Extract of 1900 Map showing Edgware Highgate and London Railway

The Edgware, Highgate and London Railway was a railway in

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nor ...

. The railway was a precursor of parts of

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The ...

Northern line The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, tw ...

and was, in the 1930s the core of an ambitious expansion plan for that line which was thwarted by the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. Parts of the line were closed in the 1950s and have since been removed.

Establishment

The company was established by a private

act of parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

passed on 3 June 1862. The route, measuring , ran through parts of rural

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

(now suburban north London) from

Finsbury Park Finsbury Park is a public park in the London neighbourhood of Harringay. It is in the area formerly covered by the historic parish of Hornsey, succeeded by the Municipal Borough of Hornsey. It was one of the first of the great London parks ...

through Stroud Green,

Crouch End Crouch End is an area of North London, approximately from the City of London in the western half of the borough of Haringey. It is within the Hornsey postal district (N8). It has been described by the BBC as one of "a new breed of urban villag ...

Highgate Highgate ( ) is a suburban area of north London at the northeastern corner of Hampstead Heath, north-northwest of Charing Cross. Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has two active conservation organisat ...

, Finchley and

Mill Hill Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18,45 ...

Edgware Edgware () is a suburban town in northern Greater London, mostly in the London Borough of Barnet but with small parts falling in the London Borough of Harrow and in the London Borough of Brent. Edgware is centred north-northwest of Charing Cros ...

. Additional acts in 1864 and 1866 granted powers to construct branch lines from Highgate to

Muswell Hill Muswell Hill is a suburban district of the London Borough of Haringey, north London. The hill, which reaches over above sea level, is situated north of Charing Cross. Neighbouring areas include Highgate, Hampstead Garden Suburb, East Fi ...

and from Finchley to

High Barnet Chipping Barnet or High Barnet is a suburban market town in north London, forming part of the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is a suburban development built around a 12th-century settlement, and is located north-northwest of Charing Cr ...

respectively. The railway was sponsored by the larger Great Northern Railway (GNR), whose main line from King's Cross ran through Finsbury Park on its way to

Potters Bar Potters Bar is a town in Hertfordshire, England,in the historic County of Middlesex Hertsmere Borough Council – Community Strategy First Review (PDF) north of central London. In 2011, it had a population of 21,882. In 2022 the population was ...

and the north. Before the line to Edgware was opened, it was purchased in July 1867 by the GNR and was opened as a single track line on 22 August 1867.Clive's Underground Line Guides, Northern Line, Dates
/ref> At first, services ran from Edgware to

, King's Cross and, via Snow Hill tunnel, to

Ludgate Hill Ludgate Hill is a street and surrounding area, on a small hill in the City of London. The street passes through the former site of Ludgate, a city gate that was demolished – along with a gaol attached to it – in 1760. The area include ...

, Blackfriars and Loughborough Road on the south of the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. After 1869, trains terminated at

Moorgate Moorgate was one of the City of London's northern gates in its defensive wall, the last to be built. The gate took its name from the Moorfields, an area of marshy land that lay immediately north of the wall. The gate was demolished in 1762, bu ...

. Services could also run from Finsbury Park via the

North London Railway The North London Railway (NLR) company had lines connecting the northern suburbs of London with the East and West India Docks further east. The main east to west route is now part of London Overground's North London Line. Other NLR lines fe ...

to Broad Street after the Canonbury-Finsbury Park link opened in 1875. 21 trains a day ran to Finchley, usually in 24 minutes from Kings Cross, and 14 continued to Edgware. In 1870 the track between Finsbury Park and Finchley & Hendon (now Finchley Central) was doubled in preparation for the opening of the High Barnet branch and Muswell Hill branch. Because of the rapid rise and fall of the terrain in the area traversed by the railway, the line made extensive use of cuttings, embankments and viaducts. Particularly notable were the cutting in Highgate Hill in which Highgate station was constructed with tunnels on either side, and the viaducts over the

Dollis Brook Dollis Brook runs through the London Borough of Barnet in north London. It is a tributary of the River Brent, which is itself a tributary of the River Thames. The Dollis Valley Greenwalk follows almost all of Dollis Brook, apart from a short sec ...

and at Muswell Hill.

Branch lines

The High Barnet branch opened on 1 April 1872 with two intermediate stations at

Woodside Park Woodside Park is a suburban residential area in London. It is located in the London Borough of Barnet, in the North Finchley postal district of N12. Description The area to the east of the tube station consists predominantly of large Vict ...

and Totteridge & Whetstone (

West Finchley West Finchley is a London Underground station in the Finchley area of the London Borough of Barnet. The station is on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line between Woodside Park and Finchley Central stations and is in Travelcard Zone 4. ...

did not open until 1933). The line to Barnet stopped short at Underhill, south of the main village located at the top of the hill. As Barnet was a larger village than Edgware and new residential development at Finchley grew at a faster pace than on the original line, the branch line quickly became the dominant route. Direct services from London ran to High Barnet and a shuttle service was operated between Finchley and Edgware for most passenger journeys on that section, which remained a single track. The Muswell Hill branch from Highgate to Alexandra Palace was constructed by a separate company, the Muswell Hill Railway Company and opened on 24 May 1873 along with the Palace. However, when the Palace burned down only two weeks after opening, the service was considerably reduced and then closed for almost two years whilst the Palace was rebuilt. It reopened in May 1875. Another separate company, the

Watford and Edgware Railway The Watford and Edgware Railway (W&ER) was a company established in the 1860s in the United Kingdom to build a railway between Edgware in North London and Watford, Hertfordshire, via Bushey. Its planned route would have extended the railway lin ...

(W&ER), was established in the 1860s and had various plans to build a link from the EH&LR near Edgware to

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

in Hertfordshire. The W&ER was unable to attract sufficient funds for the project and the company and the right of way that it had obtained passed through the ownership of a number of other railway companies until plans were made in the 1930s to make use of its route (see below).

Development, overcrowding and competition: 1900-1918

By the 1900s the whole line was under pressure from overcrowding. The populations of areas along the line, particularly at

Hornsey Hornsey is a district of north London, England in the London Borough of Haringey. It is an inner-suburban, for the most part residential, area centred north of Charing Cross. It adjoins green spaces Queen's Wood and Alexandra Park to the ...

, Highgate, Muswell Hill, and Finchley, had increased considerably with the rapid Victorian expansion of London, but the GNR service had not been expanded to cope. The line was also congested with goods traffic, mostly coal and building materials. By 1903 the morning trains from Barnet were full by the time they arrived at East Finchley. As the doors of the compartments in the carriages were in those days locked with aid of a simple square key, some passengers took to purchasing these keys from local ironmongers, and locking the doors from the inside. It was not unknown for harsh words and even, on odd occasions, for blows to be exchanged. New stations were opened at Cranley Gardens (1902, between Highgate and Muswell Hill) and Mill Hill (1906, between Mill Hill East and Edgware). In 1905

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

services were established in both Hendon and Finchley, and extended shortly after to Barnet. This combined with motor transport alleviated some of the problem. This relief was also competition, and the GNR introduced new

engines An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power g ...

, specially designed to manage the steep inclines on the routes which slowed up the services. Further competition came from the opening of the new underground

Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway The Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway (CCE&HR), also known as the Hampstead Tube, was a railway company established in 1891 that constructed a deep-level underground "tube" railway in London. Construction of the CCE&HR was delayed for ...

(CCE&HR) to Archway (then named Highgate) and

Golders Green Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in England. A smaller suburban linear settlement, near a farm and public grazing area green of medieval origins, dates to the early 19th century. Its bulk forms a late 19th century and ea ...

in June 1907 a move that stimulated large scale house building to the south of the Edgware branch spreading out from

. The GNR took over the Muswell Hill Railway (renamed to the Muswell Hill and Palace Railway) in September 1911 and merged it with the rest of the line. Further developments were halted by the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Amalgamation: 1918–1939

In 1923 as a consequence of the railway grouping instigated by the 1921 Railways Act, the GNR became part of the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER). In January 1924 the newly enlarged company announced that the line would be electrified, although little was done. Meanwhile, the CCE&HR, now part of the

London Electric Railway The London Electric Railway (LER) was an underground railway company operating three lines on the London Underground. It was formed in 1910 and existed until 1933, when it was merged into the London Passenger Transport Board. History The LER wa ...

(Underground Group), was using plans dating back to 1901 for the Edgware and Hampstead Railway to construct an extension of its line from Golders Green through Hendon to a new station at

where it would be in direct competition with the LNER line. The Underground Group had also bought up the rights of the W&ER and published proposals to further extend the line to

Bushey Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. It has a population of over 25,000 inhabitants. Bushey Heath is a large neighbourhood south east of Bushey on the boundary with the London Borough of Harrow ...

and Watford although nothing was done immediately. Following the nationalisation of the Underground Group in 1933, the

London Passenger Transport Board The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for local public transport in London and its environs from 1933 to 1948. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and brand was Lond ...

announced the 1935–1940 New Works Programme which included the following proposals for the Finsbury Park to Edgware, High Barnet and Muswell Hill lines: # Upgrade the line to allow electric tube trains on all the lines and double the line from Finchley to Edgware. # To run the LNER Edgware line into Edgware Underground station where the trains from East Finchley could terminate. # To connect the Underground from Archway to East Finchley via a new tunnel under the LNER's Highgate station. # To activate the dormant proposals to extend the line from Edgware to Bushey Heath with intermediate stations at Brockley Hill and Elstree South. Much of the work was carried out, with East Finchley and Highgate stations being completely rebuilt and the electrification works were well advanced before the

put a stop to progress. Passenger services on the Finchley Central to Edgware line were ended in September 1939. Extract of 1930 map of Edgware & Mill Hill

Extract of 1930 map of Edgware & Mill Hill

End of the line: 1939 onwards

Underground trains took over from LNER steam services between East Finchley and High Barnet on 14 April 1940. LNER Services were withdrawn between Highgate and East Finchley in March 1941 (both services having briefly operated to the latter station from the two parts of Highgate station). Underground trains began serving Mill Hill East in May 1941 but never ran to Edgware as planned. In 1942 the Finsbury Park - Highgate - Alexandra Palace line was reduced to a peak service shuttle to Finsbury Park, ending through running to central London. After the war, the introduction of London's

Metropolitan Green Belt The Metropolitan Green Belt is a statutory green belt around London, England. It comprises parts of Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey, parts of two of the three districts of Bedfordshire and a s ...

made the project to continue the line to Bushey unnecessary as the intended housing development proposed in the area was prevented by the new legislation. The plan was formally cancelled in October 1950. In 1953 the modernisation and electrification of the remaining sections of track between Mill Hill East to Edgware also Finsbury Park to Alexandra Park were also abandoned. The last regular passenger service between Finsbury Park, Highgate and Alexandra Palace was run on 3 July 1954. In 1957 the goods yards at Cranley Gardens and Muswell Hill were closed and the line from Park Junction (Highgate Station) to Alexandra Palace was abandoned. The line from Finsbury Park to Edgware continued to be used for goods traffic, primarily coal, milk and building materials, even into the period when diesel engines had replaced steam locomotion. However, the introduction of the Clean Air Act 1956 established a shift away from coal as a fuel for domestic heating and the demand for coal slumped. At the same time, the expansion of road haulage reduced the demand for rail transportation of other bulk loads and the line closed completely between Edgware and Mill Hill East in 1964 with equipment and track removed by the following year. London Underground regularly moved stock for the Northern City Line along the old lines between Highgate Wood Depot, Finsbury Park and Drayton Park Depot until September 1970. The movements ran regularly on Tuesdays, and occasionally on Mondays and Wednesdays. The tracks were removed in 1971 following which the Northern City Line empty stock movements ran from

Neasden Neasden is a suburban area in northwest London, England. It is located around the centre of the London Borough of Brent and is within the NW2 ( Cricklewood) and NW10 (Willesden) postal districts. Neasden is near Wembley Stadium, the Welsh Har ...

via King's Cross (York Road) and the

Widened Lines The Widened Lines (also known as the City Widened Lines; formerly known as the Moorgate Line) is a double-track railway line forming part of the Thameslink route between St Pancras and within Central London. For most of their life the Widene ...

. The sections of the line from Finsbury Park to the southern portals of the southern tunnels at Highgate station and between the sites of Cranley Gardens and Muswell Hill stations now form a linear urban park known as

Parkland Walk The Parkland Walk is a linear green pedestrian and cycle route in London, which follows the course of the railway line that used to run between Finsbury Park and Alexandra Palace, through Stroud Green, Crouch End, Highgate and Muswell Hill. It ...

. Stretches of the Mill Hill East to Edgware line are now local nature reserves: Copthall Railway Walk and Mill Hill Old Railway Nature Reserve.

The stations of the line

All listings are with original names. Stations on the Finsbury Park to Edgware line, from south to north: *

Finsbury Park station Finsbury Park is an intermodal interchange station in north London. It serves a number of National Rail, London Underground and bus services. The station is the third busiest Underground station outside Zone 1, with over 33 million passengers u ...

* Stroud Green - Opened in 1881. *

- Rebuilt prior to the take-over by Underground services. * East End, Finchley - Renamed to "East Finchley" in 1886. The station was completely rebuilt prior to the take-over by Underground services. * Finchley & Hendon - Renamed twice: to "Finchley (Church End)" in 1894 and "Finchley Central" in 1940. It was the main goods yard for the Finchley area, with two separate yards in operation. *

- Now Mill Hill East. The station was important for two reasons: North Middlesex Gas Company established a works in 1862, with coal being carried on the line to feed the works in increasing quantity up until 1961. From here onwards, the original track has been lifted. The Mill Hill Barracks were established beside the station in 1905. *

Hale Hale may refer to: Places Australia *Hale, Northern Territory, a locality *Hale River, in southeastern Northern Territory Canada *Hale, Ontario, in Algoma District United Kingdom * Hale, Cumbria, a hamlet near Beetham, Cumbria *Hale, Greater Man ...

- Opened in 1906 as a halt for milk from Mill Hill farms. But as suburban dwellings, in what is now called Mill Hill Broadway, began to appear after 1910 the platform was extended and a ticket office was established with a station master. It was renamed "The Hale for Mill Hill" no later than 1919, supplying mostly coal and commuters. In preparation for the proposed electrification during the late 1930s the station platform was extended with concrete and was closed in 1939 to allow work to be accelerated but it was never reopened and subsequent work was aborted. *

- There was a small engine shed, but after damage from "the great blizzard of January 1881" it was demolished and never replaced. Not to be confused with Edgware Underground station 200 yards to the north. All has been demolished. On the Highgate to Alexandra Palace branch: * Cranley Gardens - Opened in 1902. *

* Alexandra Palace On the Finchley Central to High Barnet branch: *

- Opened in 1933 by the LNER to serve new developments that had taken place between Church End, Finchley and the Dollis Brook. The station was built from material of older stations the company had further north in Yorkshire. The result is that the station is in keeping with the style of other stations on the same route. The footbridge, for example, comes from Wintersett and Ryhill, Barnsley. *

Torrington Park Torrington may refer to: People * Arthur Torrington, Guyanese-born co-founder of the Windrush Foundation and the Equiano Society * Jeff Torrington, Scottish writer * John Torrington, English explorer and Royal Navy stoker * George Byng, 1st Viscou ...

- Renamed "Woodside Park" in 1889 when the station was rebuilt. Coal sidings were built by 1906. * Whetstone and Totteridge - Now "Totteridge and Whetstone". Pickfords had a horse hospital and stables here, and the nursery gardeners Sweets also used the station. *

- Opened on the site of the old

Barnet Fair Barnet Fair is an annual horse and pleasure fair held near Mays Lane, Barnet, England, on the first Monday in September. The Fair takes place over three days starting on 4 September. It still operates under its royal Charter which is issued ...

. The name is not, as is popularly thought, a railway name, and has been in use since at least the 16th century. There was a cattle pound in the station yard. Other notable structures were: Dollis brook viaduct

* Dollis Viaduct - 13 arches each with a span of , and high (the highest point above ground on the present underground). It was designed by Sir John Fowler and Walter Marr Brydone to span

and was built between 1863 and 1867. * Muswell Hill viaduct - Carried trains high on brick pylon on the way to Muswell Hill station. Affords excellent views of central London. * United Dairies sidings - Came into use in the early 1920s and was originally owned by Manor Dairies. It had sidings of its own, and was used as a distribution depot. It was closed in 1960.

In fiction

The Alexandra Palace branch features in the novel ''

The Horn of Mortal Danger ''The Horn of Mortal Danger'' is a 1980 novel by British musician Lawrence Leonard. It relates the adventures of a brother and sister as they discover a secret civilisation buried beneath the streets of London. It is a 'classical' children's ...

'' (1980). The book begins with two children exploring Cranley Gardens station and the tunnel to Highgate; they discover a "secret railway" which can be accessed by a gate in the wall of the tunnel. A version of the railway also features in scenes eventually cut from ''

Shaun of the Dead ''Shaun of the Dead'' is a 2004 zombie comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Pegg stars as Shaun, a downtrodden salesman in London who is caught in a zombie apocalypse with his friend Ed ( Nick Frost). The ...

''.Nick Cooper
"Shaun of the Dead"
/ref>

References

External links

Northern Heights - 1970

Lost Lines - Northern Heights

Transport for London - Parkland Walk

Video about the abandoned Mill Hill-Edgware extension
by Jay Foreman {{Northern line navbox Transport in the London Borough of Barnet Early British railway companies Great Northern Railway (Great Britain) Transport in the London Borough of Haringey Predecessor companies of the London Underground Railway companies established in 1862 Railway lines opened in 1867 Railway companies disestablished in 1867 History of rail transport in London Closed railway lines in London Alexandra Palace 1862 establishments in England British companies established in 1862 British companies disestablished in 1867