NS447R Meltham & Holmfirth Branch Lines

[@acampbell8614]

In 1978 I visited the then derelict Holmfirth station with my late Dad. In the gents at the end of the platform, one of the brackets for the high flush cistern was still in place, resplendent in its peeling light brown paint. My Dad ripped it from the rotting wood and it has served as a bracket for a hanging basket in the gardens of my family's various homes ever since, though the brown paint has now completely disappeared. We also found an LMS rail chair dated 1937 which ended up in the boot of his car. A few months later I later donated it to the Severn Valley Railway. I worked there as a teenager, so it probably has steam trains running over it again.

[@rangerover113]

fantastic.....i lived in meltham as a kid and can still remember flat wagons with db tractors and also the old brickworks where my dad used to drive a wagon for frank sims. my sister works in morrisons and my parents in their mid 80s still live there. i also went to school at holmfirth sec mod between 1968 and 1972...i even married a girl from holmfirth but thats another story.

[@anthonywalker7908]

Hello Steven, did you live at Golcar Brow road. My old man used to work for Frank Sims too, at the bottom of Mill Moor. I remember he had a house built at the end of Slaithwaite Road end in the 60s. I'm sure you and I used to muck about in the olden days. Long time ago now. Take care.

[@rangerover113]

Anthony Walker hi mate yes we did live down golcar brow rd and mr sims bungalow is still there now

[@barryslater3597]

Thanks for the memory’s. In the early sixties as a fireman, I worked a WD with a goods train from Hudds to Holmfirth, there were a rake of coaches stored at Holmfirth Station at the time, also at Lockwood Stn, jct with the Meltham the branch line. About 1961/2 From Lockwood signalbox I saw the very last long train load of White David Brown tractors to leave Meltham down the branch line on its way to Liverpool Docks, a sad but impressive sight. Some years later I drove an Albion articulated transporter lorry from Meltham to Liverpool docks having loaded it with 3 white DB tractors. Not quite so impressive.

[@boneshaker6819]

As a kid I lived on Beaumont Park Road in the 50’s, and the park was a natural playground for us. About 5 of us decided as a dare to go to the bottom of the park and walk through that tunnel. After maybe 100 meters we heard a train coming, and you have never seen a bunch of kids move so fast in your life, or climb the banking near the entrance so quickly! Needless to say, we never went back again lol.

[@arthurbaldwin1804]

Thank you for a very interesting post. I used to travel regularly to both Meltham and Holmfirth in my work and seeing what is left of these branch lines wondered about their history and where exactly they ran. What a shame that they can’t be restored as a “Summer Wine” line would be a popular tourist attraction and bring cash into the area.

[@johnecracknell7047]

A superbly produced video many thanks. I was told that the Healey house stop on the meltham line was put in for the owner, as the only way the railway was allowed to cross his land.

[@daled6216]

Great stuff takes me back to way back i was brought up in Meltham and remember were the station was at the end of the track there used to be a wooden bridge and a iron bridge over the old track...when I had to walk over the iron bridge as a kid it used to frightened me to death ..the good old days

[@MartinMallinson]

Thank you for this - very nostalgic. I live thousands of miles away now, but I recall the railway from Huddersfield across Paddock to Sheffield, and my dad worked in Meltham Mills ...

[@robinoconnor1203]

A friend of mine walked most of the Meltham branch line, he lived very close to where Meltham Mills station once stood. His house was next to the road bridge as you entered Meltham, the Tractor works was visible from his house, across a field.

[@benc640]

This was great - thanks for making it. I've never really managed to get my head round the Thongsbridge station/line. The viaduct on New Mill road seems like it is way too high to drop down into the Thongsbridge part of the valley, though there used to be rail tracks just by Holmfirth high school (now a housing estate), so it must have gone down there, somehow. I wish I'd been alive when this was still in operation. Holmfirth deserves a rail link.

[@blundicarna2544]

My thoughts exactly. I've studied photos of Thongsbridge station and the line. Looking at it today I can't see how it connected.

[@andrewsutton4371]

The line came off at Brockholes junction just between brockholes station and Thurstonland tunnel ,after the junction the line passed over a bridge at oakes lane Brockholes then onwards to Thongsbridge station hope this helps

[@arthurbaldwin1804]

Thank you for a very interesting video. I to looking at what remains today had a job working out the route of the Meltham line. Those Victorians certainly built to last.

[@russbamforthadi9011]

The turntable is still there on the Meltham line. It was part of the David Brown tractors

[@gazza9463]

There is a Morrisons supermarket on the site of what was Meltham railway station.

[@martinhall60]

Very interesting and informative program. Well done.

[@seanH1768]

Another good ‘un there Michael.

[@bealzibub4002]

My house is right above the netherton tunnel near the station end. Unfortunately the farmer doesn’t keep it tidy.

[@TheDJJamster92]

The photo of Netherton station remains was taken by me, the angle it was shot at shows the small retaining wall, I had been down a second time to take more photos but they are on another hard drive of which yet I cannot access because I need another PC first to access the data.

[@nigelsabin1713]

Why are they showing gwr locos etc on the l & y?? Odd!!!!!

[@bobbyshafto3259]

Fabulous.

[@marts500]

Did there used to be a turntable just to the east of Meltham on the line...something can be seen on Google earth.

[@classictraction1744]

No it wasn't a turntable. It was a tractor testing station that David Browns had installed after the railway closed kzbin.info/www/bejne/nXXbq2mljchsa6M

[@andrewlong6438]

Interesting video.

[@derekfrench177]

I agree with Nigel. Why GWR signals & locos

[@paulwhite2533]

good video old lad

[@bokjay]

How long does it take by car or bus nowadays? Quite a bit more than the railway did I would think.

[@allenwilliams1306]

Meltham 20 minutes, Holmfirth 29 minutes by bus. By car, about 8 or 9 minutes less in each case. So, it's marginally or substantially quicker by road, one of the main reasons the passenger services by rail were withdrawn. Rail was both more expensive and no quicker than the bus. Added to this, the bus routes served far more local destinations, so no contest, really.

[@andrewlong6438]

Had the internal combustion engine and decent roads existed back in the mid Victorian period, these branch lines probably would have never been built.

[@johncass7193]

pity most of the trains shown are gwr which would never have run on them lines

[@bobtudbury8505]

that horrible labour party , they destroyed the lines and the pits in the 60's , we need to reopen a lot