Horwich station opened to passengers in 1869, the railways would
have a huge impact on the town. Just 16 years later, the decision
was made to site the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway's
Locomotive Works at Horwich. That decision transformed the town,
providing ample employment and prosperity for another century.
What it used to look like.
A 100 years later Horwich declined as a railway town. Dr
Beeching closed the station in 1965 and the huge loco works which
had been the towns major employer for over a century were shut in
1983. The huge buildings for these still remain and can be seen
from quite a long way off.
Ten years later the site of the station was made into park which
opened in 1980. Its just been done up and has a brand spanking new
childrens playground which is the best one this side of Bolton.
It's past is almost unrecogniseable now apart from the area where
the cache is.
For more information and photos of Horwich Station take a look
at these websites.
Horwich
Station
Blackrod/Horwich
Station
At the top end of the park the old cobbled pedestrian path which
took passengers to the platform is still there. It passes by a
large station wall which is now covered in ivy (don't worry no need
to route through the ivy for the cache!). Above the wall the old
stationmaster's cottage is still there. You will need a bit of
stealth as this is an entrance to the park. Its popular with dog
walkers and teenagers but at the time of placement there was no dog
poo or litter around the cache site!
