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The Lanchester Valley Railway was a railway line developed by the North Eastern Railway to run between Durham and Consett, County Durham, England. Extending 12 miles (19 km) along the valley of the River Browney, it was opened on 1 September 1862. It was closed in 1966 and has since been redeveloped into a shared-use path.
In 1842, the Derwent Iron Company (DIC) had taken over the southern part of the former Stanhope and Tyne Railway. After the West Durham Railway constructed a line to Crook, the Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) began construction of the Weardale Extension Railway to Crook, which opened on 8 November 1843, from a junction on its leased Weardale Railway. [1]
As a result, the DIC proposed an extension from Crook to the foot of the Meeting Slacks incline, which later became Waskerley, to provide a southern shipping route for their lime and iron products. Having obtained an extension of their right of way from the Bishop of Durham, the DIC submitted the plans to the S&DR, who agreed to the extension as long as the DIC leased the entire southern section of the former S&TR to them. The Stanhope to Carrhouse section passed into the possession of the S&DR on 1 January 1845, with the completed 10 miles (16 km) Weardale Extension Railway from the Wear Valley Junction to Waskerley opening on 16 May 1845. [1]
After the opening of the Weardale Extension Railway and the completion of Hownes Gill Viaduct under Thomas Bouch in 1858, [2] [3] the DIC had pressured the newly-formed NER to link Consett with the River Tyne via Gateshead. [4]
After the North Eastern Railway (NER) was formed in 1854, they looked for commercially sound new projects within their territory. The proposed Derwent Valley Line would give great commercial value to the DIC, but its potential value to the NER was unknown.
The NER hence proposed a larger scale plan, to connect Durham to Gateshead and onwards to Newcastle Central via a second route. At this time, the NER had only the Leamside Line connecting the two major cities (there was no East Coast Main Line) and so a secondary line seemed promising. Furthermore, it was known that there was coal in the valley of the River Browney and so developing a railway through it would show speculators that relatively low-cost and reliable transport was easily available. Finally, by the 1860s, the DIC needed better access to the iron town of Middlesbrough and the neighbouring ironstone of the Cleveland Hills to feed its furnaces. At this time, they were accessed by various circuitous rail links between the two towns, but a direct route was required. [5]
Construction commenced in February 1861 from Durham in the south, with all infrastructure built to double-track standards, but the line was initially built only as a single track. The line opened a year later, with stations at (North to South): [5]
The NER built a number of substantial stone bridges along the line to span the River Browney, but the largest was located 1.5 miles (2.4 km) east of Knitsley over Kitsley Burn. Needing to span a valley which was 700 feet (210 m) across, the railway chose a wooden structure, which when finished was a maximum of 70 feet (21 m) high. At the outbreak of World War I, the bridge was found to be in need of major repairs, and so under instruction from the Ministry of War and with assistance from the army, the NER replaced the structure with an embankment using colliery slag and old ballast. [5]
In 1870, Lord Lambton accepted an application to search for coal, and the following year it was found. After the agreement of suitable mineral rights leases, the NER in anticipation double-tracked the entire length of the line. Collieries subsequently opened at Bearpark, Malton, Lanchester and Langley Park; all were served by the railway. [5]
Passenger numbers were always light on the line, mainly from coal miners taking early morning and late night works trains, and later from workers travelling to Consett. The expansion of the coal mines in the late Victoria era resulted in the additional opening of a station at Aldin Grange in 1883,which was renamed Bearpark in 1927.
The line became part of the London and North Eastern Railway during the Grouping of 1923. Passenger numbers fell as the various collieries closed, and the LNER ceased regular passenger services at the outbreak of World War II. [5]
Occasional excursions to the Durham Miners Gala continued until 1954, after the line had passed to the Eastern Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948. Goods traffic to the various stations continued until 1965, but the branch was closed under the Beeching Axe. Consett Steelworks traffic was diverted by British Railways via the former Stanhope and Tyne Railway, allowing the Lanchester Railway to close on 20 June 1966. Contractors removed the track the following year. [5]
The route has been redeveloped by Durham County Council into the Lanchester Valley Railway Path, suitable for walking, cycling and horse riding. At the western end of the path, south of Consett, the route links with the Sea to Sea cycle route. The eastern end of the path at Broompark picnic area, near Stonebridge, meets up with the Walney to Wear route. There are many beautiful sites along its route, including the ruins of Beaurepaire at Bearpark. [6]
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 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. The line was purchased by the Auckland Project in 2020 with a view to restarting passenger services. In 2021, a bid was submitted to the Restoring Your Railway fund. In October 2021, the Department for Transport allocated funding for the development of a business case.
Witton Gilbert is a village and civil parish in County Durham, England.
Bishop Auckland is a railway station that serves the market town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham, North East England, 11 miles 77 chains (19.3 km) north-west of Darlington. The station is the Western terminus of the Tees Valley Line, which links it to Saltburn via Darlington. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.
The Consett Iron Company Ltd was an industrial business based in the Consett area of County Durham in the United Kingdom. The company owned coal mines and limestone quarries, and manufactured iron and steel. It was registered on 4 April 1864 as successor to the Derwent & Consett Iron Company Ltd. This in turn was the successor to the Derwent Iron Company, founded in 1840.
Aldin Grange for Bearpark railway station was located on the Lanchester Valley Railway that operated in County Durham, England. The railway station opened in 1883 as Aldin Grange, and was renamed Aldin Grange for Bearpark about a year later. In 1927 its name was changed to Bearpark. The station closed to passengers in 1939, although miners' gala excursions used the line until 1954, and freight then used the line until 1965.
The Stanhope and Tyne Railway was an early British mineral railway that ran from Stanhope to South Shields at the mouth of the River Tyne in County Durham, England. It ran through the towns of Birtley, Chester Le Street, West Stanley and Consett. The object was to convey limestone from Stanhope and coal from West Consett and elsewhere to the Tyne, and to local consumers. Passengers were later carried on parts of the line.
The River Wear in Northern 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. The Wear 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.
The Deerness Valley Railway was an eight-mile-long single-track branch railway line that ran along the valley of the River Deerness in County Durham, England. Built by the North Eastern Railway, it ran from Deerness Valley Junction, on the Durham to Bishop Auckland line, to the coal mines along the valley via two intermediate stations, Waterhouses, and Ushaw Moor.
The Hownsgill Viaduct is a former railway bridge located west of Consett in County Durham, England. It is currently used as a footpath and cycleway.
Consett was a railway station built by the North Eastern Railway on the route of the Stanhope and Tyne Railway, in County Durham, North East England. It served the industrial town of Consett, which was best known for its steelworks.
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.
Blackhill railway station served the village of Blackhill, County Durham, England from 1867 to 1955 on the Derwent Valley Line.
Knitsley railway station served the hamlet of Knitsley, County Durham, England from 1862 to 1939 on the Lanchester Valley Railway.
Lanchester railway station served the village of Lanchester, County Durham, England from 1862 to 1965 on the Lanchester Valley Line.
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 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.
