Sunday 24 June 2018

The lost pubs of Adlington

Now some will say that Adlington in Lancashire is on the move. 

The Wagon and Horses as was, 2018
In just a decade its population has increased by over 2000, it still has a railway station and it can boast the largest marina on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

And while it lost its traditional textile and coal industry it now attracts residents from Manchester, Bolton, Wigan and Chorley.

But none of that helped the survival of two of its pubs.  These were the Wagon and Horses and the Railway Inn.

Andy was there in Adlington on Friday and couldn’t resist photographing the two former pubs.

He told me that "they are within about 100 yards of each other. I suspect even an amateur might guess the first was once a pub, but not so the bottom one....I only knew because I checked on google maps."

The Railway Inn as was, 2018
Knowing Andy, now that he has identified them as pubs, and photographed them, he will wander off and do the research.

I hope so, because that will settle the debate on which railway line the Railway Inn was named after.

The present railway line links Manchester to Preston and was opened as far as Bolton in 1838 by the Manchester and Bolton Railway, then extended in 1841 by the Bolton and Preston Railway. These were amalgamated, via the East Lancashire Railway, as part of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway.

"Its rival line, dated from the 1860s and was run by the Lancashire Union Railway.  It closed in 1960, although the line remained in use for goods until 1974, with the ticket office remaining as a local café".*

So as they say watch this spot.

Location; Adlington

Pictures;, the lost pubs of Adlington, the Wagon and horses and the Railway Inn, 2018, from the collection of Andy Robertson

*Adlington, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adlington,_Lancashire

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