Ulster Railway

This article is about the 19th century railway company. For other uses, see Ulster Railways (disambiguation).

Ulster Railway

Industry	railway
Fate	merged
Successor	Great Northern Railway (Ireland)
Founded	1836
Defunct	1876
Headquarters	Belfast, Ireland
Area served	County Antrim, County Armagh, County Down, County Monaghan

The Ulster Railway was a railway company operating in Ulster, Ireland. The company was incorporated in 1836 and merged with two other railway companies in 1876 to form the Great Northern Railway (Ireland).

History

The Ulster Railway was authorised by an Act of the UK Parliament in 1836 and construction began in March 1837.

The first 8 miles (13 kilometres) of line, between Belfast Great Victoria Street and Lisburn, were completed in August 1839 at a cost of £107,000. The line was extended in stages, opening to Lurgan in 1841, Portadown in 1842, and Armagh in 1848.

Crossing the Lagan Canal by the Ulster Railway near Moira.

In 1836 a Railway Commission recommended that railways in Ireland be built to 6 ft 2 in (1,880 mm) broad gauge. The Ulster Railway complied with this recommendation but the Dublin and Drogheda Railway (D&D) did not. In order for Dublin and Belfast to be linked without a break-of-gauge, in 1846 the UK Parliament passed an Act adopting a compromise gauge of 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) for Ireland, to which the Ulster Railway's track was then re-laid.

Extension of the Ulster Railway resumed, reaching Monaghan in 1858, Smithborough in 1862 and Clones on the Dundalk and Enniskillen Railway, later the Irish North Western Railway (INW), in 1863.

The Dublin and Belfast Junction Railway (D&BJct) between Drogheda and Portadown was completed in 1853. This connected the D&D with the Ulster Railway, thus completing the main line between Dublin and Belfast.

The Ulster Railway operated three lines that remained in the ownership of separate companies: the Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway (PD&O), the Banbridge, Lisburn and Belfast Railway (BLBR) and the Dublin and Antrim Junction Railway (D&AJR). The PD&O reached Dungannon in 1858 and Omagh in 1861, and the contractor, William Dargan, sold the Ulster a 999-year lease on it in 1860. The BLBR opened between Knockmore Junction and Banbridge in 1863, and the D&AJR opened between Knockmore Junction and Antrim in 1871.

In 1876 the Ulster Railway merged with the INW and the Northern Railway of Ireland (formed by a merger of the D&D and the D&BJct the previous year) to form the Great Northern Railway (Ireland).

The Ulster Railway

Legend Belfast Great Victoria Street (built later by (NIR)) Belfast Central Railway Adelaide (built later by (GNR)) Balmoral Finaghy (built later by (GNR)) Dunmurry Derriaghy (built later by (GNR)) Lambeg (built later by (GNR)) Hilden (built later by (GNR)) Lisburn The Damhead Knockmore (built later by (GNR)) Banbridge, Lisburn and Belfast Junction Railway (BLB) Lisburn–Antrim railway line Moira Lagan Canal Pritchard's Bridge Lurgan Seagoe River Bann Portadown Belfast–Newry railway line Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway Richhill Retreat (built later by (GNR)) Newry and Armagh Railway Armagh Castleblayney, Keady and Armagh Railway Killylea Tynan and Caledon Clogher Valley Railway Glaslough Monaghan Smithborough Irish North Western Railway to Dundalk Clones Irish North Western Railway to Enniskillen Ulster Canal Redhills Ballyhaise GNR built later to Belturbet Loreto College Halt (built later by (GNR)) Cavan Midland Great Western Railway

External links

• 1843 Timetable for Belfast and Portadown, from Bradshaw's Railway Monthly