Birmingham Curzon Street railway station (1838–1966)

Background The construction of the station, which was originally known simply as Birmingham station, is closely associated with the creation of the London and Birmingham Railway (L&BR), the first inter-city line to be built into London and the largest project to have ever been undertaken in Britain at the time. The L&BR's station was built on the south side of the site, featuring a pair of platforms in parallel (one for arrivals and the other for departures), along with four carriage sidings next to the tracks leading to the two outer platforms; six lines in total served the station. To the rear of the departure platform, a lengthy building accommodating booking offices, waiting rooms and a parcels office was present. Various additional railway facilities were also constructed nearby on land to the south and east of the station; these included carriage sheds for the L&BR, a sixteen-sided engine house, and freight handling areas for the transhipment of goods between the L&BR and the neighbouring Birmingham Canal. A dedicated L&BR freight depot was also established to the north of the station. By 1846, the station was already being extensively modified. Located only half a mile to the west of the preceding station, New Street was completed in 1854; the majority of passenger services were diverted away from the older station that same year. As a goods station During November 1852, the name of the station was changed from Birmingham to Birmingham Curzon Street. The primary use of the station became the handling of goods; initially this was as an overflow to the adjacent goods depot, rail freight increased considerably during the mid 1850s. These excursions continued until Easter 1893, their discontinuation was to facilitate the expansion of the main lines into New Street from two to four. The platforms, along with the original train sheds, were demolished that same year. For a time, the site was largely used as a car park. == Surviving structures ==

Entrance building The surviving Grade I listed entrance building was designed by Philip Hardwick, having been intended to be used as the company's offices and boardroom. Built during 1838, it is among the world's oldest surviving pieces of monumental railway architecture. Built at a cost of £28,000, the architecture is Roman inspired, following Hardwick's trip to Italy in 1818–1819. It has tall pillars running up the front of the building, made out of a series of huge blocks of stone. The design mirrored the Euston Arch at the London end of the L&BR. In 1841, a hotel extension – known originally as the Queen's Hotel – was added to the northern (Curzon Street) side of the building, but was eclipsed (and renamed the Railway Hotel) when a new Queen's Hotel was opened next to New Street station. During June 1900, the Railway Hotel was closed, after which the contents were sold and the space was converted into offices for the goods depot. On 27 January 1847, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers was established with George Stephenson as its first president in the Queen's Hotel; a plaque commemorating the centenary of the event was placed inside the station building when the hotel was demolished. In 1897, Ansells Brewery had a purpose built public house, The Woodman, that was built opposite the station. It was still open by 2020. In separate instances, during 1970 and 1978, British Rail applied to demolish the Principal Building, but permission to proceed was refused on both occasions. Instead, in 1979, the ownership of the building was transferred to Birmingham City Council, which carried out extensive restoration and repairs over the following three years, at which time the newer hotel wing was demolished. A commemorative plaque was installed next to the station entrance in 1988 which reads: "THIS PLAQUE COMMEMORATES THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARRIVAL OF THE FIRST LONDON TO BIRMINGHAM TRAIN AT THIS STATION ON MONDAY 17TH SEPTEMBER 1838". The building was unused except for the occasional art exhibition. Birmingham City Council had hoped to refurbish the building and find an alternative tenant. It was expected to be the centrepiece of the City Park and Masshouse development scheme, which is located around the site, most of the surrounding buildings having been demolished. However, these plans were superseded by the High Speed 2 proposal, which will incorporate the surviving entrance building into the eastern entrance of a new station. Renovation of the building was funded through a housing and regeneration grant rather than the HS2 Act, and when funding ran out in May 2022, work was temporarily suspended. Internal refurbishment was "well advanced" but funding could not be secured for external facade repairs. HS2 said it was working to "identify further heritage funding to fully restore this iconic landmark for the city." Engine shed A turntable (then called a "turn plate") and stabling sidings, designed by Robert Stephenson, were operational from 12 November 1837. It was soon found that inclement weather hampered operations, and a roundhouse - likely the first railway roundhouse in the world - was constructed over them. There were 16 lines off the turntable. The shed was demolished in the mid 1850s, with materials being salvaged for use elsewhere. In March 2020, during preparatory works for the construction of the HS2 station, archaeologists uncovered the remains of the roundhouse and turntable. It is planned to preserve them and incorporate them into the new station building. File:Roscoe L&BR(1839) p202 - Entrance to the London & Birmingham Railway, Birmingham.jpg|An 1839 drawing of Curzon Street, showing the planned flanking arches, which were never built File:Curzon Street Railway station.JPG|Print from a 19th-century guide book showing the 1840 hotel extension to the north of the terminus building File:Grand Junction Railway Curzon Street Station.jpg|Joseph Franklin's Curzon Street Station screen for GJR, now largely demolished File:Curzon Street Railway Station, Birmingham, Warwickshire - 1943 - E B Musman .jpg|1943 drawing by E. B. Musman File:Curzon Street Station rear.jpg|Rear of station building, across former freight depot (now car park), with Masshouse block M behind File:Curzon Street Station plaque -Birmingham -UK.JPG|The plaque to the right of the entrance commemorating the first train from London to Birmingham ==References==