Manchester and Bolton Railway

The Manchester and Bolton Railway was a railway in Greater Manchester connecting Salford to Bolton. It was built by the proprietors of the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal Navigation and Railway Company who had in 1831 converted from a canal company. The railway was originally to have replaced most of the line of the canal, but was eventually built alongside the Salford and Bolton arms of the canal. The Act of Parliament also allowed the construction of a connection to Bury but this was not built. The 10-mile (16 km) long railway was opened in 1838, and was amalgamated with the Manchester and Leeds Railway in 1846.

History

London and Birmingham Railway Centenary, 1938 souvenir illustrating the 2-2-0 locomotive of Edward Bury.

In 1830 the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal Company began promoting a proposal to build a railway along the line of their canal, from Salford to Bolton. Alexander Nimmo was employed to report on the proposal and told that it was possible "so far as he expressed himself capable of judging from his present cursory view of the canal". The shareholders then sought a bill for a railway from Bolton to Manchester and on 23 August 1831 obtained an Act of Parliament to become the "Company of Proprietors of the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal Navigation and Railway Company". They were empowered to build a line from Manchester to Bolton and Bury, "upon or near the line of...the Canal", and a branch from Clifton Aqueduct through to Great Lever. In 1832 this company obtained an Act that allowed it to build the railway. Due mainly to the objections of local mine owners who would have lost access to the canal and supplies, and would not have had branch railways built for them, the company agreed to an amending bill which would keep the canal and allow the new railway to be constructed alongside it.

Four acts of parliament were required to raise the necessary funds, and the line opened on 28 May 1838. In 1841 the company had 10 locomotive engines and between 1839 and 1839 carried 228,799 passengers.

The company later shared their railway, including their station at Salford, with the Manchester, Bury and Rossendale Railway Company and both worked together to construct a junction at Clifton Junction railway station.

In 1846 the railway was amalgamated with the Manchester and Leeds Railway.

Route

A map of the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal showing the railway alongside it.

The original terminus was at Salford Central railway station on New Bailey Street in Salford. Passing through Salford Crescent railway station and Clifton railway station (formerly Clifton Junction), the line ended in Bolton at Bolton railway station. The initial act of Parliament for the construction of the railway allowed for a connection to Bury, but a following act amending the line of the railway was most likely the reason this branch was never built. In 1841 the line was extended to Preston by the Bolton and Preston Railway. The route northwards to Blackburn followed four years later, whilst the Liverpool and Bury Railway's arrival in 1848 gave the town links eastward to Bury and Rochdale and westwards to Wigan and Liverpool. From Salford, the line was extended 1,290 yards (1,180 m) via several bridges and across Chapel Street, to Victoria Station in 1844. These lines had all become part of the expanding Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway system by 1858.

Design

The rails were of broad-based parallel form, weighing 55 pounds (25 kg) per 1 yard (0.91 m). Significant earthworks were required along the route, and a 300 yards (270 m) tunnel was constructed in favour of a cutting. Thirty three bridges were constructed, along with stone drainage facilities to keep water from the cuttings.

Locomotive types and coaches

The company purchased four Bury Type locomotives from Bury, Curtis, and Kennedy, two from George Forrester and Company, and two from William Fairbairn & Sons. Two further Bury 2-2-0s were acquired by the railway in 1844/5. Coaches were first and second class, first class holding eighteen passengers per carriage and second class holding 32 passengers per carriage. Third class carriages were introduced on 11 June 1838 but discontinued on 1 December 1838 after the company found that many passengers were vacating first and second class, for the cheaper third class.

Fares

To begin with, first class fares were 2s 6d (two Shillings and six pence) for the entire ten mile journey, or 3d per mile. Second class was 2s, or 2.40d per mile. On 11 June 1838, a new pricing structure was introduced, with first class costing 2s, 1s 6d, and 1s. Passenger's tickets were taken while travelling, presumably by a ticket inspector.

Services

Ten trains ran in each direction per weekday, with only two on Sundays.

Bibliography

• Bardsley, James Rodney (1960), The railways of Bolton, 1824-1959, J.R.Bardsley, ASIN B0000CKNFN
• Hadfield, Charles (1970), The canals of northwest england volume 2, David and Charles limited, ISBN 0715349929 {{citation}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Paget-Tomlinson, Edward (2006), The Illustrated History of Canal & River Navigations 3rd edition, Ashbourne, UK: Landmark Publishing Ltd, ISBN 1843062070
• Smith, Chauncey (1852), English Reports in Law and Equity, N/A
• Whishaw, Francis (1842), The Railways of Great Britain and Ireland Practically Described and Illustrated: Practically Described and Illustrated, John Weale