The Ulster Railway was a railway company operating in

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

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 ...

. The company was incorporated in 1836 and merged with two other railway companies in 1876 to form the

Great Northern Railway (Ireland) The Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNR(I) or GNRI) was an Irish gauge () railway company in Ireland. It was formed in 1876 by a merger of the Irish North Western Railway (INW), Northern Railway of Ireland, and Ulster Railway. The government ...

History

The Ulster Railway was authorised by an Act of the

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 ...

in 1836 and construction began in March 1837. The first of line, between and , were completed in August 1839 at a cost of £107,000. The line was extended in stages, opening to in 1841,Hajducki, 1974, map 9 in 1842,Hajducki, 1974, map 8 and in 1848. Railway Bridge - geograph

In 1836 a Railway Commission recommended that railways in Ireland be built to

broad gauge A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union (CIS ...

. The Ulster Railway complied with this recommendation but the

Dublin and Drogheda Railway Dublin and Drogheda Railway (D&D) was a railway company in Ireland which publicly opened its 31¾ mile main line between Dublin and Drogheda in May 1844. It was the third railway company in Ireland to operate passenger trains and the first to us ...

(D&D) did not. In order for Dublin and Belfast to be linked without a

break-of-gauge With railways, a break of gauge occurs where a line of one track gauge (the distance between the rails, or between the wheels of trains designed to run on those rails) meets a line of a different gauge. Trains and rolling stock generally cannot ...

, in 1846 the UK Parliament passed an Act adopting a compromise gauge of for Ireland, to which the Ulster Railway's track was then re-laid. Extension of the Ulster Railway resumed, reaching in 1858, in 1862 and on the Dundalk and Enniskillen Railway, later the

Irish North Western Railway Irish North Western Railway (INW) was an Irish gauge () railway company in Ireland. 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 th ...

(INW), in 1863. 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 185 ...

(D&BJct) between and Portadown was completed in 1853. This connected the D&D with the Ulster Railway, thus completing the main line between

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

and Belfast. The Ulster Railway operated three lines that remained in the ownership of separate companies: the

Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway The Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway (PD&O) was an Irish gauge () railway in County Armagh and County Tyrone, Ulster, Ireland (now Northern Ireland). Early development Building of the PD&O line started from Portadown in 1855 ...

(PD&O), the

Banbridge, Lisburn and Belfast Railway The Banbridge, Lisburn and Belfast Junction Railway was an Irish gauge () railway in Ireland linking Belfast with Banbridge, County Down. It was built in the 19th century. The line between Knockmore and Banbridge was closed in 1956. History T ...

(BLBR) and the

Dublin and Antrim Junction Railway Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...

(D&AJR). The PD&O reached in 1858 and in 1861,Hajducki, 1974, map 7 and the contractor,

William Dargan William Dargan (28 February 1799 – 7 February 1867) was arguably the most important Irish engineer of the 19th century and certainly the most important figure in railway construction. Dargan designed and built Ireland's first railway lin ...

, sold the Ulster a 999-year lease on it in 1860. The BLBR opened between Knockmore Junction and

Banbridge Banbridge ( , ) is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road and is named after a bridge built over the River Bann in 1712. It is situated in the civil parish of Seapatrick and the historic barony of Iv ...

in 1863, and the D&AJR opened between Knockmore Junction and in 1871.Hajducki, 1974, map 5 In 1876 the Ulster Railway merged with the INW and 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 ...

(formed by a merger of the D&D and the D&BJct the previous year) to form the

Preserved stock

One example of Ulster Railway rolling stock has survived. The body of No. 33, built as a family saloon in 1862 and withdrawn in the 1920s having passed into GNR hands, is preserved at the

Downpatrick and County Down Railway The Downpatrick and County Down Railway (DCDR) is a five-foot, three-inch (1,600 mm) gauge heritage railway in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is operated by volunteers and runs passenger trains using steam and diesel locomotives, diesel ra ...

. It is currently on display in the Carriage Gallery, and it is hoped that it will be fully restored in the future.

References

Sources and further reading

* * * * *{{cite book, url=https://archive.org/stream/railwaysgreatbr00whisgoog, title=The Railways of Great Britain and Ireland Practically Described and Illustrated, first=Francis, last=Whishaw, author-link=Francis Whishaw, edition=2nd, location=London, publisher=John Weale, year=1842, pages=430–437, oclc=833076248

External links

* 1843 Timetable for Belfast and Portadown, from ''Bradshaw's Railway Monthly'' Railway companies established in 1836 Railway companies disestablished in 1876 Irish gauge railways Great Northern Railway (Ireland) Closed railways in Northern Ireland Closed railways in Ireland Defunct railway companies of Ireland Transport in County Antrim Transport in County Armagh Transport in County Down Transport in County Monaghan 6 ft 2 in gauge railways in Ireland 1836 establishments in Ireland 1876 disestablishments in Ireland British companies disestablished in 1876 British companies established in 1836