LNER
The Aberford Railway, known locally as the Fly Line, was a private light railway line connecting the Sisters and Isabella coal pits in Garforth, owned by the Gascoignes of Parlington Hall in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to AberfordRural village and civil parish in West Yorkshire, a historic settlement in the ancient Kingdom of Elmet..
About three miles (4.8 km) long, the line was initially worked by horses in one direction and gravity in the other, carrying coal from the Gascoines’ pits to Aberford, and passengers to connect with trains on the Leeds and Selby Line at Garforth. The line was converted to steam locomotives in 1870.
Background
Coal mining around Garforth probably began in Roman times, but the first definitive record of mining in the coalfield is a 1262 lease that included coal as part payment.[1]
The Gascoignes of Parlington Hall were major landholders who had owned pits since the 17th century. The introduction of steam-powered pumps in the 18th century allowed deeper mines to be worked, but the Gascoignes were disadvantaged because of poor transport links to markets for their coal.[1]
Line
The colliery agent William Wharton proposed the idea of building a railway across the Partlington estate in 1831, to make transportation easier;[2] in 1833 William Harker and William Walker were commissioned to survey the new line. The Leeds and Selby Railway (L&S) through Garforth was being built at the same time, and Richard Gascoigne, a shareholder in the L&S, managed to negotiate favourable rates to transport his coal to Selby.[3]
The line was built on a falling gradient from Gascoigne’s pits in Garforth to Aberford, about 3 miles (4.8 km) to the north. The continuous run, with a maximum gradient of 1 in 72 at the Sisters Pit, allowed for gravity-working down to Aberford, and horse-working back up to Garforth. The line opened in the mid-1830s, and with the cooperation of the L&S, carried freight and passengers. A stationary engine was installed on the double-tracked line between the Isabella and Sisters’ Pits; the rest was single-track.[3]
Parlington Hall
Steam locomotives were introduced in 1870, the last of which, the MW Empress, was purchased in 1899.[a]The prefix MW refers to the name of the manufacturer, Manning Wardle.[4] The line was closed in March 1924.[5]
Notes
| a | The prefix MW refers to the name of the manufacturer, Manning Wardle.[4] |
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