A tram load of bricks from Lane End Brickworks"

Knowl Hill, Buckley

1870

search under Location (Church Road) and Transport (Rail) for images of the level-crossing referred to in the last paragraph

Hancock's Tunnel, after passing under what we knew as "The Old Hill" (the upper part of Army Lane) emerged near The Strip an' at it- which was the mutilated spoil bank of the former Pentrobin Colliery. We called spoil heaps "Slack Banks".

HANCOCK'S TUNNEL

In several photos of the brickworks in the Buckley Photograph Book, quay-like sidings on the Connah's Quay railway line can be seen. Most of them enabled bricks to be loaded directly from the Works into railway trucks and taken away.

One of the works - Hancock's (which is now the only one producing bricks {now closed - ed}) didn't have this facility and the bricks were loaded into "trams" or shipping trolleys in the works and taken in horse-drawn trains of five or six from the works to the railway sidings near the old station in Drury. To get there the narrow-gauge track ran from behind the works offices off Chester Road and through a tunnel which emerged at what we call the Old Hill at the far end of Army Lane. The tunnel was 200-300 yards long, with two ventilation shafts and had a slight curve, so that you couldn't see daylight from one end to the other. On arrival at the Drury sidings the "trams" were pushed onto railway wagons and taken to Connah's Quay along with similar loads from the other brickworks. We often hid until the horse was in the tunnel then jumped on the last tram of the train. (The photo of Mr. Alec Hughes on p.101 of the book shows the kind of tram used). "Trams" seemed to be a popular method of connecting the works to each other. Mr. James Bentley has explored most of them.

Another full-sized gauge line known as The Sidings connected the Mountain Colliery to the Connah's Quay Line. This left the Colliery and crossed Church Road at a level-crossing with gates at what is now Park Way. The top photo on p.101 of the Book shows a small branch off The Sidings (by the bike) and the weighbridge office in the centre. After leaving Church Road the branch went through "The Cutting" (behind the present Etna Road houses ) and curved to the Connah's Quay line near Drury. It was on the Connah's Quay line that I experienced "every school boy's dream" and actually drove a 0-6-0 steam loco (as illustrated on p.102 of the Book). The main track was single line and there were no signals. A train was only allowed on the track when the driver had a "staff" which was kept at Buckley Junction signal box.

Author: Hayes, John Eric, 1918 - 2010

A tram load of bricks from Lane End Brickworks"

Knowl Hill, Buckley

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