Downpatrick, Killough and Ardglass Railway

The Downpatrick, Killough and Ardglass Railway (DKALR) was an Irish gauge (1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in)) railway in Ireland linking Downpatrick with Ardglass. It was built from 1890 to 1892 and absorbed into the Ulster Transport Authority in 1948. It was closed on 16 January 1950.

The old railway embankment across the head of Killough Harbour

History

The Company was incorporated on 29 November 1890[1] by the Downpatrick, Killough & Ardglass Railway Act, obtained under the Light Railways (Ireland) Act 1889. It was in effect a subsidiary of the Belfast and County Down Railway who were to build and operate it.

The Belfast and County Down Railway decided that it would be built to Irish standard gauge to avoid the trans-shipment of all traffic at Downpatrick.

The cost of construction was over £60,000 (equivalent to £6,570,000 in 2019) [2] and freight services to Ardglass started on 25 May 1892.

The 8.05 miles (12.96 km) line was funded by indirect government subsidy to help the herring fishing industry. From the passenger terminus at Ardglass, a branch ran to the quay in Ardglass to allow fishing boats to unload directly into freight wagons. Freight services from the harbour started on 31 May 1892.

Remains of Ardglass railway station

From Downpatrick, the subsequent stations were Downpatrick Loop, Downpatrick Racecourse, Ballynoe, Bright Halt, Killough, Coney Island Halt and Ardglass. Passenger services started on 8 July 1892.

The line found itself under the control of the Ulster Transport Authority and was closed on 16 January 1950.

References

The Industrial Archaeology of Northern Ireland. William Alan McCutcheon, Northern Ireland. Department of the Environment, Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1984
UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 2 February 2020.

Sources and further reading

Coakham, Desmond (1998). The Belfast and County Down Railway of Ireland: An Irish Railway Pictorial. Leicester: Midland Publishing. ISBN 1857800761.
Patterson, E.M. (1982) [1958]. Belfast and County Down Railway. Newton Abbott: David & Charles. ISBN 071538306X.

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[1] The Industrial Archaeology of Northern Ireland. William Alan McCutcheon, Northern Ireland. Department of the Environment, Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1984

[inflation-UK-2] UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 2 February 2020.