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The Castle Eden Railway was a railway line built by the North Eastern Railway between Bowesfield Junction near Stockton-on-Tees and Wingate, County Durham, Northeast England. Although its route actually never went near Castle Eden, it was also informally known as the "Cuckoo Line". [1] [2] [3]
Passed under an Act of Parliament as the Stockton and Castle Eden Bridge Railway, it was built by contractor Thomas Nelson. The main civil engineering structure was the viaduct at Thorpe Thewles to cross Thorpe Beck and its valley, which consisted of 22 arches, used 8 million bricks and cost £37,000. [1] [3]
The first section of the line was opened on 1 May 1877 between Bowesfield Junction to Carlton South Junction (later Redmarshall), with a curve to Carlton West, to give access to the coalfields of South County Durham. [1] The remainder of the line was opened for freight traffic on 1 August 1878, and passenger traffic between Stockton and Wellfield on 1 March 1880. [1] [2] [3] A curve connecting the line with the Leeds Northern Railway between Bowesfield Junction and Hartburn West Junction was added in 1901. [1] [4]
The southern section from Bowesfield to Redmarshall never carried passengers, [1] but in 1914 was overhead line electrified by the NER to allow coal to be transported from Witton Park Colliery at Shildon, along the former Clarence Railway to Redmarshall and then down the CER to Erimus Marshalling Yard, for export from Middlesbrough Dock. [1] During the 1920s the coal traffic declined, and some of the Electric Freight 1 locomotives became surplus to requirements. After the NER was grouped in 1923 as part of the London and North Eastern Railway, by the 1935 the LNER had replaced the electric locomotives with steam. [1] [5] A curve connecting with the Leeds Northern Railway between Bowesfield Junction and Hartburn West Junction was added in 1901. [1]
Originally proposed as a secondary mainline, [1] it mainly carried freight, including: Weardale limestone; West County Durham coal; and Cleveland ironstone to support the growing industrialisation on Teesside. Its secondary transport was the shipment of agricultural supplies in and produce/livestock out from the valleys farms. [1] [2] [3]
In 1905 the Durham Coast Line between Sunderland and Hartlepool was completed, which started the decline of the importance of the Castle Eden Branch as an express passenger mainline. [1] [2] [3] In 1931 it lost its passenger services, and it closed to freight services in 1951. [1] [4] Its final demise even as a bypass route occurred as a result of the Beeching Axe review, closing in stages between 1966 and 1968. [1] The track, ballast and other equipment were all removed by contractors soon afterwards. [1] [2] [3]
In 1977 part of the line was acquired by Cleveland County Council with financial help from the Department of the Environment and the Countryside Commission. [1] [2] In 1979 the viaduct was demolished to make the Thorpe Thewles bypass. [3] The residual section reopened to the public as the Castle Eden Walkway in 1981, [1] [2] while the old stationmasters house at Thorpe Thewles was opened as a Visitor Centre in 1983. [1] [3]
The Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) was a railway company that operated in north-east England from 1825 to 1863. The world's first public railway to use steam locomotives, its first line connected collieries near Shildon with Darlington and Stockton in County Durham, and was officially opened on 27 September 1825. The movement of coal to ships rapidly became a lucrative business, and the line was soon extended to a new port at Middlesbrough. While coal waggons were hauled by steam locomotives from the start, passengers were carried in coaches drawn by horses until carriages hauled by steam locomotives were introduced in 1833.
The North Eastern Railway (NER) was an English railway company. It was incorporated in 1854 by the combination of several existing railway companies. Later, it was amalgamated with other railways to form the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923. Its main line survives to the present day as part of the East Coast Main Line between London and Edinburgh.
The Eden Valley Railway (EVR) was a railway in Cumbria, England. It ran between Clifton Junction near Penrith and Kirkby Stephen via Appleby-in-Westmorland.
Thorpe Thewles is a village which had history dating back to the 12th century. The village shares a parish with Grindon and is in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, Northern England. It lies near the A177 road between Stockton-on-Tees and Sedgefield.
The Durham Coast Line is an approximately 39.5-mile (63.6 km) railway line running between Newcastle and Middlesbrough in North East England. Heavy rail passenger services, predominantly operated Northern Trains, and some freight services operate over the whole length of the line; it provides an important diversionary route at times when the East Coast Main Line is closed. Light rail services of the Tyne and Wear Metro's Green Line also operate over the same tracks between a junction just south of Sunderland station and Pelaw Junction.
Stockton is a railway station on the Durham Coast Line, which runs between Newcastle and Middlesbrough via Hartlepool. The station, situated 5 miles 45 chains (9.0 km) west of Middlesbrough, serves the market town of Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.
The South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway (SD&LUR) built a railway line linking the Stockton and Darlington Railway near Bishop Auckland with the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway at Tebay, via Barnard Castle, Stainmore Summit and Kirkby Stephen. The line opened in 1861 and became known as the Stainmore Line.
The Derwent Valley Railway was a branch railway in County Durham, England. Built by the North Eastern Railway, it ran from Swalwell to Blackhill via five intermediate stations, and onwards to Consett.
Redmarshall railway station was a railway station on the North Eastern Railway, in County Durham, England.
The Clarence Railway was an early railway company that operated in north-east England between 1833 and 1853. The railway was built to take coal from mines in County Durham to ports on the River Tees and was a competitor to the Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR). It suffered financial difficulty soon after it opened because traffic was low and the S&DR charged a high rate for transporting coal to the Clarence, and the company was managed by the Exchequer Loan Commissioners after July 1834. An extension of the Byers Green branch was opened in 1839 by the independent West Durham Railway to serve collieries in Weardale.
The Lanchester Valley Railway was an English railway line that was developed by the North Eastern Railway to run between Durham to Consett. Extending 12 miles (19 km) along the valley of the River Browney, it opened on 1 September 1862. Closed under the Beeching Axe, it has been redeveloped by Durham County Council as a foot and cycle path as the Lanchester Valley Railway Path.
Ferryhill railway station was located in Ferryhill, County Durham, Northeast England. It was located on what became the East Coast Main Line between Darlington and Durham, close to the junctions with several former branches, including the extant freight-only Stillington Line to Norton-on-Tees and Stockton.
The Durham to Bishop Auckland Line was a railway line originally built by the North Eastern Railway (NER) to provide rail transport access to coal mines in West County Durham. It closed under the Beeching Axe to passenger traffic in May 1964, and freight in 1968. Today it forms the major part of the 9 miles (14 km) Brandon to Bishop Auckland rail trail.
Tees Marshalling Yard is a railway marshalling yard, used to separate railway wagons, located near Middlesbrough in North Yorkshire, Northern England.
The Castleford–Garforth line was a single-track railway line in West Yorkshire, England, connecting Castleford with Garforth east of Leeds. The route was developed to allow coal to be transported from the area, though a passenger service was operated between 1878 and 1951. Initially promoted by Leeds, Castleford and Pontefract Junction Railway, it was taken over by the North Eastern Railway before the line was completed.
Thorpe Thewles railway station was a stop on the Castle Eden branch of the North Eastern Railway (NER) from 1880 to 1931. It was located approximately 5 miles north of Stockton and was designed to serve the village of Thorpe Thewles and the civil parish of Grindon in Stockton-on-Tees, part of the Ceremonial County of Durham, North East England. Despite its name, the station was actually located further from the village of Thorpe Thewles than Carlton station on the main line of the Clarence Railway.
Wynyard railway station was a railway station on the Castle Eden branch of the North Eastern Railway (NER) from 1880 to 1931. It was located immediately to the south of the bridge carrying the Hartlepool to Sedgefield road and served little more than a few scattered hamlets, including Embleton and Swainston. Despite its name, the station was poorly situated for Wynyard Park which was better served by the neighbouring station at Thorpe Thewles.
Hurworth Burn railway station was a railway station on the Castle Eden branch of the North Eastern Railway (NER) from 1880 to 1931. It was located between the embankment carrying the railway over Hurworth Burn Reservoir and the bridge carrying the line over the Hart to Trimdon road. As well as serving the then relatively new reservoir, the station primarily served a few scattered hamlets though it was also the nearest station to the village of Sheraton.
Wellfield railway station was a railway station that served the village of Wingate in County Durham, England. It was built by the North Eastern Railway (NER) on the route of the Hartlepool Dock & Railway (HD&R) to allow interchange between the existing line and their newly opened line from Stockton-on-Tees.
Shotton Bridge railway station was a railway station built by the North Eastern Railway (NER) on the route of the Hartlepool Dock & Railway (HD&R) as part of a programme of works to modernise that line and link it with the Durham & Sunderland Railway (D&SR) so as to create a railway through-route between West Hartlepool and Sunderland. On opening, the station served the relatively new village of Shotton Colliery, which grew around the nearby Shotton Grange Colliery, as well as Old Shotton on the Stockton to Sunderland turnpike road, further to the east.
