Wigan Album
Railways
8 Comments
Photo: Harry Gardner
Item #: 20031
The then photo dates back to June 1965 & was one that i bought at a vintage vehicle rally some time ago.
The 1965 photo shows a DMU service from Liverpool Exchange passing over the junction with the Signal box at Pemberton Junction & St Matthews Church just to the right of the photo.
The Now shot was taken by myself from the same vantage point in late January 2012 & shows the exact same location long after Pemberton ceased to be a Junction.
Excellent
A proper DMU not like those silly looking pacers Regional Railways run these days. (Remember the earlier DMUs with the cats wiskers) Thanks for sharing Harry.
Great picture Harry. Spent uncountable hours on the tips in my youth. Good memories - thanks.
The past photo has a bit of character in it.
May Mill, the old Dirt Ruck, Church Steeple and a decent looking train.
There used to be another junction around there. It's where the L.U. line skirted around the pit, to join the L&Y opposite the signal box.
If you lookclosely you can just about make out the former trackbed.
Like John B, I and my friends use to play on the tips, by climbing up, sliding and running down the steep sides of the tips. There were some great views from the top of the tips. Also we frequented the tunnels going under the railway tracks towards the mill in the distance.
Thanks for the kind comments all,glad you like it.
I miss the old style DMUs.
I Didnt bother waiting to photograph a train in the present day shot as it was Bloomin freezing that day & it would have only been a ubiquitous class 142 anyway.
Pemberton was quite a junction in its heyday with its colliery connections & the lines running to Wallgate,Hindley(via Westwood Park)& the LNWR line down through Goose Green to Bryn.
All gone now,leaving just a simple plain line double track route from Wallgate to Rainford Junction.
Will shortly upload some more then & now shots of the Wigan area for you.
dauntless,glorious,mars and 45517 down the loop every day?.best day grand national day you could spot any amount of far away locos.
Are you the same Micky East who worked for Railtrack as my gaffer at manchester in the mid 1990s? & whos wife was the Signalmens roster clerk?