Northenden railway station

Northenden
Northenden station in 1954, looking east, showing the station building and signal box (in the background)
Location
Place	Northenden
Area	Manchester
Coordinates	53°23′55″N 2°15′11″W / 53.3986°N 2.2531°W / 53.3986; -2.2531Coordinates: 53°23′55″N 2°15′11″W / 53.3986°N 2.2531°W / 53.3986; -2.2531
Grid reference	SJ832891
Operations
Original company	Stockport, Timperley and Altrincham Junction Railway
Pre-grouping	Cheshire Lines Committee
Post-grouping	Cheshire Lines Committee
Platforms	2
History
1 February 1866	station opens
30 November 1964	station closes
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Northenden railway station was located in Manchester, England. It was built by the Stockport, Timperley and Altrincham Junction Railway (ST&AJ) and was opened for both passenger and goods traffic on 1 February 1866.^[1]

From 15 August 1867 the ST&AJ became part of the Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC). From 1 January 1923 the CLC was jointly owned by the London and North Eastern Railway (two-thirds ownership) and the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (one-third ownership). However, the CLC continued to retain its separate identity and management.^[2]

Some official railway timetables described the station as Northenden for Wythenshawe because the station lay between and served the two districts. It was situated between the road overbridges at Sharston Road and Longley Lane.^[1]

Station facilities

The main brick-built station building was constructed to a typical Cheshire Lines Committee design with steeply sloping roofs and decorative wooden barge boarding. It contained the booking office, passenger waiting room, parcels office, toilet facilities and the station master's accommodation. The building was located on the north side (nearest to Northenden village) of the twin railway tracks and served the passenger trains travelling eastwards from Liverpool and Warrington towards Stockport.

On the south side of the line was a smaller brick-built waiting room for passengers, which was reached from the station's eastern end by a boarded railway crossing for both passengers and staff to use with care. This platform served passenger trains from Stockport travelling westwards towards Warrington and Liverpool.

Northenden Junction and signal box

A photograph of Northenden Junction signal box in 1979 taken from Longley Lane over-bridge

Northenden Junction signal box was located 200 yards (183 metres) to the east of the main station buildings, on the north side of the line, adjoining Longley Lane. The signal box was built using CLC's standard dark brick construction and utilised an unusually tall design, which had been made sufficiently high to enable the signalman on duty to readily see over the Longley Lane road bridge over the line and on to Northenden Junction, 200 yards (183 m) away to the east, where the London & North Western Railway's line from Stockport (Edgeley) station joined the Cheshire Lines Committee line from Stockport Tiviot Dale. The signal box controlled sets of signals protecting the junction and also operated the powered railway switching points.

Passenger train service

From its opening in 1866, Northenden station was served by local CLC passenger trains from Stockport Tiviot Dale to Altrincham, Warrington Central and Liverpool Central stations.

The London and North Western Railway (LNWR) opened its line from Stockport Edgeley, via Cheadle LNW to Northenden on 1 August 1866.^[3] Between that date and 1917, the LNWR operated a passenger train service from Stockport (Edgeley) and on to Broadheath and Warrington Arpley, thence to Liverpool Lime street.^[4] These trains used the Northenden Line Junction to Cheadle Village Junction curve in Stockport to access the line to Northenden (see adjacent map).

Until 1939, some express trains running through Sheffield Victoria along the Woodhead Line used the route from Godley East through Northenden to bypass Manchester, including some LNER Hull to Liverpool trains.^[5]

Northenden Junction in 1979. Line from Stockport Tiviot Dale CLC on left (now singled). Line from Stockport LNW on right (now mostly singled). Photo taken looking east from Longley Lane over-bridge with 35028 "Clan Line" heading west.

The weekday westbound CLC local train service in July 1922 comprised four trains to Warrington or Liverpool and five to Altrincham.^[6] By August 1946, the service to Altrincham had ceased and just four passenger trains per weekday ran to Warrington Central and Liverpool Central. The January 1956 passenger service was at the same sparse level.^[7].

For most of the station's existence, the passenger trains were hauled by steam locomotives, but for some years leading up to the second World War, some services from Stockport via Northenden to Altrincham were operated by the CLC's own fleet of Sentinel steam railcars. Northenden station was closed on 30 November 1964 ^[1] when passenger trains were withdrawn by British Railways and the buildings were later demolished. Passenger trains using Diesel multiple units still operate through the disused site, but these are now from Manchester Piccadilly via Stockport, then travelling non-stop to Navigation Road and onwards to Altrincham, Northwich and Chester.

Freight services

A two-line goods siding was located to the south of the westbound platform. This was served by local freight trains, which shunted the sidings each day. The goods facilities at Northenden were withdrawn on 19 June 1965. The sidings remain in use for various cement manufacturing companies over the years including Blue Circle Cement and now Lafarge.^[8]

Until the early 1960s there was a very intensive service of freight trains through Northenden, with trains heading from Yorkshire and the North Midlands to Liverpool Docks and Birkenhead Docks and elsewhere. Local freight trains stopped at Northenden each day, with goods wagons containing coal and other materials being shunted into the sidings for unloading by local merchants and businesses.

A large waste disposal terminal was constructed to the south of the junction in the mid 1970's. This being the property of Greater Manchester County Council (until 1986). Since 1986 - GMW. This continues to despatch trains of landfill refuse by way of container trains. The destination for these being Roxby Gullet near Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire

Diesel-hauled freight trains still run through Northenden. These include heavy block trains carrying limestone from quarries at Tunstead (near Buxton) Derbyshire to the alkali works located near Northwich.

Railway diagram showing Northenden station and junction

1903 Railway Clearing House diagram of railways in southern Manchester showing Northenden station and junction with the CLC line (top) running towards Stockport (Tiviot Dale) and the LNWR line (bottom) running towards Stockport (Edgeley) station

References

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b c} Butt 1995, p. 173
2. ^ Awdry 1990, p. 238
3. ^ Fox 1986, p. 2
4. ^ Dyckhoff 1999, p. 65
5. ^ Rose 1987, p. 119
6. ^ Bradshaw's July 1922 Railway Guide 1985, pp. 720–722
7. ^ Bradshaw 1956, p. 128
8. ^ Fox 1986, p. 23

Bibliography

• St John Thomas, David (ed) (1985), Bradshaw's July 1922 Railway Guide, Guild Publishing 
• Bradshaw, N.A. (1956), Bradshaw's Manchester ABC Railway Guide January 1956, Henry Blacklock & Co Ltd 
• Butt, R.V.J. (1995), The Directory of Railway Stations, Patrick Stephens, ISBN 1-85260-508-1 
• Awdry, Christopher (1990), Encyclopedia of British Railway Companies, Guild Publishing, CN 8986 
• Bolger, Paul (1984), The Cheshire Lines Committee, Heyday Publishing, ISBN 0-947562-00-1 
• Dyckhoff, Nigel (1999), Portrait of the Cheshire Lines Committee, Ian Allan Ltd, ISBN 0-7110-2521-5 
• Griffiths, R.P. (1978), The Cheshire Lines Railway, The Oakwood Press 
• Fox, Gregory K. (1986), Scenes from the Past:1 The Railways around Stockport, Foxline Publications, ISBN 1-870119-00-2 
• Rose, R.E. (1987), The LMS & LNER in Manchester, Ian Allan Ltd, ISBN 0-7110-1708-5 

Preceding station	Disused railways			Following station
Baguley Line open, station closed		Cheshire Lines Committee Stockport, Timperley and Altrincham Junction Railway		Cheadle (CLC) Line and station closed
		London and North Western Railway Warrington and Stockport Railway		Cheadle (LNW) Line open, station closed