The Media Archive for Central England is the public screen archive for the East and West Midlands. An independent charity and company based at the University of Lincoln, MACE acquires, catalogues, preserves and makes widely available moving image materials that inform our understanding of the diverse cultures and histories of communities between the Lincolnshire coast and the Welsh border.
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Consall Village
With the railway line gone the only access to Consall Forge is via a private toll road. Will the tiny Staffordshire hamlet survive?
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Overview
Consall Forge is in the Churnet Valley in Staffordshire. When Lionel Hampden visited the area was suffering a downturn. The old coal mines and lime kilns lay idle and since the beginning of the year the railway too had closed. The only access was by a toll road owned by local land owner Henry Podmore or, for those on foot, 204 steps down to the valley floor. Both provided somewhat impractical access. Cut off, would Consall Forge avoid becoming a ghost village?
It took quite a few years but it was eventually good news for Consall Forge. The station and the line were restored and reopened forming part of the preserved Churnet Valley Line with passenger trains returning in 1998.
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