Bradford Railways history

The original station in Bradford was known as

Market Street station and was the terminus of

the Leeds and Bradford Railway. The Leeds

and Bradford Railway (L&BR) was formed in

 1843 to bring the railway to Bradford: the line

 opened on 1 July 1846. The company was always

 closely allied with the Midland Railway, and within

 ten years the L&BR had been absorbed into the Midland,

 and disappeared. The first station building was an

imposing neoclassical building designed by William

Andrews.

 

 

The line and Market St station opened on 1 July 1846, with hourly services between Bradford and Leeds with some direct services from Bradford to London Euston via Derby and Rugby. The intermediate stations opened within the next few weeks. From 1848 an extension of the line ran via Skipton southwest towards Colne where it joined the East Lancashire Railway in 1849. This 11½ mile stretch was closed in January 1970. Today there is an active campaign to reinstate this missing stretch, led by the Skipton - East Lancashire Rail Action Partnership.

 

By 1853, the Midland Railway had acquired the Leeds and Bradford, and had rebuilt the station. The new building was larger, but apparently less interesting architecturally.
In 1890, the station was again replaced. The Midland Railway's architect Charles Trubshaw designed a large complex containing the passenger station, goods station, and the Midland Hotel. The station had six platforms and an overall glazed roof of the ridge and furrow pattern; the roof was dismantled in the 1960s and replaced with utilitarian 'butterfly' awnings. The station was also used by the North Eastern Railway. The station began to be called Market Street Station at this time, but local maps and directories do not confirm this.
By 1906, Forster Square had been built just south-east of the station, but the name Forster Square Station was not used until 1924. It seems likely that the original station was called simply 'Bradford', at least until the Lancashire & Yorkshire station opened at Drake Street in 1850. After that time it would have been the Midland Station. At some time, it apparently came to be called 'Bradford Market Street', but this does not appear to have been official. Bradshaw's July 1922 Railway Guide, in a timetable footnote refers to Market Street, giving the distance to Exchange Station.