Eardington could reopen for local trains as historic documents are rediscovered
ORIGINAL GWR documents from 1931 have recently been discovered, uncovering how the Severn Valley Railway's Eardington Halt was managed, had its own stationmaster and was a station in its own right.
While the railway between Hartlebury and Shrewsbury was built between 1858-62, the station at Eardington did not open until 1868. It served two local forges rather than the nearby villages of Chelmarsh and Eardington.
The Upper and Lower forges east and west of the station were owned by Hazledine & Co which had a good reputation for the quality of its castings. Despite John Hazledine being declared bankrupt in 1797 the company remained in business. These forges were connected by a long canal tunnel though little of it and the forges remains today.
Pioneering parts
In 1802 when Richard Trevithick was building the world's first steam locomotives, he placed several orders for parts from Hazledine & Co, including components for the legendary Catch-me-who-can. Engineers John Urpeth Rastrick and John Hazledine constructed it in 1808 at their foundry in Bridgnorth. The modern-day working replica is on view at Bridgnorth station.
A proposal in 1864 for a siding to Lower Forge never bore fruit, and in the 1870s the Severn Valley Railway was absorbed into the GWR and Eardington platform was extended in 1893. The ironworks closed in 1899.
According to staff records from 1922 the tiny station had a stationmaster, George Cooke, and a gatekeeper, his wife Elizabeth. They lived nearby at Crossing on Eardington Bank. He retired in 1930.
A year later, Eardington dispatched 2259 parcels and was responsible for 2355 tons of freight, probably locally-quarried sand and gravel. Eardington later became the main station in the area dispatching sugar beet. The large houses locally provided the parcels traffic.
During 1931, the station came under the control of Highley and lost its stationmaster. It is around this period that the document, hand typed without corrections, comes from, and describes how the station will be managed in future.
Working instructions
Paragraph 1 states: “On and from March 12, 1931 the responsibility of the supervision of Eardington will be placed upon the Station Master at Highley. The staff at Eardington will consist of one Grade 1 Porter, relief for midday interval being afforded by a Grade 2 Porter from Highley. The Porters will cover the hours during the station is open attending to the requirements of the Station and Goods Yard, booking and dealing with Passengers, Parcels and Miscellaneous Traffic, obtaining consignment notes for Goods Traffic dispatched, issuing the necessary invoices, checking received Goods consignments with invoices, and obtain necessary signatures.”
It goes on to describe clerical work, stating that the stationmaster at Highley has overall responsibility: accounts are to be kept separate and carefully checked, with cash to be sent on the 4.43pm train where the