Croesor Tramway
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| Croesor Tramway | |
|---|---|
| Locale | Wales |
| Dates of operation | 1864 – 1948 |
| Track gauge | 2 ft (610 mm) |
| Length | 6½ miles |
| Headquarters | Porthmadog |
The Croesor Tramway was a Welsh narrow gauge railway line built to carry slate from the Croesor slate mines to Porthmadog. It was built in 1864 without an Act of Parliament and was operated using horse power.
The tramway was absorbed into the Croesor and Port Madoc Railway in 1865 and later became the Portmadoc, Croesor and Beddgelert Tram Railway in 1879. Part of its route, from Croesor Junction to Porthmadog, was taken over by the Welsh Highland Railway in 1922, and upgraded to allow the operation of steam locomotives. The remainder of the line continued as a horse drawn tramway, and operated as such until the mid-1940s.
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[edit] History
Slate quarrying in the remote Cwm Croesor (Croesor valley) dates back to at least 1846 when the Croesor quarry opened. Quarrying expanded in the early 1860s and transportation to the shipping wharfs at Porthmadog became a limiting factor. In 1862 discussion began to construct a tramway to connect the valley with the sea. An inital company, the Croesor Valley Railroad was proposed under the ownership of Hugh Beaver Roberts and two of other quarry proprietors.
In the meantime, slate from the Croesor quarry was being hauled by pack mule over to the adjacent Cwm Orthin and down to the Ffestiniog Railway at Tanygrisiau, a long and dangerous journey.
In 1863 construction Beaver Roberts commenced construction of the tramway, by now known as the Croesor Tramway. It opened to goods and mineral traffic on or before August 1st. 1864. The Rhosydd quarry at the head of the valley was connected that year.
The Rhosydd quarry failed in 1873, but a new company was formed to reopen it as the New Rhosydd quarry in 1874.
In 1879 the railway company was renamed the Portmadoc, Croesor and Beddgelert Tram Railway Company and authorised to build a branch, although this was never constructed. The company went into receivership in 1882 and was sold in 1902 to the Porthmadog, Beddgelert and South Snowdon Railway, one of the precursors of the Welsh Highland Railway.
[edit] Route
[edit] After closure
After the demise of the Welsh Highland Railway, the stub of the tramway from Parc north to Croesor continued in use to carry agricultural products for local farms, until the late 1950s.
The section from Croseor Junction to the slate quarries will probably never re-open as the quarries having long since closed. However the part of the Croesor tramway that ran from Porthmadog to Croseor Junction will be re-opened as part of the resurrection of the Welsh Highland Railway, which, when completed in 2009, will run from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, where it will link with the Ffestiniog Railway to allow through trains to be run.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Boyd, James I.C. (1988). Narrow Gauge Railways in South Caernarvonshire: Volume One, 2nd. Edition, The Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-365-6.
