Preserved Victorian railway sidings and turntable pit from depot that closed in 1967 uncovered in Yorkshire during upgrade work

The Huddersfield Hillhouse shed opened in 1882 and was operated by the London & North Western Railway, but there were earlier sidings on the site dating back to the 1850s, when the line was part of the Manchester & Huddersfield Railway.

The siding had cattle docks and coal drops to serve the area’s busy freight traffic, and was also used to store trains that were not in use.

The turntable pit’s foundations were uncovered during three months of excavations at the site near Alder Street as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade project.

Staff studied Victorian maps to get an idea of the layout of the site near to Huddersfield Station, and a survey with archaeological consultancy WYAS was carried out to reveal the remains just below the surface.

Network Rail’s Hannah Lomas said: “This is an amazing insight into what the siding would have looked like over a century ago. Understanding the history and makeup of the railway along the Transpennine route is key to delivering a better, more reliable railway capable of running faster, more frequent trains in the future.

“Working closely with WYAS has allowed us to carefully excavate the site at a much faster speed while also providing useful information about the origin of the materials used and how the sidings helped transport goods around the UK.”

Delicately extracted samples of the brick and mortar will now help the team of experts to learn as much as they can about the site.

WYAS project manager Kevin Moon added: “As part of the planned development of Hillhouse Sidings, we investigated the remains of the mid-19th century railway sidings underneath the modern industrial buildings on the site.

“During the project, the team of archaeologists uncovered two train turntables and a series of brick-built engine sheds, providing valuable information on the early development of the railway system in Huddersfield.”

The shed shut in January 1967, during the period when steam was being withdrawn from the network. It’s thought that the area will be used for carriage storage once the upgrade is complete.