Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past History Information Request Road leading to Queensway tunnel

I'm not sure what to make of this ... https://alchetron.com/Birkenhead-Grange-Lane-railway-station

Turns out this is the 1850 Tithebarn Street Station but has been named as a number of other stations in error or intent.

So I wasn't dreaming, that's the one!
I was only guessing the type, so now it looks like a R. Stephenson 'Patentee', like this photo of a later version.

I suspect the original Grange Lane station to be the building with the damaged roof and advertising billboard on it, and not the Aabacas works.
Can anyone clarify this?

Seems like they are using it as a stock image.
https://alchetron.com/Birkenhead-Dock-railway-station

I can’t clarify with proof, but I can certainly muddy the waters further!

Personally, I believe the Abacus building to be the original Grange Lane terminus - the building with the holes in roof just looks, well, so mundane for a prestigious terminus station in the new up-and-coming town of Birkenhead. This railway was the wonder of the age, and making a statement was what the Victorians loved - I don’t think that single storey building would have impressed the investors or punters. The ‘Abacus’ building might have done, and looks to be in period for 1840.

Grange Lane station only operated as such from September 1840 to May 1844, (when it was closed as a passenger station and traffic re-routed to Monks Ferry), but it’s position would have been right at the end of a dead-straight approach – why would it kink slightly to the right to the lowly building at the end of the approach?
1845 map crop attached.

Looking at the Abacus building – imagine it without the saw-tooth roofed engineering works behind it, and then imagine it with a light and airy double span roof instead, all cast iron columns and girders. Now note that the ‘Abacus’ building conveniently has a double gabled roof, one for each train shed roof to butt up to (the hipped roof at the front of the building masks this feature from the road, but the aerial gives it away).

In this guise, you get the single track approaching a delicate looking train shed with the stone built ‘Abacus’ building right behind it. Much more like a typical terminus station of the period, probably with 2 platform faces in the centre, and loco-servicing spurs. Possibly a small goods yard where that single-storey building is too.
I've attached a crude photo edit to show what I mean.

I reckon the saw-tooth building was added once the station closed to passengers, and partly covered what had been the station precincts. It looks far more purposed for engineering than passengers.

All just my opinion - just need to find more proof!


BTW: Some more information on WirralWiki regarding the Grange Lane / Town area:

More on Wirral Railways from 1830...

…might be worth a read?

Birkenhead Town Map, 1858.

I can't make the map any clearer, to the right, at the end of the marked green proposed road is what was Grange Lane station, compare the outline to the previous map I posted earlier in the thread, a little bit more detailed to the map Billy posted above.

Thanks Bert - much appreicated.

This map is dated 1858 then? That's 14 years after Grange Lane closed - the building shown here is a lot longer than that on the 1845 map crop I posted. Therefore, I think the original station had already been developed by this time (Monks Ferry and the dock lines are also complete and operating by now), and this map shows the 'saw-roofed' engineering building. Can you make out what it says on the map over the top of the building?

Whatever, it still shows that the approach is dead-straight towards the 'Abacus' building, and doesn't deviate to the single storey buidling with the holes in it's roof.

Sorry Billy, the more I zoom the worse it goes, I think it's definitely the building Aabacas occupied many years later, probably sometime between 1911 and 1938. As you know it only closed to passengers in 1844 ish and not as a station, etc.

A much later map, after 1889 when Town station opened.

Yep, I'll concede that the Aabacus building is indeed Grange Lane Station. The 1847 docks map makes it pretty clear as that was surveyed before the LNWR and GWR railway sheds were built.

I too concede it was Grange lane Station.
It was the engine sheds that was throwing me off, as I thought they were all the original ones.
A snippet off Disused Stations, "The original C&BR station was then given over to goods use and the engine shed was extended over part of it in 1857"

Just above the arrow and the sidings on this 1876 map, can anyone shed any light on what that building was? That's what I thought was the original Grange Lane.

http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/b/birkenhead_grange_lane/index.shtml

That building changed shape and size a few times.

I can only presume it was a goods depot for mail etc, they would need one somewhere. The ramp that came down from Town Station appeared to make a point of passing that until it turned and headed down towards the platform.

On BFA it seems to be part of the engineering works yard.

But it was about twenty feet above the yard without any obvious means of getting to it without hopping over to the ramp between the ticket office and the platform.