St Johns Crossing on Bridge Road, Stockton. Is this the old ticket office to the right of the photograph?
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
St Johns Crossing on Bridge Road, Stockton. Is this the old ticket office to the right of the photograph?
I recently found these notes on the laying of the first rail ever laid for a public railway service, all pertaining to Stockton Historic Railway history.(copied)
In 1822 the first rail in the railway world was laid near St. John’s Well, at Stockton, by T. Meynell, Esq., of Yarm, in the presence of the late George Stephenson ; and about two hundred stalwart navvies walked in procession from the market-place, accompanied by a large concourse of people, to
witness the interesting ceremony. Who would have thought then that the laying of this rail would have led to the formation of the numberless railways that have since sprung into existence all over the world !
On the 27th of September, 1825, this railway was opened by a procession from the permanent steam engine near Brusselton Tower to the town of Stockton. The day being beautiful, it was a glorious sight to behold the locomotive engine, quite a curiosity then, advancing towards the station,
with its cloudy machinery, dragging at its heels, like a mighty conqueror, a long train of waggons, being the first coal borne on a railway, besides a number of carriages laden withhundreds
of holiday folks, accompanied by a band of music. The train arrived at Cottage How, which was the terminus then of the line, where the engine continued two or three days an object of great interest. This engine, the first employed on a railway with passengers, is mounted on a pedestal, opposite
the railway station at Darlington, where it stands as a great curiosity.
I disagree with the comment by Bob from Leeds as this photo is actually looking towards the docks not away from them. The building to the right on this side of the crossing is the old booking office and directly over the road is the signal box, behind which can be seen the offices of J B Smiths woodyard. The building on the left of the crossing was used later as a garage by J L Robson. The bus sheds were actually to the right of the booking office on the corner of Bridge road and Boathouse Lane.
Thornaby Lad is corrrect, I cannot recall the various brick buidlings in the centre of this 1930? photo, which presumably ‘if’, they were demolished’ (they obviously were) would provide the land on which the J B Smith woodyard stood, this means that the old ticket office is the first house on the right with the garden shed – suggesting it was occupied, I recall that the land to the immediate right foreground was the coalyard situated in Boathouse Lane adjoining St Johns Crossing.
I don’t think it is, this photo is looking away from the Stockton Docks area, over the road on the left are the buildings which became the bus sheds, and over the road on the right is the Homeless house. Next door to it and out of site (not shown) was the Stockton to Darlington former ticket office, the oldest railway building in the world. Surrounding this ticket office in the 1940/50s was the former Railway Goods Yard, which is now a shopping centre. Outside these gate and not shown ‘about 50 yards away’ was a monumental masons with gravestones on sale and view.
There is some dispute as to the nature of this building. It was more likely an office to check the traffic in and out of the Quayside. When the S and D opened in 1825 the passenger service was run by contractors who sold tickets in nearby inns as there was not a station as such, just a setting down point for passengers.
It is indeed the old ticket office. After some years of neglect it was restored to use as a railway museum and opened to the public on the 16th September 1975. The opening was brought forward to allow access to a couple of visitors from Canada. Tony Allsop was born in Skinningrove and raised in Thornaby before emigrating to Canada, were he met his wife Mary.