Kents Bank: a station and a library for everyone

One year after the Kents Bank Railway Library was opened, Library Manager Dr Paul Salveson recounts how the station and library are being developed into a fascinating valuable resource for the local community and for the wider railway family.

Kents Bank Station is unique.

As well as its award-winning gardens, it is home to a vast library of railway books and to an art gallery, The Beach Hut.

While the latter is well-established, the Railway Library is quite new, opened by Lord Peter Hendy (when chairman of Network Rail) in January 2024.

The station’s history dates back to 1857, when the Ulverstone and Lancaster Railway opened, connecting into the West Coast Main Line at Carnforth. The railway replaced the perilous ‘over sands’ crossing which cost the lives of hundreds of travellers over the centuries.

The first station was a modest affair, and it closed for a short time in the early 1860s owing to lack of custom.

However, it reopened shortly afterwards and its new owner, the Furness Railway, built the fine stationmaster’s house. Designed by Paley and Austin of Lancaster, it survives to this day and is the base for the library. The single-storey extension, which houses part of the Station House, a waiting room and The Beach Hut Gallery, was added in 1890.

During its heyday, there was a stationmaster and several other members of staff. The last station master, Dennis Phillips, remained in post until 1972, and his wife continued as Level Crossing Keeper for a few more years. Station House was later sold into private ownership.

Today, the station is little changed from 1890, and the station gardens have been restored to their former glory by the Friends of Kents Bank Station and Foreshore.

The Railway Library

The emphasis of the collection, comprising several thousand titles, is on the social history of railways - including rural and ‘community’ railways. But it covers all aspects of railways and transport, in the UK and abroad. It also includes a growing number of children’s railway books.

Sections include: Social history of railways; Stations and their communities; Trade union histories; Railways and tourism; Railway company histories; Biographies; Light railways and narrow-gauge; Branch Line histories; Civil and mechanical engineering; Architecture; Signalling and operating the railway; Wartime and safety; Maps and plans; International railways; Regional histories; Buses and trams; and The history of ‘railway enthusiasm’.

We have a near-full set of The Railway Magazine, dating back to 1897. We also have several bound volumes of railway union journals going back to the 1890s, including from ASLEF and the Railway Clerks Association (now TSSA).

There is a good geographical spread of branch line histories, and some specialist books on the working and maintenance of railways and locomotives which were not produced for the general public.

We also have some timetables dating back to the 1920s - but would like to have more, going back earlier.

Thanks to recent donations we have a very good collection of books on trams, light rail and narrow-gauge railways, as well as canal, cycling, bus and trolleybus material.

The library is primarily for reference - there is material which is scarce and often only available in specialist collections such as the National Railway Museum in York.

However, most of the books are available to borrow - although the most precious, such as bound volumes of railway periodicals dating back to the 1840s, are for reference only.

The library is free to use - anyone can turn up and browse, borrow, or in some cases buy books from the collection.

However, we welcome donations to help cover our costs. We are hoping to develop the library as a ‘railway study centre’ offering a unique service in the North West and beyond.

The book sales section is an extending part of the library, bringing in useful income to help develop the services offered.

Most ‘for sale’ books are duplicates that have been donated. Prices range from as little as 50p to £15.

The library displays numerous artefacts of historic interest, including the nameplate from 47085 REPTA 1893-1993.

This was the Railway Employees’ Privilege Ticket Association, which closed in 2023. The nameplate was donated by the trustees of the organisation and re-dedicated in October.

Earlier this year, supporters of the library raised funds to purchase at auction an original BR totem from Kents Bank. It was unveiled by Lord Hendy and the mayor of Grange at a well-attended event in January.

The library is managed by a small team of trustees who have extensive railway and community development experience. The librarian is John Kitchen, a retired professional librarian and former manager of Community Rail Cumbria. Everyone contributes their time voluntarily.

There is also a ‘supporter’ group, which is a way of generating wider interest in the library and encouraging volunteer involvement.

As well as being open three days a week, the library hosts a monthly Mutual Improvement Class, reviving an old railway self-help tradition.

Guest speakers cover topics of broad railway interest, including Irish narrow-gauge railways, ‘best-kept stations’, and Flying Scotsman’s visit to America. The talks are free but have to be pre-booked owing to limited available space.

We have held two book launches so far: Bahamas: The Story of a Steam Locomotive by Peter Skellon, and Bob Whitehouse’s Footplate Passenger.

The railway industry has given strong support to the library.

In September, a team of Network Rail managers, as part of the company’s employee volunteering scheme, came up for a day to help with re-shelving, paint work and other jobs.

Train operators, including Northern (which manages the station and operates the trains), TransPennine Express and Avanti West Coast, have helped us in many different ways.

The library is also keen to build links with the rail unions, and has been featured in publications such as ASLEF’s Locomotive Journal.

We work closely with the Community Rail Partnership for the Furness Line. Its chair, Tim Owen, recently gave a talk on the work of the Furness Railway Trust and its celebrity locomotive, Furness Railway No. 20.

We have good links with Friends of Kents Bank Station and Foreshore, Furness Line Action Group (FLAG), and many local community groups. We have also had great support from Grange Town Council and Westmorland and Furness Council.

We are developing relationships with the wider railway community. We are members of Community Rail Network (in the ‘community stations’ category) and have good relations with the East Lancashire Railway and the Manchester Locomotive Society.

We’re keen to reach out to other railway groups, whether in the heritage sector or enthusiast networks. Railway 200 offers a great opportunity to promote our services, and we’re looking at ways we can contribute to the anniversary and the forthcoming Liverpool and Manchester ‘Rocket 2030’.

Library patrons include Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill (now Rail Minister), local MP Tim Farron, CRP chair Tim Owen, rail consultant Nina Lockwood, and writers Christian Wolmar and Andrew Martin.

The Beach Hut Gallery, located in the 1890 extension to the station building, was established in 2010 and made use of what was a derelict toilet block.

Northern Rail and what was then Railtrack helped a small group of artists to get the gallery established, and it has been run as an artists’ co-operative - exhibiting work by local artists.

Earlier this year, the members of the co-operative and the library trustees came together to develop the library and gallery under a single management.

While Station House is privately owned (by myself and partner Linda), we effectively lease the cellar space to the library, free of charge. The Beach Hut Gallery’s landlord is the Arch Co, with whom we have an excellent and positive relationship.

The gallery has gone through a difficult time post-COVID but is starting to recover. It will continue to focus on work by local artists and writers, and to develop a book section with an emphasis on art, local history and landscape.

We are hoping to display some railway art. We were recently loaned paintings by the late Roy Wilson, former artist in residence at the National Railway Museum and ex-Vulcan Foundry apprentice. Roy is survived by his brother Brian, who lives nearby and is keen to get Roy’s work known to a wider public.

Over the next year we will be getting the book collection into good order, and we are beginning the lengthy process of cataloguing the collection. Space is at a premium, so while we continue to welcome donations of books that fill gaps in the collection, we are looking at offering more duplicate books for sale.

Future plans include developing a small cafe that can offer teas, coffee, cake and ice cream (locally sourced, of course!). We have been in discussion with the Railway Heritage Trust and our landlords about restoring some heritage features of the building, including the entrance porch.

Kents Bank is served by regular trains from Manchester Airport to Barrow-in-Furness, operated by Northern. The library and gallery are open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday between 1100 and 1600. However, we are happy to host small group visits at other times and welcome visiting researchers on an appointment basis.

Our strength lies in our volunteers - and we need more. If you are interested in helping out, perhaps just for a day a month, please get in touch. But whether you’re coming to browse the books or look at some exciting art, you’ll be assured of a warm welcome.

Professor Paul Salveson MBE is chairman of the South-East Lancashire Community Rail Partnership, a member of the Rail Reform Group, and founder member of ACoRP (CRN). He is a Visiting Professor at the Universities of Huddersfield and Bolton.