The Wellington to Craven Arms Railway was formed by a group of railway companies that eventually joined the Great Western Railway family, and connected Wellington, Shropshire and Shifnal, with Coalbrookdale, Buildwas, Much Wenlock and a junction near Craven Arms. Its objectives were dominated by the iron, colliery and limestone industries around Coalbrookdale.
The route sections that together formed the network were
the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway Coalbrookdale branch from Madeley Junction (near Shifnal) to Lightmoor; the Wellington and Severn Junction Railway from Ketley Junction (near Wellington) to Lightmoor; the Great Western Railway Coalbrookdale extension from Lightmoor to Coalbrookdale; the Wenlock Railway from Coalbrookdale to Buildwas; the Much Wenlock and Severn Junction Railway from Buildwas to Much Wenlock; the Wenlock Railway from Much Wenlock to Marsh Farm Junction, north of Craven Arms.
The railways were opened in the period from 1854 to 1867. The railways local to Coalbrookdale were heavily used by mineral traffic; the hoped-for trunk hauls to and from South Wales via Craven Arms were not realised. Passenger traffic was never heavy, and was sparse between Much Wenlock and Craven Arms. Passenger traffic closures took place from 1951 and ordinary goods traffic closed down in the 1960s. Ironbridge B Power Station generated significant volumes of merry-go-round coal traffic between 1967 and 2015. The line is now entirely closed to ordinary traffic, but the heritage Telford Steam Railway operates on a section near Doseley.
Background
From the early medieval period, Coalbrookdale was a centre of extraction of coal. The River Severn provided the route for transport to market, and pack horses on primitive roads were also used. As the early part of the Industrial Revolution took place, there was a demand for limestone, a key ingredient of the iron making process, and the iron itself had to be transported away. Wooden railways and plateways had long been used to get access to the river, but the steep-sided valley through which the river ran, and the hilly terrain in general, discouraged canal building, and for a time limited railway access too.
There was considerable industry in the steep-sided valley of the river Severn around Coalbrookdale. From 1709 Abraham Darby the elder established an iron foundry there, leading to a massive increase in technological and industrial output, and the formation later of the Coalbrookdale Company. Transport of raw materials and finished products was difficult, and heavy use was made of the River Severn.
Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway
When the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway planned its line, it was projected to run through Wellington, to the north of Coalbrookdale, avoiding the difficult terrain of the Severn Valley. It was authorised on 3 August 1846, and the authorisation included a mile branch to Coalbrookdale. Construction proceeded and the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway opened its main line in 1849. Many manufacturers transferred their transport to the railway, reaching the industrial districts in the north west of England more conveniently.
The authorised branch line to Coalbrookdale was from near Ketley, a mile east of Wellington. In the 1847 and 1849 sessions of Parliament the S&BR obtained an Act for a branch line to Madeley from a triangular junction near Shifnal, and an extension from Coalbrookdale to Ironbridge.
Not all of these branches were made. However the Madeley branch was built, and opened in November 1854 as far as Madeley Court from near Shifnal at what became Madeley Junction. It was extended on 1 October 1855 to Lightmoor, which was a major centre of the metal industry.<jones38>Jones, page 38</ref>
Wellington and Lightmoor
John Dickson of the Shropshire Works, Wellington, had furnaces at Ketley, a mile or so south of Wellington, and in February 1851 he had opened a short private line from Waterloo Sidings, at Wellington, to Ketley.
In October 1852 the Coalbrookdale Company discussed extending Dickson's line to Coalbrookdale, but the cost was considered unaffordable, and a public company was promoted instead: it was to be called the Wellington and Severn Junction Railway. Despite opposition from other railway companies, the Royal Assent was given to the Wellington and Severn Junction Railway Act on 20 August 1853. The S&BR gave technical assistance and some financial help. The cost of building the line was estimated at £60,000.