Leeds and Thirsk Railway

Introduction

This line is partly open.






Dates

21/07/1845Leeds and Thirsk Railway
Company incorporated, line receives act; Leeds to Thirsk with two branches to the Leeds and Bradford Railway one at Bramley and one at Holbeck, one curve to the Great North of England Railway at Thirsk, and two short branches to Harrogate and Knaresborough.
20/10/1845Leeds and Thirsk Railway
First sod cut.
  /07/1846York and Newcastle Railway
Proposed Team Valley line to counter another proposal by the Leeds and Thirsk Railway along the same route.
16/07/1846Leeds and Thirsk Railway
Second Leeds and Thirsk Act gives powers to open a line from Northallerton to Billingham on the Stockton and Hartlepool Railway, Eaglescliffe on the Stockton and Darlington Railway and Stockton on the Clarence Railway.
16/07/1846Leeds and Thirsk Railway
Act for extension from Northallerton to meet the Stockton and Hartlepool Railway at Stockton. Plan to buy Stockton and Hartlepool Railway falls through.
09/07/1847Leeds and Thirsk Railway
Act gives permission for a number of alterations to the route.
  /  /1848Leeds and Thirsk Railway
Line opened
15/05/1852Leeds and Thirsk Railway
Northallerton to Stockton section opened.
  /  /1853West Hartlepool Harbour and Railway
Diverts trains from Stockton station on the North Shore Branch (North Eastern Railway) to Stockton North station on the Leeds and Thirsk Railway. (The company controlled the former Clarence Railway and Stockton and Hartlepool Railway).
  /  /1854York and North Midland Railway Malton and Driffield Junction Railway York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway Leeds and Thirsk Railway West Hartlepool Harbour and Railways North Eastern Railway
Companies merge to form the North Eastern Railway.
  /  /1893Leeds and Thirsk Railway
North Stockton station re-built and re-named Stockton. South Stockton station becomes Thornaby.

Portions of line and locations

This line is divided into a number of portions.


Leeds to Thirsk



Black 5 No. 5305 accelerates the HLPG special away from Wortley Junction in the direction of Harrogate on 30 April 1977. Although reporting numbers ...
Bill Jamieson 30/04/1977
Preserved Black 5 No. 5305 sets off from Leeds on 30 April 1977 and takes the Harrogate line at Wortley Junction on the loco's first public outing ...
Bill Jamieson 30/04/1977
A morning Harrogate - Kings Cross express, hauled by 47521, rounds the tight curve on the approach to Wortley Junction, Leeds, on 30 April 1977. The ...
Bill Jamieson 30/04/1977
On its first outing since restoration to mainline running condition, No. 46229 Duchess of Hamilton swings right at Wortley Junction, Leeds and ...
Bill Jamieson 10/05/1980
4 of 4 images.




Deltic 55009 Alycidon runs through the Leeds suburb of Armley heading onto the Harrogate line to York, and then on to Hull via Selby, with The ...
David Pesterfield 29/12/1981
1 of 1 images.












Platform view south at Horsforth station on 19 March with the 15.12 service to Knaresborough just appearing below the road bridge in the background. ...
Bruce McCartney 19/03/2014
1 of 1 images.






The unstaffed halt at Weeton, eleven or so miles north of Leeds on the Harrogate line, looking south between trains on 4th June 2022. ...
Mark Bartlett 04/06/2022
1 of 1 images.


For many years Harrogate line services largely used Pacer trains but are now almost exclusively operated by former Scotrail Class 170 3-car units. Two ...
Mark Bartlett 02/06/2022
1 of 1 images.


170461 curves round from Starbeck and passes Belmont level crossing with a Leeds to York service on 2nd June 2022. Until 1900 this was also a junction ...
Mark Bartlett 02/06/2022
The little gate box at Belmont, just east of Starbeck station, is an elderly survivor that also has a claim to fame, in that it featured in Alan ...
Mark Bartlett 02/06/2022
View north west of the small Belmont crossing box on Forest Lane, Starbeck, between Starbeck and Knaresborough stations. The level crossing is a short ...
David Pesterfield 11/07/2019
Ex-Scotrail Turbostar DMU 170477, now in Northern Rail latest livery, speeds across Belmont level crossing mid morning, after leaving Starbeck station ...
David Pesterfield 11/07/2019
4 of 5 images. more


This is a two platform station at Starbeck, east of Harrogate. The station has a level crossing and signal box at the southern/eastern end. It is on the line from Harrogate (to the west) to York (to the east). It is located on a double track section which singles at Knaresborough (the next station east).
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More details
York bound 170459 calls at Starbeck on 2nd June 2022. Until quite recently this was a Scotrail unit (See image 47583) but several 170s have ...
Mark Bartlett 02/06/2022
170459 slows to call at Starbeck with a York to Leeds service on 2nd June 2022. From December 2021 there is now a half hourly York Harrogate Leeds ...
Mark Bartlett 02/06/2022
The brick signal box at Starbeck still controls the level crossing on this busy road, protected by a mixture of colour light and semaphore signals. A ...
Mark Bartlett 02/06/2022
A Harrogate bound 155 hurries over the level crossing at Starbeck on the evening of 12 March 2002. (Many thanks to AR for correcting the Class in this ...
Ewan Crawford 12/03/2002
4 of 5 images. more








Looking south along the extant platforms at Wormald Green station (closed 1962) between Ripon and Harrogate in October 2020. The old station sits ...
David Pesterfield 11/10/2020
1 of 1 images.


The solum of the former Leeds to Northallerton line heading south from Ripon is substantially extant over much of the section between the now ...
David Pesterfield 11/10/2020
A view through rail over road bridge LEN1/67, that crosses Pottery Lane between Littlethorpe village and the Ripon to Bishop Monkton Road. The view is ...
David Pesterfield 11/10/2020
Part of the large main shed, complete with colourful canopy, in the extensive goods yard that once served the cathedral city of Ripon. Photographed in ...
John Furnevel 24/04/2009
Looking east across Station Drive, Ripon, towards the main entrance to the former station on the Leeds Northern route midway between Harrogate and ...
John Furnevel 24/04/2009
4 of 13 images. more










Arriving at the platform is the slightly late 15.31 TPE ex York to Middlesbrough. Yes, it WAS blowy and raining! (Storm Brian strikes). ...
Bruce McCartney 21/10/2017
A service for Manchester Airport boarding at Thirsk on 1 April 2008. First TransPennine 185135 started its journey in Middlesbrough and has arrived ...
John Furnevel 01/04/2008
Colas Class 70 70814 is seen heading south with a loaded GBRf biomass working from Tyne Dock to Drax Power Station during a loan period for assessing ...
David Pesterfield 30/03/2018
GBRf (ex Eurospec) 66745 heading south at Thirsk just before 15.00 on 27 December 2018 with the 11.27 North Blyth to Drax Power Station loaded coal ...
David Pesterfield 27/12/2018
4 of 16 images. more







Knaresborough Branch



Looking east along the River Nidd at Knaresborough with a Northern DMU on the viaduct. The unique Knaresborough signal box see image 23671 can be ...
Ian Dinmore //
Looking over the rooftops of Knaresborough on 19 March as the 16.45 arrival from Leeds runs out onto the viaduct before crossing over to platform 1 ...
Bruce McCartney 19/03/2014
The 14.15 for York approaches Knaresborough on 13 November 2014, complete with moustache for 'Movember'. The last two vehicles are Class 142 Pacers, ...
Colin Miller 13/11/2014
Performing the hourly ritual of reversing onto the viaduct at Knaresborough and then setting back into the station is a Northern 153/155 Sprinter ...
Mark Bartlett 19/04/2013
4 of 6 images. more


This is a two platform station. Fine station buildings remain and are canopied. There is a six sided signal box to the west, just across a level crossing, built onto the end of the row of houses on Kirkgate.
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More details

See also
Knaresborough Extension (York and North Midland Railway)
170472 leaves Knaresborough heading for Harrogate and Leeds on 11th October 2023. Seconds later the semaphore clanged back to danger allowing the ...
Mark Bartlett 11/10/2023
A nice touch in the Track and Sleeper real ale bar that is in two rooms on the York platform at Knaresborough. ...
Mark Bartlett 11/10/2023
The stone signal box at Knaresborough, looking south west from the end of platform 1 on 24 April 2009. Out on Knaresborough Viaduct is an empty DMU ...
John Furnevel 24/04/2009
The 17.29 ex-York about to restart from Knaresborough on 19 March and continue on its journey to Leeds. ...
Bruce McCartney 19/03/2014
4 of 21 images. more