Thornton–Cleveleys railway station
Station in Lancashire, UK (1865–1970) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Thornton–Cleveleys (originally simply named Cleveleys) was a railway station in England which served the Lancashire village of Thornton and town of Cleveleys. Located on the now disused line between Poulton-le-Fylde and Fleetwood, the station also had a shunting yard for the making-up of freight trains for Preston and beyond. During its life it was also known at times as Thornton station and Thornton for Cleveleys station.[3][4] In the 1860s and early 1870s the line was of great importance, being the direct route from London to Glasgow. Before the Shap route was opened, passengers (allegedly including Queen Victoria) would travel from Euston to Fleetwood and then onwards via steamer to Scotland.
Thornton–Cleveleys | |||||
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General information | |||||
Location | Thornton, Wyre England | ||||
Coordinates | 53.8706°N 3.0000°W / 53.8706; -3.0000 | ||||
Grid reference | SD343421 | ||||
Platforms | 2 | ||||
Other information | |||||
Status | Disused | ||||
History | |||||
Original company | Preston and Wyre Joint Railway | ||||
Pre-grouping | Preston and Wyre Joint Railway | ||||
Post-grouping | London, Midland and Scottish Railway | ||||
Key dates | |||||
April 1865 (1865-04) | Station opened as Cleveleys | ||||
1 April 1905 | Renamed Thornton for Cleveleys | ||||
1927 | resited | ||||
February 1953 | Renamed Thornton–Cleveleys | ||||
1 June 1970 (1970-06-01) | Station closed | ||||
1999 | The last freight train passes through | ||||
July 2007 | Station leased to Poulton & Wyre Railway Society | ||||
28 February 2020 | British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visits the station and pledges to re-open the line[1][2] | ||||
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The original station was opened in April 1865, and was named Cleveleys.[5] It was to the south of Station Road in Thornton, near an older halt called Ramper Road. The Station Master's house and station building can still be seen in use as a private residence. The station was renamed Thornton for Cleveleys on 1 April 1905.[6] This station closed in 1927 when the new station (the first to be built by the LMS) opened to the north of the level crossing. In February 1953, the station was renamed again, this time to Thornton–Cleveleys.[7] Rationalised in the 1950s and 1960s, and affected by the ending of the ferry from Fleetwood to the Isle of Man,[8] the station eventually closed on 1 June 1970, when the Fleetwood line was closed to passengers.[7][9][10] Station Road's signal box was removed in the late 1980s.[11] Freight continued on the line to nearby Burn Naze until 1999.[8][12]