Edgware, Highgate and London Railway

		Unfinished route to Bushey Heath
		Edgware (London Underground)
		Edgware (EH&LR)
		Northern Line to Burnt Oak
		(planned connection)
		Mill Hill (The Hale)
		Midland Main Line / Thameslink
		Mill Hill East
		Dollis Viaduct
		High barnet
		Totteridge and Whetstone
		Woodside Park
		West Finchley

		Finchley Central
		East Finchley
		Northern Line to Highgate
		Alexandra Palace
		Muswell Hill
		Muswell Hill Viaduct
		Cranley Gardens


		Highgate

		Crouch End
		Gospel Oak – Barking Line
		Stroud Green
		East Coast Main Line
		Finsbury Park
		to the North London Line
		Northern City Line to Moorgate
		East Coast Main Line to King's Cross

The Edgware, Highgate and London Railway was a railway line in north London , which is now partly served by the Northern Line of the London Underground . Even before the first line was completed, the railway company of the same name was taken over by the Great Northern Railway in 1867 , which in turn merged with the London and North Eastern Railway in 1923. In the 1930s, an extensive expansion program was planned, which provided for the integration of the route into the network of the London Underground . However, this project could only be partially implemented due to the Second World War . Parts of the line were shut down in the 1950s and have since been dismantled.

history

founding

After the British Parliament passed a corresponding law, the company Edgware, Highgate and London Railway (EH&LR) was founded in 1862. The intended route ran through the rural part of the county of Middlesex (now the northern districts of London), from Finsbury Park station on the East Coast Main Line via Stroud Green , Crouch End , Highgate , Finchley and Mill Hill to Edgware . Additional laws passed in 1864 and 1866 allowed the construction of two branches (Finchley to High Barnet and Highgate to Muswell Hill ).

Even before the line was completed, the EH&LR was taken over by the larger Great Northern Railway (GNR) in July 1867 . The opening of the single-track line to Edgware took place on August 22, 1867. At first, trains ran from Edgware to Finsbury Park, King's Cross and through the Snow Hill Tunnel to Blackfriars and to destinations south of the Thames . After 1869, Moorgate station was the terminus on the Widened Lines . Individual trains ran from Finsbury Park on the tracks of the North London Railway to Broad Street Station . In 1870 the section between Finsbury Park and Finchley & Hendon (now Finchley Central ) was expanded to double tracks.

Due to the hilly terrain, the route had numerous cuts, dams and viaducts. Particularly noteworthy are the viaducts at Muswell Hill and over the Dollis Brook, as well as the deep cut through the Highgate Hill. In this was the Highgate train station, which was bordered on both sides by tunnels.

Branch lines

Woodside Park is a typical example of the stations built on the branch line to High Barnet in the 1870s.

On April 1, 1872, the branch line from Finchley to High Barnet was opened, with the intermediate stations Woodside Park and Totteridge and Whetstone (the West Finchley station did not follow until 1933). The line to Barnet ended immediately south of the village on the hill above. Since Barnet was a larger village than Edgware and the residential areas in Finchley grew faster than along the original route, the branch route soon became more important. Direct trains ran from London to High Barnet, while passengers to Edgware had to change trains at Finchley.

The branch line from Highgate via Muswell Hill to the new Alexandra Palace leisure and recreation center was built by a separate railway company, the Muswell Hill Railway Company. The opening took place on May 24, 1873, at the same time as the Alexandra Palace. Since the building was destroyed by fire only two weeks later, traffic on the route was initially severely restricted and then stopped for almost two years when the Alexandra Palace was rebuilt. The branch line was reopened in May 1875.

Another railway company, the Watford and Edgware Railway (W&ER) founded in the 1860s , had in mind to build a line from the EH&LR at Edgware to Watford in Hertfordshire . However, W&ER was unable to raise enough funds to build the line and the rights of way acquired changed hands several times.

Growth, Bottlenecks and Competition

At the beginning of the 20th century, the line reached its capacity limits. The population of the developed settlements had increased significantly, but the operations of the GNR had not been expanded accordingly. There were also numerous freight trains that were mainly loaded with coal and building materials. As early as 1903, the passenger trains from Barnet were already full before they even reached East Finchley . New stopovers were also opened: 1902 Cranley Gardens (between Highgate and Muswell Hill) and 1906 Mill Hill (between Mill Hill East and Edgware).

In 1905 tram lines were opened in both Hendon and Finchley , which shortly afterwards also reached Barnet. This could relieve the railway line. The relief also meant competition and the GNR introduced newly developed steam locomotives that were tailored to the steep sections of the route.

Another competition was the underground line of the Charing Cross, Euston and Hampstead Railway (CCE & HR) , which opened in June 1907, to Archway (then still called Highgate) and Golders Green . This new line stimulated housing development in the area south of the Edgware railway line.

In September 1911, the GNR took over the Muswell Hill Railway (renamed Muswell Hill and Palace Railway) and merged it with the rest of the route. The First World War put an end to further growth for the time being.

Mergers and expansion plans

1930 topographic map showing the Mill Hill East - Edgware section

With the coming into force of the Railways Act 1921 , which provided for the amalgamation of almost all British railway companies into four companies, the GNR became part of the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER). The newly founded company announced the electrification of the lines to Edgware, High Barnet and Alexandra Palace in January 1924 , but initially did not follow up on their announcement. The CCE & HR, meanwhile in the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (Underground Group), extended its route from Golders Green through Hendon to Edgware , which was in the immediate vicinity of the LNER station. The Underground Group had also acquired the rights of way from W&ER and announced plans to extend the underground line further towards Bushey and Watford . But she did not take any further steps for the time being.

After the Nationalization of the Underground Group in 1933, the new London Passenger Transport Board introduced an extensive expansion program, the Northern Heights Plan . This included the following measures:

Electrification of the lines from Finsbury Park to Edgware, High Barnet and Muswell Hill and double-track expansion of the section between Finchley and Edgware.
Connection of the LNER-Edgware line to the Edgware underground station
Construction of a link between Archway and East Finchley underground in a new tunnel under Highgate LNER station.
Construction of the extension from Edgware to Bushey Heath, with intermediate stations at Brockley Hill and Elstree South

Most of the work was completed when the Second World War broke out , but could not be continued afterwards. In September 1939, passenger services between Finchley Central and Edgware ceased.

Unfinished expansion and shutdowns

End of the route at Mill Hill East

From April 14, 1940, underground trains operated on the East Finchley - High Barnet section instead of the LNER steam trains. LNER operations between Highgate and East Finchley ceased in March 1941. From May 1941 subways operated to Mill Hill East , but not on the remainder of the route to Edgware. From 1942, the trains on the Finsbury - Highgate - Alexandra Palace route (now operationally separated from the other branches) only ran during rush hour. The through trains to London city center have been discontinued.

After the end of the war, the government created a five to ten kilometer “green belt” around the settlement area of Greater London in order to slow down the further growth of the agglomeration. As a result of this measure, the extension to Bushey became superfluous, as the expected population growth in this area now failed to materialize. The expansion plans were finally filed in October 1950, as was the double-lane expansion of the section between Mill Hill East and Edgware.

In 1948 the remaining railway sections were transferred to the British Railways . In 1954 it was decided to shut it down for good. The last passenger train from Finsbury Park via Highgate to Alexandra Palace ran on July 3, 1954. The route from Finsbury Park to Edgware was still used by freight trains (mainly transporting coal, milk and building materials). But after the passage of the Clean Air Act , which included measures to combat air pollution, the demand for coal fell rapidly. The route was rarely used and in 1964 it was finally closed. The equipment and tracks were removed the following year.

London Underground used the route between Finsbury Park and Highgate until September 1970 to move rolling stock between the depots Highgate Wood, Finsbury Park and Drayton Park on Tuesdays (occasionally also on Mondays and Wednesdays). The tracks were removed in 1971 and the old railway line between Finsbury Park and Muswell Hill is now used as a walking path.

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