Railway Institute, Bangor
Bangor Railway Institute
| Date | 1 July 2012 | ||
| Location | Euston Road, Bangor | SH 57283 71538; 53.22165°N, 4.13910°W | |
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The London and North Western Railway (LNWR) was founded in 1846 when three earlier companies merged, and itself became a part of the London, Midland and Scottish (LMS) railway in 1923. When the railways were nationalised in 1948, the Welsh and English lines of the latter became the London Midland Region of British Railways. The mainline railway arrived in Bangor in 1848, when its station opened as the mainland terminus of the Chester and Holyhead Railway. Two years later the tubular Britannia Bridge over the Menai Strait was opened, providing a rail connection to Anglesey. The line was taken over by LNWR in 1859. LNWR was the main employer in Bangor and the West End area of the city, behind the station, has many Victorian terraces of red-brick railwaymen’s houses. In their midst stands the Railway Institute in Euston Road, built in 1898 as a social club and extended in 1905.
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1905
Railway Institute
1898
1905
Railway Institute
Railway Institute
London & North Western Railway Institute
Railway Institute
L & N W monogram
Railway Institute
Railway Institute
Railway Institute
Railway Institute
Railway Institute
Thoroughly depressing how a tasty bit of minor victoriana like this can be left to get in such a state.I expect it is now scheduled for #redevelopment or some other ignimony. It’s a curious building although does bear some faint Chester and Holyhead railway echoes…good that you have captured the LNWR inscription. These are probably the only record there will be. Nice shots…I love the one of the child stepping off the pavement, has a reportage feel – could almost be the Falls road in the 70′s.
Iain Robinson
July 4, 2012 at 8:28 pm
Shabby though the exterior may be, it is apparently still in use as a bar and local venue. Thanks for the comments about the ‘reportage’ – the place was almost deserted on the Sunday morning and by chance a couple of children came running down the road, so I managed to frame a quick shot of one of them.
Graham Stephen
July 8, 2012 at 3:17 pm
Nostalgia surrounds railroads. At one point they were the major form of transportation across countries. Everyone took the train. Now, my observation is that most railways are falling in disrepair. It is unsafe to wander around many of them in the dark. In the US, graffiti artists have tagged most cars. Very few passenger trains exist; most are transporting goods and materials that can’t be flown. And yet, the rhythmic rumble of the train as it approaches and the screech of steel-on-steel as the wheels spark feeds an almost primitive part of the soul. I love trains. I love these photos of a bygone era. It’s a shame it’s in the past, now.
Dezra Despain
July 5, 2012 at 11:17 am
Thanks for the comments Dezra. It is always interesting to get a perspective from other places. The railways here started off as separate companies, which amalgamated into a few big concerns, which were then eventually nationalised is 1948, restructured (i.e. a lot of lines closed down) in the 1960s and then chopped up again in privatisation in 1993 by the Tories – we now have one company responsible for maintaining track and other separate operating companies running the trains.
Graham Stephen
July 8, 2012 at 3:26 pm
Pues me gusta este reportaje, no me gustaría que lo derribaran, forma parte de la historia, deberían restaurarlo, besos
ManoliRizoFotografia
July 5, 2012 at 1:07 pm
Gracias Manoli. Por cierto, este bar todavía sigue en funcionamiento. Saludos.
Graham Stephen
July 8, 2012 at 3:30 pm