Irish North Western Railway (INW) was an
Irish gauge
Railways with a track gauge of fall within the category of broad gauge railways. , they were extant in Australia, Brazil and Ireland.
History
600 BC
:The Diolkos (Δίολκος) across the Isthmus of Corinth in Greece – a grooved pave ...
() railway company in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
.
Development
The company was founded as the Dundalk and Enniskillen Railway (D&ER) and opened the first section of its line, from to , in 1849.
In Dundalk the D&ER line crossed the
Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway
Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway (D&BJct, Irish: Iarnród Bhaile Átha Cliath agus Acomhal Bhéal Feirste) was an Irish gauge () railway in Ireland. The company was incorporated in 1845 and opened its line in stages between 1849 and 18 ...
main line, which was completed between and its own separate station in the same year.
The D&ER extended westwards, reaching in 1854,
[ in 1855][ and in 1858.] In 1859 the D&ER reached where it connected with the Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway
The Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway (L&ER) was an Irish gauge () railway in Ireland.
Construction and opening
The Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway was incorporated in 1845. Construction began at Derry and followed the west bank of the ...
(L&ER).[ The L&ER had been completed in 1854][ but had been unprofitable, so in 1860 it leased its line in perpetuity to the D&ER.] This gave the D&ER a direct route between Dundalk and .
In 1862 the INW opened a branch from southwards to . In the same year the company renamed itself the Irish North Western Railway. In 1863 the Ulster Railway
The Ulster Railway was a railway company operating in Ulster, Ireland. The company was incorporated in 1836 and merged with two other railway companies in 1876 to form the Great Northern Railway (Ireland).
History
The Ulster Railway was auth ...
reached Clones where it made a junction with the INW. In 1868 the Enniskillen and Bundoran Railway
The Enniskillen and Bundoran Railway (E&BR) was an Irish gauge railway company in north-west Ireland. It linked Bundoran and Ballyshannon on the Atlantic coast of County Donegal, Donegal with the Londonderry and Enniskillen Railway (L&ER) at ...
opened between and , and contracted the INW to operate its line.[
In 1876 the INW merged with the ]Northern Railway of Ireland
Northern Railway of Ireland was an Irish gauge railway company in Ireland.
It was formed by a merger of the Dublin and Drogheda Railway (D&D) with the Dublin and the Belfast Junction Railway (D&BJct) in 1875. In 1876 it merged with the Irish No ...
and the Ulster Railway to form the Great Northern Railway.[
]
After merger
The GNR operated the line between Dundalk and Enniskillen until 1957, when the Government of Northern Ireland
The government of Northern Ireland is, generally speaking, whatever political body exercises political authority over Northern Ireland. A number of separate systems of government exist or have existed in Northern Ireland.
Following the partitio ...
made the GNR Board close all cross-border lines except the Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway mainline. Córas Iompair Éireann continued a freight service between Dundalk and Clones for a few years, but withdrew this and closed the line in 1960.[
]
References
Sources
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{{Authority control
Closed railways in Northern Ireland
Railway companies established in 1862
Railway companies disestablished in 1876
Irish gauge railways
Great Northern Railway (Ireland)
Defunct railway companies of Ireland
Transport in County Cavan
Transport in County Fermanagh
Transport in County Monaghan
1862 establishments in Ireland