Harborne Railway

rubery_station · Posted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 10:41 am Post subject: Harborne Railway

An interesting, and often overlooked, Birmingham line was that of the Harborne Railway - a privately owned line operated by the LNWR running from a spur from the Wolverhampton main line past Monument Lane to Harborne.

The line can still be walked from the old Harborne station site (Station Road - obviously!) as far as Summerfield Park and the site of Icknield Port Road station - the one where most people got off and caught the bus/tram due to the 30 minutes or so trains would be held there awaiting a sufficient 'gap' in mainline trains to join the line into New Street via Monument Lane.

Chad Valley toy factory did largely take over the Harborne station site in later years and used the station building itself as a timber store and carpentry workshop! The line also had a branch serving the M&B brewery at Cape Hill from 1907 which brought good revenue to the Railway. The LNWR locos that worked the line, and later LMS, would take wagons for the brewery as far as a siding at Rotton Park, where they woud be picked-up by the brewery locos (Jon Barleycorn and later John Barleycorn II) - the process working in reverse for outgoing wagons.

If anyone has any photographs, memories or thoughts on this line, I'd be interested to hear from you.

fireman · Site Admin Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 89

I remember this railway well all though only from the road overbridge on the Hagley Road. A good line to walk along!

Paul · Joined: 14 Sep 2007 Posts: 1

Yes, the pier for the viaduct where it crossed the Bham Main Line canal is still standing in the middle of the canal and the bricked up tunnel arch beyond. It looks as though that viaduct must have been on quite a steep incline though - it seems to drop a long way. Was that so?

madeinbirmingham · Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2009 6:29 pm Post subject:

Well Paul no one answered that but here is our new page

http://madeinbirmingham.org/harbornebranch.htm

THE HARBORNE BRANCH
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JP --- History is just one thing after the other!

Tigerbob · Joined: 23 Mar 2008 Posts: 35 Location: Sutton Coldfield

I remember the Harborne line very well. I went to Barford road school, leaving December 1963. The line was known to us schoolkids as "The Old Boner", why I don't know.

We were repeatedly told not to play on the line by our school teachers but of course kids will be kids.

The line was only used for freight in those days, about six trips a day I seem to recall, most of which went up to Cadbury's.

On many an ocassion I along with other kids have been chased along the track by the Fireman or Driver. Although it was easy to get on to the track in Barford road, once you were on there were few places to escape should the train creep up behind you and catch you unawares. Summerfield park was always a good escape point I seem to remember.
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I was born with nothing, I have fifty per cent of it left.

madeinbirmingham · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 11:36 am Post subject:

fireman · Site Admin Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 89

Never went to Cadburys -you men CHAD VALLEY TOYS-same quality but not edible!!!