Meltham branch line
Encyclopedia
The Meltham branch line is a disused railway line that ran for 3½ miles (5.6 km) from Lockwood
to Meltham
, in West Yorkshire
, England
. The line was single track
for its entire length. The last regular passenger service was on May 21, 1949. It closed completely on April 3, 1965.
Act of June 7 1861. Construction began in April 1864 and the line opened to freight
on August 10, 1868 with the first train carrying coal
and lime
. Passenger services began on July 5, 1869. The line was used to transport tractor
s from the David Brown
tractor factory at Meltham.
near Lockwood viaduct
at a junction with the Penistone Line
and continued as follows:
and a Morrisons
supermarket
have been built on the site of the Meltham station but much of the line remains. In 2004 a plan was proposed to convert much of the track bed
to a cycle track to be known as the Meltham Greenway. The first section of this opened in May 2008 between Station Road in Meltham and Huddersfield road (B6108).
Lockwood, Huddersfield
Lockwood is an area of Huddersfield, in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. It is to the southwest of Huddersfield Town Centre, to the west of the River Holme....
to Meltham
Meltham
Meltham is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It lies in the Holme Valley, below Wessenden Moor, four and a half miles south-west of Huddersfield on the edge of the Peak District National Park...
, in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The line was single track
Single track (rail)
A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....
for its entire length. The last regular passenger service was on May 21, 1949. It closed completely on April 3, 1965.
History
The line was authorised by the Lancashire and Yorkshire RailwayLancashire and Yorkshire Railway
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways...
Act of June 7 1861. Construction began in April 1864 and the line opened to freight
Freight train
A freight train or goods train is a group of freight cars or goods wagons hauled by one or more locomotives on a railway, ultimately transporting cargo between two points as part of the logistics chain...
on August 10, 1868 with the first train carrying coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
and lime
Lime (mineral)
Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide. It is also the name for a single mineral of the CaO composition, occurring very rarely...
. Passenger services began on July 5, 1869. The line was used to transport tractor
Tractor
A tractor is a vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used in agriculture or construction...
s from the David Brown
David Brown Ltd.
David Brown Engineering Limited is a British engineering company, principally engaged in the manufacture of gears and gearboxes. Their major gear manufacturing plant is in Swan Lane, Lockwood, Huddersfield, adjacent to Lockwood railway station...
tractor factory at Meltham.
The route
The route began just south of Lockwood stationLockwood railway station
Lockwood railway station is a railway station in Huddersfield, England. It is situated south of Huddersfield station on the Penistone Line between Huddersfield and ....
near Lockwood viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
at a junction with the Penistone Line
Penistone Line
The Penistone Line is operated by Northern Rail in the West Yorkshire Metro/ Travel South Yorkshire area of northern England. It connects Huddersfield and Sheffield via Penistone and Barnsley, serving many rural communities...
and continued as follows:
- Woodfield (Opened and closed June 1874)
- here is Butternab Tunnel (256 yards)
- here is Netherton Tunnel (333 yards)
- NethertonNetherton, HuddersfieldNetherton is a village, near Huddersfield, in the Kirklees metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is 2 miles south-west of the town centre on the road to Meltham...
- Healey House
- here is Healey House Tunnel (30 yards)
- Meltham Mills (Closed 1934)
- MelthamMelthamMeltham is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It lies in the Holme Valley, below Wessenden Moor, four and a half miles south-west of Huddersfield on the edge of the Peak District National Park...
Present day
A new housing estateHousing estate
A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance...
and a Morrisons
Morrisons
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc is the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, headquartered in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The company is usually referred to and is branded as Morrisons formerly Morrison's, and it is part of the FTSE 100 Index of companies...
supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
have been built on the site of the Meltham station but much of the line remains. In 2004 a plan was proposed to convert much of the track bed
Track bed
A track bed or trackbed is the term used to describe the groundwork onto which a railway track is laid. Trackbeds of disused railways are sometimes used for recreational paths or new light rail links....
to a cycle track to be known as the Meltham Greenway. The first section of this opened in May 2008 between Station Road in Meltham and Huddersfield road (B6108).