BATTERSBY OPENING OF LINES The North Yorkshire and Cleveland Railway from Picton to Stokesley was opened on 3rd March 1857. For goods traffic the section from Stokesley to Ingleby opened on 1st February 1858 and to Ingleby Junction, on 6 th April 1858. The North Eastern Railway took full control of the North Yorkshire and Cleveland Railway in August 1859, inheriting the powers to construct the Rosedale Branch. A private railway owned by the Ingleby Ironstone & Freestone Mining Company ran from Ingleby Junction to Ingleby ironstone mine this was opened on 6 th April 1858 and was later incorporated into the Rosedale Branch which opened on 27 th March 1861. A passenger service operated from 1 st April 1861 between Castleton and Stockton. The 5 ¼ mile branch line from Ingleby Junction to Great Ayton and Nunthorpe opened to goods traffic on 1 st June 1864 and to passenger traffic on 1 st April 1868. The station was named Ingleby Junction when opened in 1868, as it was situated within the Ingleby parish boundary. It was renamed Battersby Junction on 30/9/1878 to avoid confusion between Ingleby and Ingleby Junction stations. On 1/5/1893 the station name was shortened to just Battersby, although it is still called Battersby Junction by the locals. Battersby station c1910 looking towards Kildale. The booking office & waiting rooms are to the left of the picture, with the station masters house on the right. Battersby station in 2001 from the same position as the photo above. The signals and signal box have disappeared, the station buildings have been converted into a private house, the station masters house is also privately owned. The major change is behind the Photographer where the line no longer continues to Ingleby.
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BATTERSBY
OPENING OF LINES
The North Yorkshire and Cleveland Railway from Picton to Stokesley was opened on
3rd March 1857. For goods traffic the section from Stokesley to Ingleby opened on
1st February 1858 and to Ingleby Junction, on 6th April 1858. The North Eastern
Railway took full control of the North Yorkshire and Cleveland Railway in August
1859, inheriting the powers to construct the Rosedale Branch. A private railway
owned by the Ingleby Ironstone & Freestone Mining Company ran from Ingleby
Junction to Ingleby ironstone mine this was opened on 6th April 1858 and was later
incorporated into the Rosedale Branch which opened on 27th March 1861. A
passenger service operated from 1st April 1861 between Castleton and Stockton.
The 5 ¼ mile branch line from Ingleby Junction to Great Ayton and Nunthorpe
opened to goods traffic on 1st June 1864 and to passenger traffic on 1st April 1868.
The station was named Ingleby Junction when opened in 1868, as it was situated
within the Ingleby parish boundary. It was renamed Battersby Junction on 30/9/1878
to avoid confusion between Ingleby and Ingleby Junction stations. On 1/5/1893 the
station name was shortened to just Battersby, although it is still called Battersby
Junction by the locals.
Battersby station c1910
looking towards Kildale. The
booking office & waiting
rooms are to the left of the
picture, with the station
masters house on the right.
Battersby station in 2001 from the same
position as the photo above. The
signals and signal box have
disappeared, the station buildings have
been converted into a private house, the
station masters house is also privately
owned. The major change is behind the
Photographer where the line no longer
continues to Ingleby.
STATION
Sketch of the track layout at Battersby around 1900 redrawn from an original
sketch by William Huby.
Battersby station had three platforms. The platform on the up line to Picton Junction
included the station masters house and a waiting shelter. The platform on the down
line to Whitby included the booking office, waiting rooms, ladies and gents toilets,
porters room and lamp room. These platforms were linked by a NER standard cast
iron footbridge which was removed in the 1960’s. The third platform was a bay
platform which trains from Middlesbrough usually ran into, this platform is no longer
used and the track has been lifted.
A NER signal cabin was located at the Whitby end of the
down line platform, this was built in 1902. The signal
cabin became obsolete in 1989 and was demolished in
1991. Water columns existed near the station masters
house on the up platform and close to the signal box on
the down platform.
Water tank built in 1897 and still surviving in 2011.
Passenger traffic when the line was open between Picton and Grosmont in 1865
consisted of 4 trains in each direction, stopping at all stations and taking just over 2
hours for the journey from Stockton to Whitby. By 1900 this had risen to 7 trains in
each direction with no trains reversing at Battersby. The 1922 timetable showed
some trains travelling to and from Middlesbrough via Great Ayton which required the
locomotive to run round its train at Battersby. In 1954 at the time of closure of the
Battersby to Picton section for passenger traffic 2 trains ran from Whitby to Stockton
via Ingleby and 2 trains ran from Whitby to Middlesbrough via Great Ayton and the
same in the opposite direction. In the summer of 1958, 15 trains ran in one direction
and 14 in the other this was the highest number of passenger trains seen at
Battersby in one day. This came about because of the closure of the Middlesbrough
to Whitby coast line via Staithes. By 1971 this had reduced to 6 trains daily to and
from Whitby. Currently in 2011 this has further reduced to just 4 trains to and from
Whitby on a week day and 5 trains to and from Whitby on a summer Sunday.
Passenger trains were worked from the mid 1870’s by BTP 0-4-4 tank locomotives
often as steam autocars between 2 coaches. Class O, locomotives which became
LNER class G5 worked the trains from the mid 1890’s. Sentinel steam railcars also
worked on the line in the 1930’s and 1940’s. Other locomotives working the line
included classes A6, A8, F8, L1, V1, and V3. The last passenger working over the
Battersby to Picton section was worked on 12th June 1954 by class B1 61034, Chiru
on the 6-59 pm Battersby to Stockton. Diesel Multiple Units replaced steam
locomotives on the 5th May 1958. The occasional steam train operated by The North
Yorkshire Moors Railway still runs to Battersby.
A G5 leaves Battersby for Whitby towards the end of steam worked passenger
trains in the late 1950’s. The signal box, signal gantry and long closed
locomotive shed can be seen.
Two photographs take 40 years apart. The first taken by J W Armstrong in
1951, courtesy of the Armstrong Railway photographic Trust shows A8 69883.
The second taken in 1991 in almost the same position shows a pacer train,
note the water column and tank.
Goods traffic up to the closure of the Rosedale branch in 1929 consisted mainly of
iron ore travelling to Ferryhill or Stillington. Extensive siding existed at Battersby to
handle this traffic, (see section on engine shed for further details). During the early
years the weighing of iron ore traffic was undertaken at Battersby the wagon
weighbridge was also available for traffic to and from the Great Ayton, Picton and
Grosmont branches. Later the Iron ore from Rosedale was weighed at Ingleby
Incline foot. All records and accounts of the ore traffic were dealt with at Battersby
station. Coal and lime were handled at Ingleby station and not at Battersby. Ingleby
or Battersby sidings as it was later called was used by Lord De L’Isle and his
tenants, it was located approximately a third of a mile from Battersby Junction along
the Rosedale branch.
70013 Oliver Cromwell arrives at Battersby on 4th October 2009
ACCIDENTS
The first accident known to have taken place at Ingleby Junction occurred on 27th
August 1864. The passenger train left Castleton at 5.20pm and proceeded towards
Stokesley. It approached Ingleby Junction at 16 to 18 miles per hour, the train was
not booked to stop here. The driver noticed that the points from the main line to a
siding were open, he put the brakes on but could not avoid a collision with some
trucks in the siding. The train was described as rebounding with great violence and
all passengers were thrown from their seats causing the greatest confusion and
alarm. The train contained around 30 passengers who suffered bruising but no
serious injuries. The engine, two carriages and guards van came off the line. The
failure to properly attend to the points could have resulted in a serious loss of life.
A further accident occurred at Battersby Junction on 9th May 1887 when the 2.35pm
train from Newcastle (via Ferryhill and Middlesbrough) entered the bay platform at
too high a speed and came into collision with the buffer-stops at the end of the bay.
Four passengers complained of injury and the head guard of the train riding in the
rear van had two broken ribs. The train consisted of bogie tank engine No 138,
running coal bunker first and seven carriages. No wheels left the rails but the buffer-
stops were damaged. An identical accident occurred in the mid 1950’s when a
passenger train again ran into the buffer-stops.
A fatal accident occurred on the 7th May 1909 at Battersby. Mortimer Thompson was
the guard of a train of twenty-six loaded ironstone wagons from Ingleby Incline foot
to Battersby. He was riding in the brake van which was placed next to the engine.
When the train was entering the reception sidings at Battersby at about 4.10pm, at a
speed of about 15 miles per hour the brake van became derailed. Mortimer
Thompson either fell or jumped in front of the wagons, which were not derailed, and
sustained fatal injuries.
The brake van was derailed at the facing points which lead into the branch line
reception sidings and the main line reception siding. An examination of the points
showed that the connecting rod and stretcher bar of the points were disconnected,
the bolt which should have connected them having apparently fallen out. This bolt
should have been secured by a split pin, but the split pin could not be found.
The accident report by J H Armytage of the Railway Department, Board of Trade,
found that:
Several slide chair bolts in these sidings were not fitted with split pins at all, and the
ends of split pins used to secure some of the other bolts had not been opened
properly. Although in these cases the absence of the split pins would not be likely to
cause an accident, their absence points to the fact that the points were not been
properly maintained. I am of the opinion that in this case the split pin was either
omitted from the bolt connecting the rod to the stretcher bar or that it was put in
without being properly secured and subsequently fell out.
An inquest was held on the 8th May at Battersby Junction. Evidence was given by
Joseph W Brotton a railway clerk of Battersby Junction who had been travelling with
Thompson in the guards van. Brotton stated that when opposite Battersby signal
cabin the van came off the road, the deceased remarked, what’s matter? Both were
rising from their seats when the witness was thrown to the other side of the van,
against the brake handle, to which he clung until the train stopped. Brotton never
saw the deceased again. The van travelled some distance off the rails at an angle of
45 degrees with the ground. When the train stopped, Brotton got out, seeing nothing
of Thompson he ran back and found him underneath the wagons, dead and terribly
cut up, about nineteen wagons having passed over him. He could not say if the
deceased jumped out or was thrown from the van, but it was quite possible for him to
be thrown out, having regard to the jolting and tilting of the van. Dr Charles Stuart, of
Great Ayton, described the injuries as of a frightful character and death would have
been instantaneous. The jury returned a verdict of accidentally killed.
Joseph W Brotton is perhaps best known for the photographs he took of Ingleby
incline, he retired as Station Master at Pinchingthorpe. The reason for the accident
has similarities to the Potters Bar accident in 2002; it is a pity that 93 years later the
lessons on track maintenance had still not been learnt.
STATION MASTERS
A total of nine station masters have been identified at Battersby, see table below.
From opening of the station in 1858 until the 1870’s it is likely that the Station Master
at Ingleby looked after both stations.
Date Station Master
By 1876 William R Sharpe
By 1881 Henry Orton, retired 1902
1902 John Dunn, retired 1921
1921 William Huby, left in 1934
1934 W A Calvert, retired 1939
1939 R W Smith, retired 1948
1948 W G Storey
1952 R O Faisey, left in 1953
1953 Edward P Leach, left in 1963.
William Huby Ted Leach the last Station Master at Battersby
ENGINE SHED
At first it was not considered necessary to provide an engine shed at Ingleby
Junction, traffic from Ingleby incline foot to Stockton and Ferryhill being worked by
locomotives and men from Stockton shed. The Working Timetable for mineral trains
prior to the building of Ingleby shed on 1st February 1874 was as follows: -
a.m. a.m. a.m. a.m. p.m. p.m.
Ferryhill 7-40 10-10 12-10
Stockton 4-50 5-10 6-45 9-45 12-25 2-00
Ingleby Junction 6-00 6-20* 8-00 11-00 1-40 3-10
a.m. a.m. a.m. p.m. p.m. p.m.
Ingleby Junction 6-30 8-30 11-40 12-40 2-20 3-40
Stockton 7-45 9-50 1-05 1-55 3-25 4-50
Ferryhill 9-10 11-10 2-20 3-15
* Employed on the Ingleby branch and leave with load of ironstone when work done.
1873 and 1874 were the peak years for ironstone from Rosedale and it was on this
level of traffic that the decision would have been made to build an engine shed at
Ingleby Junction.
In 1874 NER minute 14880, dated 17/12/1874, proposed that stabling
accommodation for 8 engines should be provided at Ingleby Junction, along with 30
cottages. On the 8/4/1875 NER minute 15281 recorded that tenders be accepted for
the erection of engine shed for 8 locomotives and turntable. On the 6/5/1875 at a
meeting of the NER Locomotive and Stores committee tenders were received as
follows:
J Gladstone, Whitby. £2,500 1s 4d
R Kitching, Darlington. £2,588 19s 5d
Thos. Wood, Pickering. £2,875 1s 0d
Aspinall, York. £3,466 14s 0d
Gladstone’s tender of £2,500 1s 4d was accepted. Minutes of the NER Locomotive
and Stores committee on 27/9/1877 refer to the new shed opened at Ingleby, costing
£350 1s 3d more than the contract price. The shed was referred to as Ingleby shed
as Ingleby Junction station was not renamed Battersby Junction until 30/9/1878.
After this date it became known as Battersby shed. The shed was built of brick and
contained three tracks, it had
a length of 166ft and a width
of 46ft. There were fourteen
windows on each side of the
shed. It remained open for
only a few years, because
production of Ironstone at
Rosedale ceased in
March1879 following the
failure of the Rosedale and
Ferryhill Iron Co Ltd. It is
likely that Battersby shed also
closed in 1879.
Battersby shed in 1950/60’s
It was not until 1st January 1889 that Battersby shed reopened. Again the shed was
to remain open for only a short period of time as the level of ironstone from Rosedale
failed to make the shed viable. The shed closed for the final time on 30/11/1895.
At the time of closure four engines were stationed at the shed. A 42ft engine
turntable was situated adjacent to the shed, this was in an exposed position and
difficulties often occurred when turning locomotives during gales. The problem was
stopping the turntable, sand was used on the track to help with the control. The
turntable was removed in 1941 although the pit still remains. It is hoped to excavate
the turntable pit during 2011. In 1906 the shed was used to store eight condemned
engines. During the First World War six dinning saloons were stored there. ECJ
190 and 191, First class diners built at Doncaster in 1914; ECJ 192 and 193, Third
class diners also built at Doncaster in 1914; GN & NE Joint diners 26 and 28, built at
Doncaster in 1907. The GN & NE Joint diners were 12-wheelers and the others 8-
wheelers. The shed was used by railway staff as a miniature rifle range. The
Battersby Station Miniature Rifle Club was formed in 1909 and use for this purpose
continued until the 1920’s. During the 1930’s the shed carried a large notice TO
LET. During world war two the shed was used as a store. The shed then remained
empty until December 1965 when it was demolished, only the water tower surviving.
The shed existed for 88 years but was only used as a locomotive shed for less than
10 years.
Locomotives and Duties
It is not known what individual locomotives were based at Battersby shed, but they
would have included the former Stockton & Darlington Railway class 1001, 0-6-0’s
and the class 398, 0-6-0’s. An accident occurred at Hartburn curve on 8th March
1877 when locomotive No 831 of class 398 hauling an empty mineral train from
Stockton to Ingleby Junction was involved in a collision with a Middlesbrough to
Stockton mineral train hauled by a class 1001 locomotive.
Duties involved the working of iron ore trains to the Ferryhill Ironworks of the
Rosedale & Ferryhill Iron Co Ltd, situated to the north of Ferryhill at West Cornforth,
via Ingleby, Picton Junction and Stockton and the return of empty wagons. After
Rosedale mines were taken over by The Carlton Iron Company, iron ore travelled to
their iron works at Stillington. Duties also involved working empty wagons to Ingleby
Incline bottom and loaded wagons from the incline bottom to Ingleby/Battersby
Junction.
Shed Staff 1877 - 1879
Little information can be found for staff who worked at the shed between the years
1877 – 1879. It has been possible to identify only one driver and one guard:
William Burton. On the 1871 census, William Burton was an engine driver living at
Stockton. In December 1878 he was an engine driver living at Battersby Junction.
His son David was christened at St Andrew’s Church Ingleby Greenhow. By the
1881 census William Burton was still an engine driver, but had returned to live at
Stockton.
John Mothersdale. Shown as a mineral guard living at Ingleby on the 2/12/1877
when his son was christened at St Andrew’s Church Ingleby Greenhow.
Shed Staff 1889 - 1895
Fortunately it has proved to be possible to find much more detail of the staff who
worked at the shed between 1889 and 1895. This is because the period the shed
was open falls into the census year of 1891. Information is also available in the
North Eastern Railway Register of Enginemen and Firemen.
The 1891 census lists 13 staff of the North Eastern Railway, living at Battersby
Junction, whose occupation connects them to the engine shed:
Engine Shed Foreman: John Wilkinson.
Drivers: John Bryan, John George Wass and Thomas Lonsdale.
Firemen: William Tomlinson, John James Copeland, John I’anson and James Henry
I’anson
Steam raiser: William Thompson.
Guards: William Churchman, Ralph Robinson and John Fred Ismay.
Engine Fitter: William Baines
By consulting the North Eastern Railway register of Enginemen and Firemen it is
possible to identify further enginemen and firemen who worked at the shed, and to
identify career details.
Engine Drivers based at Battersby shed:
It is not surprising those drivers who transferred to Battersby shed were relatively
young and in most cases it was their first position as driver. There would be little
incentive for older drivers to move their family to this remote part of Yorkshire.
John Bryan. Entered NER service 23/6/1873, fireman at Stockton shed. Appointed
Driver 1/1/1889 at Battersby shed. Transferred to Middlesbrough shed 5/12/1895
upon closure of Battersby shed.
John George Wass. Entered NER service 16/8/1864 at Stockton. Fireman at
Stockton shed by 1881. Appointed driver at Battersby shed by 1891. Returned to
Stockton shed, date unknown.
Thomas Lonsdale. Entered NER service 20/11/1872 as a steam raiser at Stockton
shed. He was appointed fireman 19/7/1875 and driver 3/5/1888. Transferred to
Battersby shed 3/1/1889. Transferred to Middlesbrough shed 19/10/1893, then to
Rosedale shed 4/1/1894. Thomas Lonsdale stayed at Rosedale until 28/10/1910
when he was transferred to Newport shed.
William Ransom. Entered NER service 12/9/1873 at Stockton shed. Transferred to
Middlesbrough shed March 1879. Appointed driver 21/2/1889, transferred to
Battersby shed 19/10/1893, as a replacement for Thomas Lonsdale who moved to
Middlesbrough shed on the same date, see above. Transferred to Middlesbrough
shed on 5/12 1895 upon closure of Battersby shed.
Details indicate that there were three drivers based at Battersby at any one time.
This would agree to the information given that four locomotives were allocated to
Battersby shed at the time of closure in 1895. Three locomotives in use and one
under repair/servicing at any one time.
Firemen based at Battersby shed:
William Tomlinson. The 1891 census shows him as a fireman living at 4, Battersby
Junction. By the 1901 census he was an engine driver living in Middlesbrough.
John James Copeland. Entered NER service on 21/1/1881 as a cleaner at
Stockton shed. Appointed fireman 22/12/1887, transferred to Battersby shed
3/1/1889. Transferred back to Stockton shed 21/7/1892.
John I’anson. Entered NER service 13/5/1884 as a cleaner. Appointed fireman at
Battersby shed 17/10/1889. Transferred to Middlesbrough shed 5/12/1895 upon
closure of Battersby shed.
James Henry I’anson. Entered NER service 16/12/1887 as a cleaner at Rosedale
shed. He was appointed fireman still at Rosedale on 27/3/1890 and moved to
Battersby still as a fireman on 21/7/1892. He transferred to Middlesbrough shed in
May 1895, where he became a driver on the 2/3/1900.
Milford Darnborough. Entered NER service as a cleaner at Newport shed,
Middlesbrough on 18/12/1880 and appointed fireman 12/5/1887. He was transferred
to Middlesbrough on 2/8/1888 and then to Rosedale on 1/11/1888. He moved to
Battersby shed on 23/10/1890, staying until 12/1/1893 when he moved back to
Rosedale. He returned back to Battersby on 1/11/1894 and stayed until the shed
closed on 5/12/1895, when he moved to Newport shed, where he was appointed as
a driver on 12/6/1899.
Edward Young. Entered NER service 4/1874 at Newport shed. Transferred to
Battersby 9/5/1889. Appointed as a driver and transferred back to Newport shed
27/2/1890.
William Thompson. He was recorded on 1891 census as a steam raiser, living at 3
Battersby Junction. The Ingleby Greenhow parish register records him as a fireman
with children christened in 1889, 1892 and 1895.
George Sutton. Occupation recorded as fireman, when child christened at St
Andrew’s Church, Ingleby Greenhow, in August 1890. In the 1891 census he is
recorded as a fireman living in Middlesbrough.
RAILWAY HOUSES
To accommodate staff in 1875/6 two rows of houses were built by the North Eastern
Railway at Battersby Junction along with the Engine shed. These consisted of 22
houses on what is known as the front row and 11 houses on the back row. A further
4 houses already existed between the row of houses and the station. As well as
these 37 houses further houses were the Station Master’s house, houses at road
crossings and along the line side towards Battersby crossing. The number of
houses built reflected the optimism of the amount of iron ore to be carried from
Rosedale.
Cottages c 1955 Current view, track lifted & houses privately owned
The short period of time the engine shed was open and the number of empty houses
shown on the table below, taken from the 10 year censuses, suggest the NER
optimism was not met by actual tonnage of iron ore from Rosedale. Even in 1891
when the locomotive shed was open 12 houses were uninhabited. The total of 27
houses uninhabited in 1881 is not surprising following the closure of the shed around
1879. The houses still exist today, although now privately owned.