Banbridge Junction Railway Explained

Railroad Name:Banbridge Junction Railway
Other Name:Banbridge, Newry, Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway
Start Year:1859
End Year:1955
Successor Line:Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNRI)

The Banbridge Junction Railway was a railway line that operated between Banbridge, County Down and Scarva, County Armagh. Opened in 1859, it was absorbed into the Great Northern Railway of Ireland in 1887. The line closed in the 1950s.

History

The company that operated the railway line, initially named the Banbridge, Newry, Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway Company, was created by the Banbridge Junction Railway Act 1853.[1] [2] The initial shareholders of the company included several local mill owners and linen producers, such as Thomas Ferguson, John Smyth, Robert McClelland and William Waugh.[1] The company was renamed, to the Banbridge Junction Railway Company, under the Banbridge Junction Railway Act 1856.[3]

Development of the line took place in the mid- to late-1850s, and railway engineers associated with the survey, design and construction work included James Price[4] [5] and William Dargan.[6] The Banbridge Junction Railway (BJR) opened in 1859.[7]

The line, which was approximately 5 miles in length, connected the Banbridge Railway with the Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway.[8] It served several mills, which were involved in producing Irish linen, along the River Bann near Banbridge.[9]

The BJR was absorbed into the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNRI) in 1877.[7] [10] [11] The line closed in 1955.[7]

Stations

Stations and halts on the line included:

References

Sources

Notes

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Banbridge Junction Railway Act 1853 . legislation.gov.uk . 7 October 2024 .
  2. Web site: Banbridge Junction Railway (Lease) Act 1860 . legislation.gov.uk . 7 October 2024 .
  3. Web site: Banbridge Junction Railway Act 1856 . legislation.gov.uk . 7 October 2024 .
  4. Web site: Price, James . Dictionary of Irish Biography . Stefanie P. . Jones . 10.3318/dib.007499.v1 . 2009 . Price [..] was appointed resident engineer in charge of surveying the Banbridge Junction railway line (1855–7), ultimately overseeing its construction (1858–9) .
  5. Web site: Price, James . Dictionary of Irish Architects . Irish Architectural Archive . 7 October 2024 . Price [..] was employed from 1855 to 1857 as resident engineer of the Banbridge Junction Railway .
  6. Web site: Dargan, William . Dictionary of Irish Biography . Fergus . Mulligan . 10.3318/dib.002407.v1 . Back in Ireland Dargan came to dominate railway construction in the 1850s [..] After this came the [..] Banbridge Junction Railway. There were few railway projects in which he was not involved .
  7. Web site: Banbridge Junction Railway . railscot.co.uk . 7 October 2024 .
  8. Book: Knox, Alexander . A History of the County of Down . 1875 . Hodges, Foster & Company . 99 . The Banbridge Junction Railway forms a connection between the Banbridge Railway, and the Dublin and Belfast Junction Railroad, at Scarva. Its length is about five miles, with an intervening station at Laurencetown .
  9. Web site: Railway Stations in County Down . rosdavies.com . 9 October 2024 . The pressure from the linen industry saw the opening of the railway from Banbridge to Scarva in 1859 .
  10. Web site: Banbridge Junction Railway Company . scripoworld.com . 7 October 2024 .
  11. Web site: 1932 Great Northern Railway (Ireland) . Grace's Guide . 7 October 2024 .

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