Saughall railway station

Former railway station in Flintshire, Wales

53°12′54.59″N 2°58′3.09″W / 53.2151639°N 2.9675250°W / 53.2151639; -2.9675250Grid referenceSJ355690Platforms2Other informationStatusDisusedHistoryOriginal companyManchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire RailwayPre-groupingGreat Central RailwayPost-groupingLondon and North Eastern RailwayKey dates31 March 1890 (1890-03-31)Station opened1 February 1954 (1954-02-01)Station closed

Saughall was a railway station on the former Chester & Connah's Quay Railway between Chester Northgate and Hawarden Bridge. It was 0.63 miles (1.01 km) from the village of Saughall, Cheshire. Although it was named for the village, it was actually in Flintshire, Wales.

History

The double-tracked line just to the east of the former Saughall station in 1994; shortly before the track was removed.

The station opened on 31 March 1890 by the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (which was renamed Great Central Railway in 1897). The station had a building with two adjacent side platforms and two goods sidings.[1][2][3] The signal box had a 21-lever frame and closed on 21 July 1957.[3]

From this station, services from North Wales could stop at Chester Northgate, the Chester terminus of the Cheshire Lines Committee, or continue on the line through Northwich to Manchester Central.

Passenger and freight services ceased on 1 February 1954[4] when the station was completely closed.

Even though steelmaking operations at the Corus plant at Shotton ceased in March 1980,[5] freight continued to pass the former station on a double-tracked line until 20 April 1984. Goods services resumed on a single-track line on 31 August 1986 before final closure in 1992.[2][4][6] The trackbed is now a cycle way.[4][7]

The station had two side platforms, a station office and buildings, goods sidings, and a signal box. None remain. The site has been completely demolished.

Services

Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Blacon   Chester & Connah's Quay Railway
Great Central Railway 		  Sealand

References

  1. ^ "Saughall's History". SAUGHALL AND SHOTWICK PARK PARISH COUNCIL. 15 August 2009.
  2. ^ a b "Station Name: SAUGHALL". Disused Stations. 15 August 2009.
  3. ^ a b Mitchell & Smith 2013, map XXIV
  4. ^ a b c Mitchell & Smith 2013, fig. 64
  5. ^ "Shotton Steelworks and Garden City". Retrieved 6 October 2008.
  6. ^ Oppitz 1997, p. 111
  7. ^ "Cycleway at Saughall". Chester Walls. 15 August 2009.

Sources

  • Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2013). Wrexham to New Brighton. West Sussex: Middleton Press. ISBN 9781908174475. OCLC 859543196.
  • Oppitz, Leslie (1997). Cheshire Railways Remembered. Countryside Books. ISBN 1-85306-458-0.

External links

  • Signal Women (1943) on YouTube. Wartime film about the women working at Saughall Station during the Second World War
  • Images of the line in its final operating days