IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Bishop Marshall Close, MANCHESTER, M40 8LX

Gates accessing the old railway sidings.

The view toward Miles Platting and the major junction at Oldham Road. The first railway bridge once carried goods lines from Manchester's Oldham Road goods depot. The main lines from Victoria station are beyond where the road dips. The brick wall on the right marks the one-time boundary of Brewery Sidings. Neither sidings, nor brewery have existed for many years.

Disused retirement housing on Thornton Street North in Collyhurst.

A very busy manual signalbox at a key junction. An Oldham loop local train approaches. Separate, dedicated goods lines at one time existed from Collyhurst Street signalbox in the distance and continued towards Baguley Fold Junction on the Ashton line. Until the 1980s, the 1970s Arndale Tower and 1960s CIS Tower (Co-operative Insurance Society) were the only high-rise buildings in Manchester's city centre.

The 17.37 Manchester Victoria-Leeds train approaches Miles Platting junction and its already aged signalbox. For about a decade, this was the only train using the old Lancashire & Yorkshire line across the Pennines which called at Miles Platting station. In 1977, Manchester's skyline had just two high-rise blocks, both of which are visible in the photograph. On the left, the much-derided Arndale tower from the early 1970s; to the right the CIS tower from a decade earlier. Compare with my photograph from the same spot a decade later!

The new 'Collyhurst Village' development.

Erected primarily to honour the local dead of World War 1, and it's quite a long list.

Grim entrance in a pretty grim neighbourhood. Most of the surrounding houses and industry had gone by 1989 and the station was slated for closure with minimal fuss. The poster on the left is promoting season tickets, not fare dodging!