Hallbankgate
Encyclopedia
Hallbankgate is a village
in the English
county of Cumbria
. It is the principal settlement in the parish of Farlam, in the City of Carlisle
district.. The village straddles the A689 Brampton
to Alston
road. It was formerly a mining village- both coal and lead were mined here. Limestone is quarried here.It once possessed a gasworks and a forge. Today it houses a primary school, pub and shop. There are three other hamlets in the parish, Farlam
, Kirkhouse and Tindale
.
Hallbankgate is approximately 13 miles east of the Carlisle.
It was worked by the Thompson family of Kirkhouse under a lease from Lord Carlisle, and passed under and was connected to their Byrom Pit. It had employed 300 men of which 200 were to lose their jobs and move out of the area. Thompson gave up the lease, which was taken up by the Naworth coal company which worked the other mines in the area. The Gairs mine is often described as being in Hallbankgate though lies in parish of Castle Carrock.. In 1925, it had 55 working underground and 28 above, though two years earlier it had employed 148 underground and 44 above. It output 70,000 tons of household and steam coal. It was a safe mine and worked two seams, known as the Little Limestone Coal and the Little Limestone seam. It was abandoned in 1936. It was operated by the Naworth Coal Company. There were other mines in the area notably the Tindale Drift Mine and the Black Syke Mine in Haltwhistle
, and Bishops Hill Colliery at Brampton and the Naworth Colliery and drift mines at Midgeholme.
Limestone was quarried at the Silvertop Quarry, and there was a spelter
works at Tindale which would process zinc
and lead
.
which linked Brampton Junction
with the various mines and quarries in the vicinity of Hallbankgate. The Brampton Railway
originated as a wooden wagonway on Tindale Fell. The mainline to Brampton Coal Staithe was built in 1798, and it was in operation in 1799. In 1808 the track was relaid using wrought iron rails, This was the first place where they were used commercially. The gauge was changed to standard gauge
, the gauge used by Stephenson
. In 1836, the route below Hallbankgate was realigned to it could link with the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway
at Brampton Junction station. The incline from Kirkhouse had at one point a 1 in 17 gradient, adhesion engines could only work slopes up to 1 in 100, so this section of the track was operated as a gravity driven inclined plane
. The line was worked by steam, and until 1840 the engine used was The Rocket
. There was a passenger service but the line was mainly used to get the coal from the neighbouring mines to Brampton. There was an engine shed built at Hallbankgate, and above the village lines were laid to each pit. The line continued to Halton Lea Gate, but was extended to Lambley
and Lambley Junction in 1852. The line finally closed in 1953. Blacksyke junction is just to the east of the village and the site on a level crossing to the west.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of 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...
. It is the principal settlement in the parish of Farlam, in the City of Carlisle
City of Carlisle
The City of Carlisle is a local government district of Cumbria, England, with the status of a city and non-metropolitan district. It is named after its largest settlement, Carlisle, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Brampton and Longtown, as well as outlying villages...
district.. The village straddles the A689 Brampton
Brampton
Brampton is the third-largest city in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada.Brampton may also refer to:- Canada :* Brampton, a city in Ontario** Brampton GO Station, a station in the GO Transit network located in the city- United Kingdom :...
to Alston
Alston
Alston may refer to:In people:* Alston In places:*Canada**Alstonvale, Quebec*England**Alston, Cumbria**Alston, Devon**Alston, Lancashire*United States**Dresser, California, formerly Alston**Alston, Georgia...
road. It was formerly a mining village- both coal and lead were mined here. Limestone is quarried here.It once possessed a gasworks and a forge. Today it houses a primary school, pub and shop. There are three other hamlets in the parish, Farlam
Farlam
Farlam is a village and civil parish in the City of Carlisle District, in the English county of Cumbria. It is near the small town of Brampton.-External links:...
, Kirkhouse and Tindale
Tindale, Cumbria
Tindale or Tindale Fell is a hamlet in the parich of Farlam in the City of Carlisle district of the English county of Cumbria. .. It is to the south of the A689 Brampton to Alston road. It is a former mining village- both coal and lead were mined here. Limestone was quarried here...
.
Hallbankgate is approximately 13 miles east of the Carlisle.
Mining and Quarrying
There were many coal mines surrounding Hallbankgate, exploiting shallow lying seams on a steep incline. The closest was the the Roachburn pit, at Coalfell where three men lost their lives in 1908. The subsequent accident report documents a very wet electrically driven pit with fractured seams butting up to a slab of clay- and this was typical of most pits in the area. After the accident the pit closed.It was worked by the Thompson family of Kirkhouse under a lease from Lord Carlisle, and passed under and was connected to their Byrom Pit. It had employed 300 men of which 200 were to lose their jobs and move out of the area. Thompson gave up the lease, which was taken up by the Naworth coal company which worked the other mines in the area. The Gairs mine is often described as being in Hallbankgate though lies in parish of Castle Carrock.. In 1925, it had 55 working underground and 28 above, though two years earlier it had employed 148 underground and 44 above. It output 70,000 tons of household and steam coal. It was a safe mine and worked two seams, known as the Little Limestone Coal and the Little Limestone seam. It was abandoned in 1936. It was operated by the Naworth Coal Company. There were other mines in the area notably the Tindale Drift Mine and the Black Syke Mine in 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...
, and Bishops Hill Colliery at Brampton and the Naworth Colliery and drift mines at Midgeholme.
Limestone was quarried at the Silvertop Quarry, and there was a spelter
Spelter
Spelter, while sometimes used merely as a synonym for zinc, is often used to identify a zinc alloy. In this sense it might be an alloy of equal parts copper and zinc, i.e. a brass, used for hard soldering and brazing, or as an alloy, containing lead, that is used instead of bronze...
works at Tindale which would process zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
and lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
.
Lord Carlisle's railway
Hallbankgate stood at the top of a railway incline on the "Lord Carlisle's Railway"Brampton Railway
The Brampton railway was a ten mile long track branch railway line on the borders of Cumberland and Northumberland, England, that ran from to on the Alston Line via three intermediate stations, Brampton Junction, and...
which linked Brampton Junction
Brampton (Cumbria) railway station
Brampton railway station is on the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway in northern England, serving the town of Brampton. The station is located about a mile southeast of the town, near the village of Milton. Staff were removed from the station in 1967, with the main buildings demolished in stages...
with the various mines and quarries in the vicinity of Hallbankgate. The Brampton Railway
Brampton Railway
The Brampton railway was a ten mile long track branch railway line on the borders of Cumberland and Northumberland, England, that ran from to on the Alston Line via three intermediate stations, Brampton Junction, and...
originated as a wooden wagonway on Tindale Fell. The mainline to Brampton Coal Staithe was built in 1798, and it was in operation in 1799. In 1808 the track was relaid using wrought iron rails, This was the first place where they were used commercially. The gauge was changed 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...
, the gauge used by Stephenson
George Stephenson
George Stephenson was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives...
. In 1836, the route below Hallbankgate was realigned to it could link with the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway
Newcastle and Carlisle Railway
The Newcastle and Carlisle Railway, occasionally referred to as the Tyne Valley Line, is a railway line in northern England. The line was built in the 1830s, and links the city of Newcastle upon Tyne in Tyne and Wear with in Cumbria. Formal opening took place on 18 June 1838.The line follows the...
at Brampton Junction station. The incline from Kirkhouse had at one point a 1 in 17 gradient, adhesion engines could only work slopes up to 1 in 100, so this section of the track was operated as a gravity driven inclined plane
Cable railway
A cable railway is a steeply graded railway that uses a cable or rope to haul trains.-Introduction:...
. The line was worked by steam, and until 1840 the engine used was The Rocket
Stephenson's Rocket
Stephenson's Rocket was an early steam locomotive of 0-2-2 wheel arrangement, built in Newcastle Upon Tyne at the Forth Street Works of Robert Stephenson and Company in 1829.- Design innovations :...
. There was a passenger service but the line was mainly used to get the coal from the neighbouring mines to Brampton. There was an engine shed built at Hallbankgate, and above the village lines were laid to each pit. The line continued to Halton Lea Gate, but was extended to Lambley
Lambley, Northumberland
Lambley, formerly Harper Town,is a village in Northumberland, England about southwest of Haltwhistle. The place name Lambley refers to the "pasture of lambs"....
and Lambley Junction in 1852. The line finally closed in 1953. Blacksyke junction is just to the east of the village and the site on a level crossing to the west.