The Manchester to Buxton Line

The Peak District spa town of Buxton was hugely popular in the nineteenth century and the prospect of a railway line from Manchester to the town was desirable for railway companies during the railway boom in the Victorian age. The Manchester & Birmingham Railway opened its first Manchester station in 1840 and the line reached Stockport that year. By 1863 the London & North Western Railway finally reached Buxton, forestalling its rivals. This book follows the development of the line from today’s Piccadilly Station in Manchester to Buxton. The book examines the development of the line from its beginnings to the present day, stations and stops along the way, the lives of those who financed and built the line and rolling stock of the various companies operating the line through the years. Illustrated throughout with contemporary photographs, maps, tickets and other railwayana, the book is a fascinating portrait of what is today one of North West England’s busiest commuter routes.

Author Biography

Phil Page is a part-time English lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University and a working professional photographer. He is a volunteer at Stockport Image Library and has participated in exhibitions at The Heaton’s Library. He has lived in Heaton Mersey for 30 years. Ian Littlechilds is a professional photographer and author.

Ian and Phil have been working together on several writing and photographic projects since 2005. After teaching in Manchester, and working as tutors for Manchester Metropolitan University, they set up a successful photography business and eventually embarked on writing local history books for Amberley. Both have lived and worked in Greater Manchester for over 35 years. This is Ian’s seventh publication with Phil and Phil’s eighth for Amberley. Their previous collaborations include; The Four Heatons Through Time (2013), River Mersey from Source to Sea (2014), Secret Manchester (2014), From Bugsworth to Manchester, History of the Limestone Trail (2015), The Four Heatons: The Postcard Collection (2015) and Secret Stockport (2017) and Phil’s last publication was Stockport in 50 buildings (2023). In addition to writing they deliver talks on local history to community groups in Greater Manchester, regularly contribute articles to local publications and run workshops on photography for adults and children.