Accrington Railways - Robert Kenyon

could have come off the rails, which could have had very serious consequences”, said Mr Chown, the Station Manager. Later the police detained some youths for questioning. September In a statement made on the 20 th , Barbara Castle, the then Minister of Transport, announced that the Accrington to Bury line was to close, but no firm date had been set for the withdrawal of services. This meant the closing of stations at Helmshore, Waterfoot, Cloughfold and Bacup, whilst Ewood Bridge would remain open, the ones at Baxenden and Haslingden having already closed on August 9 th , 1951 and the 5 th of November, 1960 respectively. There was a sense of acceptance amongst the travellers interviewed on Accrington Station, who regularly used the trains to travel to their places of employment. Mr Edward Pettinger, of Burnley Road in Accrington, who had given evidence at the enquiry held earlier in the year by the Transport Users Consultative Committee, stated he felt that the over-pricing of fares was a deliberate ploy to discourage passengers from using this direct service, in order to put forward a case for the lines closure. He said that whereas a return by bus from Accrington was 4/9d the same fare on the train was 8/9d, and he was now resigned to having to use the bus which entailed a slower journey. Alderman Wallwork said, in his view this was one more step in the progressive isolation of the town, and was a throwback from the Beeching Report. “This has not been looked at from the point of view of providing a good service”, he continued. He was also concerned about the fate of the two platforms on Accrington Railway Station which dealt with trains on this route, as they were the first two when accessing the station from the main entrance on Eagle Street, as this meant crossing the running lines on the footbridge and changing trains in Blackburn, which would be a lengthier journey via Darwen and Bolton. October On the 8 th , the Locomotive Club of Great Britain organised a special excursion, which included Accrington on its itinerary. It ran under the headboard of “A Farewell To Crabs”, the 2-6-0 Hughes designed mixed traffic locomotives. Many were built at the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway’s Workshops in Horwich, but on this occasion the train locomotive was a Crewe-built example 42942, at the time shedded at Edgeley depot in Stockport. Built in December, 1932, it would be withdrawn from service in October, 1967. The pilot locomotive for this ‘special’ was a Black 5 number 45336, a 4-6-0 built in 1937 by Armstrong Whitworth. It would survive only until January of 1967, and at the time was allocated to Buxton. At a meeting of the General Purposes Committee, the Town Clerk submitted correspondence from the Transport Users Consultative Committee for the North West Area, stating that the Minister of Transport had consented to the withdrawal of all passenger services between Accrington and Ramsbottom including Helmshore Station, on the grounds that in her ( Barbara Castle’s ) opinion “there would be no substantial hardship caused by this closure”. The contents of this letter were noted. December On the 3 rd , the day before the closure, the Locomotive Club of Great Britain organised a four- coach train, (if demand required it, extra coaches would be attached ), hauled by a Stanier 2-6-4 tank engine #42644 from Trafford Park Sheds. It was titled the ‘Rossendale Forester’, and was to cover the tracks due for closure in East Lancashire. It was to depart Manchester Victoria at 10:00 and visit lines including Middleton Junction, Clifton Junction, Bury Knowsley - Street, Bury - Bolton Street and run via Stubbins Junction to Bacup where it would reverse back to Ramsbottom. It would then pass through Helmshore, Haslingden and Baxenden to Accrington South Junction and Accrington West Junction en route to Church & Oswaldtwistle, where again it would reverse. Passing through Accrington again it would continue its journey to Rose Grove, before running down to Padiham Power Station. Having run around for the umpteenth time the loco assisted by Newton Heath's Ivatt 2-6-0 #46437 up the 1:40 to Rose Grove, would then return to Manchester via Burnley, Copy Pit, Todmorden and Rochdale passing several more closed stations in the process It was announced by British Railways that Rishton Railway Station, which was closed on Sundays through the winter months, would now be closed on Sundays throughout the entire year. Rishton District Council had accepted this move with some serious reservations. Even though it was a relatively low key affair in Accrington, at Helmshore Station on the 3 rd of December, the passing of the final train through the railway station was marked as a significant milestone. Hundreds turned out to ride on the 21:45 to Bury Bolton Street, including enthusiasts, councillors and other dignitaries. On board was the Helmshore Prize Brass Band under the direction of Bandmaster Mr

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