Enjoy a Marvellous Day Out in Mouldsworth on the Mid Cheshire Line
In our Marvellous Days Out booklet, John Hulme says:
For a small village halt, Mouldsworth Station has an extraordinary story to tell.
Until 2006, there was a signal box just beyond the bridge.
This was originally built in 1869 to control the junction to the Helsby and Alvanley branch line.
Although the line closed to freight services in 1991, if you check out the 1938 Bradshaw timetable there were 2 Sunday summer holiday trains from Birkenhead to Northwich.
Yes, the Mid Cheshire Line has its roots as a tourist destination but I often wonder what those happy travellers found to do in Northwich until 8pm on a summer’s Sunday evening!
For 15 years, the Station House at Mouldsworth has been a hairdressing salon.
Whistles Hair and Beauty Salon is based in the Old Ticket Office and if you look inside you will see they have retained the old wooden ticket draws from bygone days.
For those who travel to the station to take our Mouldsworth Rail Trail, you cannot miss The Goshawk pub directly opposite the station.
It used to be called the Station Hotel.
Their extensive food menu comes highly recommended.
Before you leave the village, take a left turn outside the station and walk down Station Road for 100 yards and you will see on the right a church – St Cuthbert by the Forest.
You cannot miss its standalone campanile bell tower.
When I spoke to Father Joe, he told me an extraordinary story.
Back in the 1920’s there was an influx of Irish farm workers and the landlady of the Station Hotel persuaded a curate from St Werburgh’s to come out and say Mass in a pavilion behind the hotel but it had to coincide with the Mid Cheshire Line train times.
After the war, the landlady purchased the land next to the hotel and St Cuthbert was opened in 1953.
John Oates, Chair of the Mid Cheshire Community Rail Partnership says:
“As we approach the end of our journey on our Line, many thanks to all those that have contributed to this excellent website.
I hope you find it useful in planning your Marvellous Days Out on the Mid Cheshire Line.”
