Little North Western Railway
Encyclopedia
The North Western Railway (NWR) was an early British railway company in the northwest of England
. It was commonly known as the "Little" North Western Railway, to distinguish it from the larger London and North Western Railway
(LNWR).
The NWR was first leased, and later taken over, by the Midland Railway
(MR). The MR used part of the line for its London
to Scotland
Settle and Carlisle main line.
The NWR main line, which ran from Skipton
in the West Riding of Yorkshire
to Morecambe
on the Lancashire
coast, gave the MR access to the west coast in an area dominated by the rival LNWR.
Part of the line, between Lancaster and Morecambe, was used in the early twentieth century for pioneering overhead electrification.
Two thirds of the line, in North Yorkshire
, is still in use today, mainly for local services. Of the dismantled Lancashire section, two-thirds has been reused as a combined cyclepath and footpath.
to on the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
, to carry Yorkshire-to-Scotland rail traffic.
There would be a branch at Clapham, Yorkshire to Lancaster
, to make an end-on connection with an associated company.
, close to the village of Poulton-le-Sands
, and three miles of railway to a new station at . The single-track line opened on Whit Monday
12 June 1848.
On 18 December 1849 a short connecting curve opened between Lancaster Green Ayre and on the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
.
The company amalgamated with the NWR within months of its incorporation, although technically it remained a separate company until absorption by the Midland Railway
on 1 June 1871.
The railway and harbour on Morecambe Bay led to the development of a settlement around them which absorbed Poulton-le-Sands, and later Bare and Torrisholme
, and which eventually adopted the name of Morecambe
.
What was the original 'main line' opened between and Ingleton, on 31 July 1849. However, due to economic recession, work on the Ingleton-to-Low Gill section was suspended, so the NWR was forced to concentrate on the branch to Lancaster.
Soon after, the line eastwards along the Lune
valley from to opened on 17 November 1849. The line extended further east to by 2 May 1850 and finally to where it joined the already completed line from Skipton, a month later on 1 June 1850. A horse bus had been used to bridge the gap between Wennington and Clapham during construction.
Upon completion of the Morecambe-to-Skipton line, the Clapham-to-Ingleton section was closed, just ten months after opening, as the prospect of completion of the partly built branch to Low Gill seemed remote.
The whole line was originally single track. By 1850, the -to- section had been doubled, extending to Skipton by 1853. However, Morecambe-to-Lancaster remained single track until 1877, and Lancaster-to-Hornby until 1889. The curve between the two Lancaster stations was never doubled.
From 1 June 1852, the NWR was worked by the Midland Railway
(MR). Later, on 1 January 1859, both the NWR and the MH&R were leased to the MR, and on 30 July 1874 the NWR was absorbed by the MR.
, worked by the London and North Western Railway
(LNWR), that was authorised to take over construction of the abandoned Ingleton-to-Low Gill line. The line opened to passengers on 16 September 1861, but to the LNWR's own station at Ingleton. The Midland and LNWR stations were at opposite ends of a viaduct, and passengers had to walk between them. However, by 1862 the LNWR trains ran through to the Midland station.
to , which opened to passengers on 1 May 1876. This line formed part of the MR's main line from to and on to via the Glasgow and South Western Railway
. Thus the NWR line between Skipton and gained main line status. Even today, the line is occasionally used for inter-city diversions.
and the LNWR's Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
. The line opened to passengers on 6 June 1867.
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
also built a branch from Hest Bank
on its main line to meet the NWR just before Morecambe station, opening on 13 August 1864. However, LNWR passenger trains had their own station, initially at and, from 1886, at .
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
extended its line through to a junction with the NWR at on 1 June 1880.
Heysham
Harbour was opened by the Midland Railway in 1904, to replace the same company's harbour in Morecambe. A branch line from the NWR line had already opened for contractors on 12 November 1898 but was opened to passengers on 1 September 1904. The new line made a triangular junction with the existing NWR line a very short distance east of the junction with the LNWR line from Hest Bank.
After 11 February 1951, steam trains temporarily took over while the system was upgraded to 6.6 kV at 50 Hz. Full electric service resumed on 17 August 1953. Power was supplied from a new substation at Green Ayre. On a 4,000-foot section of track, the overhead arches were replaced by experimental cantilever structures, separate for each of the two tracks.
The Ingleton Branch closed to passengers on 30 January 1954, but was still used for goods and occasional excursions until closure on 26 July 1966, after which the tracks were lifted.
The Wennington-to-Morecambe section of the line was closed under the Beeching Axe
. Passenger traffic ceased on 2 January 1966. However, an alternative Wennington-to-Morecambe connection has been maintained using the former Furness and Midland Joint Railway to and thence the former LNWR
Morecambe Branch Line
, a route still in use today by the Leeds to Morecambe Line.
Goods traffic via the Lune Valley line ceased on 4 June 1967, except for a short single-track spur from the Heysham line towards Lancaster which closed on 31 January 1970, and another single-track spur from Lancaster Castle to a power station which closed on 16 March 1976.
Almost all of the route of the dismantled line between Caton and Morecambe has been preserved as a combined cyclepath and footpath, except for a short section near Lancaster
city centre. Here the line's Greyhound Bridge over the River Lune
was converted for use as a road bridge.
The Morecambe-to-Heysham branch closed to passengers on 4 October 1975, but reopened on 11 May 1987 for sailings to the Isle of Man
. The branch has been single track since Morecambe station was relocated in 1994. The branch now connects only to platform 2.
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...
. It was commonly known as the "Little" North Western Railway, to distinguish it from the larger London and North Western Railway
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
(LNWR).
The NWR was first leased, and later taken over, by the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
(MR). The MR used part of the line for its London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
Settle and Carlisle main line.
The NWR main line, which ran from Skipton
Skipton
Skipton is a market town and civil parish within the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. It is located along the course of both the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the River Aire, on the south side of the Yorkshire Dales, northwest of Bradford and west of York...
in the West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...
to Morecambe
Morecambe
Morecambe is a resort town and civil parish within the City of Lancaster in Lancashire, England. As of 2001 it has a resident population of 38,917. It faces into Morecambe Bay...
on the Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
coast, gave the MR access to the west coast in an area dominated by the rival LNWR.
Part of the line, between Lancaster and Morecambe, was used in the early twentieth century for pioneering overhead electrification.
Two thirds of the line, in North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
, is still in use today, mainly for local services. Of the dismantled Lancashire section, two-thirds has been reused as a combined cyclepath and footpath.
Formation
The North Western Railway was incorporated on 26 June 1846 to build a railway from on the Leeds and Bradford Extension RailwayLeeds and Bradford Extension Railway
The Leeds and Bradford Extension Railway was an early British railway company in the West Riding of Yorkshire. It built a line from near Bradford through and to...
to on the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a British railway company authorised on 6 June 1844 to build a line between Lancaster and Carlisle in North-West England...
, to carry Yorkshire-to-Scotland rail traffic.
There would be a branch at Clapham, Yorkshire to 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...
, to make an end-on connection with an associated company.
Morecambe Harbour and Railway
The Morecambe Harbour and Railway Company was incorporated on 16 July 1846 to build a harbour on Morecambe BayMorecambe Bay
Morecambe Bay is a large bay in northwest England, nearly due east of the Isle of Man and just to the south of the Lake District National Park. It is the largest expanse of intertidal mudflats and sand in the United Kingdom, covering a total area of 310 km².-Natural features:The rivers Leven,...
, close to the village of Poulton-le-Sands
Poulton-le-Sands
Poulton-le-Sands was one of three small villages that combined to create Morecambe. Poulton was first mentioned in the Domesday Book as Poltune. It later became Poulton and remained this way for a number of centuries. It was towards the end of the eighteenth or the beginning of the nineteenth...
, and three miles of railway to a new station at . The single-track line opened on Whit Monday
Whit Monday
Whit Monday or Pentecost Monday is the holiday celebrated the day after Pentecost, a movable feast in the Christian calendar. It is movable because it is determined by the date of Easter....
12 June 1848.
On 18 December 1849 a short connecting curve opened between Lancaster Green Ayre and on the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a British railway company authorised on 6 June 1844 to build a line between Lancaster and Carlisle in North-West England...
.
The company amalgamated with the NWR within months of its incorporation, although technically it remained a separate company until absorption by the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
on 1 June 1871.
The railway and harbour on Morecambe Bay led to the development of a settlement around them which absorbed Poulton-le-Sands, and later Bare and Torrisholme
Torrisholme
Torrisholme is a village near Morecambe, Lancashire, on the North West coast of England. In the 2001 census the Torrisholme Ward had a population of 6,758 living in 3,118 households.Torrisholme was referred to as Toredholme in the Domesday Book....
, and which eventually adopted the name of Morecambe
Morecambe
Morecambe is a resort town and civil parish within the City of Lancaster in Lancashire, England. As of 2001 it has a resident population of 38,917. It faces into Morecambe Bay...
.
Construction
Soon after, the line eastwards along the Lune
River Lune
The River Lune is a river in Cumbria and Lancashire, England.It is formed at Wath, in the parish of Ravenstonedale, Cumbria, at the confluence of Sandwath Beck and Weasdale Beck...
valley from to opened on 17 November 1849. The line extended further east to by 2 May 1850 and finally to where it joined the already completed line from Skipton, a month later on 1 June 1850. A horse bus had been used to bridge the gap between Wennington and Clapham during construction.
Upon completion of the Morecambe-to-Skipton line, the Clapham-to-Ingleton section was closed, just ten months after opening, as the prospect of completion of the partly built branch to Low Gill seemed remote.
The whole line was originally single track. By 1850, the -to- section had been doubled, extending to Skipton by 1853. However, Morecambe-to-Lancaster remained single track until 1877, and Lancaster-to-Hornby until 1889. The curve between the two Lancaster stations was never doubled.
From 1 June 1852, the NWR was worked by the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
(MR). Later, on 1 January 1859, both the NWR and the MH&R were leased to the MR, and on 30 July 1874 the NWR was absorbed by the MR.
The Ingleton Branch
After considerable manoeuvring between rival companies, in 1857 it was the Lancaster and Carlisle RailwayLancaster and Carlisle Railway
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a British railway company authorised on 6 June 1844 to build a line between Lancaster and Carlisle in North-West England...
, worked by the London and North Western Railway
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
(LNWR), that was authorised to take over construction of the abandoned Ingleton-to-Low Gill line. The line opened to passengers on 16 September 1861, but to the LNWR's own station at Ingleton. The Midland and LNWR stations were at opposite ends of a viaduct, and passengers had to walk between them. However, by 1862 the LNWR trains ran through to the Midland station.
The Settle-Carlisle Line
Due to continuing friction between the MR and the LNWR over the Ingleton Branch, the MR resolved to build its own line from SettleSettle
Settle is a small market town and civil parish within the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. It is served by the Settle railway station, which is located near the town centre, and Giggleswick railway station which is a mile away. It is from Leeds Bradford Airport...
to , which opened to passengers on 1 May 1876. This line formed part of the MR's main line from to and on to via the Glasgow and South Western Railway
Glasgow and South Western Railway
The Glasgow and South Western Railway , one of the pre-grouping railway companies, served a triangular area of south-west Scotland, between Glasgow, Stranraer and Carlisle...
. Thus the NWR line between Skipton and gained main line status. Even today, the line is occasionally used for inter-city diversions.
Other connecting lines
The Furness and Midland Joint Railway built a line from on the NWR to , where there was already a junction between the Furness RailwayFurness Railway
The Furness Railway was a railway company operating in the Furness area of Lancashire in North West England.-History:The company was established on May 23, 1844 when the Furness Railway Act was passed by Parliament...
and the LNWR's Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a British railway company authorised on 6 June 1844 to build a line between Lancaster and Carlisle in North-West England...
. The line opened to passengers on 6 June 1867.
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
Lancaster and Carlisle Railway
The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a British railway company authorised on 6 June 1844 to build a line between Lancaster and Carlisle in North-West England...
also built a branch from Hest Bank
Hest Bank North Junction
Hest Bank North Junction is a railway junction in Lancashire where the Morecambe Branch Line joins the former LNWR line in the down direction between Lancaster and Carnforth. It is also known as Morecambe North Junction. This line is currently being considered to become a community railway. Hest...
on its main line to meet the NWR just before Morecambe station, opening on 13 August 1864. However, LNWR passenger trains had their own station, initially at and, from 1886, at .
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways...
extended its line through to a junction with the NWR at on 1 June 1880.
Extension to Heysham
Heysham
Heysham is a large coastal village near Lancaster in the county of Lancashire, England. Overlooking Morecambe Bay, it is a ferry port with services to the Isle of Man and Ireland. Heysham is the site of two nuclear power stations which are landmarks visible from hills in the surrounding area...
Harbour was opened by the Midland Railway in 1904, to replace the same company's harbour in Morecambe. A branch line from the NWR line had already opened for contractors on 12 November 1898 but was opened to passengers on 1 September 1904. The new line made a triangular junction with the existing NWR line a very short distance east of the junction with the LNWR line from Hest Bank.
Electrification
The line between Lancaster, Morecambe and Heysham pioneered the use of overhead cables for electrification. Heysham-to-Morecambe was electrified on 13 April 1908, extending to on 1 July and to on 14 September. The system used 6.6 kV at 25 Hz, from a power station at Heysham, supplied via cables suspended from overhead steel archways.After 11 February 1951, steam trains temporarily took over while the system was upgraded to 6.6 kV at 50 Hz. Full electric service resumed on 17 August 1953. Power was supplied from a new substation at Green Ayre. On a 4,000-foot section of track, the overhead arches were replaced by experimental cantilever structures, separate for each of the two tracks.
Closures
The Wennington-to-Morecambe section of the line was closed under the Beeching Axe
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
. Passenger traffic ceased on 2 January 1966. However, an alternative Wennington-to-Morecambe connection has been maintained using the former Furness and Midland Joint Railway to and thence the former LNWR
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
Morecambe Branch Line
Morecambe Branch Line
The Morecambe Branch Line is a railway line in Lancashire, England, from Lancaster to Morecambe and Heysham where services connect with the ferry service to Douglas on the Isle of Man. To reach Heysham, trains must reverse at Morecambe....
, a route still in use today by the Leeds to Morecambe Line.
Goods traffic via the Lune Valley line ceased on 4 June 1967, except for a short single-track spur from the Heysham line towards Lancaster which closed on 31 January 1970, and another single-track spur from Lancaster Castle to a power station which closed on 16 March 1976.
Almost all of the route of the dismantled line between Caton and Morecambe has been preserved as a combined cyclepath and footpath, except for a short section near 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...
city centre. Here the line's Greyhound Bridge over the River Lune
River Lune
The River Lune is a river in Cumbria and Lancashire, England.It is formed at Wath, in the parish of Ravenstonedale, Cumbria, at the confluence of Sandwath Beck and Weasdale Beck...
was converted for use as a road bridge.
The Morecambe-to-Heysham branch closed to passengers on 4 October 1975, but reopened on 11 May 1987 for sailings to 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...
. The branch has been single track since Morecambe station was relocated in 1994. The branch now connects only to platform 2.