Jump to content

Manchester and Leeds Railway

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Tullyvallin (talk | contribs) at 02:43, 18 June 2018 (→‎Route: minor edits mainly for expression, minor reorganisation, added cite). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Manchester and Leeds Railway
Overview
HeadquartersManchester
LocaleLancashire and Yorkshire
Dates of operation4 July 1836 (1836-07-04)–9 July 1847 (1847-07-09)
SuccessorLancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 9 in (1,448 mm)[1]
Manchester and
Leeds Railway
Legend
M&LR Mainline and Branches 1836-1847
miles
Leeds Hunslet Lane (NMR)
Woodlesford (NMR)
Methley (NMR)
Y&NMR
to York
51
 Normanton (NMR)
NMR
to Derby
48
 Wakefield Kirkgate
44
 Horbury and Ossett
41
 Dewsbury
Mirfield
36
 Cooper Bridge
34
 Brighouse for Bradford
31
 Elland
North Dean
Halifax Shaw Syke
28
 Sowerby Bridge
26
 Luddendenfoot
Mytholmroyd
24
 Hebden Bridge
21
 Eastwood
20
 Todmorden
Walsden
Summit Tunnel
14
 Littleborough
11
 Rochdale
9
 Blue Pitts
Heywood
6
 Mills Hill
Oldham
Werneth Incline
AS&LJR
to Stalybridge
Middleton Junction
Park
Miles Platting
0
 Manchester Oldham Road
Manchester Victoria
L&NWR
to Liverpool Lime Street
Manchester and Leeds Railway
Other lines
North Midland Railway (NMR)
York and North Midland Railway (Y&NMR)
London and North Western Railway (L&NWR)
Ashton, Stalybridge and
Liverpool Junction Railway (AS&LJR)

Line & stations shown as of 1847
Not showing the
Manchester and Bolton Railway
acquired by the M&LR in 1846

The Manchester and Leeds Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which opened in 1839, connecting Manchester with Leeds via the North Midland Railway which it joined at Normanton.

Its route now forms the backbone of the present-day Caldervale Line.

History

It was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1836, with a second Act in 1839 which authorised the extension from the original Manchester terminus at Oldham Road railway station[2] to join the Liverpool and Manchester Railway when the latter was extended to Hunt's Bank (later called Manchester Victoria). The Act also authorised branches to Oldham and Halifax with a diversion at Kirkthorpe. Superintended by George Stephenson, its engineer was Thomas Longridge Gooch, a brother of Daniel Gooch of the GWR.

The 4 ft 9 in (1,448 mm)[1] line was opened in 1839 as far as Littleborough, and from Normanton to Hebden Bridge in 1840. The final linking section opened on completion of the Summit Tunnel in 1841.

The line became the chief constituent of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, which was incorporated in 1847. Several railways had earlier been absorbed by the M&LR:

Route

The line climbs out of Manchester with an average gradient of 1 in 260 (0.38%) until it arrives at the summit, just north of Littleborough, where there is a 2,860-yard (2,620 m) tunnel. From there the line descended towards Normanton. It had to use the North Midland Railway line to run into Leeds, because Parliament had refused to sanction two parallel lines. The rails were in 15-foot (4.6 m) lengths, laid at a gauge of 4 ft 9 in (1,448 mm), on a mixture of stone blocks and, on embankments, wooden sleepers.

The line was not an easy one to build. There were eight tunnels, mostly through very difficult rock, a hundred and sixteen bridges, and long cuttings and embankments. A tunnel at Charlestown, near Hebden Bridge, had to be abandoned following its collapse and the continued instability of the ground. That necessitated a diversion, involving three tight curves of 12 chains (241 m) radius, which were at variance with the 60-chain (1,207 m) norm for the line.[9] Two large bridges were avoided by diverting the course of the River Calder. In 1951, the instability of the retaining wall above the river required a 5 miles per hour (8 km/h) speed limit until repairs were completed in 1953.[10]

Locomotives

The locomotives were provided by local manufacturers, to the six-wheeled Stephenson pattern. Carriages were all four-wheeled. First and Second had three compartments, the latter with wooden shutters instead of glazing. The third class was "Stanhopes," that is, without seats, each divided into four sections by lateral and longitudinal bars. There were also some mixed carriages having a first class centre compartment, with the end ones second class. The average weight of a train would be about 18 tons, with an average speed of about 25 MPH (40 km/h), reaching approx. 42 MPH (67.6 km/h) downhill.

The railway was an early user of Edmonsons Ticketing System. Tickets were checked en route, the guard presumably having to move from carriage to carriage by means of the external footboard - just as is described in Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll.

Accidents and incidents

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b William Templeton - The Locomotive Engine Popularly Explained - Page 96
  2. ^ Parkinson-Bailey 2000, p. 53.
  3. ^ Scrivenor 1849, pp. 145–156.
  4. ^ Scrivenor 1849, p. 144.
  5. ^ Scrivenor 1849, p. 148.
  6. ^ Scrivenor 1849, p. 149.
  7. ^ Scrivenor 1849, p. 150.
  8. ^ Scrivenor 1849, p. 153.
  9. ^ Whishaw, Francis (1842). The Railways of Great Britain and Ireland Practically Described and Illustrated (2 ed.). John Weale. pp. 314–315. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
  10. ^ Cooke, B.W.C., ed. (June 1954), "Strengthening of River Calder Retaining Wall, N.E.R.", The Railway Magazine, vol. 100, no. 638, Westminster: Tothill Press, pp. 428–429
  11. ^ Hewison 1983, p. 29.

Bibliography

Further reading

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Manchester_and_Leeds_Railway&oldid=846336159"