Ashton, Stalybridge and Liverpool Junction Railway
The Ashton, Stalybridge & Liverpool Junction Railway company (AS&LJR) was formed in 1844.
The route surveyed in 1843 by civil engineer Thomas Longridge Gooch as part of his work on the Manchester & Leeds Railway (M&LR) and consisted of a line from a junction with the M&LR at Miles Platting (near Manchester) to Stalybridge, The line also had a branch to Ardwick.
The line from Miles Platting Junction to to Ashton-under-Lyne opened on 13 July 1846. By early October, the line had been completed through to Stalybridge and would later be linked to the Huddersfield & Manchester Railway in August 1849 to provide a new route through to Yorkshire.
The company became a constituent part of the newly formed Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) in July 1847.
Route
The route from Miles Platting Junction to Stalybridge (as marked on the 1890s 6" O.S. map) is shown below: