The Ninth Sykes Challenge

2021

Railways

Previous Sykos Sykos 1 Sykos 2 Sykos 3 Sykos 4 Sykos 5 Sykos 6 Sykos 7 Sykos 8

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One-thousand-foot summits Trig points Waterfalls Historic buildings and places Bridges Top forty-two hills in the Yorkshire Dales Goldsworthy Sculptures and the Eden Benchmarks Boundary Stones and Milestones

Nick and I have enjoyed each of these challenges. Our rule has been that wherever we visited we had to start from Sedbergh and could only travel using our bicycles or walking. This year we decided to look at various aspects of railways: stations, stationmaster houses, viaducts, tunnels and bridges. We focused largely on the Settle to Carlisle line, the Lune Valley line, the Kirkby Stephen to Tebay line and the Eden Valley line. All of these railways go through spectacular scenery with excellent cycling. We were welcomed on numerous occasions by residents of now decommissioned stations and the owners of two of them were delighted to show us around their homes and talk about the restorations they were painstakingly carrying out. There were many highlights but our frequently taken route through nearby Mallerstang, which passes the highest point on the Settle to Carlisle line, was and is always superb for its majestic scenery. We almost adhered to our rule except for one day when, having seen so much of the Settle to Carlisle Railway buildings, we cycled to Garsdale and took the early morning train to Carlisle and then cycled back home.

Section A

Settle to Carlisle line

Section B

Ingleton Branch line known as the Lune Valley line

Section C

South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway Kirkby Stephen to Tebay

Section D

Eden Valley line

Section A A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 A9 A10 A11 A12 A13 A14 A15 A16 A17 A18 A19 A20 A21

Settle to Carlisle line

Settle station Stainforth tunnel Horton-in-Ribblesdale station Ribblehead station Ribblehead viaduct Blea Moor tunnel Dent Head viaduct Artengill viaduct Dent station Rise Hill tunnel Garsdale station Dandry Mire viaduct Moorcock tunnel Lunds Viaduct Grisedale Crossing Shotlock Hill tunnel Aisgill Summit Birkett tunnel Kirkby Stephen (West) station Smardale viaduct Crosby Garrett tunnel

A22 A23 A24 A25 A26 A27 A28 A29 A30 A31 A32 A33 A34 A35 A36 A37 A38 A39 A40 A41 A42

Crosby Garrett station Ormside station Ormside viaduct Appleby station (West) Long Marton station Newbiggin station Culgaith station Waste Bank tunnel Langwathby station Little Salkeld station Eden Lacy viaduct Lazonby and Kirkoswald station Baron Wood tunnels Nunclose Bridge, Armathwaite Armathwaite station Dry Beck viaduct Low House Crossing Cotehill station Cumwhinton station Scotby station Carlisle station

The history of the Settle to Carlisle line begins in the 1860s when the Midland Railway Company was frustrated in having a line as far as Ingleton but thereafter relied on using the services of the London and North Western Railway. The L&NWR made it difficult for the Midland passengers by, for example, hitching the passenger carriages to slow coal trains! So, in 1865 the Midland was granted a parliamentary Bill to build the Settle to Carlisle line. However, four years later the Midland sought an Abandonment Bill as the Midland and L&NWR were cooperating well. This was declined and work had to proceed. Construction began in 1869 and continued through to 1876 with the line opening on the 1 st May of that year. The Settle to Carlisle line was probably the last one to be constructed mainly by hand and there was a work force of some 6000 men. The route was challenging because of the terrain and as a consequence many stations were some distance form the villages they served, with, for example, Dent station being four miles from Dent. There are 72 miles of track, 17 viaducts and 14 tunnels and the gradients had to be no steeper than 1 in 100. Dent station is the highest station in England. The main engineer for the line was John Crossley and sections were built by different companies. The stations, with the exception of the one at Culgaith, were designed by the Midland Company Architect John Holloway Sanders in a style known as Derby Gothic. Some stations were decommissioned in the fifties and more following the Beeching Report of 1963. By 1970 there were only two passenger trains a day and the line was closed to passengers in 1982. By 1984 a campaign began to save the line and the Secretary of Transport Michael Portillo gave government refusal to close the line after which repairs and improvements were made.

A1 Settle station

The Grade II station at Settle was designed for the Midland Railway Company by John Holloway Sanders. It was built in preparation for the opening of the line on 1st May 1876. On the ‘Settle Up’ side is the main station, station house and signal box (closed in 1984 but now run by the Friends of the Settle to Carlisle line and is open to visits). On the ‘Settle Down’ side is a stone-built waiting room which has a definite lean to it. Joining the platforms is a footbridge which was originally at Prestonpans and moved to Settle in March 1993. Nearby is the Settle Station Water Tower built by 1876. It held 150 tons of water (43,000 gallons) which was piped to water cranes. In 1939 stables for horses were constructed underneath the tower. The tower was converted into a home in 2011.

A2 Stainforth tunnel

Stainforth Tunnel, also known as Taitlands Tunnel, is bridge number 20. It is the first one on the north-bound line after Settle. It is 120 yards long and was completed before 1875.

A3 Horton-in-Ribblesdale station

This station is identical to the one at Ribblehead, both being designed by the architect John Holloway Sanders. It was originally just Horton station when it opened in 1876 and renamed Horton-in Ribblesdale Station on 26th September 1927. The station was refurbished in 2002. In the 1950s and 1960s, mostly under stationmaster James M Taylor, Horton won the "Best Kept Station" award for 17 consecutive years. It was closed to passengers between 1965 and 1986.

A4

Ribblehead station

Ribblehead station was designed by J H Sanders and opened on 4th December 1876. It was originally called Batty Green and was not named Ribblehead until 1st May 1877. It closed on 4th May 1970 and the re-opened on 16th July 1986. The platforms are staggered with the northbound one being reconstructed in 1993. The sidings are still in place. The vicar of Ingleton used to have services in the waiting room where a harmonium was concealed behind a billboard. The pews are still there. The chimney is from one of the trains involved in the Hawes junction crash of Christmas Eve 1910.

A5

Ribblehead viaduct

In November 1869 John Ashwell was awarded the contract to build the railway line from Settle to Dent Head at an estimated cost of £343,318 though he withdrew from it in October 1871 because of financial difficulties. The building was then overseen by the Midland Railway Company. Ribblehad viaduct had up to 2,300 men working on it. They lived in temporary camps sited near the line, each with its own name as seen on the plaque. There were many deaths of both workers and their families and over 200 were buried at the nearby St Leonards’ Church in Chapel-leDale. The original design was for 18 arches but this was modified to 24 in four groups, each sixth pier being 50% thicker. The total length is 1320' and at most 102' high. The north end is 13' higher than the south giving the line a gradient of 1:100. It is made form limestone blocks and over 1.5 million bricks. The largest blocks weighed up to eight tons! The foundations are 25' deep. The viaduct was completed in 1874. It is currently undergoing work to re-point the mortar at a cost of £2.1m .

A6

Blea Moor tunnel

Blea Moor tunnel is the longest on the line. It was built between 1870 and 1875 at a cost of £109,000 (c£10m now). It is 2,629 yards long and now takes you from North Yorkshire to Cumbria. On Blea Moor can be seen three ventilation shafts, the deepest of which is about 500'. During the construction of the tunnel there were seven shafts in total but four were filled in. Next to these shafts are the remains of spoil heaps. 16 teams worked on the construction – one at each end of the tunnel and two at the base of each shaft. Not far from the south end of the tunnel is the 1941 Blea Moor signal box which was built to manage the increased wartime rail traffic using the nearby sidings.

A7

Dent Head viaduct

This viaduct, with 10 arches, is 199 yards long and 100' high and crosses Fell End Gill. It was designed by John Sydney Crossley and built between 1870 and 1875. As FS Williams wrote in 1876; Dent is in "one of the wildest and loneliest parts of Yorkshire. All around is wild moorland, closed in by vast hills". Adjacent to the viaduct is the pack horse bridge which is probably C17.

A8

Arten Gill viaduct

Built between 1871 and 1875 the Arten Gill viaduct is 220 yards long, has eleven arches, and at 117' high is the second highest on the line. It is made from blocks of the local limestone though the crinoidal fossils are not evident as would be expected from the local Dent ‘marble’. Its construction was challenging: the builders had to go down fifty feet of shale before reaching the limestone bedrock. It is one of a few viaducts on this line that did not use bricks in its construction.

A9

Dent station

Dent station is another designed by J H Sanders. It was opened in 1877 then closed between 1970 and 1986. At 1150' above sea level it is the highest mainline station in England. Adjacent is the old station master’s house which is clad on three sides with slates to protect it from the inclement weather and said to be one of the first houses in England to have double glazing! Nearby is a wooden snow fence.

A10

Rise Hill tunnel

Rise Hill tunnel, originally called Black Moss tunnel, was built through the blue limestone between 1871 and 1875. There are two ventilation shafts, the deepest being 147 feet, and these are surrounded by spoil heaps (on the right). The story of the tunnel was on the Time Team ‘Blood, Sweat and Beers’ programme.

A11

Garsdale station

Garsdale station was designed by the Midland Railway Company architect John Holloway. When it opened on 1st August 1876 it was known as Hawes Junction. There is a branch line from the station down to Hawes. The Grade II signal box (a 4c type) was built in 1910 and its role in the Aisgill crash led to the introduction of track circuits which enabled the presence of a train on a track to be detected. The station had one of the highest water troughs for steam engines. There was a turntable which had to have a wall of sleepers to stop the engines being blown around. It is now at the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway. The waiting room was at one time used for church services. The statue of the collie Ruswarp commemorates him staying near the body of his owner Graham Nuttall in Snowdonia: both Ruswarp and Graham had been signatories on the petition to keep the Settle to Carlisle line open.

A12 Dandry Mire viaduct

Dandry Mire viaduct has twelve arches and is 227 yards long and 50' high. It was built between 1869 and 1875. The arches are in three groups of four (the fourth pillars being more substantial). Originally the intention was to build an embankment, but any earth piled up disappeared into the bog. Local folklore suggests that sheeps’ wool was used at the base of the pillars to prevent them from sinking whilst they were being built.

Near to the Dandry Mire viaduct is the Mount Zion Chapel built by the Midlands Railway Company and it is still painted in their colours. There is also a terrace of cottages for the railway workers. The bridge is over the Sedbergh to Hawes road.

A13

Moorcock tunnel

Moorcock tunnel is structure number 119 on the Settle to Carlisle railway. It is 98 yards long and was built between 1871 and 1874 and opened in 1875.

A14

Lunds Viaduct

Lunds viaduct with its five arches is 63' high and 103 yards long. It was built between 1871 and 1875.

A15

Grisedale Crossing

At Grisedale Crossing is the only plate-girder footbridge on the Settle to Carlisle line. It was built in 1936 when it replaced an earlier wooden bridge. Adjacent is the Grisedale Crossing Cottage.

A16 Shotlock Hill tunnel

Shotlock Tunnel, completed in 1875, is only 106 yards long and seems a little unnecessary.

A17 Aisgill summit, Mallerstang

Aisgill summit, at 1159', is the highest point on the Settle to Carlisle line and to avoid gradients of greater than 1 in 100 caused some difficult engineering and reaching it was always a challenge for steam engines. This summit has been the site of three train accidents: On 24th December 1910 the signalman had forgotten there were two engines slowly ascending the hill when he let the Scotch Express through which caught up and hit the slower trains and derailed them. In the process the gas lighting in the carriages ignited resulting in a fire with the deaths of twelve people and seventeen further injuries. On 2nd September 1913 two trains were heading south towards the summit with both drivers complaining about the quality of the coal. The first could not make the rise and stopped half a mile before the summit. The driver of the following train, the Edinburgh Express, failed to see the danger signal and so hit the first train. Another terrible fire with the death of sixteen people. On 31st January 1995 a train was derailed by a landslip. Warning lights were not placed away from the train so the next one hit the stationary one with thirty people injured and the conductor killed.

A18 Birkett tunnel

Work on Birkett tunnel began in 1869 and it was opened in 1875. It is 424 yards long. There is a date stone on the northern mouth (bottom right) but this was very difficult to get to.

A19 Kirkby Stephen (west) station

As can be seen from the design this was another station attributed to J H Sanders. It was known as Kirkby Stephen West to distinguish it from the Stainmore and Eden valley station. This station is over a mile from Kirkby Stephen but the lie of the land precluded the line from being any closer to the town. The station was closed in 1970 but reopened in July 1986. The southbound buildings include accommodation, a tea-room and a shelter and the northbound has a shelter only. The footbridge was erected in 1999 having been moved from Guiseley.

A20 Smardale viaduct

Smardale viaduct is 237 yards long and 131' tall, making it the highest on the Settle to Carlisle route. Of its 12 piers the fourth and tenth are heavier than the rest. It has a gradient of 1 in 100. The viaduct straddles Scandal Beck and also crosses the former Stainmore railway line. Built in local limestone and millstone grit it was designed by John Crossley. It took five years to build and was completed in August 1875.

A21 Crosby Garrett tunnel

The Crosby Garrett tunnel is 181 yards long, but it is difficult to understand why it was built rather than continuing the cutting.

A22 Crosby Garrett station Opened in 1876 this station was closed in 1952. The platforms were within a cutting with large protecting walls. Nearby is a row of station houses and the Crosby Garrett viaduct which is 110 yards long and 55 feet high and was built at an angle so the brickwork at the top of each of the six arches is perpendicular to the road but not parallel to the line of the railway track. On 15th January 1999 the Northern Spirit passenger train from Huddersfield collided with a landslip and blocked the line. The oncoming coal train was warned by lights and detonators but it still collided with the passenger train with 24 people injured. The villagers went to the assistance of the passengers and staff.

A23 Ormside station

The original plan had been to site the station at Asby. The local landowners changed this to Ormside. Opened in 1876 the station was closed in June 1952 and it is now an education centre.

A24

Ormside viaduct

Ormside viaduct was built between 1970 and 1875. It is 200 yards long, 90' high and has 10 arches. Nearby is the hamlet of Ormside with its station, 14th century Hall and 11th century church of St James.

A25

Appleby station

Appleby West is now the only station in Appleby and is also a J H Sanders design. The rather weary looking main buildings dates from 1876. The signal box on the junction with the Eden Valley line was restored in 2019. The water tank and crane can be seen. .

A26

Long Marton station

This is a John Holloway Sanders station. It was opened in 1876 and closed in 1970 at which point it became a private house.

A27 Newbiggin station

This J H Sanders station was opened in 1876 and closed in 1970. It then became a private residence and in 2009 was bought by the present owners who are slowly but painstakingly restoring the fabric to make a comfortable home which maintains the features of the original design.

A28 Culgaith station

This station looks quite different to many others on the Settle to Carlisle line. Although the architect was J H Sanders the building was not constructed until 1880 (four years after the opening of the line) following a campaign by the local vicar. It is in a style known as Derby Gothic and it housed the crossing keeper. This crossing and the one at Armathwaite are the only ones between Settle and Carlisle. The signal box is a Midland type 4a and was built in 1908.

A29

Waste Bank tunnel

Waste Bank tunnel is 164 yards long and was constructed between 1871 and 1873. In 1930 an engineers’ train was stationary in the tunnel, unloading ballast. The passenger train from Hellifield went through the danger signal at Culgaith crossing and this, along with the flagman not setting detonators, meant that the passenger train collided with the other in the tunnel killing the driver and a passenger and injuring eight others.

A30 Langwathby station

This is another easily recognisable John Holloway Sanders designed station. It was opened in 1876 then closed in 1970. Fortunately it was re-opened in 1986 and it is currently well looked after as an unmanned station. Lang – long, wath – ford, by – settlement or village.

A31 Little Salkeld station

Now a private house Little Salkeld station was built in 1876 and closed in 1970. In 1933 there was an accident here when a passenger train collided with a shunting goods train. Thirty passengers were injured, as were five railway staff, and one railwayman was killed.

A32 Eden Lacy viaduct

A33 Lazonby and Kirkoswald station

The Lazonby and Kirkoswald station is another John Holloway Sanders one and, like the one at Langwathby, is type B. It was opened in 1876 as Lazonby station but renamed in July 1895. The old goods yard is now a local bakery. This station was the northern terminus of the Settle to Carlisle line between February 2016 and March 2017 following a landslip and the subsequent repair work cost £23 million.

A34 Baron Wood tunnels

There are two tunnels at Low Baron Wood. The one immediately to the south of this one is 207 yards long and this one is 251 yards long and they are 112 yards apart. They were built between 1871 and 1872.

A35 Nunclose Road bridge

At 297 miles and 748 yards from London and bridge number 321 its elegant and almost Gothic arch gives it a certain appeal which we have commented upon whenever we have cycled through it.

A36 Armathwaite station

Although this is still a halt on the railway the J H Sanders station is now a private house. It was opened in 1876 and when passenger trains ceased in 1970 it was closed and sold off. When the passenger trains were re-instated in 1986 a stone shelter was built on the opposite side of the lines. The Midland type 2a signal box was put into service in 1899 and then decommissioned in 1983. In 1992 it was restored by the Friends of the Settle to Carlisle Line.

A37

Dry Beck viaduct

Dry Beck viaduct looks splendid on this summer’s day. It is 139 yards long, has seven arches and a maximum height of 80 feet. It was built between 1871 and 1875 and designed by the chief engineer of the Midland Railway Company John Sydney Crossley.

A38 Low House crossing

The original signal box was opened in 1875 but was then replaced by the current Midland Type 2a building in October 1900. The crossing gates were replaced by barriers in 1975 though they are operated from the signal box. The metal hut to the left of the box was used, until about ten years ago, for storing oil and lamps.

A39 Cotehill station

Designed by J H Sanders the station and cottages are near Englethwaite Hall but 1½ miles from the village. The station opened in 1876 and closed in 1952. In 1900 a tramway joined it to Knothill cement works and Boaterby quarry but it was redundant by 1952.

A40 Cumwhinton station

Here at Cumwhinton are numerous railway buildings: the station, the station house and a terrace of railway cottages. They are all in private hands and are well kept. They were designed by John Holloway Sanders and opened in May 1876 and closed in 1957. The name Cumwhinton derives from cwm - valley, whin – furze or gorse, and ton – town.

A41 Scotby station

This J H Sanders station house still reverberates to the trains on the Settle to Carlisle line and the platform is still on the other side of the building from this photograph. The house was decommissioned in 1959 and has since been in private hands.

A42 Carlisle station

The northernmost station on the line is in Gothic style and was designed by William Tite. It opened in 1847 and cost the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway company and the Caledonian Railways a total of £53,000. Compare that price with the £10.7m paid in 2015 to refurbish the station. Nick and I took the train from Garsdale to here and cycled back home.

Section B Ingleton branch line or the Lune Valley Line B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10

Clapham station Ingleton stations and viaduct Cowan Bridge viaduct Kirkby Lonsdale station Barbon station Middleton-on-Lune station Rawthey viaduct (Jackdaw bridge) Sedbergh station Lune (Waterside) viaduct Lowgill viaduct

In 1846 the North Western Railway (NWR) planned a route from Skipton to join the main west line at Lowgill, its route passing through Clapham, Ingleton and Sedbergh. The first section, which went as far as Ingleton, was completed in 1848 but this coincided with a financial crash due to over-speculation in

railways. A spur was built from Clapham to Morecambe but the section from Clapham to Ingleton was closed within twelve months of its opening. In 1857 the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway (L&CR) was granted parliamentary permission to build a line from Ingleton to Lowgill. The principal engineer was John Edward Errington (1806-1862) who saw the opening of the line in September 1861. Because of its route it was known as the Lune Valley Line. There are several fine viaducts, most of which were designed by Joseph Locke (1805-1860). By 1861 the L&CR had been taken over by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) which led to problems described later under Ingleton Stations. Passenger traffic basically ceased in January 1954 and all goods traffic had finished by 1964. The lines were taken up in 1967. Sadly, plans in the 1980s to open up sections of the line as a cycle way and footpath came to nought.

B1 Clapham station

The railway went from Skipton through Hellifield and Long Preston and forked west just before Settle to go to Clapham. From here a route continued westwards through Wennington to Morecambe and a second route – the Ingleton Line – branched off to the North West along a sharp curve which had a maximum speed of 35mph. The station was built by the North Western Railway and opened in July 1849. In 1998 the station was refurbished and a new wooden westbound platform was made.

B2 Ingleton stations and viaduct

There were two stations at Ingleton. The one belonging to the North Western Railway (NWR) (which became known as the Midland station) was opened in July 1849 at the end of the newly constructed Ingleton Branch Line from Clapham. It was on the east side of the river Greta gorge. The other station (Ingleton Thornton) was on the west side of the river and was opened in 1861. Connecting them was the viaduct which is 800' long with 11 arches (each 57' wide) and with a maximum height of 80'. It was built of sandstone from Bentham. The rest of the Ingleton line (from Ingleton to Lowgill) was built by the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway which, by 1861 had become the London and North Western Railway (LNWR). The NWR had also become the Midland Railway (MR). The LNWR and MR were bitter rivals and the MR refused to let the LNWR use their station. So, passengers using this line had to get off at one station and walk to the other (sometimes they were allowed to pay 1d to cross the viaduct) and worse, the two companies ensured their timetables did not dovetail. In 1862 the MR allowed the LNWR trains to use their station but it wasn’t until 1923 that passengers could travel the whole line without changing trains. Thornton station closed in 1917 and was demolished. The Midland station closed in 1954 and it is now the site of the Ingleton Community Centre.

B3 Cowan Bridge viaduct

Hidden amongst the trees just north of the busy A65 is this elegant five arched viaduct spanning Leck Beck. Nearby is the Clergy Daughters’ School, named Lowood, attended by Charlotte Brontë and her sisters.

B4 Kirkby Lonsdale station

Opened in 1861 it and like the one at Sedbergh was closed to most passenger traffic in 1954. It was then used, until 1964, for weekend excursions and also for the ends of terms for the girls of Casterton School.

B5 Barbon station

Little remains of Barbon station other than the building above left and the road above which follows the line of the tracks. The nearby bridges are reminiscent of the ones on the Lancaster to Kendal canal. These were designed by John Errington. St Bartholomew’s church, the Barbon Inn, the Church Mouse and the war memorial make this village at the foot of the Middleton Fells an attractive one.

B6 Middleton-on Lune station

Middleton station opened in 1861 and was re-named Middleton-onLune on 19th July 1926. The station closed in 1931. It now has gas storage tanks and a tree surgeon. Nearby is The Head, formerly the Railway Inn, which is across the road from the station. The stationmaster’s house, along with its outbuildings, are adjacent to the line of the tracks. A half mile away is the Church of the Holy Ghost built in 1879 on the site of an earlier church of 1634. In the churchyard is a Roman milestone recently relocated from an adjacent field.

B7 Rawthey Viaduct or Jackdaw Bridge

The Rawthey Viaduct is known locally as Jackdaw Bridge. It was built between 1857 and 1861. The single span (made from wrought iron and cast-iron in four sections) is 120' long and 53' high and the pillars are of sandstone. The bridge lies at 38° to the direction of the river. The viaduct was made a Grade II listed building in 1984. Trains last crossed it in 1966 and the bridge is now owned by the gas board, Transco. It is used to carry a mains gas pipe.

B8

Sedbergh station

The station was opened in 1861 and had three passenger trains a day in each direction. It was closed to most passenger traffic in 1954 though it was open to freight and pupils of Sedbergh School (at the start and end of the terms) until October 1964. This latter train was also used by the girls of Casterton School. Dawsons coal merchants, now known as Dawsons Fuels, has been in the same family for five generations run by William, John, Jack, Michael and currently Peter and Martyn).

B9

Lune (Waterside) viaduct

The Lune viaduct, also known as Waterside viaduct, was designed by Joseph Lock and John Errington. It was built between 1858 and 1861. The viaduct is 530' long and reaches a height of 100' above the river Lune. It has six arches built from Penrith sandstone and a central span of cast iron similar to that on Jackdaw Bridge. It had a restoration costing £600,000 in 2008. It is now a Grade II* listed building.

B10 Lowgill viaduct

Lowgill viaduct has eleven arches reaching to a height of 90' and is about 165 yards long. The builders were Samuel Buxton of Leeds. The foundation stone was laid on the 4th January 1859 by W A Saunders of Wennington Hall (a director of the L&C Railway). Beneath the viaduct is Lummer Gill with its pack horse bridge.

In the churchyard of St Andrew’s, Sedbergh is this tombstone: In Memory of Thomas Nicholson who died at Sedbergh May 9 th 1861 from the effects of an accident which befell him while in the pursuance of his duty as inspector of works on the Lune Valley Railway. Aged 70 years.

Section C C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6

South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway: Kirkby Stephen to Tebay

Kirkby Stephen East station Smardale station Smardale Gill viaduct Ravenstonedale station Gaisgill station Tebay station

The purpose of the railway line was to carry freight from Bishop Auckland, through Barnard Castle, over Bowes Moor to Kirkby Stephen and then to the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway at Tebay and to carry iron ore from Lancashire and Cumberland back to Bishop Auckland and to the blast furnaces of Teesdale. The South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway was thus

formed in 1856 and work began on the line in September 1857. The work between Barnard Castle and Tebay was completed by July 1861. The section of the line from Kirkby Stephen to Tebay was closed to passengers in December 1952 although the freight, and in particular coal, continued to be carried until the railway was finally closed in January 1962.

C1

Kirkby Stephen East station

The Kirkby Stephen East station was on the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway which ran between Barnard Castle and Tebay. It was opened in 1861 and closed in 1962. It was once a busy station as trains went through here from Newcastle and Darlington on the way to the holiday resort of Blackpool.

C2

Smardale station

Smardale station was opened in September 1861. The photograph is of the stationmaster’s house. There are remains of the platform in front of the house. This was the smallest station on the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway and it served the Smardale hamlet which included Smardale Hall (dating from C14.) The station was closed between 20th September 1915 and 31st October 1919 then again on 1st December 1952.

C3

Smardale Gill viaduct

Smardale Gill viaduct is a grade II* listed building. It was completed in 1861, is 184 yards long and its 14 arches reach to a height of 90' above Scandale Beck. The engineer was Sir Thomas Bouch and it was he who designed the first roll on/roll off ferry for trains as well as the disastrous Tay Bridge which collapsed in 1879 with the deaths of 75 people. The viaduct is now under the care of the Northern Viaduct Trust.

C4

Ravenstonedale station

Newbiggin was the name of this station when it was opened in September 1861. It was re-named Ravenstonedale station in 1877. The stationmaster’s house and the station buildings can be seen and the up platform still exists. The station was unusual in that it had staggered platforms. There was a goods yard on the south side. The last passenger service was on 1st December 1961 though the line was used for freight until 20th January 1962. Ravenstonedale station was known for its immaculate ornamental garden behind the up platform. The current owners were delighted to show us the building, as well as he recreation of the Simla mountain railway in the back garden.

C5 Gaisgill station

The A685 now follows the line of the railway but the station house and waiting room still exist. The station was opened on the 8th August 1861 and was closed on 1st December 1952. There had been two platforms and a goods yard with two sidings. The hamlet has a 17C building – Gaisgill Farm. The Chapel was built in 1841 and in use until 2003. There was a reading room built in 1909 and the Victoria Institute was formerly the Sedbergh School Chapel and this wooden building was transported by train to Gaisgill in 1899.

C6

Tebay station

Tebay station opened on 17th December 1846 by the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway. It was closed on 1st July 1968 and then demolished. The station became a junction between the south-north line and the east-west line of the South Durham and Lancashire Railway on the 8th August 1861. There was a huge number of sidings which were used for the coke, coal and iron ore wagons on the cross-country line and for livestock. There was a four-bay shed between 1866 and 1902 and another shed with a turntable for the locomotives used to assist other trains up to Shap summit. Tebay was a hamlet, first recorded in 1179 in the Pipe Rolls (financial records) but only became important with the arrival of the railways in the C19.

Section D

D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 D8 D9 D10 D11 D12 D13

Eden Valley Line

Kirkby Stephen East station Waitby crossing Scandal Beck bridge Musgrave viaduct (site) Musgrave station Warcop station Coupland Beck viaduct Appleby (East) station Temple Sowerby station Skygarth viaduct Cliburn station Clifton Moor station Penrith station

The Eden Valley Railway Company was formed in 1856 to build a railway line from the Kirkby Stephen East station, which was on the Lancashire Union Railway, to Clifton and so join the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway (now the main west line). The other stations were to be at Musgrave, Warcop, Appleby, Kirkby Thore, Temple Sowerby and Cliburn. Work began on 4th August 1858 and the line was opened on 8th April 1862. Clifton station was added in 1863. The railway was closed to passengers in 1962 but the section from Appleby (and hence the Settle to Carlisle line) and Kirkby Stephen remained opened to goods traffic until 1976. However, the section from Appleby to Warcop continued to be used by the Army until 1989. The raison d’etre of the line was to carry iron ore from Cumberland to the blast furnaces of the north-east. The line was built by the firm of Lawton Brothers of Newcastle. Stone for the buildings was quarried at Cliburn. The railway cost £204,803 (c £20m now). Most of the stations are now private houses though the one that stood at Kirkby Thore was demolished to make room for the widening of the A66.

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D1 Kirkby Stephen East station

The Kirkby Stephen East station now houses the Stainmore Railway Company, and its buildings are mostly part of an industrial estate. Pictured here is an 1888 carriage which had recently been rescued from a farm having been there since the First World War. It is sitting on a North Eastern Railway turntable which arrived in 2016 and, like the carriage, is awaiting restoration. The Company recently won a £1m Lottery grant towards the restoration of a steam train and a stores carriage.

D2

Waitby crossing

This much altered house was once the accommodation for the crossing attendant. The line crossed a minor road at this point.

D3

Scandal Beck bridge

The source of Scandal Beck is the tarn adjacent to Tarn House near the Fat Lamb. It then flows through Ravenstonedale, under Smardalegill viaduct and Smardale viaduct and finally through Soulby and under this bridge just before the confluence with the river Eden. The construction of this iron bridge started about 1858 and it was ready for the opening of the line in 1862.

D4 (site)

Musgrave viaduct

On the right bank of this peaceful stretch of the river Eden can be seen the line of the railway at its crossing point over the river. The iron bridge was supported by two stone piers.

D5

Musgrave station

This stationmaster’s house at Musgrave was built in time for the line opening in June 1862. This part of the Eden Valley Railway closed in November 1952 and this was the first station taken out of action (3rd November 1952). The station had a single platform, a stationmaster’s house and a brick-built building on the down side.

D6

Warcop station

the line in 1995

The stationmaster’s house at Warcop is now alongside the Eden Valley Railway Society which re-opened the line in 1995 to run tourist trains from here to Appleby. There is a number of engines and various items of rolling stock. This section of the line (to Appleby) was used by the Army and remained open until 1989.

D7

Coupland Beck viaduct

Coupland Beck viaduct was designed by Sir Thomas Bouch and constructed in 1861 by the Lawton Brothers of Carlisle. It is built from the local red sandstone and has five arches each springing from tapered piers. A small stone parapet supports cast iron railings. The viaduct carries a single-track railway of the Eden Valley line.

D8

Appleby East station

Appleby East station is on the redundant Eden Valley line and is now a rather tatty scrap yard. The line was closed to passengers in 1962 and the station and sidings became in 1964 a Coal Concentration Depot (i.e. a place where coal merchants both domestic and industrial used the same yards to reduce the need for several tipping points on the railway). The tracks were removed in 1975.

D9

Temple Sowerby station

Temple Sowerby station opened in 1862 on the Eden Valley railway. There was a single platform and a small goods yard used mostly for coal. The station closed in 1952 and the goods yard ten years later. It is now a private house. .

D10

Skygarth viaduct

There is little left to be seen of the viaduct other than the end piers on both sides of a very beautiful stretch of the river Eden. The viaduct had been 98 feet 3 inches long with four lattice girders supported by three piers. The local farmer recalls its demolition one Sunday sometime in the 1960s. .

D11

Cliburn station

Cliburn station was opened in 1862 and had a station and stationmaster’s house, a signal box (controlling the gates and access to the goods yard) and a weigh room building. The house is now a private home and the other buildings are self-catering accommodation. .

D12

Clifton Moor station

There were two stations at Clifton: one was Clifton and Lowther station on the Lancaster and Carlisle railway (now the main west coast line) and Clifton Moor station on the Eden Valley Railway. The two lines joined a few hundred yards north of each of the stations. This one was opened in 1863 and named Clifton Station being renamed in 1927 as Clifton Moor. It was closed in 1964. It was the only station on the Eden Valley Railway to have had two platforms. The station and the stationmaster’s house are now private homes but the line of the tracks can be seen and there remains a goods office.

D13

Penrith station

Penrith station was designed and opened in 1846 by Sir William Tite for the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway. Tite was the architect for a large number of stations and he also designed the Royal Exchange in London. There used to be a line from here to Keswick, Cockermouth and Workington which closed in 1972, which must have enjoyed some outstanding lakeland scenery.