Tow Law first appears in timetables in September 1847 where there
is a reference to the station in S & D company minutes of 11th
March 1847 when it was reported that 'accommodation was wanted for
passengers'.
The Derwent Iron Company was looking for an outlet to the south
and itself considered building a line towards Crook and the
Stockton and Darlington Railway but in the end it was the S&D
who constructed the Weardale Extension Railway from Crook, via the
rope worked Sunniside incline, to a station at Tow Law joining the
former Derwent Railway at Waskerley, at the head of Nanny Mayors
Incline where a small railway village developed on the top of the
moors. The line was opened to traffic on behalf of Derwent Iron
Company on the 16 May1845; the company subsequently purchased the
Derwent Railway.
The Bishop Auckland & Weardale Railway amalgamated with the
Wear Valley Railway in 1847 which was in turn taken over by the
Stockton & Darlington in 1858 and by the North Eastern Railway
in 1863. On 2nd March 1868 the Sunniside incline was replaced by a
deviation to allow locomotive haulage, this required the resiting
of Tow Law station.
In NER days a through service was provided from Darlington to
Tyneside via Bishop Auckland, Crook, Tow Law, Burnhill and along
the Derwent Valley Line through Blackhill & Swalwell. With
increasing competition from roads and the decline in the handling
of lime and stone the line north of Tow Law to Blackhill (Consett)
was closed to passengers in May 1939 along with the stations at
Burnhill and Rowley ending through running to Tyneside. Shortly
after closure the Government built the Salters Gate Ammunition
Depot across the line between Salters Gate and Burnhill which
effectively totally closed the through line although munitions
trains could access the Burnhill Station transfer yard from both
directions.
The line was further cut back to Crook on 11th June 1956 and the
final section of line from Bishop Auckland - Crook closed to
passengers on 8th March 1965. The track north of Wear Valley
Junction was lifted in late 1967 or early 1968.