The Silkstone Waggonway was a

narrow-gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

industrial

wagonway Wagonways (also spelt Waggonways), also known as horse-drawn railways and horse-drawn railroad consisted of the horses, equipment and tracks used for hauling wagons, which preceded steam-powered railways. The terms plateway, tramway, dramw ...

serving the Barnsley Canal, in England, at

Silkstone Silkstone is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, between the towns of Barnsley and Penistone. The parish includes the village of S ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham. I ...

History

The Barnsley Canal

The Barnsley Canal was built in the 1790s to carry coal from the mines near Barnsley to the

Aire and Calder Navigation The Aire and Calder Navigation is the canalised section of the Rivers Aire and Calder in West Yorkshire, England. The first improvements to the rivers above Knottingley were completed in 1704 when the Aire was made navigable to Leeds and t ...

near

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population ...

. In 1808, the canal company's Annual General Meeting approved a plan to build a waggonway, and they applied to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

for an Act authorising the construction of a horse-drawn railway from

Silkstone Cross Silkstone is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, between the towns of Barnsley and Penistone. The parish includes the village of S ...

to the canal's southern terminus at Barnby Basin. The Act was granted.

Construction

The canal company purchased the trackbed of the earlier Low Moor Waggonway. Construction of the new waggonway proceeded quickly and it opened in 1809. The success of the waggonway as a feeder to the canal prompted the construction of furnaces at Low Mill, and the opening of the Waterloo Colliery. In 1812, the Norcroft Colliery was connected to the waggonway.

Extension

In the 1830s, an extension of the waggonway to

Silkstone Common Silkstone Common is a village in the metropolitan borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. The village has Junior and Infants Schools, a railway station, a single local shop and the Station Inn. One of the most notable events in the h ...

was built. This used an incline powered by a steam engine and a self-acting incline to connected to Huskar Pit.

Closure

In June 1847, the canal company entered into an agreement to sell the waggonway to the

Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) was formed in 1847 when the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway joined with authorised but unbuilt railway companies, forming a proposed network from Manchester to Grimsb ...

. However, this transaction was never completed. Coal traffic along the waggonway peaked in 1851 at 33,621 tons. That year, however, was the first full year of operation of the

Silkstone Coal Branch Railway Silkstone is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, between the towns of Barnsley and Penistone. The parish includes the village of S ...

, which quickly took traffic away from the waggonway. By 1856, only 22,726 tons of coal was carried. By 1864, ownership of the waggonway had transferred to the

and in 1866 the waggonway carried just 3,246 tons of coal and in 1870, no coal was carried at all. In August 1872, it was reported that "the rails have been pulled up and sold".

Route

The waggonway ran from Silkstone Cross to Barnby Basin. The lower section, between the Basin and Barnby Furnace, followed the route of the Low Moor Wagonway. From there it passed by Norcroft Bridge, at the north end of Silkstone. Silkstone Waggonway track

It was built with stone block sleepers, probably supplied from local quarries owned by Walter Spencer Stanhope. Cast iron, L-shaped rails were laid on the sleepers. Rough stones were packed around the sleepers to hold them in place, with a layer of ash covering them to make a suitable surface for the horses to walk on. Where the waggonway crossed public roads, unusual U-shaped rails were used.

References

{{reflist Rail transport in Yorkshire Early British railway companies Industrial railways in England Railway lines opened in 1809 Railway lines closed in 1870 1809 establishments in England Horse-drawn railways 3 ft 6 in gauge railways in England