The Route
| Cheshire Lines Committee Winsford and Over Branch |
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Legend
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The branch left the CLC's Manchester to Chester line at Winsford Junction, about ¾ of a mile west of Cuddington railway station. The junction was a double junction facing towards Cuddington but the line became single track almost immediately and headed off in a south-westerly direction, turning gradually towards the south-east and climbing steadily for a mile before levelling off. The route continued on a level for a further mile and then started to descend into the Weaver valley before reaching Whitegate, the only intermediate station, two and a half miles from Winsford junction. The facilities there were a loop (not used as a passing loop) and two long sidings. A single platform face was provided.
The line continued its descent for a further two and a half miles until Falk's Junction was reached. Here a branch line diverged to the North-east to serve the H.E. Falk Meadowbank salt works. The main line turned south continued for the last mile along the west bank of the River Weaver until reaching the southern terminus.
This final stretch was doubled in 1892 (1892), and sidings all along this section served the many salt works to be found by the river. This portion of the branch was built on land previously owned by Lord Delamere and one of the terms of sale was that if the railway continued on to Winsford, the company would be obliged to operate services for the benefit of the townspeople. This became important later during the wrangles between the CLC and the Winsford Local Board caused by the withdrawal of the passenger service.
The Winsford terminus was named Winsford and Over to distinguish it from the station already serving the town on the London and North Western Railway's main line between London and the North.
By 1879 (1879), some of the sidings at Winsford were extended southwards into Hamlett's Central Saltworks and J Garner and Co.'s Bridge Saltworks bringing the length of the branch to a maximum of 6 miles 12 chains and 19 yards.
Though salt was the lifeblood of the branch, it was also a constant hindrance. The salt was extracted by pumping water through the salt and extracting it as brine. This led to much subsidence, which at times caused parts of the branch to be closed.
Read more about this topic: Winsford And Over Branch Line
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