Silloth Battery Extension railway station

Silloth Battery Extension railway station was the terminus of the Blitterlees Branch, which turned southwards off the Carlisle and Silloth Bay Railway's Silloth Branch a short distance east of Silloth station.[3] The larger railway ran from Carlisle, England. The Bitterlees Branch does not appear on standard railway maps,[4] but it is clear on OS maps, though the station is not identifiable as such.[5]

Silloth Battery Extension
LocationSilloth, Allerdale
England
Coordinates54.8576°N 3.4013°W / 54.8576; -3.4013
Grid referenceNY101523
Platforms1[1]
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyCarlisle & Silloth Bay Railway & Dock Company
Pre-groupingNorth British Railway
Post-groupingLondon and North Eastern Railway
Key dates
1886Opened
About 1928Closed[2]
Location
Silloth Battery Extension
Location in present-day Allerdale, Cumbria
Silloth Battery Extension
Location in present-day Cumbria, England

The station's sole purpose was to serve the naval gun testing battery, built by Armstrong Whitworth.[6] Most trains to the site consisted of military supplies, the passenger station was built to carry battery personnel and visitors, including royalty on at least one occasion. In 1895 the Shalzada of Afghanistan and Suite observed naval firing, but was said to be especially impressed with the Maxim machine gun.[7][3]

Trains to the station were run on an ad hoc basis, the station never appeared on public timetables.

The station opened in 1886 and closed in 1928 when the battery closed, its operations being moved south to Eskmeals, near Drigg.

See also

References
  1. The station, via Cumbrian Railways Association
  2. Quick 2009, p. 353.
  3. Suggitt 2008, p. 103.
  4. Jowett 1989, Map 36.
  5. Puxley 2009, p. 32.
  6. Images of the battery, plus local talk, via BBC and others
  7. Thomlinson 1983, p. 12.

Sources
  • Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
  • Puxley, Chris (2009). The Port of Silloth 1858 - 2009: A Pictorial History Through 150 Years of a Solway Port. Portishead, Somerset: Bernard McCall. ISBN 978-1-902953-42-7.
  • Quick, Michael (2009) [2001]. Railway passenger stations in Great Britain: a chronology (4th ed.). Oxford: Railway and Canal Historical Society. ISBN 978-0-901461-57-5. OCLC 612226077.
  • Robinson, Peter W. (2002). Cumbria's Lost Railways. Catrine: Stenlake Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84033-205-6.
  • Suggitt, Gordon (2008). Lost Railways of Cumbria (Railway Series). Newbury, Berkshire: Countryside Books. ISBN 978-1-84674-107-4.
  • Thomlinson, G. (May 1983). Peascod, Michael (ed.). "Rails on the Solway". Cumbrian Railways. Pinner: Cumbrian Railways Association. 2 (14). ISSN 1466-6812.

Further reading
Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Black Dyke Halt
Line and station closed		   North British Railway
Carlisle and Silloth Bay Railway		   Terminus
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.