Low Etherley is a village in County Durham, in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. It is located a few miles to the west of Bishop Auckland. In 1825 the

Stockton and Darlington Railway The Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) was a railway company that operated in north-east England from 1825 to 1863. The world's first public railway to use steam locomotives, its first line connected coal mining, collieries near Shildo ...

opened a horse-drawn branch line, the

Etherley Incline Railway Etherley is a civil parish in County Durham, England. It had a population of 2,060 at the 2011 Census. References Civil parishes in County Durham {{Durham-geo-stub ...

, from West Auckland to serve

Witton Park Colliery Witton Park Colliery was a coal mine in Witton Park, Witton-le-Wear near Bishop Auckland, County Durham, Northern England. Development Part of the Durham Coalfield, coal stocks were known throughout the area to be close to the surface, allowi ...

, north of Etherley. This line passed through Low Etherley, where it was worked by a cable-hauled incline powered by a

stationary steam engine Stationary steam engines are fixed steam engines used for pumping or driving mills and factories, and for power generation. They are distinct from locomotive engines used on railways, traction engines for heavy steam haulage on roads, steam c ...

See also