Those are fantastic - thank you very much for sharing them. The wall in the first picture looks like it has barely changed to this day - while the rest of the scene barely looks like it does now at all - although the road seems to be the same. :D

Oh how I would love to have lived here back then rather than now - it would have been perfect.

Here is the old picture of Swinton station click on the link below - enjoy - also meant to say did you notice as well on the Pendlebury one the existence of the fast lines that are no longer there?

Regards

Neil
http://www.auctiva.com/hostedimages/...ats=0&format=0

Brilliant - I love the Swinton picture, although it does boggle the mind somewhat.

I did notice the fast lines and I've been aware of their existence as I've known the tunnel under my house here still exists for the fast lines and evidence of their existance can still be found, I've never seen a picture before though. I had no idea there was a crossover at Swinton there for example, just brilliant stuff.

Thank you very much for these pictures, it's very appreciated. :)

Great pictures, thanks for sharing them. I never visited Swinton or Pendlebury but they do bring back memories of many happy hours spent trainspotting at Windsor Bridge just down the line.

The stand on the left was Swinton RL- the Lions. We used to pay a few pence to get in, and stand at the front of the terracing just this side of the stand. The picture was probably taken from Pendlebury Road bridge. Occasionally the ball would get hoofed right out of the ground, and someone would have to go and get it- once I heard it landed on a passing coal train and they never got it back.

The bridge at the Manchester end of Pendlebury station was, I think, a little cobbled ginnel called City Walk. It had a few houses along it, almost derelict but still inhabited, and led down to the sidings on the stub of the old Black Harry line. I went down there after they were lifted, leaving twisted rails in the air where they'd been buried too deep for the crane to get them out. An old woman, bow- legged and about four-foot-six tall, came out of one of the houses abnd said, "D'you see that? It were them lads that did it!"

Old Timetable
 

Hi I have an old timetable from 1955 which shows all the old stations etc on the Manchester to Wigan/Southport/Bolton etc - I will scan and post it next week.

Regards

Neil

Hi I have an old timetable from 1955 which shows all the old stations etc on the Manchester to Wigan/Southport/Bolton etc - I will scan and post it next week.

Regards

Neil

That would be very interesting Neil, the line is only used a few times an hour now but it'd be really cool to see what was going on back then.

Stirring the grey cells!
 

I stumbled on the forum yesterday. Posts about the Pendlebury area brought back many memories. I lived all my childhood in the area; nursery at St Augustines during WW2 (opposite Pendlebury station), Cromwell road Juniors (opposite Swinton goods yard). Bunked round Agecroft engine sheds every evening (near Irlams o'th Height station).
There were four tracks from Brindleheath to beyond Walkden. The fast tracks had an easier cimb from Pendleton station to Pendlebury whilst the slow lines climed from Brindleheath Junction to Pendlebury. Most freight trains on the slow lines needed a banker. Between P/bury & Walkden most signals were duplicated (high and low levels) on the same post, all having distant and home arms together. This was because of the many bridges.
Swinton had a goods yard (I think it is a builders yard/suprmarket?) which accepted up to 8 trains a day, a lot of shunting was done usually by the train engine.
Pendlebury ticket office was at the roadside with a covered wooden bridge to the platforms. Chapter 2 later!

Welcome to the forum Tony. Like me you stumbled on to this site. I hope ypu enjoy it as much as I do.
Best wishes