Introduction
2004 celebrates the 150th Anniversary of the Manningtree to Harwich
Branch Line, today known as the “Mayflower Line”. There
are numerous volumes written about the birth and history of the
railways and this line in particular. This could never compete with
these books, and indeed the vast knowledge of the Great Eastern
Railway Society.
The birth of the railways
An economist would probably say that the greatest contribution
to this country in the 19th century would be transport by road,
rail and sea.
During the early part of the 19th century the stagecoach, horse
drawn carts and wagons were the only means of public transport
carrying the Royal Mail and cargo. The roads and tracks would
have been busy with the traffic, passing through towns and villages,
where Inns and Taverns provided respite for the weary travellers
and drivers. The only other alternative for cargo carrying was
by barge on the rivers and coastal waters.
The coming of the railways was to make a great difference to
people’s lives, both socially and economically, providing
a faster means of transport for both people and manufactured goods.
There were opponents to the railways, fear of accidents a prime
example, boiler explosions were common occurrences, and derailments
occurred mainly by trains being driven at too greater a speed.
Accidents and fatalities occurred with people crossing the tracks,
in the book The Life and times of the Great Eastern Railway, Parr
& Gray wrote “It is said that Coggeshall folk, legendary
for their slow wits believed the fencing stopped the trains getting
out and attacking them.” Warnings were issued never to alight
when the train is in motion and never to attempt to ride on the
top of a carriage being transported on the railway.
There was concern that the railways would take trade from existing
methods of transport. “The Sickle” reported on 16th
October 1828, “It may startle the coach proprietors and
horse owners along the Great Eastern Road that there is a serious
intention of trying the practicability of a conveyance by steam
twixt London and Colchester. Sensible as we are as to how much
has already been accomplished by the application of steam power
there are some objections to its being employed in land conveyance.
It is not wholly without risk to human life it would lessen the
value of horses and takeaway the demand for hay, onto and over
fodder. The chief objection is that it would throw thousands of
poor fellows out of employment”.
This fear, however, proved unfounded as in 1849 it was reported
that railway building gave employment to 200,000 men, and in 1862
it was noted that that the time saved in transit cut the stocks
that merchants and manufacturers required for their businesses.
The railways marked the end of the turnpike road and the canal
age. Turnpikes found the long distance through traffic which paid
the best rates, being lost. Roads became ‘railway feeders’
paying an increasing part in the National Economy.
The railway comes to East Anglia
After the birth of the railways, which has been well documented,
it would take 10 years before the main lines were to reach East
Anglia. Originally instigated in 1824 by the Norfolk & Suffolk
Railway, when they failed another company appeared in 1826, namely
the Ipswich & Suffolk Railway, they too disappeared and in
1834 Mr. John Chevalier Cobbold formed the Eastern Counties Railway.
The plan of all these companies was to have rail links between
London and Norwich with various off shoot lines.
After much political wrangling, starting from London, the ECR
reached Romford in June 1839 with Brentwood in July 1840, Harlow
in August 1841, Bishops Stortford May 1842 and in March 1843 the
line eventually reached Colchester.
The ECR had in their employ a Mr. Peter Bruff, whom they were
to discharge. He was to become the founder of the Eastern Union
Railway. Plans were already in hand to extend the line from Colchester
to Harwich, which caused much displeasure in Ipswich, the two
towns being fierce rival ports. Harwich was in desperate need
of the railway, the town being in decline after the loss of the
mail packet boats to other ports.
Various schemes were proposed for a line from Colchester to Harwich
and eventually an engineer with Bruff’s EUR company, by
the name of Joseph Locke proposed a line from Manningtree to Harwich,
this was supported by the ECR and in 1846 had their proposal approved
by the Railway Commissioners, the bill being passed by Parliament.
Eventually in 1853 an agreement was reached, whereupon the ECR
would take over the working of the EUR, this to take effect as
from 1st January 1854, thus enabling the EUR to commence construction
work on the line. The line was completed and opened on 15th August
1854. In 1862 the Eastern Counties Railway and the Eastern Union
Railway merged to become the Great Eastern Railway.
Work gets underway
Work on the line commenced with navvies in gangs working various
sections along the planned route. Few of these men were locals,
the railway company bringing in workers from throughout Essex,
Suffolk and Norfolk. Some travelling from job to job, brought
their families with them, some married local girls and settled
in the locality. Wrabness was a scattered village of 250 inhabitants
before the navvies arrived, which must have been a great shock
to these village folk, unused to “foreigners”.
The Essex County Standard, reported on 3rd February 1853, “Workmen
have been employed at the Hangings in Harwich, and work is progressing
spiritedly at Wrabness, Manningtree and Ramsey”. This as
temperatures dropped to minus 20 F on the 19th February, “spiritedly”
!!!
The navvies working the line were expected to shovel 20 tons
of earth per day, cutting banking and tunnelling. Excavating was
done with picks and shovels, the navvies working in rows, these
men were supervised by Gangers. The weather frequently created
slippery, dangerous conditions. The earth from the bottom of the
cutting would be taken out by barrow up the steep sides, often
accidents occurred when the men slipped and fell beneath the overloaded
barrows of muck.
The Essex County Standard reported that “a painful accident
occurred on the railway line at Wrabness. Labourer Thomas Carnell
was crushed between two wagons, receiving a fractured arm and
confusions”. He was taken by cart on the muddy, rutted roads
to the Essex and Colchester Hospital. ( Note for Bryan –
There is an old painting on the wall of this crash at Wrabness
that could scan in)
Some local people had some sympathy for the navvies, who when
injured would lose their income and their job. Little Oakley Church
on the 17th June gave their Sunday collection to the hospital
specifically for the care of the injured workers.
Edward Benjamin of Colchester offered insurance against death
or injury due to railway accidents.
In the boom times of railway construction, the navvies often
moved from line to line, their pay was good, in 1846 pay for pick
men and shovellers ranged from 22s6d to 24/-, masons and bricklayers
earning 33/-. A farm labourer would earn about 14/-
Because these workmen were constantly moving up the line as they
advanced, shanty towns appeared. Huts built from mud and wood
with tarpaulins thrown over them providing shelter. They consumed
2lbs of meat, 2lbs of bread and drank 5 quarts of ale per day.
Their earnings were spent on beer, many working continuously under
the influence.
Problems continuously occurred with landowners as building continued.
The Essex County Standard reported on 22nd April 1853 that progress
of work on the Harwich Railway line at Manningtree are being stopped
by an injunction of D.C. Alston to prevent interference with springs
which supply his brewery.
Any land not sold to the railway company was obtained by compulsory
purchase. In the case of Wrabness, much of the land was owned
by the Trustees of Dedham Charity, Nathaniel Garwood, and the
Rectory.
The original line was single track, equipped with electric telegraph,
leaving the main line at Manningtree running for 11 ¾ miles
to Harwich, with stations at Mistley, Wrabness, being equipped
with siding and goods shed, and Dovercourt, Bradfield station
being added in 1856. Around this time the line from Manningtree
to Mistley was doubled.
Wrabness station was built as the line progressed through the
village, in 1861 there lived in the village the Station Master
and two other railway employees, come 1871 three more had been
added to the payroll. But tragedy struck one worker, a James Ransom,
who had moved from Haughley in Suffolk to work as a labourer,
he married a local girl and their union produced at least two
offspring. On May 20th 1876, one of these a daughter Rosanna aged
17 months crawled on the track, her elder brother James aged 10
years ran on to the line to save her, sadly both were hit by a
passing train and killed. They were buried in the churchyard where
their gravestone can still be seen.
The sidings and goods shed at Wrabness were used for the arrival
and onward transportation of coal, potatoes fertilisers, beet
and animals.
In 1859 there was a fear, due to the line losing money that the
line would close, the company coming up with the idea of filling
the trains with trips to the seaside for London folk, and running
ships to Europe. The people of Harwich had tired of waiting for
the railway, and in 1851 had obtained their own act for improving
the quay at Harwich, and had built the town pier, known as the
Ha’Penny Pier, from which steamers would run to Europe.
By 1872, shipping trade had increased that more capacity was
required and Great Eastern Railway obtained permission to reclaim
land at Ray Farm, and build a new quay to become known as Parkeston
Quay, from which the steamers would sail, this opened in 1883,
but it had meant the railway line being diverted from it’s
original route, to a new northward loop being built to incorporate
the new station at Parkeston Quay. At this time the line was doubled
the entire length of the track.
Some early events
East Anglian Daily Times. Wednesday February 1st. 1893.
The staff employed at Dovercourt Station, and a few friends from
Harwich Station, met the other evening to partake of their annual
supper, served by Mrs. Flowers in the Waiting Room of the station.
Mr. Flowers, the General Station Master, occupied the Chair, faced
in the Vice by Signalman Borrett. “The Health of the Chairman”
was given by Mr. Scott, and received with musical honours. Mr.
Lawrence proposed “The Health of the Directors and success
to the G.E.R.” and the toast was suitably responded to by
the Chairman. Other toasts followed, including the “Donors
of the Supper”, “The Ladies and Visitors”, and
“Success to the Trade of Dovercourt”. During the evening
some capital songs were rendered by Messrs. Cook, Constable, Gull,
Toates, Scott and Borrett.
The Standard reported in 1901 that the work of demolition of one
of the bridges of what has been described as the “Great
Wasted Railway” was commenced a few days ago. This bridge
which is situated near Bradfield Hall, and the levelling process
will do much to alleviate the heavy traffic passing to and from
Mistley.
The Standard in December 1909 “ reported that a landslip
had occurred on Saturday on the Great Eastern Railway between
Bradfield and Wrabness. A single line had to be employed at one
time, and the York train pulled up near Wrabness for close upon
an hour while a pilot was fetched from Parkeston, which was reached
an hour behind the scheduled time. As the two Continental expresses
were behind the York, the boat service was considerably interfered
with.
The Standard in February 1929 reported that a serious accident
was narrowly escaped by the Flushing Continental Express from
Parkeston to London on Tuesday evening. After leaving almost an
hour late, owing to the derailment of goods wagons on the Manningtree
side of Wrabness, the engine of the Continental itself left the
line, and three luggage coaches of the train were derailed.
1949 the first consignment of turkeys to from Hungary arrived
at Harwich on board the train ferry. Special refrigerated wagons
from Belgium, Germany and Haungary have been concentrated to bring
this welcome Christmas fare, the first consignment weighed 150
tons.
All this traffic will be handled at Harwich in more than 30 special
trains, the 1000 mile journey taking four days in all. Customs
authorities in London giving clearance to avoid any delay at Harwich.
The Standard, August 9th 1974. Sober dressed gentlemen and ladies
in sweeping crinolines stepped aboard the first steam train to
chug from Harwich to Manningtree 120 years ago next Thursday.
Times have changed considerably since 1854 and the reign of Queen
Victoria. So has dress, but people fundamentally remain much the
same. They still expect fast efficient service, on time. But no
doubt today’s passengers on that service will have fidgeted
and fumed at the slower progress of the old steam trains of yesteryear.
An extract from a book about the service says; “By 1836
Harwich had become the most important mail packet station on the
East Coast and as many as 80 different mail packets were making
use of it.”
In that year, however, the transference of the Continental mail
service to Dover made the Eastern Counties Railways’ directors
all the more keenly anxious to improve the shore access to Harwich
and to recapture some of this lucrative business. In 1843 they
applied to Parliament for powers to extend their London –
Colchester main line from Ardleigh to Harwich but the Bill was
defeated.”
“A decade passed before they obtained their Act. But on
August 15th 1854 the branch line from Manningtree to Harwich was
opened, together with a small quay at the port.”
But Parliament at that time refused to grant powers to the railway
to establish its own steamship service and it was not until the
Great Eastern Railway had been formed that the necessary bill
was passed on July 28th 1863.
The original route via the Hangings was altered in 1882 when
Parkeston Quay was built. Now trains no longer call at Bradfield
and Priory Halt.
The diesels, successors to those steam trains, rattle on to and
from the busy port. But the steam trains wherever they are on
exhibition or in service still hold a fascination and link with
the past that the impersonal diesels will never have.
The journey
A journey on the branch line departs from Manningtree, whereupon
the branch curves away to the right on an embankment, the mainline
to Ipswich and beyond to Norwich taking the left curve, the line
from Ipswich joins the branch from the other side of the triangle,
a cutting and another embankment are negotiated before the first
station is reached, Mistley 1 ¼ miles from Manningtree.
Encompassing Mistley station is the Edme Malt Works, the signal
box now disused, the station is a two storey red brick building,
part of which now a flat, the ld ticket office being the offices
of the Essex and South Suffolk Community Rail Partnership for
the Mayflower Line. Leaving Mistley the steeply graded line to
Mistley Quay can be seen, further on, is the site of the aborted
junction with the once to be Mistley, Thorpe and Walton Railway.
A further 1 ½ miles down the track the site of the one
time Bradfield station, closed in 1956, the buildings and platforms
since demolished. A mile further on there was once two platforms
which served the old Priory Halt which served the Admiralty works.
The houses are now privately owned and the buildings now warehouses
for Mistley Quay Freight Forwarding.
Leaving Priory Halt the next station the village station of Wrabness
is reached, the Station Masters building has now been demolished,
through Stour Woods on an embankment, the line descends into a
cutting before travelling through Copperas Woods. 2 ½ miles
from Wrabness the line curves left onto the deviated route from
the original line to Dovercourt, this can be seen on the right
hand side. Passing the Oil Refinery, the track crosses a level
crossing and enters Harwich International Port station, known
for many years as Parkeston Quay.
Leaving Parkeston Quay the line travels along the river curving
round the bay, passing the port trailer parks, and Safeway Supermarket,
shortly after going under Phoenix road bridge, the line approaches
Dovercourt Bay Station, of which the original down platform was
demolished in the 1960’s. A red brick building, which once
housed the Station Master, and a book stall, now it houses a Taxi
company, the station serving serves the town of Dovercourt and
the main shopping area.
Leaving Dovercourt Bay on the left hand side is Bathside Bay,
soon to be reclaimed and a container port built, the line crosses
two level crossings, before reaching the terminal at Harwich Town,
once two platforms with one an Island platform, lines to the left
leading to the now disused train ferry terminal. The station building
is soon to be a Railway Museum.
