| St. John's Railway Station Stashoon Balley Keeill Eoin Isle Of Man Railway / Manx Northern Railway |
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|---|---|---|
| Station statistics | ||
| Address | Station Road, St. John's, IM4 3KR. | |
| Lines | Peel Line, Ramsey Line, Foxdale Line | |
| Structure | Station Building & Water Tower | |
| Platforms | Four, Raised | |
| Tracks | Four Running Lines & Various Sidings | |
| Parking | Roadside | |
| Other information | ||
| Opened | 1st July 1873 | |
| Closed | 9th September 1968 | |
| Rebuilt | 1878 | |
| Owned by | Isle Of Man Railway Co., Ltd. Manx Northern Railway Co., Ltd. Foxdale Railway Co., Ltd. |
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| Services | ||
| Toilets, Waiting Room, Booking Facilities
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St. John's Railway Station was a station on the Isle of Man Railway, later merging with a neaby station of the Manx Northern Railway; it served the village of St. John's in the Isle of Man and was the junction of lines that ran between there and Foxdale, Peel and Ramsey.
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The station began life in 1873 as the penultimate intermediate stop on the Peel Line, the island's first passenger railway line; at this time it consisted of a simple wooden waiting shelter with accommodation for the station master and one passing loop. The citing of a station here to serve the village was supplemented by its use as a mart location, vital for goods traffic and, more importantly, its close proximity to Tynwald Hill where the island's parliament still assemble on the national day (5th July) to promulgate laws in an open air service.
This station was the hub of the Isle of Man Railway's (IMR) operation, where the lines bound for Douglas, Peel, Ramsey and Foxdale all met. There have been three stations within the area (see below) but only the original IMR station remained in use until the closure of this part of the network, with the Foxdale Line station remaining in a derelict condition until the closure of the whole network. The station gained the name The Manx Crewe owing to the amount of traffic, being said to equal the hub of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.
For many years the station master was George Crellin, a well known figure on the railway who latterly bought and lived in the original station house for the Foxdale Line which ceased to be used after the amalgamation. He features on many later photographs of the station and was a helpful figure who used to travel to the station's small signal cabin, or more accurately, point box, on his bicycle. He was the last station master here retiring in the final year, 1968, but in retirement he still had an active involvement in the railway until his death in 1976.
Douglas - St. John's - Peel
The original station had a simple building to the same design as that built at Crosby Station, a passing loop, goods siding and water tower. In 1879 the Manx Northern Railway (MNR) arrived, and the station was expanded. The MNR mainline ran parallel to the original Peel line for some distance west of the station before turning northwest.
St. John's - Ramsey
When the MNR line between Ramsey and St John's opened on 23 September 1879, the MNR established a simple station to the west of the level crossing situated at the Peel end of the IMR station. The line was however joined to the IMR line and within a few years through running from Ramsey to Douglas was introduced, utilising the expanded IMR station. The site of this early station was cleared and eventually became the turntable road (see below). The IMR station expanded further, with the erection of a carriage shed, signal box and additional platforms.
St. John's - Foxdale
In 1886 the Foxdale Railway arrived in the village. This line was operated by the MNR and they opened a new station close to the junction with the IMR. This was located a short distance north of IMR station on the west side of the road. It also catered for their Ramsey services with through carriages between Ramsey and Douglas being transferred between the two stations. From there the Foxdale line looped around the north side back of the IMR station and crossed the Peel line. The bridge that carried the Foxdale Railway over the IMR remains in place at the easterly end of the site.
After Amalgamation
At one time there was a footbridge but photographs of the period show passengers still crossing the running lines (the platforms were very shallow) and by 1944 the bridge had been removed. The lines for Peel and Ramsey ran alongside each other as they left the station and trains often "raced" out of the station even though timetables dictated they should not do so. The MNR station saw less use after the Isle of Man Railway took over operation of the other two lines in 1905 and was used only for Foxdale services until 1927. The station building became the St John's station master's house after 1906. After 1927, all Foxdale services passed through and then reversed into the IMR station. These services were never very profitable and eventually ended during 1943. The former Foxdale Railway station closed completely in 1960 at the same time as the Foxdale line. Latterly coaching stock was stored in the station. The station building survives as a private dwelling.
The station often experienced very busy periods and was the hub of the railway network on the island although all the workshop and maintenance facilities were located at Douglas Station. Services from Douglas to Ramsey and Peel often arrived as a single train, which was then divided at the eastern end of the station prior to entering the station for passengers to embark and alight. Two locomotives would often double head this far, the first (or "pilot" locomotive) drawing forward into the platform whilst the second would draw its portion forward onto the relevant platform, whilst the pilot would then draw back to collect its coaches. Likewise, Douglas services from Peel and Ramsey were often scheduled to join at the station. Thus it was that all three platform faces could be occupied at the same time. Prior to 1940 trains also served Foxdale but the station that served this line was at a separate location. The busiest period for the station was Tynwald Day when it was common to see the majority of the railway's rolling stock in service bringing passengers to the large scale outdoor parliament ceremony which took place a short walk from the station. For this occasion the railway operated a unique one-day timetable which was heavily advertised locally and trains often ran on this day from dawn until well after midnight to cope with demand, and train movements were frequent throughout the day. It was common for all carriages to see use for this day and not unheard of for passengers to travel in open cattle vans and wagons in order to reach the ceremony as well as carriages that otherwise had been retired from traffic. After the closure of the railway the station site became used for car parking for the ceremony and it retains this role today.
From March 1925, the station was the site of the sole turntable on the network. It was purchased from the West Clare Railway in Ireland, after the company had been unable to accept delivery of it from the manufacturers Ransomes & Rapier Ltd. of Ipswich. It was used to turn passenger rolling stock to attempt to equalise weathering and wheel wear and tear, although its use for turning of locomotives was not documented, usually they ran "bunker first" towards the terminus (Douglas) although in the earliest years of the railway locomotives were turned to be chimney first towards Douglas if outstationed at Peel, Port Erin or Ramsey - this practice was abandoned in the early years of the twentieth century. The turntable was removed in 1961 and then stored at Douglas with the intention of using it to turn the recently acquired diesel railcars. This scheme never came to fruition and the turntable was moved to Ballasalla Station in 1974 and scrapped shortly thereafter. When the Marquess of Ailsa took over the line in 1967 a display of disused locomotives was created at the station. After services ceased in 1968 the carriage shed was used to store surplus rolling stock which was retrieved back to Douglas for continuing services on the south line as required. However, in 1975 there were two disastrous fires in the shed, and much historic stock was lost forever. The site was used for storing of rails as they were ripped up after this, and cleared by the late 1970s to become a car park. There was also a gravel siding at one time at the eastern end of the station beyond the Foxdale Line overbridge, and this utilised temporary Jubliee rail and operated on 2' 0" gauge independently of the railway, although a siding to access this was installed.
A new primary school has been built on the site and this was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 2003 but the site remains accessible for a train should the services ever be reintroduced. The station however would have to be downsized and/or relocated.
| Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peel Terminus |
Isle of Man Railway | Ballacraine Halt towards Douglas |
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| None Terminus |
Manx Northern Railway | Peel Road towards Ramsey |
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| None Terminus |
Foxdale Railway | Waterfall Halt towards Foxdale |
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