Two photographs of the old level crossing coming from Portrack with the soon to be demolished Victoria estate in the background.
Photographs and details courtesy of Peter Jordison.
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
Two photographs of the old level crossing coming from Portrack with the soon to be demolished Victoria estate in the background.
Photographs and details courtesy of Peter Jordison.
I have always wondered about those buildings in the background, they must be a good age, is it because they were flour mills that they are that shape? nice photos . had family (Hooper) that lived in Garbutt street.
I remember the subway at this crossing from the days when I lived in Portrack from about 1946 to 1963. From 1960 until 1963 I worked in a sheet metal working shop that was the other side of the flour mills. Most of the rail traffic at that time consisted of steel sheets being taken into the Mallable works to be made into steel pipes and the finished pipes going out by rail.
To the right of the crossing was a branch of GKN who specialised in making nuts and bolts although I think this location was a stores depot.
Excellent photos, but were they not previously on the site. These last Q6 class locos 63344 and particularly 63387 (my schoolboy favourite) were regularly visitors to Stockton until the autumn of 1967, when steam finished locally. They were based at West Hartlepool shed, but 63387 always seemed to be lumbering around Stockton/Norton in the summer of 1967.
I posted these photos from my collection quite some time ago now I have quite a few more of this branch line which I have also posted I suppose once you post photos on the web they become copied nice photos though
The brick buildings at the back were flour mills
The urinal, on the opposite side of the crossing was a three sided set of walls, open to the sky.
Clarence Row was obviously named after the Clarence Railway, which ran through from a connection with the Stockton and Darlington in SW Durham through to Port Clarence. The North Shore Branch was a branchline running down from Norton through to the River Tees.
This is the crossing at the bottom Garbut Street I remember this because my gran lived on the Buildings estate has it was known this was situated to the left of the car in the picture.
And behind the car a to left was the Crickets and across the crossing at the bottom of Garbut Street was The Tilery Inn but I can not remember a subway there.
Also just to the left of the car was a very large green signal box which has kids we used to go and sit on the steps and watch the trains which were goods trains taking goods wagons onto the Portrack grid or coal wagons.
Clarence Row led to the area known as the buildings. Rupert, Henry, Caroline and Union Street East were the others. There was a few allotments around there too. I remember Peter Wakenshaw who lived in one of the streets, think his mother was named Renee.
John – Peter is my brother and we did live on the end of Caroline street and our mothers name was Renee,our granmother lived in number 19 Caroline her surname was Charlton
Colin – I remember Peter and your mother very well. Viewing this photograph brings back so many happy memories of my childhood and early teenage years living in the Garbutt Street area. Real heart warming people and friendly neighbours.
The tunnel was quite narrow, with the entrance close to where the car is positioned. I think a pedestrian gate and walkway replaced the tunnel when the railway gates were rebuilt in the mid 1950s. Until then a large signal box, just on the left hand side of the picture controlled the gates. One could see a signalman turning a large wheel to open and close the gates.
I wonder if there is story associated with the tunnel. Had there been an accident? Was there concern about working men being held up on their way to work? And given that the North Shore Branch was one of the earliest public railways in the country, were the owners forced to make special provision for pedestrians to keep them away from the trains.
Quite possibly there were no gates on the crossing when the line was built and it would have been a simple job to have excavated a tunnel to one side of the crossing. The fact that when the crossing was rebuilt special provision had to be made for pedestrians (in pre ELF and SAFETY DAYS!!!), suggests some kind of bylaw was covering this,
That was a very busy crossing pre and during the war also for a time after. Not many vehicles though plenty of men walking into the myriad of factories on the other side of the border, we all called it over the border.
When I went with my Father and his truck for bricks at St Anne’s brickworks we often waited ages for the crossing to open, it was probably the reason Church Road was widened and Bridged thus speeding up a growing amount of traffic to Portrack and beyond, also a quick way to Middlesbrough over the New Bridge, Mother and I walked from Norton Green across Lamberts Farm now the Prison over the New Bridge and got the bus on the other side to North Ormesby where my Grand Parents lived.
The Tunnel would allow people to cross under the line to work and on normal every day affairs. By the time I was walking Girls home from the Dance the crossing would be open most of the time at night. Always there would be a group of Portrack lads watching who was walking their girls home and strangers were gently persuaded to be on their way. I often walked Josie my friend Billy’s wife home as we danced together, it did not stop my also walking Anne and Moira home as well. You would get to the crossing the lads would move in and a call “its Ok he is one of ours” pass friend.
The whole area was built up at the time and the walk would often be High Street to King Street, Bath place, Portrack Lane to Brown Street and the crossing, after delivering my charges it would be cross country to Tilery Norton Road and home we walked miles and thought nothing of it.
Portrack was a very busy place and usually people lived near to their employment, hard working and hard living people who were fun to be with and I was always that posh g## from Norton but it was always in a friendly way, I loved them, “err” well the girls never frightened to speak their minds.
Remember when there was a subway under the crossing – must have used it hundreds of times
Can’t remember a subway Ken, when was that ?
Yes I remember the subway, if my memory serves me correctly there was also a gents toilet on the Garbutt Street side of the crossing. I lived in Buxton Street that stood to the right of the photograph, the street was separated from the railway by a large stone wall. As youngsters we spent many hours climbing the wall and watching the trains passing along the line. I notice the new build houses in the background, the same properties are now being vacated and prepared for demolition. They have not stood the test of time as did the older terraced houses they replaced.