The Manchester, Bury and Rossendale Railway, opened in 1846, ran between

Clifton Clifton may refer to: People *Clifton (surname) *Clifton (given name) Places Australia * Clifton, Queensland, a town **Shire of Clifton *Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong *Clifton, Western Australia Canada *Clifton, Nova Scotia ...

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

and Rossendale in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, England. The company merged with the Blackburn, Burnley, Accrington & Colne Extension Railway (BBA&CER) to form the

East Lancashire Railway East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway line in North West England which runs between Heywood, Greater Manchester and Rawtenstall in Lancashire. There are intermediate stations at Bury Bolton Street railway station, Bury Bolton Street, ...

History

In the early 1840s the nearest railway to Bury was the

Manchester and Bolton Railway The Manchester and Bolton Railway was a railway in the historic county of Lancashire, England, connecting Salford to Bolton. It was built by the proprietors of the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal Navigation and Railway Company who had in 183 ...

, at its closest through Stoneclough almost 4.5 miles distant. This railway company had initially proposed to create a branch to Bury, but technical difficulties meant that the connection never materialised. On 14 September 1843, a group of local businessmen including John Grundy,

Thomas Wrigley Thomas Wrigley (27 June 1808 – 26 January 1880) was a British paper manufacturer, cotton mill owner, art collector and philanthropist from Bury, Lancashire. He was High Sheriff of Lancashire in 1872. Born on 27 June 1808 close to his fat ...

and John Robinson Kay met at a hostelry in Bury to discuss the creation of a railway connection for the town. The Manchester, Bury and Rossendale Railway Company was formed, its purpose to build a railway from Bury to a junction with the Manchester and Bolton Railway at Clifton. The company also promoted the idea of extending the line northwards to

Rawtenstall Rawtenstall () is a town in the borough of Rossendale, Lancashire, England. The town lies 15 miles/24 km north of Manchester, 22 miles/35 km east of Preston and 45 miles/70 km south east of the county town of Lancaster. The town is at the cen ...

. In 1844, the company was incorporated by act of parliament, which authorized it to raise £300,000, and to borrow £100,000.

Route

Map of the Manchester Bolton and Bury Canal with east lancs line

Charles E. Cawley was appointed Chief Engineer, who instructed his recently appointed assistant

Frederick Banister Frederick Dale Banister MICE (15 March 1823 – 22 December 1897), was an English civil engineer, best known for his 35 years as the Chief Engineer of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR). Early life Born in London on 15 Marc ...

to set out the first few miles. The proposed route through the

Irwell Valley The Irwell Valley in North West England extends from the Forest of Rossendale through the cities of Salford and Manchester. The River Irwell runs through the valley, along with the River Croal. Geology Shallow seas covered most of south-east ...

was then approved by Chief Inspector of Railways

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Sir Charles W. Pasley on 23 September 1846. The railway began from a junction with the Manchester and Bolton Railway, in Clifton. It ran northeast through , , , , and into . Construction was completed quickly; William Harrison wrote "The railway was speedily completed and was opened for traffic on 28th September 1846", however men were asked to work on

Sunday Sunday is the day of the week between Saturday and Monday. In most Western countries, Sunday is a day of rest and a part of the weekend. It is often considered the first day of the week. For most observant adherents of Christianity, Sunday ...

, and several were charged with breaking

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...

Extension

Another company, the Burnley, Accrington & Colne Extension Railway, proposed to extend the line from

Stubbins Stubbins is an industrial village in the southern part of the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire, England. It is half a mile north of Ramsbottom town centre on the A676 between Bolton and Edenfield. For local government purposes, it receives serv ...

Junction to meet the to

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

route at

Accrington Accrington is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies about east of Blackburn, west of Burnley, east of Preston, north of Manchester and is situated on the culverted River Hyndburn. Commonly abbreviated by locals to ...

. The two companies joined on 24 July 1845 to form the

By an Act of Parliament Banister was placed in charge with designing, surveying and gaining the necessary

UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremac ...

approval to extend the line, which hence became part of the

Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways. It was the third-largest railway system based in northern ...

. Due to persistent health issues, after gaining parliamentary approval Banister left the project and construction was undertaken by engineers from the L&YR.

Present day

The Manchester to

section today forms part of the

Manchester to Preston line Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The two ...

. The line from Clifton towards Bury has been lifted, with Molyneux Brow total removed due to construction of the

M60 motorway The M60 motorway, Manchester Ring Motorway or Manchester Outer Ring Road is an orbital motorway in North West England. Built over a 40-year period, it passes through most of Greater Manchester's metropolitan boroughs except for Wigan and Bol ...

. The section beyond Ringley Road to Withins Lane now forms the

Irwell Sculpture Trail The Irwell Sculpture Trail is the largest public art scheme in England, commissioning regional, national and international artists. The Trail includes 28 art pieces and follows a well established footpath stretching from Salford Quays through ...

. Beyond this

Manchester Metrolink Manchester Metrolink (branded locally simply as Metrolink) is a tram/ light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. The network has 99 stops along of standard-gauge route, making it the most extensive light rail system in the United Kin ...

incurs onto the former railway infrastructure, with the line from Bury Bolton Street to Bolton now being utilised by the preserved

References

;Bibliography * * {{commons category, East Lancashire Railway 1845–1859 Early British railway companies Railway companies established in 1843 History of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury History of Lancashire Irwell Valley 1843 establishments in England British companies established in 1843 Closed railway lines in Greater Manchester