Stourbridge Railway
The Stourbridge Railway was a small independent railway company in England which existed between 1860, and 1870 when it was taken over by the Great Western Railway. The company built a line from the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway at to Smethwick, where it joined the Stour Valley Line at Galton Junction.
History
Opening
The act of Parliament incorporating the company, the ', was passed on 14 June 1860, allowing it to build a three and a half mile long line from Stourbridge Junction to, another act of Parliament, the ', was passed the following year to allow it to reach the Stour Valley Line at Smethwick. The route was open in full by 1 April 1867.
The had come under the control of the by this time, and so in order to integrate the Stourbridge Railway with their system, the constructed a link from the Stourbridge Railway at Smethwick to Handsworth Junction, which was opened at the same time, connecting it to the 's Birmingham Snow Hill to Wolverhampton Low Level Line, allowing trains to run into Snow Hill station. The running of the line was also taken over by the.
Merger with the GWR
The Stourbridge Railway was formally merged with the in 1870 after it emerged that the company's director W. T. Adcock had fraudulently issued stock.
The route today
The line still functions today as part of the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line.