Eastgate railway station

Last updated

Eastgate
Eastgate station - geograph.org.uk - 681597.jpg
The site of the station in February 2008
Location Eastgate, County Durham
England
Coordinates 54°44′31″N2°04′10″W / 54.7419°N 2.0695°W / 54.7419; -2.0695 Coordinates: 54°44′31″N2°04′10″W / 54.7419°N 2.0695°W / 54.7419; -2.0695
Grid reference NY956385
Platforms1
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original company North Eastern Railway
Post-grouping LNER
British Railways (North Eastern)
Key dates
21 October 1895 (1895-10-21)Opened
29 June 1953Closed to passengers
14 September 1980 (1980-09-14)Closed completely

Eastgate railway station, also known as Eastgate-in-Weardale, served the village of Eastgate in County Durham, North East England from 1895 to 1953 as a stop on the Wear Valley Line.

Contents

History

Railway development in Weardale was a slow process: the Shildon to Crook route of the Bishop Auckland & Weardale Railway reached as far as Witton Junction (east of Witton-le-Wear) in November 1843. [1] However the Wear Valley Railway was the first line to truly enter the dale when it opened as a branch from Witton Junction to Frosterley and Bishopley on 3 August 1847 and this was then extended to Stanhope by the Frosterley & Stanhope Railway in 1862. However it was not until 21 October 1895 that the railway reached Eastgate when the North Eastern Railway extended the line from Stanhope to Wearhead and opened the station at Eastgate. [2]

The station had a goods shed (which still remains as the only remaining example of one of many similar goods sheds on the Wearhead extension of the line) and a number of sidings however the lack of run-round facilities meant that all shunting had to be carried by a rope attached to the locomotive. [2]

The station was closed to passengers by British Railways (BR) on 29 June 1953 when passenger services on the branch west of Wear Valley Junction were withdrawn, though goods traffic continued to serve the station for some years. In 1961 the line was cut back to St John's Chapel and then, in 1968, it was further reduced to the Blue Circle Cement Works (later owned by Lafarge), just to the west of Eastgate station. This had opened in 1964 and utilised purpose built railway container waggons to transport most of the cement that it produced to Teesside, Tyneside and Scotland. On 14 September 1970, Eastgate became a public delivery siding and continued in this role until the withdrawal of the remaining local goods services on 14 September 1980. Cement traffic continued, however, and so the line was retained. Then, in 1988, BR introduced a summer Sunday extension to the regular Darlington to Bishop Auckland 'Heritage Line' service as far as Stanhope and this was continued until the service was withdrawn after the summer of 1992 followed by the remaining cement traffic on 17 March 1993. [2]

Rather than close the line when freight traffic was withdrawn, BR mothballed it and a campaign began in 1993 to preserve the line as a heritage railway. Weardale Railways Limited purchased the line in 2004 and reopened it between Wolsingham and Stanhope in July 2004. [2] However the organisation struggled financially and the service was suspended a short time later, not recommencing until August 2006. [3]

On 29 September 2009, the development of the Eastgate Renewable Energy Village received unanimous outline approval by the County Durham strategic planning committee. [4] This plan would have involved the opening of a new station at Eastgate to serve new development on the site of the cement works (demolished in 2005) but the withdrawal of government funding in 2010 put the plans under threat [5] and by 2013 the project appeared to have stalled. [6]

The Weardale Railway did, however remain active and, after major efforts to clear the line of vegetation and repair damaged tracks, passenger services along the section between Stanhope and Bishop Auckland West were reintroduced on 23 May 2010 [7] and continued until the end of the 2012 season. [8] However, in June 2014 a limited, volunteer-run passenger service was reintroduced between Stanhope and Wolsingham [9] using a class 122 "Bubble Car" and on 27 March 2016 this service was extended to Witton-le-Wear. [10] It is therefore possible that passenger services could return to Eastgate in future.

Related Research Articles

Wear Valley

Wear Valley was, from 1974 to 2009, a local government district in County Durham, England. Its council and district capital was Crook.

Weardale Railway

The Weardale Railway is an independently owned British single-track branch line heritage railway between Bishop Auckland, Witton-le-Wear, Wolsingham, Frosterley and Stanhope. Weardale Railway began services on 23 May 2010, but decided to run special trains rather than a scheduled service for the 2013 season.

Weardale

Weardale is a dale, or valley, of the east side of the Pennines in County Durham, England. Large parts of Weardale fall within the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) – the second largest AONB in England and Wales. The upper valley is surrounded by high fells and heather grouse moors. The River Wear flows through Weardale before reaching Bishop Auckland and then Durham, meeting the sea at Sunderland.

Frosterley Human settlement in England

Frosterley is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated in Weardale, on the River Wear close to its confluence with Bollihope Burn; between Wolsingham and Stanhope; 18 miles west of Durham City and 26 miles southwest of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. In the 2001 census Frosterley had a population of 705.

Stanhope, County Durham Human settlement in England

Stanhope is a small market town in County Durham, England, situated on the River Wear between Eastgate and Frosterley, on the north-east side of Weardale. The main A689 road that bridges the Pennines is crossed at Stanhope by the B6278 road between Barnard Castle and Shotley Bridge.

Wearhead Human settlement in England

Wearhead is a village in County Durham, in England. It is situated at the top of Weardale between Cowshill and Ireshopeburn. It is named after the nearby source of the River Wear which runs eastwards for approx 40 miles (64 km) to Sunderland. In the 2001 census Wearhead had a population of 210.

Bishop Auckland railway station Railway station in County Durham on the Tees Valley Line

Bishop Auckland railway station serves the town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham, England. The station is the western terminus of the Tees Valley Line 12 miles (19 km) north of Darlington.

River Wear

The River Wear in North East England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At 60 mi (97 km) long, it is one of the region's longest rivers, wends in a steep valley through the cathedral city of Durham and gives its name to Weardale in its upper reach and Wearside by its mouth.

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.

West Auckland railway station served the villages of St Helen Auckland and West Auckland in County Durham, England, between 1833 and 1962. It was on the railway line between Bishop Auckland and Barnard Castle. There was a locomotive depot, which was the only one to be both closed completely and later reopened by the London and North Eastern Railway.

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

Ferryhill was a railway station located in Ferryhill in 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.

Durham to Bishop Auckland Line Railway line in County Durham, England

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.

Crook railway station served the town of Crook, County Durham, England. It was located on the Bishop Auckland and Weardale Railway line from Bishop Auckland to Blackhill between Wear Valley Junction and Tow Law, 17 miles (27 km) north west of Darlington.

Harperley railway station Disused railway station in Fir Tree, County Durham

Harperley railway station served the Harperley Hall Estate and the nearby hamlet of Low Harperley, close to the village of Fir Tree in County Durham, North East England between 1861 and 1864 and again from 1892 to 1953 as a stop on the Wear Valley Line.

Witton-le-Wear railway station Disused railway station in Witton-le-Wear, County Durham

Witton-le-Wear railway station is a railway station on the Weardale heritage railway serves the village of Witton-le-Wear in County Durham, North East England, and is the penultimate stop for most of line's eastbound passenger services. The current station platform is located on the opposite side of the track to the original railway station which was operation between 1847 and 1953.

Wear Valley Junction railway station primarily served as an interchange between the Wear Valley Line and the Weardale Extension Railway (WXR) between 1847 and 1935. It was the closest railway station to the village of High Grange in County Durham, North East England.

Etherley railway station Disused railway station in Witton Park, County Durham

Etherley railway station served the village of Witton Park in County Durham, North East England, from 1847 to 1965 on the Wear Valley line. It was briefly reopened during the summers of 1991 and 1992 as Witton Park.

References

  1. ↑ "Disused Stations: Crook Station". Disused Stations. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Disused Stations: Eastgate". Disused Stations. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  3. ↑ Mackay, Neil (17 August 2006). "Quiet victory as railway reopens - Today's News - News - Journal Live". The Journal. Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  4. ↑ "Plans for Eastgate eco village approved - The Journal". The Journal. 26 June 2013. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  5. ↑ McAteer, Owen (25 September 2010). "Eastgate Renewable Energy Village Threatened | The Northern Echo". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  6. ↑ "Eastgate eco-village plan for former Lafarge site stalls - BBC News". BBC News. 13 August 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  7. ↑ Williams, Adam (July 2010). "Regular passenger services return to Weardale". Modern Railways. London. p. 9.
  8. ↑ "Statement by Ed Ellis 15 March 2013". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
  9. ↑ Henderson, Tony (29 September 2015). "Weardale Railway Trust celebrates its 20th anniversary as it keeps heritage services running - Chronicle Live". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 25 March 2018.
  10. ↑ Russell, Helen (27 March 2016). "Trains stop in County Durham village for first time in 50 years | The Northern Echo". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 25 March 2018.
Preceding station Disused railways Following station
Stanhope
Line closed, station open		  North Eastern Railway
Wear Valley Line 		  Westgate-in-Weardale
Line and station closed
HR icon.svg   Proposed Heritage railways
Stanhope   Weardale Railway   Westgate-in-Weardale
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