The Friends of Handforth Station have celebrated the 180th anniversary of the Manchester to Sandbach by displaying a series of banners and posters at the station, having secured funding from Handforth Town Council and the South Manchester Community Rail Partnership.
In addition to the banners and posters, FoHS members designed and built headboards intended for trains running on the Manchester to Sandbach line on the anniversary day.
Roger Small (FoHS member) said "The180th anniversary display has attracted significant local interest and has evokedan invitation for FoHS to give a talk to a local youth group on the history of the line.
"It usefully supplements the FoHS website presentation entitled a History of Handforth station including its Military Branchlines."
The Manchester to Birmingham Railway Company was founded in 1839. Its first public service between Manchester and Sandbach was reported The Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser on Saturday 14th May 1842. The second portion of this line, twenty-one miles in length, from Stockport to Sandbach, was opened to the public on Tuesday 10th May 1842.
