The Garstang and Knott End Railway

The Garstang and Knott End Railway

Principal stations                Knott End-on-Sea   Preesall   Carr Lane   Pilling   Cockerham   Nateby   Garstang Town   Garstang and Catterall

The Garstang and Knott End Railway was devised to provide an outlet for farmers around the area of Knott End to transport their produce up and down the country.

In 1863, a prospectus was produced naming six directors of the Garstang and Knot-end Railway. These were: John Russell, Julian Augustus Tarner, Henry Gardner, Colonel James Bourne, Richard Bennett and James Overend. They were given a capital of £60,000 to build an 11.5 mile long railway from a junction with the LNWR to Knott End, passing through and having stations or halts at Garstang Town, Nateby, Cockerham Crossing, Pilling, Carr Lane, Preesall and of course, Knott End.

One of the engines that used the line, the Farmers' Friend, became known locally as the Pilling Pig on account of the squeal made by its whistle. Subsequently this name was given to all engines and today it is often used to refer to the railway itself.

The Pilling to Knott End stretch was closed in 1950; then, in 1963, the remainder of the line closed as a result of the Beeching Axe.

References

• Bairstow, M., (2001), Railways of Blackpool and the Fylde, p. 40-44, Martin Bairstow Publ., ISBN 1-871944-23-6
• Conolly, W.P., (1957), Pre-Grouping Atlas and Gazeteer, p. 24, Fifth Ed. Repr. 1997, Ian Allen, ISBN 0-7110-0320-3
• Kirkman, R and van Zeller, P., (1991), Rails to the Lancashire Coast, p. 50-52, Dalesman Books, ISBN 1-85568-027-0

External link

• The Pilling Pig Project