Birmingham Central Goods Station

LMS Route: Birmingham West Suburban Railway

Birmingham Central Goods Station was originally known as Worcester Wharf, the name being given to reflect that it was built adjacent to the terminus of the Worcester and Birmingham Canal. The site of the depot was bordered by Holliday Street on one side, Suffolk Street at the front (with Allport Street cutting the corner of Holliday Street and Suffolk Street) and Navigation Street on the other side with Holliday Passage and Worcester Wharf at the rear of the site above the tunnel. Further expansion of the depot would see the buildings from Navigation Street to Severn Street be demolished including the road that joined the two together - Fordrough Street. The goods station was initially built as a small affair with a single road goods shed and a 'metal shed' for storing metal castings and goods. Altogether there were five sidings, two being employed in accessing the sheds with the other three being for sidings. Within the confines of the yard, adjacent to Holliday Street and Holliday Passage, there was a cutting which exposed the Birmingham West Suburban Railway for a brief distance undoubtedly helping to alleviate the smoke congregating within the tunnels.

The development of Worcester Wharf and then Birmingham Central Goods Station is inextricably linked to the development of the Birmingham Suburban Railway. When in 1879 Parliament granted the Midland Railway permission to both double the Birmingham West Suburban Railway line from Kings Norton to Granville Street as well as to straighten out the line which had followed the alignment of the canal causing some severe curves, it had also granted rights to the Midland Railway to purchase land in the Worcester Wharf area. This was soon followed by another application in 1881 to Parliament to extend the railway to New Street station. As soon as this work was initiated the Midland Railway submitted another application to Parliament to compulsory purchase property and land between Suffolk Street, Severn Street, Wharf Street, and the Worcester Wharf in Birmingham. When complete the depot would accommodate 375 wagons and be wider than New Street but only one third of its length.

The Worcester Wharf goods branch and station opened for traffic on 1st July 1887. The Notice for August 1887 to the Working Time Table showed three trains in each direction being available. Expansion of the depot would continue for the next fifteen years starting with the metal shed on the up side of the depot in November 1887. On Monday 23rd July 1888, the Engineer's Department commenced removing spoil from the depot to Selly Oak. The building of a new and much larger warehouse was to follow opening in 1890. Further facilities provided included an engine house, boiler house, accumulator house, all for generating electricity. These were soon followed by a Hydraulic House for providing power to the capstans and lifts within the yard and the warehouse and an Oil Gas Works for lighting buildings and carriages etc. These facilities were located in buildings that lay adjacent to the rear of the signal box and along side of Holliday Passage.

The name change occurred on 31st May 1892, the same day that the new Lifford Curve was opened to traffic thereby facilitating the direct transit of wagons from Camp Hill to the depot without reversing at Kings Norton. After the Second World War passenger rated parcel traffic was transferred from New Street Station to Central Goods Station. In 1947 and 1948 alterations were carried out at the warehouse to allow it to handle more parcels traffic which continued to grow so that by the 1960s the majority of traffic was parcels related with the balance being the delivery of white spirit in tanks. Due to competition from road hauliers the parcel trade also declined leaving the railway unable to compete. The Goods station closed on 6th March 1967 with the signal box closing on 17th December 1967 and connections at Church Road Junction to and from the Central Goods Station were secured as out of use pending their removal. on 7th September 1969, Church Road Junction signal box was closed and control of signalling passed to New Street Power Signal Box.

If you are interested in knowing more about Birmingham Central Goods Station you can do no better than to read AE Overton's 32 page article in the Midland Record, Edition No 17, 2003, edited by RJ Essery and published by Wild Swan Publications Ltd of Didcot. I would like to take the opportunity of crediting this article as being the source for much of the information provided above and in the captions to the photographs.

Select an image below to view the larger version with accompanying text:

Ref: mrcgy129 NRM A general view of the Midland Railway's Central Goods Yard and Warehouse in Birmingham circa 1895

Ref: mrcgy129a NRM Close up showing the variety of goods being off-loaded from railway wagons for onward distribution

Ref: mrcgy129b NRM Close up view showing the vehicles employed by the MR for delivering goods to its customers or their customers

Ref: mrcgy915 NRM DY 12738 View of Birmingham Central Goods Station's warehouse and covered loading dock seen from Severn Street

Ref: mrcgy915a NRM DY 12738 Close up showing the method of transporting timber planking utilising standard open railway wagons

Ref: mrcgy915b NRM DY 12738 Close up showing the timber planking being transferred to horse-drawn road vehicles for onward distribution

Ref: mrcgy915c NRM DY 12738 Close up showing some of the 1896 siding accommodation including a furniture van dock and cattle pens

Ref: mrcgy915d NRM DY 12738 Close up showing a typical gang of yard labourers at work off-loading timber from the open wagons

Ref: mrcgy916 NRM DY 3018 View of Birmingham Central Goods Station's two-storey warehouse erected by Edward Wood in 1890

Ref: mrcgy916a NRM DY 3018 Close up showing the siding running adjacent to the wall on the Holliday Street side of the warehouse

Ref: mrcgy916b NRM DY 3018 Close up showing the three track rail entrance to Birmingham Central Good Station's warehouse

Ref: mrcgy692 RS Carpenter Looking towards the sidings and the warehouse from the corner of Severn Street and Suffolk Street

Ref: mrcgy692a RS Carpenter Close up showing the majority of the wagons employed for moving goods were five or seven plank open wagons

Ref: mrcgy692b RS Carpenter Close up showing the wide variety of the railway company wagons that were typically to be found in a goods yard

Ref: mrcgy928 NRM A panoramic view of Central Goods Station from Holliday Passage above the tunnel on 26th September 1922

Ref: mrcgy928a NRM Close up showing Central Goods Station's extended timber built 'metal shed' and two-storey stable block

Ref: mrcgy928b NRM Close up showing an unidentified MR 1377 class locomotive on duty shunting the metal shed siding

Ref: mrcgy928c NRM Close up showing the site of the original Worcester Wharf Goods Station adjacent to Holliday Street

Ref: mrcgy928d NRM Close up showing the rail entrance to Central Goods Station's warehouse on 26th September 1922

Ref: mrcgy928e NRM Close up showing the right-hand side of the depot including part of the building housing the Oil Gas Works

Ref: mrcgy924 NRM DY 656 A late19th century view from Severn Street of the right hand side of Birmingham Central Goods Station

Ref: mrcgy924a NRM DY 656 Close up showing one of the Midland Railways' four-wheel non-ventilated covered vans being unloaded

Ref: mrcgy924b NRM DY 656 Close up showing the dray and lorry platform used for moving goods direct from the railway to the customer

Ref: mrcgy922 NRM D12746 View of Birmingham Central Good Station's Goliath over head travelling steam crane and the 1912 offices

Ref: mrcgy927 NRM DY 12742 Looking towards Suffolk Street along the lorry and dray loading platform that ran along side the warehouse

Ref: mrcgy491 NRM The top floor of the Midland Railway's Central Goods Yard Warehouse and the method of shipping and storing goods

Ref: mrcgy490 NRM Another view of the well lit and airy top floor of the Midland Railway's Central Goods Yard and Warehouse facility

Ref: mrcgy920 NRM DY 12744 The top floor of Birmingham Central Goods Depot's warehouse being used to store boxes of Quaker Oats

Ref: mrcgy921 NRM Another view of the first floor at Birmingham Central Good Depot's warehouse showing boxes of Quaker Oats

Ref: mrcgy691 DJ Norton External view of the Midland Railway Central Goods Station Offices located between Allport and Suffolk Street

Ref: mrcgy925 CJ Williams View of Central Goods Station's offices with Suffolk Street on the left and Holliday Street on the right

Ref: mrcgy913 Pro Rail 421/72 No 208 Firemen are seen dampening down the smouldering remains of the warehouse on the 26th October 1940

Ref: mrcgy914 Pro Rail 421/72 No 210 View of the charred remains of the lorry/dray loading platform following the raid on 25th October 1940

Ref: mrcgy926 Pro Rail 421/72 No 211 The remains of the warehouse viewed from the Allport Street offices with the 1912 offices in the foreground

Ref: mrcgy695 DJ Norton Looking towards the Central Goods Depot with the Matthew Boulton Technical College towering above the warehouse

Ref: mrcgy695a DJ Norton Close up showing Birmingham Central Goods station's rebuilt warehouse erected following bomb damage

Ref: mrcgy912 CJ Williams A June 1966 view of the Central Goods Station's rebuilt warehouse and yard with the metal shed on the left

Ref: mrcgy912a CJ Williams Close up showing a row of temporary timber built offices together with the five sidings on the left of the yard

Ref: mrcgy912b CJ Williams Close up showing the front of Birmingham Central Goods Station's 1941 rebuilt warehouse and sidings

Ref: mrcgy912c CJ Williams Close up showing the remodelled layout of the yard adjacent to Severn Street as remained in June 1966

Ref: mrcgy695b DJ Norton Close up showing the remodelled sidings which were sited between the warehouse and Severn Street

Ref: mrcgy696 DJ Norton View of Central Goods Depot's signal box as ex-MR 0-6-0 3F No 43675 leaves the yard at the head of a freight train

Ref: mrcgy699 RJ Essery View of Birmingham Central Goods Station's signal box following closure as seen on 30th September 1967

Ref: mrcgy918 RJ Essery Looking across the yard towards the tunnel shortly after Birmingham Central Goods Depot had been closed

Ref: mrcgy911 D Ibbotson View of Granville Street's goods tunnel mouth showing the lights and the point work within the tunnel itself

Ref: mrcgy917 Institute of Civil Engineers Looking towards Five Ways during the 1885 alterations with the canal on the left and the main line on the right

Ref: mrcgy908 D Ibbotson Looking towards Bath Row road bridge with the Jewish cemetery amongst the trees on the right circa 1957

Ref: mrcgy693 D Ibbotson View of the branch line to the depot which left the Birmingham West Suburban Railway near Five Ways

Ref: mrcgy910 D Coles View of the ground frame located at the Five Ways end of Granville Street tunnel controlling the cross over

Ref: mrcgy698 DJ Norton Looking along Suffolk Street with Birmingham Central Goods Depot behind the hoardings on the left

Ref: mrcgy919 Institute of Civil Engineers Managers and engineers involved with the alterations and new work of the West Suburban Railway

Ref: mrcgy694 RS Carpenter Ex-Midland Railway 0-6-0 3F No 43355 is seen marshalling vans in the yard to the front of the rebuilt warehouse

Ref: mrcgy909 AE Overton View of the drawing showing the 1947 Box Diagram of the layout of Birmingham Central Goods Station

Ref: mrcgy697 Crown Copyright Map showing the MR's Central Goods Depot and Warehouse in LMS days with the offices in the triangle by Allport Street

Ref: central_goods_map A Doherty Location of Central Goods Depot and its juxtaposition with New Street station seen on Bartholomews Map