Roundup of our Railway Related Reports, Publications and Guidance

‘New Shildon, County Durham: Historic Area Assessment’.

Authors: Lucy Jessop, Richard Pougher:
This Historic Area Assessment considers the development and buildings of New Shildon, County Durham, from the foundation of the town in about 1825 to the present day. Its first buildings were constructed when the Stockton & Darlington Railway (S&DR) opened for business, and New Shildon became the home of its railway works for the next 150 years.

Read the report on New Shildon

‘Stockton and Darlington Railway Locomotive-Coaling Stage, Shildon, Co. Durham: Historic Building Investigation and Assessment of Significance’.

Authors: Marcus Jecock, Elizabeth Stephens, Gary Young, Matthew Bristow.

This report describes the significance and place in railway history of the Shildon locomotive-coaling stage (aka 'Coal Drops'), built by the Stockton & Darlington Railway (S&DR) in early 1847 to improve the re-fuelling times of steam locomotives returning empty coal trains to the company’s marshalling yard and engine shed at Shildon before they headed back east to staiths on the River Tees with their next train. It is argued that it represents one of the first attempts - if not the first attempt - in Britain (and given Britain’s primacy in railways, possibly the world) to mechanise the process of coaling locomotives.

Read the report on the coaling stage

‘Stockton And Darlington Railway Carriage Works, Darlington: Historic Building Investigation and Assessment of Significance’.

Authors: Purcell Architecture Ltd

The Stockton & Darlington Railway (S&DR) Carriage Works is a Grade II-listed building located on Hopetown Lane, Darlington. This historic building report was commissioned by Historic England for the Stockton & Darlington Railway Heritage Action Zone to inform the development of Darlington's Railway Heritage Quarter Masterplan. The Carriage Works is a rare survival of a building type designed when railway architecture was in its infancy.

Read the report on the Carriage Works

The Road, Rail and Parkland Bridges of Bishop Auckland, Co Durham: an assessment of the historical and archaeological evidence

Author: Marcus Jecock

This report describes and discusses a corpus of 32 historic road, rail and parkland bridges that lie in and immediately around the town of Bishop Auckland in County Durham. Detailed descriptions and fabric analyses of each of the bridges are presented in gazetteer format, prefaced by a general discussion and overview that attempts to draw out themes, both local and national, in the story of the town’s bridges, as well as highlighting significance.

Read the report on the bridges of Bishop Auckland

‘Heritage Railways and Covid-19: Getting Back on Track’.

Author: Marcus Ward

Heritage railways have experienced wide ranging challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, some have demonstrated notable resilience in face of these difficulties, benefiting from strategies that they have employed themselves or that have been implemented by the heritage railway sector at large. This report highlights a selection of these approaches to discuss their wider applicability across the heritage sector to support resilience to challenges in the future.

Read the report on heritage railways

‘Stockton and Darlington Railway, Soho Works, Shildon, County Durham: Report on Geophysical Surveys, June 2021’.

Authors: Neil Linford, Andy Payne.

Ground Penetrating Radar fluxgate gradiometer and earth resistance surveys were conducted over the former Stockton and Darlington Railway Soho Works at Shildon, County Durham. The aim of the survey was to investigate the below ground survival of Timothy Hackworth’s Soho Works, which developed through the 1830s and 1840s, in the area adjacent to the standing Soho Cottages.

Read the report on Soho Works 

‘The Stockton & Darlington Railway Goods Depot, Darlington: Historic Building Investigation and Assessment of Significance’.

Authors: Purcell Architecture Ltd.

This report examines the history, development, function and significance of the Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) Goods Depot at Darlington. It provides: a general history of the North Road site; the historic development and functionality of the Goods Depot building; an analysis of the building and its principal phases; discussion of the building’s place in the evolution of goods sheds as a building type; and an assessment of the building’s significance.

Read the report on the Goods Depot Darlington.

‘The Lime Depot, Hopetown Lane, Darlington: historic building investigation and statement of significance’.

Author: Archaeo-Environment Ltd

This report, commissioned by Historic England in 2019, is an historic building investigation and statement of significance of the Lime Depot on Hopetown Lane in Darlington, undertaken in support of the Stockton & Darlington Railway (S&DR) Heritage Action Zone.

Read the report on the lime depot.

‘Stockton and Darlington Railway Heritage Action Zone – Aerial Investigation and Mapping’.

Author: David Knight

Thousands of historic aerial photographs and visualisations of lidar data were analysed to produce a spatially accurate archaeological map with accompanying records for a 1 kilometre-wide corridor centred on this core network. The study identified and mapped many elements of original railway infrastructure, including bridges, buildings, crossings, embankments, cuttings and trackside boundaries.

Read the Aerial Survey report

‘Rosedale Branch East Railway, North Yorkshire: Archaeological survey and investigation of a short section east of the Dale Head embankment’.

Authors: Rebecca Pullen, Marcus Jecock

In 2019, Historic England carried out non-intrusive archaeological investigation of the 500 metre-long section of railway between the eastern end of the Dale Head embankment and the embankment to the east of Castle Crag escarpment.

Read the report on the Rosedale Branch.

‘Western Goods Shed (Barpart House) King's Cross, London’.

Author: Jonathan Clarke.

The recording of the Western Goods Shed (Barpart House) in November 1998 supplements previous investigations of the King's Cross Goods Yard.

Read the report on Western Goods Shed

‘Midland Goods Shed: King's Cross, London’.

Authors: Robyn Burgess, Keith Falconer

This area of the Great Northern Railway's King's Cross Goods Yard contains elements which date from the development of the site in 1850 but all the buildings and structures have been greatly altered, in some cases several times. The central 300 foot long brick building known as the Midland Shed occupies the site, and retains some of the fabric of, Lewis Cubitt's 1850 Carriage Shed, associated with the temporary 1850 passenger station, of which some ironwork also survives.

Read the report on Midlands Goods Shed

‘Historic Railway Buildings and Structures: overview of development pressure and review of significance’.

Author: Rob Kinchin-Smith

The report published in 2017 looks at the historic development of the railways and details the potential impact of infrastructure schemes. In the second volume the commissioned consultants give their view of the potential significance of 22 main types of historic railway buildings and structures. The report is supported by maps and a gazetteer.

Read the report on historic railway buildings and structures.

‘20th Century Air-Raid Precaution Railway Control Centres’

Authors: Paul Francis, Paul Bellamy, Graham Crisp.
This report was commissioned from leading members of the Airfield Research Group by English Heritage (now Historic England), in order to have a better understanding of 20th century air raid precaution railway control centres in England.

Read the report on Railway Control centres

‘Early Railways: Review and Summary of Recent Research’.
Authors: Neil Cossons, David Gwyn.

This study, commissioned by Historic England, reviews the current literature and summarises the wider state of understanding of early railways with a view to recommending future research and publication and to offer guidance on potential designation.

Read the report on Early Railways

‘Curzon Street Station, New Canal Street, Birmingham’.

Authors: John Minnis.

This report examines the surviving structures of the London & Birmingham Railway terminus at Curzon Street, Birmingham.

Read the report on Curzon Street

‘Railway Signal Boxes: A Review’.

Authors: John Minnis.

This 2012 report provides a national review of signal boxes, both operational Network Rail boxes, and those out of use, on heritage railways, and in museums. It identifies the most significant remaining examples and makes recommendations as to boxes to go forward for assessment for listing.

Read the report on Signal Boxes