Hartlepool Electric Tramways

Last updated

Hartlepool Electric Tramways
Operation
Locale Hartlepool
OpenJanuary 1899
Close25 March 1927
StatusClosed
Infrastructure
Track gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Propulsion system(s)Electric
Statistics
Route length 6.98 miles (11.23 km)

The Hartlepool Electric Tramways operated a tramway service in Hartlepool, County Durham, England, between 1899 and 1927. [1]

Contents

History

The Hartlepool Electric Tramways Company was a subsidiary of British Electric Traction. In January 1899 it purchased the assets of the Hartlepools Steam Tramways Company, which had been owned by the General Electric Tramways Company since 1895.

The Hartlepool Electric Tramways Order of 1895 gave the General Electric Tramways Company power to acquire the assets of the Hartlepools Steam Tramways Company and modernise and electrify the system. Electric services began on 19 May 1896. [2] Five electric tramcars were obtained from G.F. Milnes & Co. based in a new depot on Cleveland Road at Greenland.

Meanwhile, the Hartlepool Electric Tramways Company, a subsidiary of British Electric Traction, constructed the remaining sections. In January 1899 it gained control of the whole system and on 10 March 1899, Clarence Road to Foggy Furze, and a branch from Stockton Street to Ward Jackson Park opened with five tramcars from Brush Electrical Engineering Company. An extension from Church Street to Seaton Carew, via Seaton Road, opened on 28 March 1902.

On 31 August 1912, West Hartlepool Corporation purchased the tramway within its boundaries. In 1925 the section within Hartlepool was bought by Hartlepool Corporation and leased back to the company.

Closure

The system was closed on 25 March 1927.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portsdown and Horndean Light Railway</span> Tram service that ran initially from Cosham to Horndean in Hampshire, England

The Portsdown and Horndean Light Railway was a tram service that ran initially from Cosham to Horndean in Hampshire, England.

The Swansea Improvements and Tramway Company operated street trams in and around Swansea in Wales from 1878 to 1937.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tynemouth and District Electric Traction Company</span>

The Tynemouth and District Electric Traction Company operated a tramway service in North Shields, Tynemouth and Whitley Bay between 1901 and 1931.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chester Corporation Tramways</span>

Chester Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Chester between 1903 and 1930.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coventry Corporation Tramways</span>

Coventry Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Coventry, England, between 1912 and 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Potteries Electric Traction Company</span>

The Potteries Electric Traction Company operated a tramway service in The Potteries between 1899 and 1928.

Accrington Corporation Steam Tramways Company operated a steam-powered passenger tramway service in Accrington between 1886 and 1907.

Rawtenstall Corporation Tramways operated a passenger tramway service in Rawtenstall between 1908 and 1932.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dudley, Stourbridge and District Electric Traction Company</span>

The Dudley, Stourbridge and District Electric Tramways Company operated an electric tramway service between Dudley and Stourbridge and also other lines in the neighbourhood between 1899 and 1930.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wolverhampton District Electric Tramways Company</span>

The Wolverhampton District Electric Tramways Company operated an electric tramway service between Dudley and Wolverhampton between 1899 and 1928.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Street Tramways</span>

Cambridge Street Tramways operated a horse-drawn tramway service in Cambridge, England, between 1880 and 1914.

Worcester Tramways Company and its predecessors operated a horse-drawn tramway service in Worcester between 1884 and 1902.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dundee and District Tramways</span>

Dundee and District Tramways operated a tramway service in Dundee between 1877 and 1899.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wigan Corporation Tramways</span>

Wigan Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Wigan, England, between 1901 and 1931. The first tramway service in the town was run by the Wigan Tramways Company, whose horse trams began carrying passengers in 1880. They began replacing horses with steam tram locomotives from 1882, but the company failed in 1890 when a Receiver was appointed to manage it. The Wigan & District Tramways Company took over the system in 1893 and ran it until 1902. Meanwhile, Wigan Corporation were planning their own tramway system, obtaining an authorising Act of Parliament in 1893, and a second one in 1898. This enabled them to build electric tramways, and in 1902, they took over the lines of the Wigan & District Tramways Company.

At the peak of Britain’s first-generation tramways, it was possible to travel by tram all the way from Pier Head at Liverpool to the Pennines in Rochdale by tram.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huddersfield Corporation Tramways</span>

Huddersfield Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Huddersfield, England, between 1883 and 1940. It initially used steam locomotives pulling unpowered tramcars, but as the system was expanded, a decision was taken to change to electric traction in 1900, and the first electric trams began operating in February 1901. The system was built to the unusual gauge of 4 ft 7+34 in, in the hope that coal wagon from neighbouring coal tramways, which used that gauge, could be moved around the system. This did not occur, but two coal trams were used to delivered coal to three mills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tramways in Plymouth</span> Tramways in Plymouth, Devon, England

The tramways in Plymouth were originally constructed as four independent networks operated by three different companies to serve the adjacent towns of Plymouth, Stonehouse and Devonport in Devon, England. The merger of the 'Three Towns' into the new borough of Plymouth in 1914 was the catalyst for the three companies to join up under the auspices of the new Plymouth Corporation. The network was closed in 1945, partly as a result of bomb damage during World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Grimsby Street Tramways</span> Former tramway in Lincolnshire, England

The Great Grimsby Street Tramways Company was a tramway serving Grimsby and Cleethorpes in Lincolnshire, England. It was a subsidiary of The Provincial Tramways Company. They opened a horse tramway in 1881, running from the Wheatsheaf Inn in Bargate to the border with Cleethorpes, with a branch along Freeman Street, and extended the line into Cleethorpes in 1887. It followed the trend of many British systems, and was converted to an electric tramway in December 1901. Small extensions were made to the system at both ends, but the basic plan of the system remained the same throughout its life.

Bradford Corporation Tramways were a tramway network in the city of Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, England which operated trams from 1882 until 1950 and trolleybuses from 1911 until 1972. The track gauge of the tramways was 4 ft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stockport Corporation Tramways</span>

Stockport Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Stockport, England, between 1901 and 1951. It was preceded by a horse tramway from Levenshulme to Stockport, which opened in 1880, and was ultimately run by the Manchester Carriage and Tramways Company. A second independent horse tramway opened in 1890, running to Hazel Grove. In 1899 the Corporation bought the first line, electrified it, and leased it back to the operating company. Their powers to buy the Stockport and Hazel Grove Tramway, authorised by the same Act of Parliament, were not exercised until 1905.

The North Staffordshire Tramways operated a steam tramway service from 1881 to 1898 in the Staffordshire Potteries area.

References

  1. The Golden Age of Tramways. Published by Taylor and Francis.
  2. "Church Street, Hartlepool | Educational Images | Historic England".