The LNER Encyclopedia

I have a copy of a 1947 working timetable showing cross London freights ...several trains start at LNER "East Goods" and run to Blackfriars (fish Train),
Feltham, Brentford
Battersea, Hither Green and Clapham Junction (fish train)....can anyone identify where "East Goods" is...the other LNER originating yard is Ferme Park
(located) and trains travel via the Metropolitan Widened Lines

Can anyone please locate "East Goods"

Graham Hallett

Tiptreeman,
Graham, there was a group of about a dozen or more sidings just SE of Finsbury Park station, beside, and at the same level as, the main line. These were known as East Goods Yard, and southern access from/to the whole yard was controlled by a signal box of the same name (box abolished in the early-mid 1960s, though the yard continued in rapidly decreasing use, ending as occasional storage for spare coaching stock and engineering trains/vehicles., until closed and their ground was significantly altered by earthworks for the present-day Up Canonbury (and new Up Moorgate) lines to take a new alignment, initially southerly, and descending through the west side of the former yard before turning SE en route to Canonbury Jn.(/ Drayton Park station).
Formerly, the Up Canonbury line turned initially SE from FP station and skirted round the E side of EGY while descending : While East Goods Yard was still in use there was also a further (goods) line from its south end which turned sharply SE from the yard exit and dropped steeply to connect with the Canonbury line.

As Stevie has previously posted where East Goods yard was in relation to Finsbury Park station so here are two separate 'distant views' of the area formerly known as East Goods yard although if you are not familiar with the area they may not mean much?.

The view below was taken in about 1974 during a time of route modernisation and rationalisation of the track and signalling on the GN suburban lines out of Kings Cross and is taken from the south end of the Up slow line platform at Finsbury Park station looking southwards towards the Holloway and Kings Cross direction. The signal box shown in the photograph is Finsbury Park No.4 which signalled the Up lines only with the East Goods yard sidings being located on a fairly wide area of land behind and to the left of Finsbury Park No.4 signal box and then extending for a couple of hundred yards or so southwards to a point in the distance where the Canonbury lines went underneath the main line bridge at Ashburton Grove signal box on the Down Canonbury line and also on Up & Down Goods lines running between Finsbury Park No.1 to Finsbury Park No.2 signal boxes. Since about 1975/76 both the Up North London line & the Up Moorgate line have both descended downwards from about where Finsbury Park No.4 signal box once stood and then head on down either towards Canonbury Junction on the North London line or Drayton Park station on the Moorgate line.

https://www.rcts.org.uk/photographs/mys ... 236-33.jpg

The view below dates from about 1979/80 and is again looking southwards from Finsbury Park station but this time from the other side of the main lines from the south end of the Down slow line platform with the OHL equipment and colour light signalling dominating the scene by then. The area formerly known as East Goods yard was located in the middle distance on the Up side of the running lines into Kings Cross and was slightly to the left and centre of the photograph where the slopping roof is on the railway 'lobby' shown in the picture and extended for a couple of hundred yards or so southwards towards the Holloway direction to a point where the Canonbury lines went underneath the main line at Ashnurton Grove in the far distance. Nowadays the new Arsenal FC Emirates stadium dominates the skyline since 2006 when looking south towards the Holloway direction.

http://www.delticsounds.com/audio_files ... ycover.jpg

Watch out for Zulu's...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/32297024@N08/45725754724/

I don't remember seeing East Goods Yard box because by 1967/68 it wasn't there.

From memory the area of East Goods yard by the late 1960s and on into the early 1970s was about 8-10 roads usually occupied by rakes of ECS trains usually made up or B.R.Mk1 coaches for some reason either in maroon or blue/grey liveries anyway possibly from about 1974 onwards the sidings were cleared of those ECS trains and the sidings were lifted in preparation for the route modernisation work of the Kings Cross suburban area.

Below Brush type 2 (class 31) no.5639 is seen heading into East Goods yard sidings with a rake of inner suburban stock (block enders) and about to pass around the back of Finsbury Park No.4 signal box in 1970.

http://blog.linesidephotographics.co.uk ... 6_Blog.jpg

Hi looking out of a window in our house in Ashburton Grove next to the Holloway Incline in the far distance the signals for the exit from East Goods could be viewed this around 54'/55'delaying my return to my primary school after the lunch break,I would spy a very shine black new 9F,with the right of way once the signal came off, pure white smoke announced its awaited arrival &my wonderment (& continual lateness) of this fantastic pristine locomotive before the name "spaceships"even were thought of.One question did East Goods have any road access at all?

https://maps.nls.uk/view/103313231

No access shown on this link.

John

I hope I have attached an extract from a 1907 Plan of Finsbury Park Station, the extract shows East Goods Yard SB and I hope the location can be seen in relation to the other lines/sidings.

I hope this of help,

Steve

www.gnrsociety.com

GN , North London...………………... where's "Mickey's" usually detailed comments ?

harvester wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2019 10:07 am GN , North London...………………... where's "Mickey's" usually detailed comments ?

I am still here harvester under a different name now as I took a leave of absence for a few months.

That whole area around Holloway/Ashburton Grove/East Goods/Clarence yard & Finsbury Park was very interesting 100% total railways.

Good to hear from you D5601...…………..never thought I'd say that about a diesel ! , but I do enjoy your comments on the southern end of the GN

G'Day Gents

If you look at the yard layouts on the map above, right down the bottom, where the 5/6 is, that's 'Highbury Yard', it was at a lower level, it's only entrance/exit was from Finsbury Park No1, not sure when it closed, but I've shunted a train into that yard in the early 70's.

manna

Was that not Highbury Vale sidings?. We use to live in Avenell road directly opposite the old Arsenal FC Highbury ground during the second half of the 1950s until 1960 and I have always had a very vague memory in the back of my mind as a youngster of around 3 years old around 1959/60 of seeing the railway (from a pram) at that spot at Highbury Vale and maybe seeing a steam loco in the distance shunting some wagons but it is a very vague memory of 60 years ago now.

Hi manna that would be "Highbury Vale"coal yard containing coal lorries belonging to J.E.Harvey or Lebons coal merchants, running alongside Drayton Park where the Arsenal visiting away team coaches parked,I only ever saw a 34A 350hp parked there and not moving very often, In fact I never saw it move, was it manned by shift or requirement,although older members of the type in the 121xx series were seen it was usually a "brand new"D34XXor D36XX parked up,must have been an easy shift if manned?