High Peak Junction facts for kids
High Peak Junction, located near Cromford in Derbyshire, England, is a special place where the old Cromford and High Peak Railway (C&HPR) used to meet the Cromford Canal. This is where the railway's workshops were found.
Today, High Peak Junction is part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, which was recognized in 2001. It's also the starting point of the High Peak Trail. This trail is about 17 miles (27 km) long and is popular with people who enjoy walking, cycling, and horse riding. The Derwent Valley Heritage Way also passes through this spot. Many people enjoy walking along the canal towpath from here.
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History of the High Peak Railway
The Cromford and High Peak Railway was first planned as a canal, but it was built as a railway instead. It ended here at High Peak Junction, right by the canal. This was where goods were moved between canal boats and railway wagons.
The large building next to the canal, called the transit shed, is still there. It has a roof that reached over the canal. From here, the railway line ran past the workshops and up a very steep hill called Sheep Pasture incline. Before this big shed was built, another shed closer to the river was used. That one was later a place for locomotives, but it's gone now.
The first part of the railway, from High Peak Junction to Hurdlow, opened on May 29, 1830. The whole line was open by 1831. At first, this railway was separate from other railway lines. It only connected to canals: the Cromford Canal in the south and the Peak Forest Canal in the north. The Cromford Canal had been finished earlier, in 1794, linking Sir Richard Arkwright’s mills to the national canal system.
The workshops at High Peak Junction were mostly built between 1826 and 1830. This makes them some of the oldest railway workshops in the world! They were built to serve the new railway line.
When the railway first opened, horses were used to pull wagons, except on the steep inclines. Only minerals and goods were carried. These goods, like coal, were for local towns. Moving limestone was also very important. Limestone was needed to make steel and was found in large amounts in this area.
At first, large steam engines that stayed in one place powered the inclines. In 1833, the first locomotive was bought for the line. This was very early for railways, only seven years after George Stephenson's Stockton and Darlington railway opened. It took 30 years for steam engines to replace all the horses. Water wagons had to be carried up the inclines from the wharf to supply the engines and isolated buildings. A spring at the wharf fed a water tank near the workshops. Besides fixing wagons and locomotives, the workshops also assembled two locomotives in 1859.
For a long time, the railway was just a link in the canal network. It was not connected to other railway lines until about 20 years later. This connection was made with the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway. This new connection was the true "High Peak Junction" at that time. The canal-side site we call High Peak Junction today only got that name after the railway closed.
The new connection to the main railway line opened on February 21, 1853. This made the C&HPR about three-quarters of a mile longer. After this, more and more goods were moved by train. The canal tried to compete by lowering its prices, but it was hard. The railway company even bought the Cromford Canal in 1852. A tunnel on the canal collapsed again in 1900, which finally stopped the canal from being a main transport route. However, coal was still carried on a small part of the canal until 1944, when the whole canal was officially closed.
Next to the transit shed, a road crossed the railway line without gates. A special red iron plate on a post would turn to show "stop" to either the road or the railway.
From 1862, officials regularly checked the railway. They thought about moving the workshops to a larger site, but they stayed at Cromford. Many workers lived there, and their children worked in Arkwright's mill.
In 1874, a timetable showed about nine trains leaving High Peak Junction every day. Only one train went the whole length of the line each day, taking about 5 and a half hours. Most other trains stopped at Hopton. All these trains passed through the Cromford wharf site.
High Peak Junction is at the bottom of the very steep Sheep Pasture incline. This incline is about 1,320 yards long and very steep. After a runaway wagon incident in 1888, a special "catch pit" was built. This pit was designed to stop runaway wagons. In one accident, a wagon with lime and a brake van with gunpowder broke free. They sped down the incline, went across the site, jumped over the canal, and crossed the main railway tracks before one of the containers exploded in a nearby field. Luckily, a passenger train passed minutes later. Wreckage seen in the catch pit today is from another runaway in the 1950s.
The railway became very busy. Quarries at places like Hopton and Middleton Top used the line. Factories like Harboro Brick Works also used it.
Locomotives for the line mainly came from Rowsley shed. But smaller sheds were also at Cromford, Middleton, and Sheep Pasture. These sheds provided places for engines to stay and get small repairs.
In 1855, the railway was allowed to carry passengers. Passengers could ride in a brake van with seats on certain trains. There was no set schedule, but people could ride the one daily train that went the whole 33-mile (53 km) length of the line. Passengers were supposed to get off and walk up the steep inclines, but many risked riding. After a fatal accident in 1877, the passenger service was stopped because it wasn't making money.
- Some photos of locomotives at High Peak Junction and on the C&HPR can be seen here.
- Photos taken on the last day of operation, Sunday 30 April 1967, can be seen here.
Different Names for This Place
Today, we call the canal-side workshop area at the bottom of Sheep Pasture incline High Peak Junction. But when the High Peak Railway was running, the name "High Peak Junction" was actually for the signal box and the place where the railway met the main Midland Railway line. That spot was about three-quarters of a mile away to the south-east.
Over the years, this workshop site has had a few different names:
- Old maps from 1880 and 1884 called the site "Railwayend". This was because it was the end of the railway line before the new junction line was built in 1852. Canal users called the swing bridge here "Railwayend bridge".
- From about 1900 onwards, maps started calling this site "High Peak Junction".
- A list of railway slopes from 1891 called it "Bottom of Sheep Pasture". This name was used for the part of the line next to the workshops.
- Some experts called it Cromford Wharf of the C&HPR or simply Cromford Wharf. However, today, "Cromford Wharf" usually means the original wharf near Cromford Mill. So, sometimes the name High Peak Wharf is used for this site.
- The small goods yard and sidings near the workshops were known as Cromford Goods.
- The 1900 map marks it as Cromford Goods Wharf.
The changing names can be a bit confusing even today!
The Signal Box and Main Line Junction
There was no special law passed to build the branch line connecting the C&HPR to the main Midland Railway line. However, its construction and opening on February 21, 1853, were confirmed later.
Building this branch line involved some arguments about who should pay for it. The C&HPR finally agreed to build it themselves in 1852. They asked the Matlock Company for a siding (a short track for parking wagons) at the junction, which was provided. The line was built along a shelf above the River Derwent.
A description from 1934 said that the High Peak line turned off the main line through the woods, going uphill towards the canal-side site.
The signal box at the main line junction was called "D22". It was located near the Lea Wood river bridge. This signal box closed in October 1967. You can still see its foundations and some wood today.
- A photo of a main line locomotive passing the C&HPR exchange sidings can be seen here.
- A map from 1930 showing both sites – High Peak (main line) Junction and Cromford Goods – can be seen here.
Closure and the Area Today
The High Peak Trail
The High Peak Railway completely closed in 1967. In 1971, the Peak Park Planning Board and Derbyshire County Council bought the old railway track from High Peak Junction workshops up to Parsley Hay. They turned it into the High Peak Trail. At Parsley Hay, it connects with the Ashbourne branch, which is now part of the Tissington Trail. The trail continues north towards Dowlow near Buxton, covering a total distance of 17 and a half miles.
The section of the railway line from the workshops down to the original main line junction was not bought. So, High Peak Junction, next to the Cromford Canal, is the southern starting point of the High Peak Trail. From here, the trail immediately goes uphill, through a tunnel, and up Sheep Pasture incline towards Black Rocks and Middleton Top. You can even hire bikes at Middleton Top.
The Site Today
Most of the railway buildings are still standing today. These include the old offices and the workshops where early locomotives were built and repaired. Next to the transit shed, there is also an engine shed where the yard shunting engine used to be kept. In 1985, the railway workshops and forge were restored and opened to the public. There is also an information center, a shop, and a small cafe for visitors. You can even get an audio guide to learn about the site. The shop is now in what used to be one of the offices.
Inside the workshops, many things look almost the same as when they closed. You can see many old tools and items on display. It's thought that the cast iron rails on either side of the inspection pit might be the oldest railway line in the world still in its original place! Other interesting things to see include a drill, chain bays, old photos, tools, the forge and bellows, and a joiner's bench.
The house where the C&HPR agent lived can be seen next to the A6 above.
About a quarter of a mile from the workshops is the canal-side Wharf Shed. This was the main transit shed. It has a 10-ton crane and a weighhouse. Wagons could pass right through the shed to a covered area beyond. There's still a sign that says engines were not allowed inside the shed because it has wooden beams and floors. The Wharf Shed is now owned by Derbyshire County Council and was turned into a place for groups to stay in the early 1970s. Schools and youth groups can rent it, with room for up to 24 people. It's important to remember that this "Cromford Wharf Shed" is here, not at the end of the canal by Cromford Mill.
A 6-mile (9.7 km) long part of the Cromford Canal between Cromford and Ambergate is a special area for nature, called a Biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). It's also part of the Derwent Valley Heritage Way.
Another interesting place nearby is Leawood Pump House. This building was built to pump water from the River Derwent to keep the Cromford Canal full of water. It started working in 1849 after a very dry summer.
High Peak Junction is easy to get to from the large public car park at Lea Bridge. From there, a footbridge crosses the River Derwent, the railway, and the canal.
From High Peak Junction, walkers can follow the flat canal tow-path in both directions, or they can take the High Peak Trail up the incline.
Images for kids
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The canal-side Wharf Shed at High Peak Junction, a little distance from the workshops. The awning overhangs the canal.
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Another good view of the transit shed
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The workshops and offices at High Peak Junction today
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The watertank was used to fill special wagons, for transport up the line.
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This sign shows the main line branch from the Junction proper running along the wharf, and passing to the right of the Wharf Shed.
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The visitor area today
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Two brake vans on display at Sheep Pasture bottom. Beyond the bridge in the distance the incline leads up the hill towards Black Rocks and Middleton.
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The centre as viewed from across the canal
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Railway End swingbridge across the Cromford Canal at High Peak Junction
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The top of Sheep Pasture incline, which leads up from High Peak Junction
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A cutting on the High Peak Trail
