Glyn Valley Tramway
The Glyn Valley Tramway was a narrow gauge railway that ran through the Ceiriog Valley connecting Chirk with Glyn Ceiriog in Denbighshire. The gauge of the line was 2 ft 4 1⁄2 in (724 mm). The total length of the line was 8 1⁄4 miles (13.3 km), 6 1⁄2 miles (10.5 km) of which were worked by passenger trains, the remainder serving a large granite quarry and several minor slate quarries.
The railway was built to connect the quarries at Glyn Ceriog with the Shropshire Union Canal at Chirk. A standard gauge "Ellesmere & Glyn Valley Railway" was authorised by an Act 6 August 1866 to run from Cambrian Railway at Ellesmere to the GWR at Chirk and thence to follow the Glyn Ceiriog road to the quarries. No construction took place and by Act of 1869, the Ellesmere to Chirk portion was abandoned. The company was reincorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1870 as the Glyn Valley Tramway, which allowed the company to build a narrow gauge tramway from the canal at Chirk Bank to the Cambrian Slate Quarries. This initial line, 6 1⁄2 miles (10.5 km) was opened in 1873, and was worked by horse and gravity traction. Both passenger and freight traffic was carried from that year.
In 1885 additional parliamentary powers were obtained to abandon the Quinta Tramway section between Pontfaen and Chirk Bank, replacing it with a new line from Pontfaen to the Great Western Railway's Chirk Station. A two-mile extension was also authorized from Glyn to the quarries around Pandy.
Rebuilding of the line was undertaken with steam locomotives borrowed from the Snailbeach District Railways. The new line was opened for freight traffic in 1888 and to passengers in 1891. The new line was operated by steam locomotives purchased from Beyer Peacock in Manchester.
The railway's financial situation declined steadily during the 1920s. The railway needed to carry approximately 45,000 tons of traffic per year to break even, but by 1932 this had dropped to 21,400 tons. Increased use of road haulage and a change in the ownership of the remaining quarries was the cause of this downturn in traffic.
In 1932 a bus service was started in the valley, for the first-time offering passengers a serious alternative to the tramway. Passenger receipts declined steeply that year, and passenger services were abandoned at the beginning of 1933. Freight traffic continued to decline and the losses to mount on the railway and all services ceased in July 1935 as the company went into voluntary liquidation. The locomotives were all scrapped in 1936.
In recent years the Glyn Valley Tramway Trust has established a museum on the Glyn Ceiriog Station site and during 2019 started clearing the third platform at Chirk Railway station on the Great Western mainline from Shrewsbury to Chester.
Two groups are currently working to conserve and restore at least some of the Glyn Valley Tramway. The The New Glyn Valley Tramway & Industrial Heritage Trust based at the old station at Glyn Ceiriog and the Glyn Valley Tramway Trust based at Chirk.
Read MoreThe railway was built to connect the quarries at Glyn Ceriog with the Shropshire Union Canal at Chirk. A standard gauge "Ellesmere & Glyn Valley Railway" was authorised by an Act 6 August 1866 to run from Cambrian Railway at Ellesmere to the GWR at Chirk and thence to follow the Glyn Ceiriog road to the quarries. No construction took place and by Act of 1869, the Ellesmere to Chirk portion was abandoned. The company was reincorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1870 as the Glyn Valley Tramway, which allowed the company to build a narrow gauge tramway from the canal at Chirk Bank to the Cambrian Slate Quarries. This initial line, 6 1⁄2 miles (10.5 km) was opened in 1873, and was worked by horse and gravity traction. Both passenger and freight traffic was carried from that year.
In 1885 additional parliamentary powers were obtained to abandon the Quinta Tramway section between Pontfaen and Chirk Bank, replacing it with a new line from Pontfaen to the Great Western Railway's Chirk Station. A two-mile extension was also authorized from Glyn to the quarries around Pandy.
Rebuilding of the line was undertaken with steam locomotives borrowed from the Snailbeach District Railways. The new line was opened for freight traffic in 1888 and to passengers in 1891. The new line was operated by steam locomotives purchased from Beyer Peacock in Manchester.
The railway's financial situation declined steadily during the 1920s. The railway needed to carry approximately 45,000 tons of traffic per year to break even, but by 1932 this had dropped to 21,400 tons. Increased use of road haulage and a change in the ownership of the remaining quarries was the cause of this downturn in traffic.
In 1932 a bus service was started in the valley, for the first-time offering passengers a serious alternative to the tramway. Passenger receipts declined steeply that year, and passenger services were abandoned at the beginning of 1933. Freight traffic continued to decline and the losses to mount on the railway and all services ceased in July 1935 as the company went into voluntary liquidation. The locomotives were all scrapped in 1936.
In recent years the Glyn Valley Tramway Trust has established a museum on the Glyn Ceiriog Station site and during 2019 started clearing the third platform at Chirk Railway station on the Great Western mainline from Shrewsbury to Chester.
Two groups are currently working to conserve and restore at least some of the Glyn Valley Tramway. The The New Glyn Valley Tramway & Industrial Heritage Trust based at the old station at Glyn Ceiriog and the Glyn Valley Tramway Trust based at Chirk.
