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The Queensbury Lines: |
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Contributors:
Matt C / Andrew Stopford /
Richard Barnes / Des Phillips / Andrew Booth / Graeme Bickerdike /
David Hey |
Queensbury to Halifax:
The Route
From Queensbury to Halifax via Holmfield
Ovenden & North Bridge.
Openings
August 1874 Halifax to Holmfield
25th March 1880 North Bridge
14th October 1880 Holmfield to Queensbury.
Closures
23rd May 1955, North Bridge station closed, ending the
passenger service from Halifax to Queensbury. North Bridge was demolished in 1960.
The Halifax & Ovenden Junction Railway.
The Halifax & Ovenden Junction Railway was incorporated on 30th June
1864
to run 2 3/4 miles from just outside Halifax station to Holmfield.
The L&Y & the GNR each subscribed one third of the cost & would work the
line jointly.
Preliminary work involved demolition of property to make way for the
viaduct between Halifax station & North Bridge. The new higher road
bridge built over the North Bridge site, to allow for adequate
clearance, is still in use today.
The line between Halifax & North Bridge was opened to goods traffic on
17th August 1874 and to Holmfield on 1st September 1874.
The section of line between Holmfield & Queensbury involved some serious
excavation work. Strines cutting & the Queensbury tunnel take up most of
the 2 1/4 mile stretch. Water made the work difficult & to this day the
southern end of Queensbury tunnel is completely flooded. Goods traffic
began rolling on 14th October 1878. Queensbury station was opened on
Easter Saturday 1879, North Bridge opened on 25th March 1880. After a
bit of local pressure an additional station at Ovenden was opened in
June 1881.
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 Queensbury
tunnel
Queensbury
tunnel exploration - You Tube Video.
By the Leeds Historical Expedition Society
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfzvrJf5eXc
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 Queensbury
tunnel north portal 24-02-07 :
Matt c
Worsening state of Queensbury tunnel
including water feature.
The tunnel is a straight 2501 yards.
Tunnel entrance is situated about 100 yards from Queensbury
south junction. looks a bit Gothic arch.
see Queensbury station |
Queensbury tunnel interior (03-04-07)
: Graeme Bickerdike
website - http://www.forgottenrelics.co.uk/
I spent the afternoon getting damp in Queensbury tunnel. I only
went quarter-of-a-mile in but far enough to see the debris which
has fallen from the first shaft. A few pictures attached which
might complement some of Des Phillips’.
 Queensbury
tunnel -1
The northern portal sits at the end of a short cutting
which is very muddy near the tunnel mouth.
Some of the vegetation seems to have been cleared recently as
part of the works for the Great Northern Trail. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -2
The interior is wet for the first few yards and
then drys out. The stonework here appears in fairly good order.
The indentations left by the sleepers on the Halifax-bound side
are still evident. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -3
Structural conditions are dramatically different approaching the
first ventilation shaft.
Some of the brick lining has fallen away and there’s
considerable damage from water penetration. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -4
Despite the drainpipe, a torrent of water
falls from the shaft which, like the others, is capped. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -5
A rather feeble attempt has been made to
fence off the debris. The standing water here is 6 inches deep.
Note the failing brickwork beyond the shaft entrance. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -6
In this 30 second exposure, the vertical
streaks and mist are actually falling water.
In the shadows top-left, the brick lining has succumbed to the
effects of water. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -7
Only after a quarter-mile walk do you
discover the first refuge. Quite a hike to reach a position of
safety! The refuges are more generous than you find in many
other tunnels and would accommodate even the best upholstered
lengthman. I assume that the two small holes in the wall which
seals the portal - seen as dots above the square of daylight –
were cut to allow access for bats. |
Queensbury tunnel interior (11-04-07)
: Graeme Bickerdike
Well, I found another like-minded adventurer and
spent yesterday afternoon exploring Queensbury’s gloom.
We were underground for almost five hours! Attached is a
collection of pictures which take up the journey from the first
ventilation shaft.
 Queensbury
tunnel -8
An assortment of signalling relics have survived fifty years of
abandonment.
Might this have supported a telegraph wire once upon a time? |
 Queensbury
tunnel -9
The home signal for Queensbury-bound trains was just beyond the
northern portal.
The distant signal was therefore located in the tunnel and took
the form of a gong attached to the wall.
The mounting brackets are still in place. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -10
The central section of the tunnel is remarkably
dry. A drain runs down the middle, beneath the trackbed, to take
water away.
But there are areas where the lining has failed or is under
chemical attack. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -11
It appears that cables ran down both sides
of the tunnel, neatly negotiating the refuges. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -12
Probably the most remarkable relic is a lone track panel which
is preserved under masonry from the second ventilation shaft. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -13
The shaft was sunk almost 400 feet – one of the
country’s deepest.
It’s ‘pepperpot’ made the journey down before a concrete cap was
attached. It’s wet underfoot but there’s no deluge from above. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -14
One mile in and the floodwater is with us. In the distance, a
pile of debris blocks the ‘canal’ at the base of shaft three.
It’s another 800 yards to the southern portal. By that stage,
thanks to the falling 1 in 100 gradient, the water has reached
the roof. |
 Queensbury
tunnel -15
The remarkable cutting at Strines has largely been consumed by
infill. Only an 80-foot pool remains.
The portal is completely underwater – just the top stones are
visible. |
Queensbury tunnel interior (10-06)
: Des Phillips
One afternoon in October 2006, I went on a little exploration of
the Triangle and had a quick recce inside Queensbury Tunnel. I
only went a few hundred yards in, not wanting to be brained by
bricks from the 379ft airshaft! These photos give a reasonable
impression of the interior & problems with the tunnel.
 Queensbury
tunnel ventilation shaft (10-06)
: Des Phillips
The base of the first ventilation shaft about 100 yards in from
the North. Nice masonry to solve the geometrical puzzle of
joining two brick cylinders together. Vertical waterfall from
blocked gloom above! |
 Queensbury
tunnel ventilation shaft (10-06)
: Des Phillips
Pile of bricks at the bottom of the
airshaft. These bricks have probably rotted out from the top of
the shaft after sealing.
Evidence of why BRB, who own the tunnel, want to fill in the
airshafts before the ground swallows up Queensbury town above
(as the H&S bureaucrats would have it). |
 Queensbury
tunnel interior (10-06) : Des Phillips
Looking back to North Portal. The trackbed
has sleeper impressions from the Halfax-bound side and scraper
marks from ballast removal. It is surprisingly dry here because
the drain in the "invert" seems to work and there is 1/100
gradient down to Strines, which was known to be flooded (but not
completely filled) at this date. |
 Queensbury
tunnel interior (10-06) : Des Phillips
Looking into the gloom. A grainy
contrast-corrected photo with flash which gives the right
atmosphere, but fails to catch the end at Strines, 2501 yards
away, which is dimly visible in reality, through the misty murk. |
 Queensbury
tunnel interior (10-06) : Des Phillips
A long exposure shot, handheld. I got
multiple images of the Strines (South) end, and used a photo
editor to catch one genuinely authentic "through-tunnel" shot
before landfill is emptied down the shafts. |
 Strines
Cutting (14-08-06)
: Matt
c
Strines Cutting and the Halifax side of Queensbury tunnel.
This area will soon be gone forever as the industrial estate is
extending onto the cutting,
which means it will be filled in. (air shaft visible down on the
left, see next photo) |
 Queensbury
tunnel air shaft (14-08-06)
: Matt
c
Close up of air
shaft. The photos were take from a lane by
some sheds on the left off Roper Lane, Queensbury. I could only
take the photos of the cutting from above as there is now no
access onto the land where the cutting is, as work has already
begun. |
 Strines
Cutting (c1963) :
Richard Barnes
©
copyright on all Richard Barnes Photographs
Strines Cutting looking towards Holmfield from about halfway to
the tunnel.
Photo's taken the week before the track was lifted. |
 Strines
Cutting (c1963) :
Richard Barnes
©
Ditto, looking towards Queensbury. |
 Holdsworth Road
(23-08-06) : Andrew Stopford
An old bridge a little further north of Holmfield
Station. |
 Holmfield station Opened
15th December 1879, closed to passengers 23rd May 1955
Holmfield Station & junction (c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
copyright on all Richard Barnes
Photographs
Approach to Holmfield Station facing towards Queensbury. Photo's
taken the week before the track was lifted.
You can see the connection to the Pellon branch trailing in on
the left, the track had been lifted the previous week. |
 Holmfield junction facing s west
(19-02-06)
The site of Holmfield junction facing towards Ovenden.
Bridge remnants crossing Shay lane visible to the left of that big
building near centre of photo,
part of the old Halifax high level railway from
Holmfield to St Pauls. |
 Holmfield
Goods Shed (c1963)
: Richard Barnes
©
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 Holmfield
general view looking NW
(c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
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 Holmfield
Signal Box lever frame
(c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
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 Holmfield
looking SE across goods yard
(c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
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 Holmfield
looking south from footbridge
(c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
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 Holmfield
Station (c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
Holmfield Station looking towards Halifax. Note the buffer stops
dumped on the platform! It looks as if both tracks were being
used from here, although other pictures I have seen would
indicate that the left hand track was used to travel down to
Halifax, indicating that trains crossed over at this point.
Photo's taken the week before the track was lifted. |
 Holmfield
Station (c1963) : Richard Barnes
© |
 Holmfield
Station (c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
Dismantling vehicles parked in the sidings behind Holmfield
Station.
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   Holmfield
Station cattle dock (c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
Dismantling vehicles at Holmfield, parked in the cattle dock
area. |
 Holmfield
Holdsworth Road facing north
(c1963) : Richard Barnes
©
Facing north from the bridge next to Holmfield Station, (Holdsworth
Road).
The bridge in the distance is where the same road crosses the
railway again. One of the north Halifax schools visible on the
left. |
 Holmfield Station (23-08-06) : Andrew Stopford
The old access to Holmfield Station (note the similarity to the
access to Lightcliffe Station.
(I guess the iron hoop held a lamp) |
 Holmfield
Station (23-08-06) : Andrew Stopford
A shot of the old bridge at the station
site.
|
 Moorside
cutting (04-06) Matt C
Leading from Holmfield station. |
 Churn
Milk Lane (23-08-06) : Andrew Stopford
An old bridge over the Halifax-Queensbury line
just south of Holmfield Station.
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 Royd
Lane (23-08-06) : Andrew Stopford
A bridge over the same line to a private road
called Royd Lane,
just a few yards further south of Churn Milk Lane. |
 Ovenden
station Opened 2nd June1881 closed to passengers 23rd May 1955
Ovenden
Station building (28-07-06) : Andrew
Stopford
Ovenden Station on the Halifax-Queensbury line. It's remarkably intact!
(28th July 06).
I guess the stone building is the Station Master's house
and the wooden building would be the platform waiting room/booking
office etc. |
 Ovenden
Station looking towards Halifax (c1962) :
Richard Barnes
©
copyright on all Richard Barnes
Photographs. |
 Lee
Bank Tunnel
Lee
Bank Tunnel north portal April 06 : Matt C
North portal of the 267 yards Lee Bank tunnel |
 Lee
Bank Tunnel north portal (21/04/07)
: Andrew Booth
It appears some work has been carried out recently and the portal doors
have been bricked up there are also remnants of a old ground frame hut
or platelayers hut although the photos I took (Mobile phone) lack
detail. |
 Lee
Bank Tunnel south portal April 06 : Matt C |
 Old
Lane Tunnel
Old
Lane tunnel north portal 18-04-06 : Matt C
North portal of the 403 yards Old Lane tunnel. |
 Old
Lane tunnel south portal 18-04-06 : Matt C
Old lane tunnel is located near to the old North Bridge
Station and at the southern portal, there has been some recent work
carried out inside the tunnel, maybe structural defects, but this has
not affected the northern portal which is still intact. |
 North
BridgeOpened 25th March 1880 closed to passengers 23rd April 1955 &
goods in 1974
North
Bridge station facing east 30-04-06
Spin round on the same spot, view of station site
& the north bridge |
 North
Bridge station facing west 30-04-06
Facing back towards the footbridge I was standing
on in the previous photo.
This little cast iron bridge is the only survivor of the whole station.
Old lane tunnel visible in the background. |
 North
Bridge station facing west 30-04-06
Wider view lets us see the stone cobbles, on the
left, leading up to the footbridge. |
 North
Bridge station entrance 30-04-06
The tasty North bridge itself.
Bricked up station entrance was just to the left of those fancy towers
at the north end of the bridge. |
 Coal
drops facing south 30-04-06
Next to the existing Halifax Old station these
massive coal drops, listed as far as I know.
The stub of the viaduct to North bridge to the left of coal drops.
The still in use viaduct leading off to Beacon Hill on the far left. |
 Coal
drops building facing west 22-04-06
Little building survives in the corner of the car
park above the coal drops.
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 Viaduct
facing west 30-04-06
The remnants of the viaduct leading to North
bridge, demolished in the 70s I think.
The viaduct leading off into Beacon Hill tunnel
along the left here. |
 Halifax
Old Station
Halifax
facing north (c1980s)
© David Hey Reproduction prohibited
View from above, facing Beacon Hill tunnel.
The now terminated lines to north Bridge heading out to the left. |
 Halifax
Station (16-12-07) : Andrew Stopford
Shot of Halifax Station & disused platforms.
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