| Historical notes: | HISTORICAL NOTES - 1993: The West Wallsend and Monkwearmouth Railway Act, passed in 1886, allowed the two colliery companies to build a railway to service their proposed mines. The line was first planned to go through Young Wallsend (Edgeworth), but in July 1887 the companies changed the route to a line going to Cockle Creek. Mr F. Kerwin was the contractor and the cost was 16,000 pounds. Construction went quickly, and on the 16th May 1888, the first (unofficial) load of coal was taken from West Wallsend No.1 Colliery to the Bullock Island coal loaders. The railway was officially opened the same day as the Mine, on 3rd July 1888, with great celebrations and a special passenger train brought in from Newcastle. Regular passenger trains started 1st February 1895, from Cockle Creek Station to West Wallsend. Passenger numbers dwindled after the steam tram to West Wallsend was established in 1910. There was a manned platform at West Wallsend, demand stops at Holmesville and Barnsley, and the West Wallsend Mine Manager (McGeachie) had his own private platform close to his house.
During a miner's strike early in the railway's history, it was used to carry in non-union, inexperienced men to work the mine, guarded by police and artillerymen. Luckily no shots were fired. There was never any recorded loss of life on the lines, but a couple of quite spectacular derailments. One which occurred in 1927, outside the Cockle Creek Power Station construction works, was said to have been caused because the crew were distracted by watching the riggers at work, and failed to see some loaded wagons ahead.
The company took advantage of a lockout and subsequent strike in 1929/30 to close the passenger service on 13th January 1930. But trains still operated hauling coal from Seaham until Seaham No.1 Colliery closed in 1932. After that a goods service to West Wallsend survived until 26th November 1938. It carried goods for the Co-op and beer for the pubs mainly, and was finally closed because of high costs and diminishing use. The railway line was formally closed in 1962. The company (by then Coal & Allied) started removing the lines in 1968. Some of the steel was scrapped, and some was used in other company collieries. The path of the railway is still clearly marked and the land apparently has not been alienated.
BRANCH LINE to KILLINGWORTH - from Barnsley. The line was at first distinguished by the grand name of "The Newcastle New Wallsend Railway", & was built without a special Act of Parliament. It was built in 1890, but 7 years passed, during which the company had changed hands and name, before coal in any quantity was moved over the line. The Colliery was officially opened in October 1897. The line was never officially used for passengers, but occasionally a passenger train would pick up at the Killingworth Hotel, to take miners and their families to picnics, and people would use stools to climb into the carriages. A spur on the line was used for dumping spoil (shale and stone) and this became a hill 1200 feet long, 300 feet wide and 80 feet high. Another siding was intended for dumping small coal, and then later as a coal stockpile in case of lockouts or strikes.
The mine at Killingworth worked sporadically until 1930, when it was closed. It was re-opened in 1950, & the railway carried its coal until 1956, and for Mt Sugarloaf No.1 Colliery in 1951 & 1952. This private company used the line to get its coal into Cockle Creek Power Station, until (presumably) double handling became too costly. The last train of coal from West Wallsend Extended screens was loaded on 9th November 1956, but the railway remained open for some years, moving stockpiled coal, reclaiming machinery, shunting coal for the Power Station at Cockle Creek, but principally for getting coal wagons back and forth to the wagon repair shops at Killingworth. The repair shops were closed and the last train ran from Killingworth on 28th April 1961.
BRANCH LINE to FAIRLEY - from south of Holmesville. This branch line to Seaham No.2 Colliery was opened in 1905, and carried large amounts of coal out for many years with little trouble except for a derailment in 1926. Seaham No.2 Colliery closed in 1945, and the branch line was unused thereafter except for hauling out the colliery equipment. |