Tamworth Railway Station - History

History

The original station was opened in 1839 by the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railway on its original route from Derby to Hampton-in-Arden meeting the London and Birmingham Railway for London

In 1847 the London and North Western Railway built its Trent Valley Line passing beneath the original line with a new joint station, though they weren't referred to as "High Level" and "Low Level" till 1924. Since it was expected that only local trains would call, the platforms were on loops, with the running lines left clear for expresses. At that time there was a north to west curve linking the, by then, Midland with the LNWR line. A north to east curve was also planned but never built. Since it was the crossing of two major lines - one Bristol to Newcastle, the other Euston to Aberdeen - it was important for the Royal Mail transferring upwards of 2000 bags every night.

Prior to the introduction of diesel engines, Tamworth Railway Station was particularly well known to 'train spotting' enthusiasts as the closest station to Birmingham at which the larger and faster steam engines could be seen on the London to the North West Coast Line.

The original station was demolished in 1961 and the rebuilt station opened in 1962 and at the same time the Trent Valley Line was electrified, requiring the High level line and platforms to be raised by two feet.