Lime Street Station | Edge Hill Station | Lime Street to Edge Hill Cutting | Maps
Liverpool Lime Street Station
Liverpool’s original terminus station on the 1830 Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR), was Crown Street Station in Edge Hill. However, it was quickly realised that Crown Street station was too far away from the city centre. So Lime Street Station was built in the city to replace the original Crown Street station.
The new station on Lime Street, opened on the 15th August 1836, making Lime Street station the ‘Oldest, Still-Operating, Terminus, Mainline Railway Station in the World’.
Within the first six years of opening, it was apparent that expansion would be necessary due to the growth of the Railways. So a new single curved glazed roof was built over the train shed in 1849 by LNWR.
However, future expansion plans of the station would see further big changes take place, helping to make the modern-day Lime Street Station that we all recognise today.
The first of the new roof sections was built in 1867, replacing the previous roof. This large northern glazed arch was the largest in the world at that time, having a span of 200ft. Then in 1879, the southern glazed arch was built alongside the first, forming the twin arches of the Lime Street Station that we see today.
Edge Hill Station
Edge Hill Station with it’s Grade II listed buildings, is one of the oldest operating Stations in the world. It opened in 1836 and has been in continuous use ever since. The Station was built on approach to the original two track tunnel to Liverpool Lime Street Station following closure of the original Crown Street Station. When the new station was built, the existing winding house and engine house were incorporated into the station build.
Looking from the historic Edge Hill Station, down into Lime Street Cutting, towards Liverpool Lime Street Station. The short tunnel you see here, is all that remains of the original 2 track tunnel from Edge Hill to Lime Street.
Lime Street to Edge Hill Cutting
The highlight of my day as a Train Driver, based at Liverpool Lime Street for over 20 years, was the journey through the incredible Lime Street to Edge Hill cutting, enroute to London Euston. The Lime Street Cutting is an absolutely fascinating structure with an equally fascinating history. Such incredible engineering went into making the cutting we know today, with it’s bridge and tunnel structures.
Trains into the newly built Liverpool Lime Street from Edge Hill Station was initially via a two track 1.07 mile-long tunnel. Trains descended down to Lime St by gravity with a brake man. Trains were then hauled back up to Edge Hill by a stationary steam engine due to the steep gradients of 1:83 & 1:93.
Gradient Profile for the West Coast Main Line route, between Weaver Jcn, Edge Hill and Liverpool Lime Street.
It would be some years before steam locomotives would be sufficiently powerful to climb the gradient from Lime Street to Edge Hill. Locomotives did eventually start being used from 1879, meaning steam within the tunnel would become a problem. So, to rid the tunnel of steam, Engineer, John Ramsbottom, designed and built a vent in the Tunnel wall. The vent used a large steam driven extraction fan in a deep chamber at the base of “Ramsbottom’s Chimney“. The large chimney on Smithdown Lane, Edge Hill, dominated Liverpool’s skyline until it was finally demolished in the 1970’s. It is believed that the chimney structure was simply collapsed in on itself, burying the fan in the chamber below. However even with Ramsbottom’s Chimney, steam remained a problem, so plans were drawn up to open the tunnel into the cutting we see today. In 1881, work commenced to convert the original 2-track railway tunnel into todays deep open cutting with four tracks, along with the seven smaller tunnels supporting roads and buildings above. What is astonishing, the work to open up the tunnel into todays cutting was carried out without closing the railway, completing work between trains.
View looking towards Edge Hill Station at the Top of the Lime St Cutting. Showing the original 2 track Tunnel in the centre, with the later, additional, single line tunnels at either side.
In July 2018, I was given an extremely rare opportunity to have an even closer look within the cutting, being given the authority to walk from Lime Street Station into and along the Railway Cutting, during the Lime Street blockade.
Within the cutting, in addition to Ramsbottom’s Chimney vent, there are various other features that can be seen if you look very carefully, including the old platelayers Cabin and the bricked up former Triple Decker Tunnel (one of the subterranean features of Joseph Williamson’s Tunnels). Along with the location of where the catastrophic wall collapse occurred and where the new replacement wall along the top of the cutting would be built.
Left Image: The platelayers cabin, hidden from view by the darkness within the Tunnels.
Middle Image: The New wall, built to replace an original section of wall that collapsed into the cutting.
Right Image: The long sealed Triple Decker Tunnel, hiding in plain sight. A large and incredible structure, part of Joseph Williamson’s Subterranean world.
Heading down the cutting, towards Liverpool Lime Street Station. A Train Drivers view, from the cab of a Virgin Trains Pendolino.
Left Image: Joseph Williamson’s Triple Decker Tunnel can be seen on either side of the cutting, long since sealed with large sandstone blocks.
Right Image: Image showing the portal of Ramsbottom’s Chimney vent in the cutting wall. Built to extract the steam from the original Lime Street to Edge Hill Tunnel.
A closeup view into what remains of Ramsbottom’s Vent today. Within the Brick Arch, black staining can be seen on the face of the brick arch, from the steam locomotives using the original Lime Street to Edge Hill Tunnel. Further inside, bricks piled within the arch are the remains of the former Ramsbottom’s Chimney, after being demolished in the 1970’s, by simply collapsing the chimney in on itself, down into the void below, reportedly burying the steam driven fan in the base.
A Close up map showing the location of Ramsbottom’s Chimney, labelled “Old Air Shaft”. The Former vent for the original Lime Street to Edge Hill Tunnel, (bottom left). The Map: OS 1:1,250/1:2500, 1944-1974 Map (curtesy of National Library of Scotland).
To find out more about the fascinating history of the Lime Street to Edge Hill Cutting and how the original Tunnel was converted into today’s cutting, take a look at the fascinating “Jan Ford’s World – Edge Hill Cutting”. Jan’s report includes the most amazing series of photographs, documenting the work to open up today’s cutting.
Map showing the location of the Lime Street to Edge Hill Cutting
Open maps to view in greater detail.
A ‘Railway Clearing House map’, dated 1909, shows the Old Railways of Liverpool with a closeup of the section detailing the Liverpool to edge Hill Cutting
A Closeup map of Liverpool Lime Street, and the Lime Street Cutting to Edge Hill Station. The Map: OS 1:1,250/1:2500, 1944-1974 Map (curtesy of National Library of Scotland).
The second, is a map I purchased for my collection of Historic Liverpool maps. A ‘Kelly’s Directories’, ‘Map of Liverpool, Bootle and Suburbs 1903’, shows the Railways and stations throughout Liverpool at this time.
The extent of Liverpool’s complex Rail network as seen on an official 1959 British Railway’s rail plan of Edge Hill. The original plan being approximately 6ft wide, made scanning on an A4 scanner quite a task.
Click the maps, to view in more detail.
Media Coverage
Stunning pictures reveal a rarely glimpsed side of Lime Street station – Liverpool Echo
Views inside the deep Liverpool Lime Street railway cutting – Liverpool Echo
Random Galleries
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Olwyn Goch and the Milwr Tunnel
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ABC Cinema, Lime Street
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The repaired wall of the Lime Street to Edge Hill cutting, following collapse.
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Wapping Tunnel Vent, from above
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Harland & Wolff, Liverpool
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Aerial view of the Pillar of Hercules and the Wapping Cutting
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Dingle Overhead Railway Tunnel
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Liverpool Lime Street to Edge Hill Railway Cutting
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Chris Iles - Photography | chrisiles.co.uk 
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