The Cleckheaton Branch – Mirfield – Heckmondwike – Low Moor

Only a 33 page booklet but very hard to find. An Australian dealer is offering a copy on ABE for £11.39 but he is also asking for £27.50 for p&p (I don’t know where he is getting that price from must be personal delivery). Amazon list it as “currently unavailable”.

As the line is now the Spen Valley Greenway and I frequent the excellent café, “The Sunflower Pot” located on the site of Liversedge Station I found the book fascinating, even though it was obviously written for Railway Enthusiasts with great details of gradients and signal boxes etc. The line was opened to passengers in1848 and closed (by the short sighted doctor) in 1965. It did have a reprieve when it was used shortly for a main line diversion, but one track had been lifted and the Stations had been demolished. The County Council bought the stretch from Heckmondwike to Low Moor and later the WYTM sold the line to Sustrans.

I frequently cycle to Low Moor, from Heckmondwike and just to illustrate how hard the return journey is; ” In 1882 when carriages where being shunted at Low Moor ran back down the branch, they gathered speed all the way through to Mirfield. Where they came to rest at Cooper Bridge.