Ashbourne railway station formerly served the town of Ashbourne in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

. There have been two stations in the town. The first, opened in 1852, was operated by the

North Staffordshire Railway The North Staffordshire Railway (NSR) was a British railway company formed in 1845 to promote a number of lines in the Staffordshire Potteries and surrounding areas in Staffordshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire and Shropshire. The company was based ...

(NSR); it was replaced in 1899 by a station at a new location, jointly operated by the NSR and the London and North Western Railway (LNWR). In 1923 the station passed into the ownership of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway and in 1948 that of the

London Midland Region of British Railways The London Midland Region (LMR) was one of the six regions created on the formation of the nationalised British Railways (BR), and initially consisted of ex-London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) lines in England, Wales and Northern Irelan ...

. It was finally closed to all traffic in 1963 (regular passenger services having been withdrawn in 1954).

History

The first station was opened in 1852 by the

on its branch from Rocester on its Churnet Valley line. This station was located on Clifton Road at and had a single platform. Most services ran to although the NSR made arrangements with both the LNWR and the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...

(MR) for services to London. From the 1880s the MR ran a direct through carriage each day from Ashbourne to and return while in the 1890s the LNWR ran several trains per day to where passengers could make a single change of journey to . In 1861 the LNWR took over the Cromford and High Peak Railway and started consideration of an extension of the line from to Ashbourne which once connected to the NSR line would give the LNWR a direct line between and London to rival the MR service. Parliamentary powers were granted on 4 August 1890 for the LNWR to construct a line from Parsley Hay to Ashbourne and in a separate act passed the same day the NSR and the LNWR were given permission to construct a new joint station at Ashbourne. It was not until 1898 that construction of the new station began at approximately to the north east of the NSR station which became a goods depot. The new station opened on 4 August 1899. Unlike the earlier station, which had been of brick and stone, the new one was timber construction throughout to a standard LNWR design. Four platforms were provided, two through platforms and two bay platforms. Both bays were for trains arriving and departing in the direction of Uttoxeter. The station was built on a curve and shelter was provided by awnings which extended over the entrance. The LNWR service initially comprised four trains per day, each way, between Buxton and Ashbourne and a single direct train from Buxton to London each way. This level of local passenger service continued throughout the joint ownership period and into LMS and BR days with most services being Buxton–Ashbourne and Ashbourne–Uttoxeter with only a small number being Buxton–Uttoxeter services. From Ashbourne towards the line climbed steeply through Ashbourne Tunnel, at 1 in 59. Southwards towards Clifton Mayfield the terrain was more gentle, following the valley of the River Dove. After the move to a joint station, the line became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway during the

Grouping Grouping may refer to: * Muenchian grouping * Principles of grouping * Railways Act 1921, also known as Grouping Act, a reorganisation of the British railway system * Grouping (firearms), the pattern of multiple shots from a sidearm See also ...

of 1923. The station then passed on to the

on nationalisation in 1948. From 1910, Nestle had a

creamery A creamery is a place where milk and cream are processed and where butter and cheese is produced. Cream is separated from whole milk; pasteurization is done to the skimmed milk and cream separately. Whole milk for sale has had some cream re ...

in the town, which for a period was contracted to produce

Carnation ''Dianthus caryophyllus'' (), commonly known as the carnation or clove pink, is a species of ''Dianthus''. It is likely native to the Mediterranean region but its exact range is unknown due to extensive cultivation for the last 2,000 years.Med ...

condensed milk. The factory had its own private sidings connected to the station's goods yard, which allowed milk trains to access the facility, and distribute product as far south as

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. It was closed to regular passenger traffic in 1954 by the

British Transport Commission The British Transport Commission (BTC) was created by Clement Attlee's post-war Labour government as a part of its nationalisation programme, to oversee railways, canals and road freight transport in Great Britain (Northern Ireland had the se ...

although excursions continued until 1963. Freight continued until October of that year, with the track finally being lifted in 1964.

Preservation

The track bed from Ashbourne to Parsley Hay was acquired by Derbyshire County Council and the Peak National Park in 1968 for a cycle and walking route. This, the

Tissington Trail The Tissington Trail is a bridleway, footpath and cycleway in Derbyshire, England, along part of the trackbed of the former railway line connecting Ashbourne to Buxton. It takes its name from the village of Tissington, which it skirts. Open ...

, was one of the first of such ventures in the country. Later, Ashbourne Tunnel was acquired by

Sustrans Sustrans is a United Kingdom-based walking, wheeling and cycling charity, and the custodian of the National Cycle Network. Its flagship project is the National Cycle Network, which has created of signed cycle routes throughout the United K ...

. The former railway station site is now a car park for Ashbourne's Leisure Centre and the site of the original station and goods yard is now occupied by the new St.Oswald's Hospital. The Grade 2-listed goods shed is still standing and is currently occupied by a steel merchant. A vestige of the station forecourt can still be seen in a wide filled-in pavement area directly opposite the Station Hotel. The course of the line as it heads southwards towards Uttoxeter has been partly interrupted by a retail park, but it can be traced to the rear of the retail park via a culvert under the A52, through a still-existing short cutting and then along a low embankment into the village of Clifton, and can then still be traced all the way to Rocester.

Route

References

;Notes ;Sources * * *

External links

Tissington & High Peak Trails - access and facilities

{{Closed stations Derbyshire Disused railway stations in Derbyshire Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1852 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1963 Former London and North Western Railway stations Former North Staffordshire Railway stations 1852 establishments in England