is an early kind of railway or tramway or wagonway, with a cast iron rail. They were mainly used for about 50 years up to 1830, though some continued later....

, replaced in 1866 by steam-hauled industrial railway
Industrial railway
An industrial railway is a type of railway that is not available for public transportation and is used exclusively to serve a particular industrial, logistics or military site...

 serving the clay pits around Creech Heath.
John Knowles Ltd. Woodville Clay Pits Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...

, England
Laporte Industries Ltd. Coombe Hay Mines after 1979 Bath, England Fuller's earth
Fuller's earth
Fuller's earth is any non-plastic clay or claylike earthy material used to decolorize, filter, and purify animal, mineral, and vegetable oils and greases.-Occurrence and composition:...

 mine with battery electric locomotives
Meeth Clay Company 1920 1970 Woolladon, England Short line carrying clay from the pits at Meeth.
Middlebere Tramway 1806 1907 (?) Norden, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...

, England
Horse-powered plateway
Plateway
A plateway is an early kind of railway or tramway or wagonway, with a cast iron rail. They were mainly used for about 50 years up to 1830, though some continued later....

 serving clay pits near Corfe Castle.
Newton Tramway 1860 (?) 1905 Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being the Frome. The harbour has a long history of human settlement...

, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...

, England
Originally opened as Horse drawn tramway until locomotive Tiny introduced around 1870s, became part of Fayle's Tramway
Pentewan Railway
Pentewan Railway
The Pentewan Railway was a British narrow gauge railway in Cornwall. It was built as a horse-drawn tramway carrying china clay from St Austell to the harbour at Pentewan. In 1874 the line was rebuilt by engineer John Barraclough Fell and converted to locomotive working, at which time the gauge was...

1829 1918 , after 1874 Pentewan
Pentewan
Pentewan is a coastal village and former port in south Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated at three miles south of St Austell at the mouth of the St Austell River....

, England
Initially horse-hauled, worked by steam locomotives after 1874. Connected St Austell
St Austell
St Austell is a civil parish and a major town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the south coast approximately ten miles south of Bodmin and 30 miles west of the border with Devon at Saltash...

 to Pentewan
Pentewan
Pentewan is a coastal village and former port in south Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated at three miles south of St Austell at the mouth of the St Austell River....

Redlake Tramway
Redlake Tramway
The Redlake Tramway was a railway built to carry supplies and workers between Bittaford and the clay workings at Redlake, near the centre of the southern part of Dartmoor, Devon, England. It was built in 1911 to a gauge of , and ran for a circuitous ....

1911 Unknown , Redlake (Dartmoor
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an area of moorland in south Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...

) to Bittaford, England
8.3 miles (13.4 km) in length.
Thomas Marshall & Co (Loxley) Ltd. Storrs Bridge Fireclay Mine after 1979 Loxley
Loxley
Loxley may refer to:*Loxley, South Yorkshire, formerly a village, now a suburb on the western outskirts of Sheffield; traditionally the birthplace of Robin Hood**River Loxley, a river in South Yorkshire*Loxley, Warwickshire, a village in England...

, England
Locomotive-worked underground railway
Thakeham Tiles before 1937 1982 Storrington
Storrington
Storrington is a village in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England, and one of two in the civil parish of Storrington and Sullington. Storrington lies at the foot of the north side of the South Downs. As of 2006 the village has a population of around 4,600. It has one main shopping street...

, England
Short line serving the tile works
Watts Blake Bearne & Co. Ltd. West Golds Mine after 1979 Newton Abbott, England Underground clay mine railway

China clay extraction

In Britain large deposits of Kaolinite
Kaolinite
Kaolinite is a clay mineral, part of the group of industrial minerals, with the chemical composition Al2Si2O54. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral sheet of alumina octahedra...

 (commonly known as "china clay") were found in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...

. Many industrial railways, both narrow gauge and standard gauge, were built to serve the china clay quarries and mines of this area.
Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Beacon China Clay Kiln 1928 1963 St Austell
St Austell
St Austell is a civil parish and a major town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the south coast approximately ten miles south of Bodmin and 30 miles west of the border with Devon at Saltash...

, England
Tramway from the kilns to a loading wharf next to the Beacon siding on the standard gauge line from Drinnick Mill and Burngullow.
Blackpool China Clay Pit after 1956 Trewoon
Trewoon
Trewoon, pronounced true-un, is a village in south Cornwall, United Kingdom in St Mewan civil parish. It is situated on the western outskirts of St Austell on the A3058 road, about one mile from the town centre....

, England
Tramway from the clay pits to a tip.
Charlestown No. 1 China Clay Kiln 1908 1960s St Austell
St Austell
St Austell is a civil parish and a major town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the south coast approximately ten miles south of Bodmin and 30 miles west of the border with Devon at Saltash...

, England
Two tramways running mainly in tunnels. Rails and wagons remain in the tunnels which were sealed when the kilns closed.
Hendra China Stone Quarry 1860s after 1967 Nanpean
Nanpean
Nanpean is a village in the civil parish of St Stephen-in-Brannel in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the B3279 road approximately four miles northwest of St Austell in the heart of 'clay country', the china clay quarrying area of mid-Cornwall.Nanpean church was built in 1879...

, England
Internal quarry tramway system with cable hauled inclines
Hendra Light Railway 1919 1939 Nanpean
Nanpean
Nanpean is a village in the civil parish of St Stephen-in-Brannel in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the B3279 road approximately four miles northwest of St Austell in the heart of 'clay country', the china clay quarrying area of mid-Cornwall.Nanpean church was built in 1879...

, England
0.75 miles (1.2 km) long petrol locomotive worked railway connecting a loading wharf at the GWR
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...

 to the Hendra china clay kilns.
Melbur China Clay Pit 1920s ? (?) St. Stephen, England Hand worked tramways
Pochins Tramway 1880 1933 (?) Gothers
Gothers
Gothers is a hamlet near St Dennis in Cornwall, England, UK....

, England
Railway connecting the Gothers china clay works with the GWR
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...

. May have been gauge. The last of the four steam locomotives was scrapped on site in 1953.
Quarry Close China Stone Works 1863 1973 Nanpean
Nanpean
Nanpean is a village in the civil parish of St Stephen-in-Brannel in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the B3279 road approximately four miles northwest of St Austell in the heart of 'clay country', the china clay quarrying area of mid-Cornwall.Nanpean church was built in 1879...

, England
A network of lines connecting several quarries to the GWR
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...

 branch line from Drinnick Mill.
Restowrack China Clay Kiln 1907 1969 Treviscoe, England A hand-worked tramway from a loading wharf on the St. Dennis junction to Burngallow branch line into the kiln.
Tregargus China Stone Quarry 1890s 1968 St. Stephen, England A network of lines and inclines connecting the quarry with six mills.
Wheal Remfry China Clay Pit after 1910 Retew
Retew
Retew was a village near St Austell in Cornwall that was demolished in the early 1960s when the nearby Wheal Remfrey china clay quarry and waste heaps were expanded....

, England
Horse worked internal tramway

Sand and gravel extraction

The sand and gravel extraction industries made extensive use of narrow gauge railways, and several of these lasted into the 1980s - this was one of the last industries to make significant use of narrow gauge industrial railways in the UK.

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Ace Sand and Gravel Co. Ltd. Marsh House quarries by 1979 Aore, England Locomotive-worked line
Ballast Producers Ltd. Farnham Pits before 1934 1952 Farnham
Farnham
Farnham is a town in Surrey, England, within the Borough of Waverley. The town is situated some 42 miles southwest of London in the extreme west of Surrey, adjacent to the border with Hampshire...

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line serving the gravel pits around Farnham
Bretts Faversham Sand Quarry railway 1930s (?) 1969 (?) Faversham
Faversham
Faversham is a market town and civil parish in the Swale borough of Kent, England. The parish of Faversham grew up around an ancient sea port on Faversham Creek and was the birthplace of the explosives industry in England.-History:...

, England
Sand and gravel haulage
Bretts Sturry Gravel railway ? after 1968, by 1979 Sturry
Sturry
Sturry is a village on the Great Stour river three miles north-east of Canterbury in Kent. The large parish of Sturry Church incorporates the former mining village of Hersden and several hamlets.-Geography:...

, England
Served gravel pits on the River Stour
River Stour, Kent
The River Stour is the river in Kent, England that flows into the English Channel at Pegwell Bay. Above Plucks Gutter, where the Little Stour joins it, the river is normally known as the Great Stour. The upper section of the river, above its confluence with the East Stour at Ashford is sometimes...

Biddenham Gravel Pit railway by 1920 1930s Biddenham
Biddenham
Biddenham is a large village and a civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, located to the west of Bedford near the A428 road.The village largely serves as a dormitory settlement for Bedford, and also for commuters to London, being on the same side of the town centre as Bedford railway station...

, England
Short horse-worked line serving Biddenham gravel pit, near Bedford
Bedford
Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. It is a large town and the administrative centre for the wider Borough of Bedford. According to the former Bedfordshire County Council's estimates, the town had a population of 79,190 in mid 2005, with 19,720 in the adjacent town...

.
British Industrial Sand Ltd. Middleton Towers railway 1977 Kings Lynn, England Extensive locomotive-worked sand quarry system. Five remaining diesel locomotives acquired by the LBLR
Leighton Buzzard Light Railway
The Leighton Buzzard Light Railway is a narrow gauge light railway in Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, England. It operates on a gauge, and is just under long. The line was built after the First World War to serve sand quarries north of the town...

 in 1980.
Buckland Sand & Silica Co. before 1934 after 1935 Reigate
Reigate
Reigate is a historic market town in Surrey, England, at the foot of the North Downs, and in the London commuter belt. It is one of the main constituents of the Borough of Reigate and Banstead...

, England
Short steam-hauled railway working sand from the pits to a private BR-worked siding
Croxden Gravel Ltd. Twelve Yards Road Pit ? after 1979 Irlam
Irlam
Irlam is a suburban town and unparished area within the City of Salford in Greater Manchester, England. At the 2001 census it had a population of 18,504. The town lies on flat ground on the south side of the M62 motorway and the north bank of the Manchester Ship Canal, and is west-southwest of...

, England
Locomotive-worked line
Earls Barton sand quarry railway after 1975 Earls Barton
Earls Barton
Earls Barton is a village and civil parish in eastern Northamptonshire, notable for its Saxon church and shoe-making heritage.The village was the inspiration for the film Kinky Boots and part of the film was shot here...

, England
Small sand pit with internal locomotive worked line
East Sussex Transport and Trading Company early 1930s 1964 Cuckmere Haven
Cuckmere Haven
Cuckmere Haven is an area of flood plains in Sussex, England where the river Cuckmere meets the English Channel between Eastbourne and Seaford. The river is an example of a meandering river, and contains several oxbow lakes...

, England
Hauled gravel extracted from the Cuckmere Haven beach to Exceat.
G.F.X Hartigan Ltd. Woad Farm Pits 1933 1959 (dismantled 1962) Newport Pagnell
Newport Pagnell
Newport Pagnell is a town in the Borough of Milton Keynes , England. It is separated by the M1 motorway from Milton Keynes itself, though part of the same urban area...

, England
Line serving gravel pits on the River Great Ouse
River Great Ouse
The Great Ouse is a river in the east of England. At long, it is the fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The river has been important for navigation, and for draining the low-lying region through which it flows. Its course has been modified several times, with the first recorded being in...

. Used four diesel-mechanical locomotives.
Hall & Co. before 1938 late 1960s Eastbourne
Eastbourne
Eastbourne is a large town and borough in East Sussex, on the south coast of England between Brighton and Hastings. The town is situated at the eastern end of the chalk South Downs alongside the high cliff at Beachy Head...

, England
Shingle extraction railway on The Crumbles.
Hall & Ham River Co. North Station Pits before 1964 1970 Farnborough
Farnborough
Farnborough may refer to:* Farnborough, Berkshire, a small village and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire* Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England...

, England
Gravel extraction railway using diesel locomotives, at least two of which went to the Brockham Museum after the line closed.
Ham River Grit Co. Ltd. Bletchingley Pits after 1963 Redhill
Redhill, Surrey
Redhill is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead, Surrey, England and is part of the London commuter belt. Redhill and the adjacent town of Reigate form a single urban area.-History:...

, England
Steam and diesel locomotive worked line
Ham River Grit Co. Ltd. Ham Pits before 1932 Kingston
Kingston upon Thames
Kingston upon Thames is the principal settlement of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in southwest London. It was the ancient market town where Saxon kings were crowned and is now a suburb situated south west of Charing Cross. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the...

, England
Steam locomotive worked line
Heavers Gravel 1920s 1962 Drayton
Drayton
- In the United Kingdom :* Drayton, Hampshire* Drayton, Leicestershire* Drayton, Lincolnshire* Drayton, Norfolk* Drayton, Northamptonshire** Drayton Reservoir, Northamptonshire* Drayton, Cherwell, Oxfordshire* Drayton, Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire...

, England
Internal gravel pit line
Hoveringham Gravels Ltd. Holme Pierrepoint Pit by 1979 Holme Pierrepoint, England Internal gravel pit line
Hoveringham Gravels Ltd. Hoveringham Works by 1979 Hoveringham
Hoveringham
Hoveringham is a small village in Nottinghamshire about northeast of Nottingham and on the west side of the River Trent, just off the A612 trunk road to Southwell...

, England
Inns & Co. Ltd. Farnborough Pits before 1964 1967 Farnborough
Farnborough
Farnborough may refer to:* Farnborough, Berkshire, a small village and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire* Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England...

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line
Inns & Co. Ltd. Savay Farm Gravel Pits 1949 abur 1964 Denham
Denham
- People :* Carl Denham, fictional character from King Kong* Daryl Denham, British radio DJ* Digby Denham, Australian politician* Dixon Denham, British explorer* Henry Denham, British printer* Henry Mangles Denham, , Royal navy...

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line, east of the River Colne
River Colne, Hertfordshire
The Colne is a river in England which is a tributary of the River Thames. It flows mainly through Hertfordshire and forms the boundary between the South Bucks district of Buckinghamshire and the London Borough of Hillingdon...

Leighton Buzzard Light Railway
Leighton Buzzard Light Railway
The Leighton Buzzard Light Railway is a narrow gauge light railway in Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, England. It operates on a gauge, and is just under long. The line was built after the First World War to serve sand quarries north of the town...

1919 1969 Leighton Buzzard
Leighton Buzzard
-Lower schools:*Beaudesert Lower School - Apennine Way*Clipstone Brook Lower School - Brooklands Drive*Greenleas Lower School - Derwent Road*Dovery Down Lower School - Heath Road*Heathwood Lower School - Heath Road*Leedon Lower School - Highfield Road...

, England
Industrial railway
Industrial railway
An industrial railway is a type of railway that is not available for public transportation and is used exclusively to serve a particular industrial, logistics or military site...

 that carried sand from the quarries around Leighton Buzzard
Marlow Sand and Gravel Co. Ltd. Westhorpe Pits ? after 1979 Little Marlow
Little Marlow
Little Marlow is a village and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England.It is on the north bank of the River Thames, about a mile east of Marlow. The toponym "Marlow" is derived from the Old English for "land remaining after the draining of a pool"...

, England
Locomotive worked sand pit railway
Penfolds Ltd. ? 1963 Eartham
Eartham
Eartham is a village and civil parish in the District of Chichester in West Sussex, England located north east of Chichester east of the A285 road....

, England
Gravel extraction line
Pentewan Dock & Concrete Company 1939 1966 Pentewan
Pentewan
Pentewan is a coastal village and former port in south Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated at three miles south of St Austell at the mouth of the St Austell River....

, England
Diesel locomotive worked line carrying sand from the shoreline dunes to the grading equipment. Used some of the trackbed of the earlier Pentewan Railway.
Piel & Walney Gravel Co. Ltd. ? 1962 Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness is an industrial town and seaport which forms about half the territory of the wider Borough of Barrow-in-Furness in the county of Cumbria, England. It lies north of Liverpool, northwest of Manchester and southwest from the county town of Carlisle...

, England
Steam locomotive operated gravel line running to a pier at Walney.
Pilkington Glass
Pilkington
Pilkington Group Limited is a multinational glass manufacturing company headquartered in St Helens, United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of the Japan-based NSG Group...

 Mill lane siding
? by 1979 Rainford
Rainford
Rainford is a village and civil parish within Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, in Merseyside, England. It is around north of St Helens. At the 2001 Census the population of the civil parish was 8,344....

, England
Locomotive-worked line
Pilkington Glass
Pilkington
Pilkington Group Limited is a multinational glass manufacturing company headquartered in St Helens, United Kingdom. It is a subsidiary of the Japan-based NSG Group...

 St. Helens quarry railway
? after 1968 St. Helens
St Helens, Merseyside
St Helens is a large town in Merseyside, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens with a population of just over 100,000, part of an urban area with a total population of 176,843 at the time of the 2001 Census...

, England
Temporary locomotive-worked railways used for sand extraction for glass making
Twickenham Gravel Company Waltham Cross Gravel Pits Railway 1931 1964? Waltham Cross
Waltham Cross
Waltham Cross is the most southeasterly town in Hertfordshire, England. It is 12 miles from the City of London and immediately north of the M25 motorway, forming part of the Greater London Urban Area and London commuter belt. Part of Waltham Cross is located within Greater London.-Geography:It is...

, England
Locomotive-worked railways connecting gravel pits and crushing plant
Thomas Patterson & Sons Weydon Hill sand pit around 1919 Farnham
Farnham
Farnham is a town in Surrey, England, within the Borough of Waverley. The town is situated some 42 miles southwest of London in the extreme west of Surrey, adjacent to the border with Hampshire...

, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

, England
One of the first sand railways installed using ex-WDLR
War Department Light Railways
The War Department Light Railways were a system of narrow gauge trench railways run by the British War Department in World War I. Light railways made an important contribution to the Allied war effort in the First World War, and were used for the supply of ammunition and stores, the transport of...

 surplus equipment.

Slate

The most well-known of the British industrial narrow gauge railways were those serving the slate industry of north Wales. Many of the quarries had internal tramways and feeder lines connecting them to transhipment points on local railways, rivers, roads or coastal ports.

Granite

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Bearah Tor Quarry ? late 1980s Liskeard
Liskeard
Liskeard is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.Liskeard is situated approximately 20 miles west of Plymouth, west of the River Tamar and the border with Devon, and 12 miles east of Bodmin...

, England
Short, hand worked internal quarry railway.
Brada Quarry railway 1935 1950s Bamburgh
Bamburgh
Bamburgh is a large village and civil parish on the coast of Northumberland, England. It has a population of 454.It is notable for two reasons: the imposing Bamburgh Castle, overlooking the beach, seat of the former Kings of Northumbria, and at present owned by the Armstrong family ; and its...

, England
Internal quarry system; locomotive worked until 1944 by two Lister petrol locos
Carreg-y-Llam Quarry railway before 1900 1963 and Llithfaen
Llithfaen
Llithfaen is a small village on the Llyn Peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales. It is located around 4 miles north-east of Nefyn and lies just south-west of Yr Eifl mountain. There used to be three quarries close to the village, the last of which closed in 1963.-References:...

, Wales
Original locomotive-worked internal railway removed in 1949, but a new gauge line was installed in the mid 1950s.
Ceiriog Granite Quarries railway 1914 1959 Criggion
Criggion
Criggion is a village in Powys, Wales. Criggion radio station was located nearby. A branch of the now defunct Shropshire and Montgomeryshire Railway stopped at Criggion.- External links :**...

, Wales
Internal quarry system worked by a single steam locomotive until 1921, when it was replaced by cable-haulage.
Charnwood Granite Quarries railway 1850s 1963 Shepshed
Shepshed
Shepshed, often known until 1888 as Sheepshed, is a town in Leicestershire, England with a population of around 14,000 people...

, England
Early horse worked quarry system; steam locomotives introduced in late 1890s, replaced by internal combustion locos in 1937.
Cliffe Hill Mineral Railway
Cliffe Hill Mineral Railway
The Cliffe Hill Mineral Railway was an industrial narrow gauge railway that connected the Cliffe Hill granite quarry to the nearby London Midland and Scottish Railway between Leicester and Coalville. The line opened in 1896 and operated until 1948....

1896 1948 Stanton under Bardon
Stanton under Bardon
Stanton-under-Bardon is a village and civil parish in the Hinckley and Bosworth district of Leicestershire, England. Population approx 1000 residents.. The houses are generally constructed out of red brick, with many on Main Street being Terraced and having long, thin gardens...

, England
Hauled stone from the Cliffe Hill Granite Quarry.
Groby Granite Quarries railway 1893 1943 Groby
Groby
Groby is a large English village in the county of Leicestershire, to the north west of the city of Leicester. The population at the time of the 2001 census was 7,301.-Description:...

, England
Extensive internal quarry system worked by five Hunslet
Hunslet Engine Company
The Hunslet Engine Company is a British locomotive-building company founded in 1864 at Jack Lane, Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England by John Towlerton Leather, a civil engineering contractor, who appointed James Campbell as his Works Manager.In 1871, James Campbell bought the company for...

 steam locomotives.
Haytor Granite Tramway
Haytor Granite Tramway
The Haytor Granite Tramway was a unique granite-railed tramway running down from Haytor Down, Dartmoor, Devon. The tramway was built in 1820 to carry Haytor granite, which was of fine grain and high quality, down from the heights of Dartmoor for the construction of houses, bridges and other...

by 1824 1858 Dartmoor
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an area of moorland in south Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...

, England
Horse-drawn tramway serving the granite quarries around Haytor. Used granite "setts" as rails.
Jee's Hartshill Granite Quarry ? 1956? Nuneaton
Nuneaton
Nuneaton is the largest town in the Borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth and in the English county of Warwickshire.Nuneaton is most famous for its associations with the 19th century author George Eliot, who was born on a farm on the Arbury Estate just outside Nuneaton in 1819 and lived in the town for...

, England
Granite quarry with an extensive locomotive-worked tramway system.
Llanelwedd Granite Quarries railways 1929 after 1969 and Builth Wells
Builth Wells
Builth Wells is a town in the county of Powys, within the historic boundaries of Brecknockshire, mid Wales, lying at the confluence of the River Wye and the River Irfon, in the Welsh of the Wye Valley. It has a population of 2,352....

, Wales
Internal quarry system; the gauge line was horse-worked and closed in 1953; the gauge was hand-worked apart from between 1953 and 1961 when a Lister locomotive was used.
Lunedale Whinstone Company railway 1878 around 1918 Mickleton
Mickleton, County Durham
Mickleton is a village in Teesdale, in the Pennines of England. It was historically located in the North Riding of Yorkshire but along with the rest of the former Startforth Rural District it was transferred to County Durham for administrative and ceremonial purposes on 1 April 1974, under the...

, England
Steam locomotive worked line connecting the quarry with a siding on the North Eastern Railway
North Eastern Railway (UK)
The North Eastern Railway , was an English railway company. It was incorporated in 1854, when four existing companies were combined, and was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923...

Newcastle Granite and Whinstone Company 1902 1939 Haltwhistle
Haltwhistle
Haltwhistle is a small town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, situated east of Brampton, near Hadrian's Wall, and the villages of Plenmeller, Rowfoot and Melkridge...

, England
Locomotive worked line connecting Cawfields Quarry to Haltwhistle station
Penmaenbach Stone quarry tramway 1875 1962 Penmaenmawr
Penmaenmawr
PenmaenmawrConwyPenmaenmawr is a town in the parish of Dwygyfylchi, in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The population was 3857 in 2001. It is a quarrying town, though the latter is no longer a major employer, on the North Wales coast between Conwy and Llanfairfechan.The town was bypassed by the A55...

, Wales
Smaller working beside the Penmaenmawr quarry with an internal tramway system and a series of inclines down to the coast.
Penmaenmawr & Welsh Granite Co.
Penmaenmawr & Welsh Granite Co.
The Penmaenmawr & Welsh Granite Co. owned and operated a major granite quarry on the north Wales coast located between Conwy and Llanfairfechan. Granite axe-heads and other implements from Neolithic quarries at Penmaenmawr have been found throughout Britain....

1830s 1967 Penmaenmawr
Penmaenmawr
PenmaenmawrConwyPenmaenmawr is a town in the parish of Dwygyfylchi, in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The population was 3857 in 2001. It is a quarrying town, though the latter is no longer a major employer, on the North Wales coast between Conwy and Llanfairfechan.The town was bypassed by the A55...

, Wales
Extensive steam-hauled internal railway system in granite quarry complex.
Trefor Quarry railway
Trefor Quarry railway
The Trefor Quarry railway was an industrial narrow gauge railway connecting the Trefor granite quarry with the pier at Llanaelhaearn on the Llŷn Peninsula.- History :...

1850 1962 Llanaelhaearn
Llanaelhaearn
Llanaelhaearn is a village and community in the Welsh county of Gwynedd, located on the Llŷn Peninsula. The community includes the village of Trefor, and has a population of 1,067....

, Wales
Internal quarry railway, with large incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

 to a steam locomotive worked pier branch

Other stone

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Downhead Basalt Quarry by 1904 1925 Downhead
Downhead
Downhead is a village and civil parish close to Leigh-on-Mendip and north east of Shepton Mallet, in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the medieval settlement of Tadhill.-History:...

, England
Steam locomotive worked quarry line
East Cornwall Mineral Railway
East Cornwall Mineral Railway
The East Cornwall Mineral Railway was a narrow gauge industrial railway opened in 1872 to serve the iron ore and stone quarries around Callington in Cornwall....

1872 1891/1908 Callington, England Early steam
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...

-worked railway serving the iron ore and stone quarries around Callington.
Harecrag Quarry railway 1969 Shilbottle
Shilbottle
Shilbottle is a village in Northumberland, north-east England, located 3 miles south-east of Alnwick, and 5 miles from the coast and Alnmouth...

, England
Roadstone quarry operated by Northumberland County Council operated by six Hunslet
Hunslet Engine Company
The Hunslet Engine Company is a British locomotive-building company founded in 1864 at Jack Lane, Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England by John Towlerton Leather, a civil engineering contractor, who appointed James Campbell as his Works Manager.In 1871, James Campbell bought the company for...

 diesel locomotives.
Long Rake Spar mine after 1979 Youlgreave
Youlgreave
Youlgreave or Youlgrave is a village in the Derbyshire Peak District, lying on the River Bradford, four kilometres south of Bakewell. Both spellings are used on different local signposts and on different maps. The name possibly derives from "yellow grove" , though was historically called "Giolgrave"...

, England
Underground aggregates mine railway operated by battery-electric locomotives.
Monks Park Mine before 1991 present Corsham
Corsham
Corsham is a historic market town and civil parish in north west Wiltshire, England. It is at the south western extreme of the Cotswolds, just off the A4 which was formerly the main turnpike road from London to Bristol, between Bath and Chippenham ....

, England
Bath stone underground mine. Surface lines were locomotive worked until 1991
Penlee Quarry railway
Penlee Quarry railway
The Penlee Quarry railway was an industrial narrow gauge railway serving the Penlee Quarry at Newlyn in Cornwall. It was Cornwall's most westerly railway and one of the last operating narrow gauge industrial railways in the UK.- History :...

about 1900 1972 Newlyn
Newlyn
Newlyn is a town and fishing port in southwest Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.Newlyn forms a conurbation with the neighbouring town of Penzance and is part of Penzance civil parish...

, England
Aggregate quarry served by England's most westerly railway and one of the last industrial narrow gauge railways to operate. Used both steam and diesel locomotives.
St. Keverne & Associated Quarries 1912 1958 Porthoustock
Porthoustock
Porthoustock is a hamlet near St Keverne in Cornwall, United Kingdom, on the east coast of Lizard Peninsula. Aggregates are quarried nearby and Porthoustock beach is dominated by a large concrete stone mill. The mill was once used to crush stone but is now disused. Container ships of up to 82m can...

, England
Roadstone quarries connected by a network of railways. At least two lightweight Lister locomotives and several cable inclines were used.
Titterstone Clee Hill Quarry railway
Titterstone Clee Hill
Titterstone Clee Hill, sometimes referred to as Clee Hill or Titterstone Clee, is a hill in the rural English county of Shropshire, rising at the summit to 533 m above sea level....

before 1910 1952 Ludlow
Ludlow
Ludlow is a market town in Shropshire, England close to the Welsh border and in the Welsh Marches. It lies within a bend of the River Teme, on its eastern bank, forming an area of and centred on a small hill. Atop this hill is the site of Ludlow Castle and the market place...

, England
Dhustone quarry with an internal horse worked railway; steam locomotive worked from 1910. Included a 1 mile long incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

Tregongeeves Quarry 1931 1961 St. Mewan, England Roadstone quarry with cable incline and three petrol locomotives.
West of England Quarry by 1979 St. Keverne, England Aggregates quarry with a short locomotive-worked line

Coal

The British coal mining industry made extensive use of narrow gauge railways, particularly underground where the restricted size of the tunnels meant that narrow gauge lines were and are particularly well suited. Many National Coal Board
National Coal Board
The National Coal Board was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the mines on "vesting day", 1 January 1947...

 (NCB) mines used railways both underground and in the stock yards above ground. There were also many short lines at private mines, particularly in south Wales and the Forest of Dean
Forest of Dean
The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. The forest is a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.The...

 regions.
Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Ayle Colliery 1932 after 1996 , , , Alston
Alston, Cumbria
Alston is a small town in Cumbria, England on the River South Tyne. It is one of the highest elevation towns in the country, at about 1,000 feet above sea level.-Geography:...

, England
Private colliery with locomotive-worked mine railway.
Bryn Oer Tramway
Bryn Oer Tramway
The Bryn Oer Tramway was a horse-worked narrow gauge railway built in South Wales in 1814.- History :...

1815 1865 Talybont on Usk, Wales Early horse-drawn tramway
Copeland District Council Wellington Colliery after 1987 Whitehaven Harbour, England Private colliery with preserved locomotive
Doe Lee Colliery before 1979 Out of use by 1987 Chesterfield
Chesterfield
Chesterfield is a market town and a borough of Derbyshire, England. It lies north of Derby, on a confluence of the rivers Rother and Hipper. Its population is 70,260 , making it Derbyshire's largest town...

, England
Underground locomotive worked mine railway
Flow Edge Colliery before 1979 by 1987 Alston
Alston, Cumbria
Alston is a small town in Cumbria, England on the River South Tyne. It is one of the highest elevation towns in the country, at about 1,000 feet above sea level.-Geography:...

, England
Small battery-electric locomotive worked mine railway
Foxcote Colliery 1890 1931 Chilcompton
Chilcompton
Chilcompton is a civil parish and village in Somerset, England, situated in the Mendip Hills two miles south of Midsomer Norton and 2.5 miles south-west of Westfield, close to the A37 .-History:...

, England
Steam locomotive worked tramway
Hope Level Mine ? 1988 ? Stanhope
Stanhope
-Places:* Stanhope, Victoria, Australia* Stanhope, Prince Edward Island, Canada* Stanhope, Quebec, Canada* Stanhope, County Durham, England, UK* Stanhope, Kent, England, UK* Stanhope, Peeblesshire, Scotland, UK* Stanhope, Iowa, US* Stanhope, New Jersey, US...

, England
Small mine operation with loco-worked railway
Huish Colliery after 1824 1912 Radstock
Radstock
Radstock is a town in Somerset, England, south west of Bath, and north west of Frome. It is within the unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset and had a population of 5,275 according to the 2001 Census...

, England
Internal tramway
Kilmersdon Colliery before 1886 1973 Radstock
Radstock
Radstock is a town in Somerset, England, south west of Bath, and north west of Frome. It is within the unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset and had a population of 5,275 according to the 2001 Census...

, England
Internal tramway
Little Eaton Gangway
Little Eaton Gangway
The Little Eaton Gangway, or, to give it its official title, the Derby Canal Railway, was a narrow gauge industrial wagonway serving the Derby Canal, in England, at Little Eaton in Derbyshire.- The Derby Canal :...

1795 1908 Little Eaton
Little Eaton
Little Eaton is a village in the English county of Derbyshire. The name originated from Anglo Saxon times and means the little town by the water....

, England
Very early horse-drawn tramway serving the collieries north of Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...

Lower Writhlington Colliery 1867 1973 Chilcompton
Chilcompton
Chilcompton is a civil parish and village in Somerset, England, situated in the Mendip Hills two miles south of Midsomer Norton and 2.5 miles south-west of Westfield, close to the A37 .-History:...

, England
Steam locomotive worked tramway
Mendip Shaft ? 1968 Chilcompton
Chilcompton
Chilcompton is a civil parish and village in Somerset, England, situated in the Mendip Hills two miles south of Midsomer Norton and 2.5 miles south-west of Westfield, close to the A37 .-History:...

, England
Private colliery with surface and underground tramway
Moorside Mining ? 1992 Eckington, Derbyshire
Eckington, Derbyshire
Eckington is a town in North East Derbyshire, 7 miles north of Chesterfield and 8.5 miles south of Sheffield on the border with South Yorkshire.Eckington has a population of 11,152....

, England
Private colliery, purchased twelve battery electric locomotives from South Crofty mine in 1992
NCB BatesColliery 1986 Blyth
Blyth, Northumberland
Blyth is a town and civil parish in southeast Northumberland, England. It lies on the coast, to the south of the River Blyth and is approximately 21 kilometres  northeast of Newcastle upon Tyne...

, England
Diesel locomotive worked underground colliery system
NCB Berwick Drift Stockyard ? Present Lynemouth
Lynemouth
Lynemouth is a village in Northumberland, England. The village is situated northeast of Ashington, and is in close proximity to the village of Ellington which is located to the north west...

, England
One of several locomotive-worked stock yard railways in the British coal industry.
NCB Clockburn Drift Mine railway ? after 1968 County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...

, England
Substantially built double-track line for coal haulage from the main mine adit.
NCB Gascoigne Wood Colliery railway ? ? South Milford
South Milford
South Milford is a small village and civil parish located in the district of Selby, in the county of North Yorkshire, England. Historically an agricultural village, the population has recently boomed due to housing development...

, England
Underground mine railway
NCB Harworth Colliery railway ? ? Bircotes
Bircotes
Bircotes is a mining town in the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, on the border with the metropolitan borough of Doncaster . It is located at , and forms the civil parish of Harworth and Bircotes with its neighbour Harworth. The parish has a population of around 8,000 people. The nearest...

, England
Underground mine railway
NCB Hentley Training Centre ? 1991 Hentley, England Test incline and locomotive worked lines
NCB Kellingley Colliery railway ? ? Kellingley, England Underground mine railway
NCB Kellingley Training Centre railway ? ? Kellingley, England Mine training railway
NCB Lewis Merthyr Colliery railway ? 1983 Rhondda
Rhondda
Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley , is a former coal mining valley in Wales, formerly a local government district, consisting of 16 communities built around the River Rhondda. The valley is made up of two valleys, the larger Rhondda Fawr valley and the smaller Rhondda Fach valley...

, Wales
Stock yard line worked by diesel locomotives
NCB Parkside Colliery railway ? after 1972 Newton-le-Willows
Newton-le-Willows
Newton-le-Willows is a small market town within the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, in Merseyside, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it is situated about midway between the cities of Manchester and Liverpool, to the east of St Helens, to the north of Warrington and to the south of...

, England
Stock yard line worked by diesel locomotives
NCB Prince of Wales Colliery railway ? ? Pontefract
Pontefract
Pontefract is an historic market town in West Yorkshire, England. Traditionally in the West Riding, near the A1 , the M62 motorway and Castleford. It is one of the five towns in the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield and has a population of 28,250...

, England
Underground mine railway
NCB Riccall Colliery railway ? ? Riccall
Riccall
Riccall is a village and civil parish situated in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England, lying 3.5 miles north of Selby and 9 miles to the south of York. It is historically part of the East Riding of Yorkshire. According to the 2001 census the parish had a total population of...

, England
Underground mine railway
NCB Stillingfleet Colliery railway ? ? Stillingfleet
Stillingfleet
Stillingfleet is a village and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England. It is about south of York and nearby settlements include Acaster Selby and Appleton Roebuck....

, England
Underground mine railway
NCB Tilmanston Colliery 1986 Eythorne
Eythorne
Eythorne is a civil parish and small village of about 1000 homes, located 7.3 miles NNW of Dover in Kent. There are currently about 2500 residents. Eythorne holds many historical attributes. Situated a few miles away from Dover beach, it offers many articles of evidence of the war...

, England
Modern underground colliery system
NCB Wentworth Drift Mine railway 1947 1955 Wentworth
Wentworth, South Yorkshire
Wentworth is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 1,223.- History :...

, England
Locomotive-worked surface and underground railway system
NCB Wistow Colliery railway ? ? Wistow
Wistow, North Yorkshire
Wistow is a small village and civil parish just north of Selby, North Yorkshire, England. Until 2004 Wistow had a small colliery.-External links:*...

, England
Underground mine railway
New Peacock Hay Colliery railway ? ? Harecastle, England Cable-hauled incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

 from a small private coal mine
New Rock Colliery 1968 Chilcompton
Chilcompton
Chilcompton is a civil parish and village in Somerset, England, situated in the Mendip Hills two miles south of Midsomer Norton and 2.5 miles south-west of Westfield, close to the A37 .-History:...

, England
Internal tramway
Norton Hill Colliery 1966 Midsomer Norton
Midsomer Norton
Midsomer Norton is a town near the Mendip Hills in Somerset, England, south-west of Bath, north-east of Wells, north-west of Frome, and south-east of Bristol. It has a population of 10,458. Along with Radstock and Westfield it used to be part of the conurbation and large civil parish of Norton...

, England
Surface and underground tramways
Pensford Colliery 1910 1957 Pensford
Pensford
Pensford is a village in the civil parish of Publow and Pensford in Somerset, England. It lies in the Chew Valley south of Bristol and west of Bath...

, England
Mile long railway connecting the colliery to Bromley station. Initially steam locomotive worked, later cable hauled.
Pentwyn No.3 Mine ? after 1994 Ystalyfera
Ystalyfera
Ystalyfera is a former industrial village in the upper Swansea Valley, on the River Tawe, about north-east of Swansea. It is an electoral ward and a community in the unitary authority of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, comprising a resident population of just over 3,000 people, approximately 60% of whom...

, Wales
One of the last coal mines using pit ponies
Pit pony
A pit pony was a type of pony commonly used underground in coal mines from the mid 18th up until the mid 20th century.-History:Ponies began to be used underground, often replacing child or female labour, as distances from pit head to coal face became greater...

 on a railway.
Saundersfoot Railway
Saundersfoot Railway
The Saundersfoot Railway was a Welsh industrial narrow gauge railway built in 1829 to carry coal from mines around Reynalton to the harbour at Saundersfoot on the Pembrokeshire coast. It was the first railway line to be built in Pembrokeshire, remaining independent until it closed in 1939...

1829 1939 Saundersfoot
Saundersfoot
Saundersfoot is a community in Pembrokeshire, west Wales. It is known as a seaside resort, and along with nearby Tenby is one of the most visited Welsh holiday destinations.-Harbour:...

, Wales
Early industrial railway
Industrial railway
An industrial railway is a type of railway that is not available for public transportation and is used exclusively to serve a particular industrial, logistics or military site...

 hauling coal.
Severn & Wye Railway 1801 1869 Forest of Dean
Forest of Dean
The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. The forest is a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.The...

, England
Coal and iron hauling tramway, eventually replaced by a broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...

 line.
Weardale Minerals ? 1988 Cambokeels, England Colliery railway
Weardale Mining and Processing ? 1988 West Blackdene
West Blackdene
West Blackdene is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated to the north of the River Wear, opposite Ireshopeburn....

, England
Colliery railway

Peat extraction

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Country Kitchen Foods Lindow Moss railway  ? after 1987 Wilmslow
Wilmslow
-Economy:Wilmslow is well known, like Alderley Edge, for having many famous residents, notably footballers, stars of Coronation Street and rich North West businessmen. The town is part of the so-called Golden Triangle in the north west together with Alderley Edge and Prestbury...

, England
Peat moss tramway using diesel locomotives.
Cumberland Moss Litter railway  after 1979 Wigton
Wigton
Wigton is a small market town and civil parish outside the Lake District, in the administrative county of Cumbria in England, and traditionally in Cumberland. It is the bustling and thriving centre of the Solway Plain, situated between the Caldbeck Fells and the Solway coast...

, England
Extremely lightly laid temporary lines for peat extraction
Eden Park Nurseries 1987 ? Wark Forest
Wark Forest
Wark Forest is the name of the southern part of Kielder Forest in Northumberland England. Wark Forest is found within the south-west tip of Northumberland National Park....

, England
A relatively new narrow gauge industrial railway.
Haversham House Farm railway ? ? Lancaster
Lancaster, Lancashire
Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire, England. It is situated on the River Lune and has a population of 45,952. Lancaster is a constituent settlement of the wider City of Lancaster, local government district which has a population of 133,914 and encompasses several outlying towns, including...

, England
Turf farm railway
Joseph Metcalf Ltd. ? 1999 ? Irlam
Irlam
Irlam is a suburban town and unparished area within the City of Salford in Greater Manchester, England. At the 2001 census it had a population of 18,504. The town lies on flat ground on the south side of the M62 motorway and the north bank of the Manchester Ship Canal, and is west-southwest of...

, England
Lightly laid peat tramway using modern diesel locomotives.
L&P Ltd. Creca Moss ? Present? Annan
Annan, Dumfries and Galloway
The royal burgh of Annan is a well-built town, red sandstone being the material mainly used. Each year in July, Annan celebrates the Royal Charter and the boundaries of the Royal Burgh are confirmed when a mounted cavalcade undertakes the Riding of the Marches. Entertainment includes a...

, Scotland
Peat extraction line
L&P Ltd. Letham Moss ? Present ? Airth
Airth
Airth is a Royal Burgh, village, former trading port and civil parish in Falkirk, Scotland. It is north of Falkirk town and sits on the banks of the River Forth. Airth lies on the A905 road between Grangemouth and Stirling and is overlooked by Airth Castle, the village retains two market crosses...

, Scotland
Peat extraction line
L&P Ltd. Nutberry Works ? Present ? Eastriggs
Eastriggs
Eastriggs is a village in the south of Dumfries and Galloway. It has a small number of shops, a restaurant, post office, public house, working men's club and a church...

, Scotland
Peat extraction line near Gretna Green
Gretna Green
Gretna Green is a village in the south of Scotland famous for runaway weddings. It is in Dumfries and Galloway, near the mouth of the River Esk and was historically the first village in Scotland, following the old coaching route from London to Edinburgh. Gretna Green has a railway station serving...

.
Moodiesburn Peat Works railway ? ? Glenboig
Glenboig
Glenboig is a village in the North Lanarkshire area of Scotland lying north of Coatbridge.Glenboig's railway station closed in 1960 and the local coal mining and brick-making industries ceased by the 1980s.The village's first school was built in 1875-6....

, Scotland
Locomotive worked line a few hundred yards long
Richardson's Peat Work railway ? after 1979 Longtown
Longtown, Cumbria
Longtown is a small town in northern Cumbria, England, with a population of around 3,000. It is in the parish of Arthuret and on the River Esk, not far from the Anglo-Scottish border. Nearby was the Battle of Arfderydd....

, England
Peat tramway in Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...

.
Fisons Ltd.
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc is a global pharmaceutical and biologics company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's seventh-largest pharmaceutical company measured by revenues and has operations in over 100 countries...

 Cumbria Peat Works 
after 1979 after 1987 Kirkbridge, England Locomotive-worked peat railway.
Fisons Ltd.
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc is a global pharmaceutical and biologics company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's seventh-largest pharmaceutical company measured by revenues and has operations in over 100 countries...

 Eclipse Peat Works
1922 after 1979 Meare
Meare
Meare is a village and civil parish north west of Glastonbury on the Somerset Levels, in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the village of Westhay.-History:...

, England
Locomotive-worked peat railway.
Fisons Ltd.
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc is a global pharmaceutical and biologics company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's seventh-largest pharmaceutical company measured by revenues and has operations in over 100 countries...

 Hatfield Peat Works
? Present Hatfield
Hatfield, Doncaster
Hatfield is a town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. It has a population of 16,184.-Geography:...

, England
One of the few remaining working industrial narrow gauge railways in England.
Fisons Ltd.
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc is a global pharmaceutical and biologics company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's seventh-largest pharmaceutical company measured by revenues and has operations in over 100 countries...

 Swinefleet Peat Works
? after 1989 Goole
Goole
Goole is a town, civil parish and port located approximately inland on the confluence of the rivers Don and Ouse in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England...

, England
Peat works railway employing at least 11 internal combustion locomotives. Two new Schoma
Schöma
Schöma is a company based in Diepholz, Germany, specialising in the construction of small diesel railway engines.-External links:*...

 locomotives delivered in 1989
Solway Moss railway ? after 1987 Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...

, England
Peat tramway with at least 10 4wDM locomotives on site in 1987
George Watson & Sons Middlemuir peat railway approx. 1949 1989 Fraserburgh
Fraserburgh
Fraserburgh is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland with a population recorded in the 2001 Census at 12,454 and estimated at 12,630 in 2006. It lies at the extreme northeast corner of Aberdeenshire, around north of Aberdeen, and north of Peterhead...

, Scotland
Peat tramway with three Lister locomotives in 1989
White Moss Peat Co. Ltd. Simonswood Moss after 1979 Kirkby
Kirkby
Kirkby is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in the metropolitan county of Merseyside in England. The town was developed from the 1950s through 1970s as a means to house the overspill of Liverpool. It is situated roughly north of Huyton, the administrative HQ of the borough and about...

, England
Locomotive-worked line
White Moss Peat Co. Ltd. White Moss Works railway 1958 Alsager
Alsager
Alsager is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, to the north-west of the city of Stoke-on-Trent, and east of the railway town of Crewe...

, England
Very lightweight line of less than 1 mile length; worked using Lister locomotives
William Sinclair Horticultural Auchencorth Moss railway ? ? Leadburn, Scotland
William Sinclair Horticultural Bolton Fell railway ? Present Hethersgill
Hethersgill
Hethersgill is a village and a civil parish in the City of Carlisle district, in the county of Cumbria, England. Hethersgill has a church called St Mary's Church. In 2001 the population of the civil parish of Hethersgill was 382.- External links :*...

, England
Lightly laid, locomotive worked peat extraction line.
William Sinclair Horticultural Cladence Moss railway 1998 Present East Kilbride
East Kilbride
East Kilbride is a large suburban town in the South Lanarkshire council area, in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland. Designated as Scotland's first new town in 1947, it forms part of the Greater Glasgow conurbation...

, Scotland
Lightly laid, locomotive worked peat extraction line.
William Sinclair Horticultural Ryflat Moss railway late 1990s Present ? Strathclyde
Strathclyde
right|thumb|the former Strathclyde regionStrathclyde was one of nine former local government regions of Scotland created by the Local Government Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government etc Act 1994...

, Scotland
William Sinclair Horticultural Springfield Moss railway ? ? Leadburn, Scotland
Wilmslow Peat Farm railway before 1979 2000 Wilmslow
Wilmslow
-Economy:Wilmslow is well known, like Alderley Edge, for having many famous residents, notably footballers, stars of Coronation Street and rich North West businessmen. The town is part of the so-called Golden Triangle in the north west together with Alderley Edge and Prestbury...

, England
Locomotive-worked peat tramway near Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...


Other mineral extraction

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Blue Circle Industries Ltd. Kilvington Gypsum Works after 1979 Newark
Newark-on-Trent
Newark-on-Trent is a market town in Nottinghamshire in the East Midlands region of England. It stands on the River Trent, the A1 , and the East Coast Main Line railway. The origins of the town are possibly Roman as it lies on an important Roman road, the Fosse Way...

, England
Locomotive-worked railway.
British Gypsum Mines Ltd. Gotham Works after 1979 Gotham, Nottinghamshire
Gotham, Nottinghamshire
Gotham is a village in Nottinghamshire, England, south of Nottingham and north-east of Kegworth. Gotham has a population of about 1,600. It is administered as part of the Rushcliffe district of Nottingham, and has a parish council....

, England
Underground locomotive-worked railway.
British Gypsum Mines Ltd. Mountfield Works 1945 after 1966 Mountfield
Mountfield, East Sussex
Mountfield is a village and civil parish in the Rother District of East Sussex three miles north-west of Battle. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book....

, England
Inclined adit and works railway.
British Steel Corporation Beaumont Fluor Mine after 1979 Allenheads
Allenheads
 Allenheads is a village in Northumberland, England, situated in the Pennines to the north of Weardale. It is the village at the highest altitude in England. Allenheads is situated 8 miles further along the river East Allen from Allendale...

, England
Underground locomotive-worked fluor
Fluor
Fluor Corporation is a publicly owned engineering, procurement, construction, and maintenance services organization. Fluor is headquartered in the Las Colinas area of Irving, Texas. The company employs more than 41,000 international employees and maintains offices in over 25 countries...

 mine.
British Steel Corporation Blackdene Fluor Mine after 1979 Ireshopeburn
Ireshopeburn
Ireshopeburn is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated on the south side of Weardale, between St John's Chapel and Wearhead, and on the other side of the Wear from West Blackdene and New Ho...

, England
Underground locomotive-worked fluor
Fluor
Fluor Corporation is a publicly owned engineering, procurement, construction, and maintenance services organization. Fluor is headquartered in the Las Colinas area of Irving, Texas. The company employs more than 41,000 international employees and maintains offices in over 25 countries...

 mine.
British Steel Corporation Blanchland Fluor Mines after 1979 Ireshopeburn
Ireshopeburn
Ireshopeburn is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated on the south side of Weardale, between St John's Chapel and Wearhead, and on the other side of the Wear from West Blackdene and New Ho...

, England
Underground locomotive-worked fluor
Fluor
Fluor Corporation is a publicly owned engineering, procurement, construction, and maintenance services organization. Fluor is headquartered in the Las Colinas area of Irving, Texas. The company employs more than 41,000 international employees and maintains offices in over 25 countries...

 mine.
Hagdale Chromate Railway 1907 1937 Isle of Unst, Scotland Remote line hauling chromate
Chromate
Chromate salts contain the chromate anion, CrO42−. Dichromate salts contain the dichromate anion, Cr2O72−. They are oxyanions of chromium in the oxidation state +6. They are moderately strong oxidizing agents.- Chemical properties :...

 from quarries to a pier on Balta Sound
Balta Sound
Balta Sound is a sound on the east coast of the island of Unst in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. The sound is sheltered from the North Sea to the east by the uninhabited island of Balta.The settlement at the west of the sound is Baltasound....

. Worked by gravity and horse-power.
J. Parish Loam works 1849 1957 Erith
Erith
Erith is a district of southeast London on the River Thames. Erith's town centre has undergone a series of modernisations since 1961.-Pre-medieval:...

, England
Steam locomotive hauled railway moving loam
Loam
Loam is soil composed of sand, silt, and clay in relatively even concentration . Loam soils generally contain more nutrients and humus than sandy soils, have better infiltration and drainage than silty soils, and are easier to till than clay soils...

 for metal casting molds.
Laporte Industries Ltd. Ladywash Mine after 1987 Eyam
Eyam
Eyam is a small village in Derbyshire, England. The village is best known for being the "plague village" that chose to isolate itself when the plague was discovered there in August 1665, rather than let the infection spread...

, England
Underground fluorite
Fluorite
Fluorite is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It is an isometric mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon...

 mine with locomotive worked railway
Laporte Industries Ltd. Sallet Hole Mine after 1987 Stoney Middleton
Stoney Middleton
Stoney Middleton is a village in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. It lies in the White Peak area of the Peak District southeast of Eyam and northwest of Calver, on the A623 road at the foot of the limestone valley of Middleton Dale....

, England
Underground fluorite
Fluorite
Fluorite is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It is an isometric mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon...

 mine with locomotive worked railway
Laporte Industries Ltd. Watersaw Rake Mine after 1987 Stoney Middleton
Stoney Middleton
Stoney Middleton is a village in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. It lies in the White Peak area of the Peak District southeast of Eyam and northwest of Calver, on the A623 road at the foot of the limestone valley of Middleton Dale....

, England
Underground mine with battery electric locomotive worked railway
Lealt Valley Diatomite Railway 1890 1915 Isle of Skye, Scotland Remote line hauling "diatomic earth" which is used as a polishing agent. Steam worked for a short while.
Raasay Railway 1880s 1918 ? Isle of Skye, Scotland Remote line hauling Wolframite
Wolframite
Wolframite WO4, is an iron manganese tungstate mineral that is the intermediate between ferberite and huebernite . Along with scheelite, the wolframite series are the most important tungsten ore minerals. Wolframite is found in quartz veins and pegmatites associated with granitic intrusives...

 ore which is used in steel making.
Scropton Tramway
Scropton Tramway
The Scropton Tramway was a British industrial narrow gauge railway connecting several gypsum mines with the North Staffordshire Railway station at Scropton in Staffordshire. It was also used to transport munitions during WWII.- Locomotives :-See also:...

1889 1949 Scropton
Scropton
Foston and Scropton is a civil parish in the Dove valley in South Derbyshire. It includes the village of Scropton and hamlet of Foston.The Domesday book records that in 1086 Henry de Ferrers held a manor here....

, England
Steam hauled tramway serving Gypsum mines south of Scropton station.

Tin, lead and zinc

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Ardda Tramway 1853 1864 probably Dolgarrog
Dolgarrog
Dolgarrog is a small village in the Conwy County Borough in North Wales situated between Llanrwst and Conwy, very close to the Conwy River. The village is well known for its industrial history since the 18th century and the Eigiau dam disaster, which occurred in 1925...

, Wales
Iron sulphide mine with 1 mile long tramway
Athole G. Allen Ltd. Closehouse Barytes Mine after 1979 and
Middleton-in-Teesdale
Middleton-in-Teesdale
Middleton-in-Teesdale is a small market town in County Durham, in England. It is situated on the north side of Teesdale between Eggleston and Newbiggin, a few miles to the north west of Barnard Castle...

, England
Locomotive-worked barytes mine.
Basset Mines Tramway before 1907 1918 Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...

, England
Steam locomotive worked line connecting the West Basset Mine and the stamps at Carnike
Botallack Mine before 1864 St Just
St Just in Penwith
St Just is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish encompasses the town of St Just and the nearby settlements of Trewellard, Pendeen and Kelynack: it is bounded by the parishes of Morvah to the north-east, Sancreed and Madron to the east, St Buryan and Sennen to...

, England
300 yard surface line and cliff-side inclines into the mine.
Cae-Coch Mine railway 1860 1919 unknown Trefriw
Trefriw
Trefriw is a village in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It lies on the river Conwy in North Wales, a few miles south of the site of the Roman fort of Canovium, sited at Caerhun. The parish population in 2001 was 924....

, Wales
Tramway serving a remote iron sulphide mine
Camborne Mines Ltd. Pendarves Mine after 1979 Camborne
Camborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....

, England
Underground railway serving the Pendarves tin mine
Carrock Fell mine after 1979 Mungrisdale
Mungrisdale
Mungrisdale is a small village and civil parish in the north east of the English Lake District in Cumbria. It is also the name of the valley in which the village sits....

, England
Lead mine with a single battery-electric locomotive
Cononish Farm Mine railway ? Present? Tyndrum
Tyndrum
Tyndrum is a small village in Scotland. Its Gaelic name translates as "the house on the ridge". It lies in Strathfillan, at the southern edge of Rannoch Moor.The village is notable mainly for being at an important crossroads of transport routes...

, Scotland
Mine railway in intermittent use.
Cornwall Tin and Mining Corporation Mount Wellington Mine by 1979 Twelveheads
Twelveheads
Twelveheads is a hamlet in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It lies between Truro and Redruth.Twelveheads has a small Methodist chapel; Billy Bray, the Methodist preacher, was born here. The former village pub and post office are both now private housing.The name comes from the hamlet's...

, Cornwall, England
Underground Tin mine
Cornish Hush Mine railway ? Late 1970s Bishop Auckland
Bishop Auckland
Bishop Auckland is a market town and civil parish in County Durham in north east England. It is located about northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham at the confluence of the River Wear with its tributary the River Gaunless...

, Scotland
Railway at a Fluorspar mine, operated by a battery electric locomotive
CTS Mining Ltd. Wheal Concord mine after 1987 Blackwater, Cornwall
Blackwater, Cornwall
Blackwater is a village in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated in the parish of St Agnes between Truro and Redruth. The village lies on the old course of the A30 north of the current course which bypasses it...

, England
Underground mine railway using battery electric locomotives
Force Crag Mine Ltd. Braithwaite Barytes Mine after 1987 Keswick
Keswick, Cumbria
Keswick is a market town and civil parish within the Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria, England. It had a population of 4,984, according to the 2001 census, and is situated just north of Derwent Water, and a short distance from Bassenthwaite Lake, both in the Lake District National Park...

, England
Railway at a Barytes mine, operated by a battery electric locomotive
Geevor Tin Mines Ltd. Pendeen Mine
Geevor Tin Mine
Geevor Tin Mine is a tin mine in the far west of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, between the villages of Pendeen and Trewellard. It was operational between 1911 and 1990 during which time it produced about 50,000 tons of black tin. It is now a museum and heritage centre left as a living history...

1911 1991 St Just
St Just in Penwith
St Just is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish encompasses the town of St Just and the nearby settlements of Trewellard, Pendeen and Kelynack: it is bounded by the parishes of Morvah to the north-east, Sancreed and Madron to the east, St Buryan and Sennen to...

, England
Extensive underground tin mine railway. Part of the site, with reinstated tramway, has been reopened as the Geevor Tin Mines Museum.
Glenn Sannox Railway  around 1900 late 1940s unknown Sannox
Sannox
Sannox is a village on the Isle of Arran, Scotland. The name comes from the name the Vikings gave to the area, Sandvik, meaning the Sandy Bay.Sannox sits with a stunning backdrop of scenery to it in the shape of Glen Sannox...

, Arran
Isle of Arran
Arran or the Isle of Arran is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and with an area of is the seventh largest Scottish island. It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire and the 2001 census had a resident population of 5,058...

Incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

 and pier railway serving a barytes
Barium sulfate
Barium sulfate is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula BaSO4. It is a white crystalline solid that is odorless and insoluble in water. It occurs as the mineral barite, which is the main commercial source of barium and materials prepared from it...

 mine.
Great Laxey Mines Railway by 1854 1929 Laxey
Laxey
Laxey is a village on the east coast of the Isle of Man. Its name derives from the Old Norse Laxa meaning 'Salmon River'.The village lies on the A2, the main Douglas to Ramsey road. Laxey Glen is one of the Manx National Glens, with Dhoon Glen being located close by...

, Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...

Lead, zinc and silver mines with steam locomotive worked railway by the Laxey Wheel
Laxey Wheel
The Laxey Wheel is a large waterwheel built in the village of Laxey in the Isle of Man. Designed by Robert Casement, it has a diameter, is wide and revolves at approximately three revolutions per minute.-History:...

.
Mineral Industries Ltd. Scraithole Mine after 1979, by 2003 Nenthead
Nenthead
The small village of Nenthead in the county of Cumbria is one of England's highest villages, at 1,500 feet. It was not built until the middle of the 18th century and was one of the earliest purpose-built industrial villages in Britain...

, England
Zinc mine with underground locomotive-worked railway
Parc Mine tramway 1951 after 1960 Trefriw
Trefriw
Trefriw is a village in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It lies on the river Conwy in North Wales, a few miles south of the site of the Roman fort of Canovium, sited at Caerhun. The parish population in 2001 was 924....

, Wales
Lead mines with extensive underground locomotive-hauled railway system.
Rosevale Historical Mining Company 1974 present and Zennor
Zennor
Zennor is a village and civil parish in Cornwall in England. The parish includes the villages of Zennor, Boswednack and Porthmeor and the hamlet of Treen. It is located on the north coast, about north of Penzance. Alphabetically, the parish is the last in Britain—its name comes from the Cornish...

, England
Newly re-opened tin mine using battery-electric locomotives
Snailbeach District Railways
Snailbeach District Railways
Snailbeach District Railways was a British narrow gauge railway in Shropshire. It was built to carry lead ore from mines in the Stiperstones to Pontesbury where the ore was transshipped to the Great Western Railway's Minsterley branch line. Coal from the Pontesford coal mines travelled in the...

1873 1961 or Snailbeach
Snailbeach
Snailbeach is a village in Shropshire, England, located near Shrewsbury at . The village was formerly home to a large lead mine.-Early history:A village was built for workers at the local lead mine - Snailbeach Mine, which reputedly dates back to Roman times...

, England
Served the lead and other mineral mines around Snailbeach.
South Crofty Mine
South Crofty
South Crofty is a metalliferous Tin and Copper mine located in the village of Pool, Cornwall, England UK. An ancient mine, it has seen production for over 400 years, and extends almost two and a half miles across and down and has mined over 40 lodes. Evidence of mining activity in South Crofty has...

1900 1998 and Camborne
Camborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....

, England
Extensive tin mine with internal railway. The mine was re-opened in 2001 although currently without the use of railway transport.
Swiss Aluminium Mining (UK) Ltd. Burtree Pasture Mine after 1979 Cowshill
Cowshill
Cowshill is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated at the top of Weardale, between Lanehead and Wearhead....

, England
Fluorite
Fluorite
Fluorite is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It is an isometric mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon...

 mine using battery-electric locomotives
Swiss Aluminium Mining (UK) Ltd. Cambokeels Mine after 1979 Stanhope
Stanhope
-Places:* Stanhope, Victoria, Australia* Stanhope, Prince Edward Island, Canada* Stanhope, Quebec, Canada* Stanhope, County Durham, England, UK* Stanhope, Kent, England, UK* Stanhope, Peeblesshire, Scotland, UK* Stanhope, Iowa, US* Stanhope, New Jersey, US...

, England
Fluorite
Fluorite
Fluorite is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It is an isometric mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon...

 mine using battery-electric locomotives
Swiss Aluminium Mining (UK) Ltd. Redburn Mine after 1979 Stanhope
Stanhope
-Places:* Stanhope, Victoria, Australia* Stanhope, Prince Edward Island, Canada* Stanhope, Quebec, Canada* Stanhope, County Durham, England, UK* Stanhope, Kent, England, UK* Stanhope, Peeblesshire, Scotland, UK* Stanhope, Iowa, US* Stanhope, New Jersey, US...

, England
Fluorite
Fluorite
Fluorite is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It is an isometric mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon...

 mine using battery-electric locomotives
Swiss Aluminium Mining (UK) Ltd. Stanhope Burn Mine after 1979 Stanhope
Stanhope
-Places:* Stanhope, Victoria, Australia* Stanhope, Prince Edward Island, Canada* Stanhope, Quebec, Canada* Stanhope, County Durham, England, UK* Stanhope, Kent, England, UK* Stanhope, Peeblesshire, Scotland, UK* Stanhope, Iowa, US* Stanhope, New Jersey, US...

, England
Fluorite
Fluorite
Fluorite is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It is an isometric mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon...

 mine using battery-electric locomotives
Weardale Fluorspar Ltd. Frasers Grove Mine after 1989 County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...

, England
Fluorspar mine with at least 15 battery electric locomotives on site in 1989
Wheal Jane Ltd. Clemo's Shaft
Wheal Jane
Wheal Jane is a disused tin mine near Baldhu and Chacewater in West Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The area itself consisted of a large number of mines.-History:Wheal Jane was probably seriously worked for tin from the mid-18th century...

1965 1992 Baldhu
Baldhu
Baldhu is a village and parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom.The parish church is the burial place of Billy Bray, the revivalist preacher who was born at nearby Twelveheads....

, England
Locomotive-worked Cornish tin mine.
Wheal Pendarves Ltd. Wheal Pendarves mine after 1987 Camborne
Camborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....

, England
Locomotive-worked Cornish tin mine.
Willoughby Mine Tramway 1877 1914 Trefriw
Trefriw
Trefriw is a village in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It lies on the river Conwy in North Wales, a few miles south of the site of the Roman fort of Canovium, sited at Caerhun. The parish population in 2001 was 924....

, Wales
Tramway serving lead and zinc mine. An early (1904) Kerr Stuart
Kerr Stuart
Kerr, Stuart and Company Ltd was a locomotive manufacturer from Stoke-on-Trent, England.-History:It was founded in 1881 by James Kerr as James Kerr & Company, and became Kerr, Stuart & Company from 1883 when John Stuart was taken on as a partner...

 locomotive worked here.

Iron

Mainly ironstone quarries
Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
British Steel Corporation Beckermet Ore Mine railway after 1979 Beckermet
Beckermet
Beckermet is a village, civil parish and post town in the English county of Cumbria, located near the coast between Egremont and Seascale. Historically within Cumberland, it is served by Braystones railway station and is less than a mile west of the A595 road...

, England
Underground mine railway.
Brymbo Ironworks railway
Brymbo Ironworks railway
The Hook Norton ironstone quarries were ironstone quarries near Hook Norton in Oxfordshire. The quarries were in operation from 1899 to 1946 supplying ironstone to the Brymbo Steelworks in Wrexham and were served by an extensive narrow gauge industrial railway.- History :The original Brymbo...

1899 1946 Hook Norton
Hook Norton
Hook Norton is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold Hills in Oxfordshire, England. It is northeast of Chipping Norton.-Toponym and early history:...

, England
Major ironstone quarry and calcination works served by a steam-hauled railway.
Colton Iron Ore Mine 1880? Brendon Hill, England Steam locomotive worked tramway connecting the iron ore mine with the West Somerset Mineral Railway
West Somerset Mineral Railway
The West Somerset Mineral Railway was a line which operated in the UK county of Somerset. It ran from the ironstone mines in the Brendon Hills to the port of Watchet on the Bristol Channel. From there the ore was carried across by ship to Newport and thence to Ebbw Vale for smelting to extract...

Eastwell Quarries 1880s (?) 1958 Eastwell, Leicestershire
Eastwell, Leicestershire
Eastwell is a village and ecclesiastical parish in Leicestershire, England.For the purposes of administration Eastwell is part of the civil parish of Eaton that, in turn, forms part of the borough of Melton. Eastwell lost its own civil parish status in 1936...

, England
Extensive system of steam-hauled lines with a cable-hauled incline
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...

.
Eaton Quarries ? 1958 Eaton, Leicestershire
Eaton, Leicestershire
Eaton is a village and civil parish in Leicestershire, England. It is situated in the Vale of Belvoir and its current population is about 900 people. Eaton has a church, a village hall, a public house called "The Castle", a children's park and a new village shop...

, England
Unusual in its use of French locomotives.
Finedon Hill Quarries railway 1874 late 1940s Finedon
Finedon
Finedon is a civil parish and village in the Borough Council of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, with a population at the 2001 census of 4,188 people. Along with Wellingborough, it is twinned with Wittlich, Germany, and Niort, France....

, England
Cable-hauled ironstone quarry tramway
Florence Iron Ore Mine railway  ? after 1987 Egremont
Egremont
Egremont may refer to:Places* Egremont, Cumbria, England* Egremont, Merseyside, England* Egremont, Massachusetts, United States of AmericaOther* Earl of Egremont...

, England
Underground mine tramway worked by battery-electric locomotives
Irchester Quarries railway 1871 1884 Irchester
Irchester
Irchester is a civil parish and village in the county of Northamptonshire, England. It is about 2 miles south-east of the town of Wellingborough and 2 miles south-west of Rushden, and equidistant from London, south, and Birmingham, to the north-west...

, England
Early ironstone quarry system using one steam locomotive.
Irthlingborough Quarries railway  after 1958 Irthlingborough
Irthlingborough
Irthlingborough , originally called Artleborough, is a small town on the River Nene in Northamptonshire, England with a population of 6,179 people according to the 2001 census. It is the smallest town in England to have possessed a league association football team, Rushden & Diamonds. The parish...

, England
Underground mines using electric locomotives with a double-track adit to the surface
Kettering Ironstone Railway
Kettering Ironstone Railway
The Kettering Ironstone Railway was an industrial narrow gauge railway that served the ironstone quarries around Kettering.- Locomotives :-See also:* British industrial narrow gauge railways...

1879 1951 Kettering
Kettering
Kettering is a market town in the Borough of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. It is situated about from London. Kettering is mainly situated on the west side of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene which meets at Wellingborough...

, England
Extensive system of steam-hauled lines serving the ironstone quarries west of Kettering.
Midland Brick Quarries after 1901 by 1940 Wellingborough
Wellingborough
Wellingborough is a market town and borough in Northamptonshire, England, situated some from the county town of Northampton. The town is situated on the north side of the River Nene, most of the older town is sited on the flanks of the hills above the river's current flood plain...

, England
Small hand-worked ironstone quarry line
Myers Burn Mine 1985 1988 ? Eaglesham
Eaglesham
Eaglesham , is a village and parish set in the west central Lowlands of Scotland - population 3,127 . Today it is chiefly a dormitory town for commuters to nearby Glasgow. The village is distinctive in being based around a large triangular green...

, Scotland
Small iron pyrites mine with underground railway system.
Rosedale Branch
Rosedale Branch
The Rosedale Branch was an goods-only railway line running from Battersby Junction across the heights of the North York Moors in North Yorkshire, England to reach iron ore deposits in the remote hills of Rosedale valley...

? converted
Gauge conversion
In rail transport, gauge conversion is the process of converting a railway from one rail gauge to another, through the alteration of the railway tracks...

 to
(standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...

)
Scaldwell Ironstone Quarries 1963 Brixworth
Brixworth
Brixworth is a village and civil parish in the Daventry district of Northamptonshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a parish population of 5,162. The village is particularly notable for All Saints' Church, Brixworth, its historic Anglo-Saxon church....

, England
Steam locomotive worked connecting the ironstone quarry south of Scaldwell
Scaldwell
Scaldwell is a village and civil parish in the Daventry district of Northamptonshire in England.Scaldwell is tiny and has neither shops nor pubs; at the time of the 2001 census the parish had a population of 271 living in 113 households. It has an ageing population. The nearest place for school,...

 to the British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...

 branch to Lamport
Lamport, Northamptonshire
Lamport is a village and civil parish in the Daventry district of the county of Northamptonshire, England. The village is on the A508, about south of Market Harborough and north of Northampton. Nearby is Lamport Hall...

South Hill Farm Quarries 1912 about 1926 probably Finedon
Finedon
Finedon is a civil parish and village in the Borough Council of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, with a population at the 2001 census of 4,188 people. Along with Wellingborough, it is twinned with Wittlich, Germany, and Niort, France....

, England
Locomotive worked ironstone quarry tramway connected to Finedon Hill quarry tramway
Thingdon Quarries 1882 1933 Finedon
Finedon
Finedon is a civil parish and village in the Borough Council of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, with a population at the 2001 census of 4,188 people. Along with Wellingborough, it is twinned with Wittlich, Germany, and Niort, France....

, England
Cable-hauled tramway with horse-worked upper section.
Wellingborough Iron Company 1874 1966 Finedon
Finedon
Finedon is a civil parish and village in the Borough Council of Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, with a population at the 2001 census of 4,188 people. Along with Wellingborough, it is twinned with Wittlich, Germany, and Niort, France....

, England
28 gauge feeder lines at the quarries, latterly worked by diesel locos.

Gold

Name Opened Closed Gauge Location Notes
Clogau
Clogau
The Clogau Gold Mine was once the largest and richest mine of all the gold mines in the Dolgellau gold mining area...

 mine
1880s Present Bontddu
Bontddu
Bontddu, Dolgellau, Gwynedd, Wales is a small settlement east of Barmouth.Local tourism information describes a popular walk in the area of Bontddu:- External links :**...

 Wales
Hand-worked gold mine railway, in intermittent use
Gwynfynydd
Gwynfynydd
Gwynfynydd Gold Mine near Ganllwyd, Dolgellau, Gwynedd, Wales, was discovered in 1860. It was active until 1998 and has produced 45,000+ troy ounces of Welsh gold since 1884. The Queen was presented with a kilogram of Welsh gold on her 60th birthday from this mine...

 mine
Present Dolgellau
Dolgellau
Dolgellau is a market town in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the county town of the former county of Merionethshire .-History and economy:...

 Wales
Hand-worked gold mine railway, in intermittent use

See also

  • British narrow gauge railways
    British narrow gauge railways
    There were more than a thousand British narrow gauge railways ranging from large, historically significant common carriers to small, short-lived industrial railways...

  • British industrial narrow gauge railways
    British industrial narrow gauge railways
    British industrial narrow gauge railways are narrow gauge railways in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man that were primarily built to serve one or more industries. Some offered passenger services for employees or workmen, but they did not run public passenger trains...

  • Industrial railway
    Industrial railway
    An industrial railway is a type of railway that is not available for public transportation and is used exclusively to serve a particular industrial, logistics or military site...


External links

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