***** Well Done BullodCD FTF *****
Brick kilns and steam trains were once a big feature of the Dales Road area of Ipswich.
Many people grew up using the brick fields as their play area, and many of the older generation can recall the large brick works - but few can recall much of the rail line which served the site.
It has been referred to as 'Ipswich's forgotten railway'
The narrow gauge line linked to the main East Suffolk line between Westerfield Road and Henley Road. It served the Grove Brick Yard at Grove Farm at the end of the cul-de-sac off Henley Road. Three cottages, which are still there today, were built in 1880 for the employees. The manager of the site lived at Boulder House which was where June Avenue is now.
The line carried the products of the works to be stacked for reloading onto the main line. On the return journeys the train carried coal to the kilns. The largest brick works was where Dales Road and the modern roads around are now. The rail line passed under Henley Road where the entrance to the sports club is today. One parapet of the bridge is still beside the road. The line then passed under Dale Hall Lane and through where Baronsdale Close is now.
The line then dropped down the hill to the brick works operated by Rosher and Company until 1901 when it was taken over by Bolton and Laughlin. The Grove Brickworks had closed a century ago, but the Dales Brickworks, then trading as A Bolton and Company, worked until 1959 when the last batch of bricks were fired.
This Cache is placed next to the remains of the Bridge on Henley Road - the Bridge now forms part of a garden wall !!
About SideTracked Caches
This cache belongs to the SideTracked series. It is not designed to take you to a magical place with a breath taking view. It's a distraction for the weary traveller, but anyone else can go and find it too. More Information can be found at the SideTracked Website