Accrington Railways - Robert Kenyon

There would also be improvements on the Harwood Loop Line between Blackburn and Rose Grove. September On the 1 st , two serious accidents happened on the railway in Church. Twenty year old John William Rostron was walking home along the railway line just after 6pm, and on reaching Antley Bridge he saw a train approaching so he stepped back and was struck from behind by the Fleetwood express due in Accrington at 6:08. He was thrown away from the tracks and was carried to Church Railway Station where he was attended by Dr Fox. It was decided that his injuries though severe were not life threatening, and he was carried to his home on Albert Street in Oswaldtwistle on a stretcher. On the same evening Michael Lacy was engaged in shunting wagons in the yard at Church Station, when his hand was trapped between the buffers of two wagons. His hand was badly crushed, and he would remain disabled for the rest of his life. December The L & Y announced that they were to remodel Blackburn’s Railway Station. This would entail additional platforms connected by a subway, which would be covered by a large canopy. The booking hall and entrance would be some ten feet below rail level accessed off Railway Road. 1883 January A deputation of cotton manufacturers and spinners met in Accrington Town Hall on Monday, the 29 th , to discuss the level of railway charges, a subject which had been placed before the directors of the L & Y by the Council on a previous occasion. Following on a resolution passed on the previous day, on Tuesday, the 30 th , under the leadership of Councillor Hoyle the Mayor, 60 gentlemen went to Hunts Bank in Manchester to meet the L & Y’ directors, who were all in attendance including the Board’s Deputy Chairman, Mr Radcliffe, who was presiding. Alderman Harrison and Councillor Beads pointed out that in 1872 an increase of £1 per ton was levied due to the high price of coal, which had been passed on to the customers, and they now felt that with a decrease in the cost per ton the price for carriage of goods including yarn and cloth should reflect this fall. There was even a dissenting voice from one of the directors, who pointed out that the mill owners could shut down their mills at very short notice, but the railway would still have to continue to operate at the same level. The deputation also asked for the directors to review the entire range of tariffs. Mr Radcliffe gave an undertaking that these observations would be placed before a meeting of the Board, with a commitment to convey their decision to the deputation within a short space of time. February On Sunday, the 28 th , about 160 servants of the railway in Accrington and district met in the goods yard of the station to march in procession via Higher Antley Street, where the late John Taylor resided, to St John’s Church for a memorial service celebrating the life of the guard who had lost his life at Accrington Station. The column was headed by Mr Granige the Goods Agent and Station Master Mr Crossley. A collection for his family raised £18 for his widow and six children. On returning back to the Station they were all served with tea. March The Easter Weekend was bedevilled with a period of severe weather, so numbers travelling from Accrington’s Railway Station were well down on recent years, with 1,995 tickets issued on Good Friday, to destinations including Hollingworth Lake with 128, the Ribble Valley line at 39, Liverpool 44, Southport 34 and Blackpool 65. On Saturday it was Blackburn Fair and 2,100 people went by train out of a total of 4,415, whilst on Monday the fair attracted another 1,167 out of a total of 2,506. May Plans for a new station in Blackburn were revealed and were described as being ‘on an extensive scale’. In contrast to Easter, Whitsuntide traffic showed a marked increase over previous years. On Saturday 2,733 tickets were sold booked to the usual destinations, with destinations including 34 to Scotland, 6 to Belfast and 34 to Skipton. Sunday saw 1,077 passengers passing through whilst on Monday Altham’s trips to Liverpool and Blackpool shared 600 passengers. In addition Lanson’s works excursion to Blackpool carried 300, the excursion to Windermere arranged by the Wesleyans accounted for 500 out of a total of 4,275 tickets sold. On Tuesday All Saints’ School in Clayton went to Southport with 500 on board, whilst Enfield Cricket Club had an outing to Keighley numbering 81. June Mr J. Tennant, who was Chairman of the Local Board, led a deputation including Messrs Appleby, Hacking and J. Smith (Clerk), to meet with the directors of the Midland Railway Company in Derby on Friday, the 1 st . Mr Smith had been collecting information on the amount of traffic which emanated in Clayton-le-Moors, which was conveyed by road, canal and railway, and the costs of this carriage. This was part of the concerted effort to persuade the Midland to expand its operations through East Lancashire

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