Morpeth railway station is a railway station on the East Coast Main Line

East Coast Main Line

The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...

 in Northumberland

Northumberland

Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...

, northern England

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...

, serving the town of Morpeth

Morpeth, Northumberland

Morpeth is the county town of Northumberland, England. It is situated on the River Wansbeck which flows east through the town. The town is from the A1, which bypasses it. Since 1981, it has been the administrative centre of the County of Northumberland. In the 2001 census the town had a population...

.

History

The station

Train station

A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...

 was opened by the Newcastle and Berwick Railway on 1 March 1847. It was designed by Benjamin Green, in the Scottish Baronial style and retains its original station buildings.

A severe ninety degree curve in the line of the railway immediately to the south of the station has been the site of four serious rail accidents, two of them fatal.

Blyth and Tyne Railway

Another station was opened by the Blyth and Tyne Railway on 1 April 1858 and closed 24 May 1880. This was a terminus station that was also used by North British Railway

North British Railway

The North British Railway was a Scottish railway company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923.-History:...

 trains from the west from Scots Gap from the opening of their line in 1862 until 1874. The B&T line to Bedlington

Bedlington

Bedlington is a town in Northumberland, to the north of the Tyne and Wear urban area. It lies north of Newcastle and southeast of the county town of Morpeth. Other nearby places include Ashington to the north northeast, Blyth to the east and Cramlington to the south.The parish of Bedlington...

 lost its passenger trains in April 1950 (although occasional summer services between Scotland and the North Eastern coastal resorts continued operating over it until the 1960s), but it remains in use for freight and may have its passenger trains restored in the future (as an extension of the current local stopping service) - the South East Northumberland Rail User Group is currently campaigning for this. Passenger trains over the old NBR line from Scots Gap and Reedsmouth/Rothbury

Rothbury

Rothbury is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England. It is located on the River Coquet, northwest of Morpeth and north-northwest of Newcastle upon Tyne...

 ended in September 1952 and it closed completely in 1966 - few traces of this route now remain.

Services

Morpeth station is irregularly served by East Coast

East Coast (train operating company)

East Coast is a British train operating company running high-speed passenger services on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland...

 intercity trains running to 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...

 and Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

. Northern Rail

Northern Rail

Northern Rail is a British train operating company that has operated local passenger services in Northern England since 2004. Northern Rail's owner, Serco-Abellio, is a consortium formed of Abellio and Serco, an international operator of public transport systems...

 operates a regular local service between Newcastle and Morpeth - two of these continue on to Alnmouth

Alnmouth railway station

Alnmouth for Alnwick is a station on the East Coast Main Line about one mile from Alnmouth in Hipsburn, Northumberland, northern England. It is 10–15 minutes by road to the town of Alnwick.-History:...

 and Chathill

Chathill railway station

Chathill railway station is a railway station that serves the village of Chathill in Northumberland, England, and the nearby villages of Seahouses, Embleton, Bamburgh and Belford....

. Since December 2005 a few Cross Country services operated by Virgin Trains

Virgin Trains

Virgin Trains is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland...

 have stopped here, which are now run by CrossCountry

CrossCountry

CrossCountry is the brand name of XC Trains Ltd., a British train operating company owned by Arriva...

 as of November 2007.

Sources

• Morpeth Station on navigable 1947 OS map
• RAILSCOT on Newcastle and Berwick Railway
• RAILSCOT on Wansbeck Railway
• RAILSCOT on Morpeth Branch (Blyth and Tyne Railway)
• Morpeth Station history page from the South East Northumberland Rail User Group
• Buses from the station
• Buses to the station