| Market Drayton | |
| Status: | Disused |
| Borough: | Market Drayton, Shropshire |
| Country: | England |
| Coordinates: | 52.9095°N -2.4891°W |
| Grid Name: | Grid reference |
| Platforms: | 4 |
| Original: | Nantwich and Market Drayton Railway |
| Pregroup: | Great Western Railway |
| Postgroup: | Great Western Railway |
| Events: | Station and line from Nantwich opened |
| Years1: | 16 October 1867 |
| Events1: | Line from Wellington opened |
| Years2: | 1 February 1870 |
| Events2: | Line from Silverdale opened |
| Years3: | 7 May 1956 |
| Events3: | Line from Silverdale closed |
| Events4: | Station closed to passengers |
| Years5: | 1 May 1967 |
| Events5: | Wellington and Nantwich lines closed |
Market Drayton railway station served the town of Market Drayton in Shropshire, England, between 1863 and 1963. It was at the junction where three railway lines met: two of them, forming the Great Western Railway route between Wellington and, were met by a line from on the North Staffordshire Railway.[1]
The Nantwich and Market Drayton Railway (N&MDR), which ran southwards to Market Drayton from a junction with the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) at, was opened on 20 October 1863.[2] The new line was 10chain65chain long.
Four years later, on 16 October 1867, the Wellington and Drayton Railway (W&DR) opened, which connected the N&MDR at Market Drayton to the Great Western Railway (GWR) at Wellington. The W&DR, which was 16miles in length, had been absorbed by the GWR in 1866, the N&MDR had been worked by the GWR since opening (it was fully absorbed in 1897); and so the connection permitted GWR trains from Wolverhampton and the south to reach and Manchester (London Road) via the LNWR.
On 1 February 1870, the North Staffordshire Railway (NSR) opened a line to Market Drayton from Silverdale. With the arrival of the NSR, the station had to be enlarged and was rebuilt in a French Renaissance style with ornamental iron features and square-topped pavilions at each end.[3]
The opening of the NSR line was also accompanied by reciprocal running powers. The NSR gained running powers to Wellington (for goods traffic) and (passengers and cattle) and the GWR had running powers for freight traffic to .[4] The NSR also built its own small engine shed at Market Drayton which lasted until 1931.[5]
The line from Silverdale closed on 7 May 1956, and the station closed when the line between Wellington and Nantwich closed on 9 September 1963.[6] [7] Freight services continued to use the route for a further four years until 1 May 1967.[6] [10]
The station site, which was situated to the east on the A529 Adderley Road, near the present site of Morrisons supermarket, is now covered by a factory complex.[11] The idea of converting the trackbed of the Wellington to Nantwich line into a footpath was rejected by Cheshire County Council which considered it not "particularly attractive for walkers".[6] In 1994 the site was sold for supermarket redevelopment, but the Nantwich and Market Drayton Railway Society was able to dismantle some of the buildings and artefacts.[12]