Earlswood Lakes Station

GWR Route: North Warwickshire Line

Earlswood Lakes Station was situated at the highest point of the line between Birmingham and Stratford Upon Avon. The long 1:150 climb from the south required heavily loaded trains to be banked from Stratford Upon Avon consequently watering facilities were provided for trains that might have otherwise have been hard pressed to continue on to Snow Hill. The station was opened on 1st July 1908 when passenger services commenced from Moor Street and was deemed significant enough to be provided with brick platform structures and a goods yard which remained open until 6th July 1964. The bridge over the railway marked the change point in the name of the road traversing the railway. To the 'north' of the railway, the road was named 'Rumbush Lane', whereas to the 'south' of the railway it was called 'Forshaw Heath Road'. Access to the station was via either a pedestrian pathway leading down from Forshaw Heath Lane to the up platform, or, for road vehicles, via Station Road which led off from Rumbush Lane. Station Road was also where the seven railway cottages were sited, plus a detached station master's house sited opposite to the main station building. This main station building; which accommodated the Booking Office and Waiting Room, a Ladies Waiting Room, a Parcels Office and Cloak Room and Gentlemens toilets; was situated on the down platform. This was unusual insofar that as space was not an issue the normal operating practice for most railway companies, and the GWR, was to locate the main facilities on whatever platform would see the most originating traffic; which in this instance was the up platform with passengers commuting to Birmingham. The number of passenger tickets issued for 1913, 1923 and 1933 was respectively; 16,528; 21,856; and 15,379. The number of season tickets issued for the same years was 176; 581; and 832. With these and the figures quoted below it needs to be remembered that 1933 was four years after the Wall Street Crash and therefore the economic depression was in full flood.

Despite the North Warwickshire Line being open to goods traffic on 9th December 1907, Earlswood Lake's goods yard was opened at about the same time as the passenger station. The goods yard was a simple affair, there not being a goods shed only a very long siding used by merchants for inward traffic of coal, minerals and general goods. For the period 1913, 1923 and 1933, the inward tonnage figures are: coal - 323, 93, 104 respectively, minerals - 3,785, 14,146 and 2,972, general goods - 939, 1,531 and 539. The number of livestock wagons handled for outward shipping was: 3, 28 and 48. A Weigh Office and weighbridge, which could be used by the general public and not just limited to railway users, was located near to the entrance to the yard. Although there was no goods shed the station did handle parcel traffic. Railway parlance for parcel traffic was very different from today and in many respects described any item which was able to be manhandled (but not dangerous) and could be sent by passenger train. Parcel traffic originating at Earlswood Lake station was significant at first with 4,230 items being forwarded in 1913, rising to 6,450 in 1923 but then falling back to 1,616 parcels by 1933. Parcels could therefore be very large and a good example of such traffic can be seen at Coventry in image 'lnwrcov599' which records a 1950s scene.

The station name was changed on 6th May 1974 when the 'Lakes' was dropped to become just 'Earlswood'.

Much of the information on this and other pages of Warwickshire Railways is derived from articles or books listed in our 'bibliography'.

Earlswood Lakes station

Ref: gwrel459 Postcard Looking towards Stratford upon Avon shortly before opening in 1908 with the up platform on the right

Ref: gwrel459a Postcard Close up of the down platform's building consisted of booking office, two waiting rooms and toilets

Ref: gwrel459b Postcard Close up of the up platform's passenger facilities which duplicated most of the facilities on the down platform

Ref: gwrel2864 J Alsop Looking south towards Stratford upon Avon with the goods yard on the left and the signal box on the right

Ref: gwrel2864a J Alsop Close up of the down platform showing the large number of lanterns and lampposts used to light the station

Ref: gwrel2864b J Alsop Close up of the up platform and the generous number of GWR monogrammed bench seats provided for passengers

Ref: gwrel458 Lens of Sutton Looking towards Birmingham from under the passenger footbridge towards Rumbush Lane road bridge

Ref: gwrel458a Lens of Sutton Close up of the up platform building which housed the general waiting room and ladies waiting room

Ref: gwrel458b Lens of Sutton Close up of the rail side of the down platform building which housed the station's principal passenger facilities

Ref: gwrel460 Lens of Sutton Looking towards Moor Street from the southern end of the station with the storage shed on the down platform

Ref: gwrel460a Lens of Sutton Close up of the storage shed which was located on the down platform adjacent to the goods yard

Ref: gwrel454 Lens of Sutton Looking towards the signal box situated at the end of the down platform and opposite the goods yard

Ref: gwrel1360 Lens of Sutton Looking towards Stratford upon Avon along the down platform with Earlswood Lakes signal box in the distance

Ref: gwrel2870a RS Carpenter Close up of the forecourt outside the station which was accessed by a driveway off Rumbush Lane

Ref: gwrel2868 J Moss Looking south past the water column, lamp room, cattle dock and the entrance to the goods yard

Ref: gwrel2952 P Garland Earlswood Lakes' 12,000 gallon water tank, which supplied the water to the water cranes of both platforms

Locomotives and trains seen at or near Earlswood Lakes

Ref: gwrel2865 Anon A GWR steam Rail Car stands at Earlswood Station on an up local passenger service to Moor Street

Ref: gwrel2863 J Alsop GWR No 26 Steam Rail Motor is seen standing at the up platform within a few weeks of opening in July 1908

Ref: gwrel2870 RS Carpenter BR built 2-6-2T No 4170 arrives with an up local passenger service for Moor Street in April 1957

Ref: gwrel456 P Hopkins Another view of ex-ROD 2-8-0 No 3014 after being given the right of way to proceed through the station

Ref: gwrel457 P Hopkins GWR 4-6-0 No 5938 'Stanley Hall' passes through the station at the head of an up West Country express service

Ref: gwrel455 P Hopkins Ex-ROD 2-8-0 No 3014 is seen receiving attention whilst standing on the down refuge siding

Ref: gwrel664 M Mensing BR built GWR 4-6-0 No 7915 'Mere Hall' is on the 11:05 Illfracombe to Wolverhampton express service

Ref: gwrel2874 BPC BR 2-6-4T 4MT No 80072 is seen coming to a stop as it finishes banking the freight train from Stratford upon Avon

Ref: gwrel2875 RJ Buckley Ex-GWR 4-6-0 No 6922 'Burton Hall' passes the down refuge siding and the raised upper quadrant signal

Ref: gwrel2876 RJ Buckley BR 9F 2-10-0 No 92221, on a down Type 4 express freight working, has just past Earlswood Lakes station

Ref: gwrel2877 RJ Buckley Ex-GWR 4-6-0 No 6956 'Mottram Hall' approaches the station with an up Type 6 partially fitted freight

Ref: gwrel2869 Stations UK A Western Region DMU arrives at Earlswood Lakes station on a Moor Street to Stratford upon Avon service in 1959

Ref: gwrel2867 M Mensing A Western Region DMU enters the station with a down local passenger service to Stratford upon Avon on 26th May 1964

Maps and schematic drawings of Earlswood Lakes

Ref: gwrel2879 Ordnance Survey An OS map of Earlswood Lakes Station showing the layout of the station & goods yard as first built in 1908

Ref: gwrel2878 Ordnance Survey A 1933 OS map of Earlswood Lakes Station showing the layout of the station hasn't changed since it first opened

Ref: gwrel2871 Ordnance Survey A 1917 large scale OS map showing in greater detail, the main features of the station and goods yard

Ref: gwrel2866 sign-diag-earlswood A low resolution version of the Signalling Diagram for Earlswood Lakes Signal Box produced courtesy of the SRS