Station Name: LEA GREEN

[Source: Bevan Price & Paul Wright]



Date opened: The line opened 15.9.1830 but Lea Green doesn't appear in company timetable until 1.3.1831.
Location: West side of Green Road
Company on opening: Liverpool and Manchester Railway
Date closed to passengers: 7.3.1955
Date closed completely: 15.9.1958
Company on closing: British Railways (London Midland Region)
Present state: Demolished - only the station house survives
County: Lancashire
OS Grid Ref: SJ511921
Date of visit: 25.2.2006

Notes: Lea Green was one of the original passenger stations of George Stephenson's 1830Liverpool and Manchester Railway the world's first railway to cater for passengers as one of its primary functions. It was also arguably the worlds first inter city railway. When the line first opened on the 15th September 1830 no details exist of the initial intermediate stops and Walkers accurate description of the line at the time of opening says that fares for intermediate stops had not been settled implying that initially there might not have been any stops.

The earliest known company timetable is 1st March 1831, this did not show times at intermediate stops but did list stops in fare tables. The company minutes of 26th September 1832 did give a full list but no further list was given until January 1846.

There were many early changes of stopping place and name so the early history of intermediate stops is patchy. At first trains stops at, for example, level crossings where the gatekeeper issued tickets; perhaps a room in his cottage was available as a shelter. Many of the stations consisted of little more than a basic cottage. In 1841 platforms and nameboards were added to stations lacking them.

The station was renamed Sutton in 1844 reverting back to Lea Green in June 1848l. When the line first opened on the 15th September 1830 the intermediate stations on the double track line consisted of very basic cottages but due to the lines monumental success these facilities were upgraded over the years.

Certainly by the end of the 19th Century Lea Green had been developed into a two platform station. Its platforms were partly staggered, the eastbound platform was partially under the road bridge and the westbound was on the west side of the bridge.

From the beginning the station would have been served by local trains running between the two cities or on shorted journeys. A steady stream of express and goods services would have passed through.

The 1830 Liverpool to Manchester line is still a busy railway but over the years many of its intermediate stations, including Lea Green have closed to passengers. Today the Station house remains in non-railway use surrounded by a scrapyard. The entrance ramp to the eastbound platform is largely intact, as part of a private garden. For the westbound platform, the approach road and staircase from the overbridge still exist, in use as track access point.

On the 17.9.2000 a new Lea Green Station was opened by Merseytravel to the east of the original station.

Click here for a detailed history of the Edge Hill cutting and tunnels, including pictures inside the 1829 Crown Street Tunnel

Further reading: Liverpool & Manchester Railway Operations 1831 - 1845 by Thomas J Donaghy
David & Charles 1972 ISBN 0 71535705 0

To see the other closed stations on the Liverpool & Manchester Railway click on the station name: Liverpool Crown Street, Huyton Quarry, Collins Green, Parkside 1st, Parkside 2nd, Kenyon Junction, Glazebury and Bury Lane, Flow Moss, Astley, Lambs Cottage, Barton Moss 1st, Barton Moss 2nd, Weaste, Seedley, Cross Lane, Ordsall Lane, Manchester Liverpool Road

 

The site of Lee Green Station looking east in February 2005
P
hoto by Bevan Price



The site of Lee Green Station looking west in February 2006
P
hoto by Bevan Price

Click on thumbnail to enlarge


 

 

 

[Source: Bevan Price & Paul Wright]


Home Page
Last updated: Sunday, 21-May-2017 14:30:06 CEST
© 1998-2006 Disused Stations