Great Longstone for Ashford railway station

Great Longstone for Ashford
The site today, showing the Monsal Trail, platforms and station building
General information
Location	Derbyshire Dales England
Coordinates	53.2367°N 1.7059°W / 53.2367; -1.7059
Platforms	2
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Original company	Midland Railway
Pre-grouping	Midland Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
1 June 1863	Station opens as Longstone
1 October 1913	Renamed Great Longstone for Ashford
10 September 1962	Closed to regular passenger services
6 March 1967	Final closure

Great Longstone for Ashford railway station served Great and Little Longstone in the Peak District of Derbyshire, England. It was opened in 1863 by the Midland Railway on its extension of the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway from Rowsley.

History

The station was known originally as Longstone and was renamed Great Longstone for Ashford in 1913. Once the London, Midland and Scottish Railway reached Manchester London Road, the line carried expresses to London St Pancras and heavy mineral traffic.

It closed in 1962,[1] although one train a day in each direction continued to stop to allow a local resident, Mrs A Boardman, to travel to work; this was immortalised by the British Movietone film It Only Stops For Her.[2] Trains continued to pass through the station until 1968 when the line was closed.

Stationmasters

From 1926, the stationmaster was also responsible for Hassop; by 1931, the stationmaster managed both Longstone and Monsal Dale instead.[3]

• Joseph Bell 1863[4]–1868[5]
• Richard H. Bell until 1873
• Richard Coe 1873–1906 (formerly station master at Monsal Dale)
• Thomas Harlin 1907–1914 (afterwards station master at Heaton Mersey)
• B. Wilson from 1914
• T.A. Huddlestone 1918-1924[6] (afterwards station master at Ecclesfield)
• F. Smith 1924–1926[7] (afterwards station master at Beauchief)
• J. Townson 1926–1931[8] (also station master at Hassop afterwards station master at Duffield)
• J.H. Adams 1944–1947[9] (afterwards station master at Radway Green)
• Horace Gundry ca. 1948–ca. 1950

Route

Preceding station		Disused railways		Following station
Monsal Dale Line and station closed		Midland Railway Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midland Junction Railway		Hassop Line and station closed

The site today

v t e Monsal Trail
Midland Railway ← Buxton│Peak Forest → Topley Pike junction Chee Tor No. 1 tunnel Millers Dale Millers Dale viaducts Litton Tunnel ( 516 yd 472 m ) Cressbrook Tunnel ( 471 yd 431 m ) Monsal Dale Headstone Viaduct Headstone Tunnel ( 533 yd 487 m ) Great Longstone Hassop Bakewell Coombs Road viaduct (end of trail) Haddon Tunnel ( 1058 yd 967 m ) (closed) Rowsley (proposed extension) Rowsley South Darley Dale Matlock Riverside Peak Rail line
Sources[10][11]

The station building was designed to match the nearby Thornbridge Hall and is Grade II listed;[12] it is now a private residence.[13] The trackbed through the station is part of the 8.5-mile (13.7 km) Monsal Trail, a shared-use path. Access to the trail can be made at the station site, via the ramp from Longstone Lane.

See also

• Listed buildings in Great Longstone

References

Citations

1. Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
2. British Movietone News (1962) It Only Stops For Her
3. "Station Changes". Sheffield Independent. England. 4 September 1931. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
4. "1859-1866". Midland Railway Miscellaneous Depts: 203. 1914. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
5. "Great Longstone". Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal. England. 10 July 1868. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
6. "Longstone New Stationmaster". Derby Daily Telegraph. England. 20 August 1924. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
7. "Derbyshire". Sheffield Daily Telegraph. England. 13 January 1926. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
8. "Duffield Stationmaster". Derby Daily Telegraph. England. 3 September 1931. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
9. "New Radway Green Stationmaster". Staffordshire Sentinel. England. 3 June 1947. Retrieved 16 February 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
10. "The Monsal Trail". A Taste of the Peak District. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
11. Bickerdike, Graeme (June 2009). "The story of structures of the Monsal Trail: A Week in the Peak". Retrieved 10 April 2020.
12. Historic England, "Downside (Grade II) (1109901)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 11 March 2017
13. Wright, Paul (21 May 2017). "Station name: Great Longstone". Disused Stations. Retrieved 14 September 2024.

Sources

• Truman, P., Hunt, D., (1989) Midland Railway Portrait, Sheffield: Platform 5 Publishing
• Radford, B., (1988) Midland Though The Peak, Unicorn Books

External links

• Longstone station on navigable 1947 O. S. map