(Ryecroft to Brownhills) and Anglesey Branch Canal an RCHS West
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South Staffs Railway (Ryecroft to Brownhills) and Anglesey Branch Canal An RCHS West Midlands & North West Groups Walk Thursday 29th August 2019 Today’s walk is the third in a series exploring the history of canals and railways in a small part of South Staffordshire to the north of Walsall. It focuses first on the Ryecroft to Brownhills section of the South Staffs Railway line of 1849 between Walsall and Wychnor Junction where it formed a link with the Midland Railway line between Birmingham and Derby; and then, after lunch, the Anglesey Branch of the Wyrley & Essington Canal. Ryecroft Junction is in the centre of the map overleaf and Brownhills is approximately half way between Walsall and Lichfield. The walk is flat and, nowadays, largely rural in nature; partly wooded but with views over open land. It may be damp in the short cutting approaching Brownhills but is otherwise dry and on firm ground. Outline of Agenda & Route Start in Park Street entrance to Walsall Railway Station; since 1978 also the entrance to the Saddlers Shopping Centre. Briefly consider the history of stations serving the town centre whilst waiting for all to arrive, before taking the short (3 minutes) walk to Walsall Bus Station (stop J/K). Take the 10 minute bus ride to the Lichfield Road/Boat House stop – then a 5 minute walk to the northern end of Ryecroft Junction (Ryecroft Cemetery). Walk (4.25 miles) along the track bed of the 1849 SSR/LNWR line to the site of Brownhills Station. View various sites including those of Rushall and Pelsall Stations, Norton Junction and sidings. Lunch in Brownhills: Smithy’s Forge pub (on the station site) or various cafes and coffee shops nearby. Bus (service 10A at 14:24) from Smithy's Forge pub to Chasetown – a 20 minute journey. Walk (0.5 mile) over grass covered area formerly the site of Cannock Chase Colliery No1 to Chasewater Reservoir. View the reservoir dam, Anglesey Basin and a section of the alignment of the line to Anglesey sidings. Walk (1.1 miles) along Anglesey Branch Canal to Middleton Bridge. Optional add-on: continue walking the final 1/3 mile of the Anglesey Branch to Ogley Junction. This will add approximately 40 minutes to the day. (Return #10/10A bus from Lichfield Road/Ogley Road stop) Return to Walsall Bus Station: by bus (no 10/10A; 40 minutes) from Middleton Bridge (referred to as Newtown Bridge in local bus timetables). Walk to Walsall Railway Station (3 minutes) arriving between 16:15 and 16:30. There are frequent buses for the return journey allowing for more time to be spent at Chasewater and the Anglesey Branch canal for those who wish to do so. Note: alternative bus services to other destinations, including Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Lichfield will be explained on the day These Notes are intended for the personal use of members of the RCHS attending the walk or who are otherwise 1 interested in them. They should not be copied or stored in any retrieval system, electronic or otherwise. South Staffordshire Railway BRINDLEY HEATH The curve shown linking the MR Wolverhampton to F Water Orton line to the SSR line south of Rushall was never built. Construction was started and there is clear evidence of the embankment it would have travelled over to the north of Ryecroft Junction. F – Anglesey Sidings Adapted from: The South Staffordshire Railway, vol 1 by Bob Yate (Oakwood Press, 2010) 2 A Brief History of Railway Stations in Walsall 3 In the 18th century the town was centred around and a little way to the west of St Matthew’s Church (lower right of picture). This changed with the coming of the canal (from 1790s) mineral railways to the canal (1820s) and main line railways (from 1847). Prior to that time, the effective western boundary was the race course; shown here as the MR goods yard (centre of picture below Railway Station). Marsh Street (to left of railway station) and Long Street are roughly on the line of the eastern boundary of a manorial park – hence Walsall Manor Hospital and Moat Street which are just beyond the western boundary of the map. Remains of the moat were visible into the 1970s; the manor house has long gone. Near to the original moat, the first Walsall reservoir was opened by the South Staffordshire Water Company (1858). There is a long history of wind and water mills (along a brook that ran north-south – through the centre of the map), quarrying for limestone and iron works in and around Walsall, as well as the manufacture of horse furniture. The heritage of the latter is recognised in the nickname (The Saddlers) of the town football team. By the 3rd quarter of the 18th century it was clear that the town was being placed at a disadvantage in terms of communication, particularly in comparison with the Black Country and Birmingham, due primarily to the earlier development of canals in these two areas. By the date of the map, the brook, a tributary of the Tame, had been culverted. Today it runs underground through the current town centre, in front of the George Hotel (a square named The Bridge) and follows the line of the South Staffs railway to the south. The first station to carry the name “Walsall” was to the south of the town on the Grand Junction Railway. For the first four years following the opening of the GJR it was known as Bescot Bridge. This was changed to Walsall in 1841, with a coach service (a yellow one-horse omnibus) running between the station and the George Hotel. The name reverted to Bescot Bridge when the line opened (from Besot Junction) to Walsall proper in 1847. At this point the station ceased to serve trains between Birmingham and Walsall. It may be that the omnibus continued to serve passengers travelling from Wolverhampton. Any problem was resolved with the opening of the Pleck Curve (between Darlaston Junction and Pleck Junction) in 1881. Quick reports the station as being closed in 1850, re-opened as Wood Green (Old Bescot) in 1881 and closed finally in 1941.The site is now covered by the SW slip road of M6, J9. The second station, and the first near to the town centre, was a temporary station off Bridgeman Street. The site was to the west of the current Bridgeman Street Bridge, opposite Station Street. The railway continued over Bridgeman Street initially by a level crossing but, with the lowering of Bridgeman Street after an 1870 report that 600 trains a day were passing over the crossing, the level crossing was replaced by a bridge. The temporary station was used between 1847 and 1849 at which point a new “permanent” station was built to the north of Bridgeman Street. This coincided with the opening of the line to Wychnor Junction. The station building was also the headquarters of the South Staffordshire Railway and was accessed from Station Street – where the current station access was moved to in 1978. By the 1870’s this (3rd in our sequence) station was deemed to be too small to accommodate the burgeoning traffic created by both the LNWR and MR providing passenger services to the station. In addition to the LNWR running trains over the former SSR lines, the MR was running passenger services into Walsall via Ryecroft Junction; having opened lines from Wolverhampton in1872 and Birmingham (via the Sutton Park route) in 1879. Between 1879 & 1883, the line from Pleck to Ryecroft was quadrupled, the station was enlarged and facilities were improved. These changes resulted in an enlarged station with its station building facing on to Park Street – at its junction with Station Street – being opened on 1st January 1884. Its carriageway off Park Street was provided with a porte-cochere of cast iron and glass giving cover for travellers arriving by cab. The interior was equally grand. Three stone archways, aligned with the three bays of the canopy, gave access to the booking hall with its central vaulted roof flanked by two gabled roofs and decorative panels. The MR and LNWR had their own designated booking offices. The platforms were not moved but were reached by a long half-glazed corridor, still at street level, which divided to reach the footbridge across to the platforms. 4 A fire occurred in 1916 starting in the booking hall destroying part of it and the high level corridor providing access to the platforms. As a result the front entrance could not be used. It was covered in tarpaulin and timber supports and the 1849 Station Street entrance had to be re-instated. This situation was protracted by the war and a reconstructed station was not opened until 1923. Most of the iron and glass porte-cochere was retained at the, now reopened, Park Street entrance, still with its decorative iron finials but with the roof being altered to be a pitched roof. Inside the, by now curved booking hall, which was 70ft in length, was lined with oak panels (not unlike St Pancras in concept but curved and rather grand) and supported by pairs of Corinthian pillars with circular medallion mouldings. The original restaurant was retained and a lengthy bookstall was also provided. (At some point a W H Smith was opened in Park Street opposite the station entrance. This included the traditional curb-side stall selling newspapers and magazines). Decline began (reportedly) with the conversion of the restaurant to a standard BR Buffet in the 1950s and continued through to 1978 when the whole station was demolished, including the 1849 SSR building and the porte-cochere.