Wigan Album

I used to call it "Toytown Station" when I was a little girl.....it looked so small and picturesque from the road as you passed it. The area around it we called "The Little Jungle"; it's a housing estate now.

Ron/Irene. Is this the railway station near to the Manley pub, where Railway Terrace was above it, and the wagon works was behind it?, or is the one near to Ince Parish Church?. I can't for the life of me, recollect the railway line on top of the embankment.

Hello Our Irene, yes the little jungle was a great place to play used to go their when visiting relatives down the lane. I also remember the men standing at the station going to work at Irlam.

Apologies, 'there' not "their".

I was thinking that earlier Albert, I was wondering if the line ran over Ince Green Lane and down to join the main line along High Street, it seems too high up for it to run under the bridge, though I can't recall seeing railway lines around there on Ince Green Lane.

the photo must have been taken from the bridge on ince green lane. The line dint go direct to the west coast main line from ince the next stop was Hindley south.

Yes, Albert, that's the place but the row of houses you mention was JUNCTION Terrace.

Albert, I have just checked with a friend of mine and apparently the top embankment isn't a railway line for passengers; it was just used as sidings.

The station in the photo was Ince on the Central line( Wigan Central to Manchester Central

Looking at the old 1927 map of Ince a line tapped off Springs Branch and ran where the sidings are ,went under the L and Y and presumably linked to it to service the industrial sites near the pumping station.

Yes Irene, you are correct, it is Junction Terrace. I should have remembered it, my good friend(now deceased)his sister lives, or lived there. I have some recollection that when the estate, at the back was being built, they unearthed a locomotive name plate. It may have been in the local press about it. As the line continued towards Hindley, it crossed a local flash, on a raised earth platform,(for about a 1/3rd of a mile) after passing under a bridge, that carried the coal line from the Bickershaw, and Abram collieries.

Irene..my grannie and grandad lived at No. 22 Junction Terrace....cheers!!

This picture brings back many happy memories as I was brought up here.The train ran almost past our house,the bridge that you can see in the background ran into Foster Ave.this bridge led workers to the wagon works which can be seen in the picture.We knew when the lunch time hooter went it was time to go back to school.

about 1965 we used to walk along the line untill we came to 2 large ponds 1 each side of track and in summer we would swim in them, great days

The road out of shot to the right was indeed Junction terrace, it is still there, the road into the works directly in the distance was the access road from Lower Ince down Ince Green Lane the imposing building on the left was the offices of the wagon works and Thompsons until it closed in 1983, I worked both there and as a fireman on the Central Line till I resigned in the early 60s , by the way the 3 coaches you can see were just in storage till the powers that be decided what to do with them