Courtmacsherry

The small fishing village of Courtmacsherry, Co.Cork, was an unlikely terminus of a railway line, but in December 1890 and May 1891 the Ballinascarthy & Timoleague Jct Railway and its counterpart the Timoleague & Courtmacsherry Extension Railway opened a 9 mile branch line to here from Ballinascarthy on the Cork Bandon & South Coast Railway's Clonakilty branch line. The Timoleague & Courtmacsherry branch was latterly operated by the CBSCR, and featured a section of Ireland's only standard gauge tramway, running alongside the R601 road between the two villages. Regular passenger services on the branch ceased in 1947, but it remained in use for regular goods, sugar beet and excursion traffic until completely closure of the West Cork lines by CIE in March 1961. Today the small wooden station building at Courtmacsherry remains, as does part of the single platform. The former loco shed also remains in use as boat house, and the nearby pier, constructed for fish traffic in 1893 still survives.
The single storey wooden station building at Courtmacsherry, terminus of the branch line from Ballinascarthy. A veranda has been added to the platform side of the structure seen here. The rear of the station building at Courtmachserry remains unaltered. The building is now a private house, the railway having closed completely in March 1961. The single platform at Courtmacsherry Station survives, though much covered over. The edge of the platform can be seen in the foreground. This view is looking north towards Ballinascarthy. This was once the goods yard, located at the south end of station at Courtmacsherry, adjacent to the small fishing harbour. The station building can be seen, with a hedge grown across the former trackbed.
The original pier at the small harbour at Courtmacsherry, with the same named bay in the background. There was a siding located on this pier which served the fish traffic. This is the former trackbed on the approach to Courtmacsherry Station, with in the foreground the gate posts of a former level crossing leading to a small boat ramp. The station did not process a signal cabin; instead a ground frame was used, once sited on the left. A view looking along the former trackbed towards Ballinascarthy, at the northern end of Courtmacsherry Station. The corrugated iron structure on the right was once the locomotive shed, which had fallen out of use by the 1950s. On the left is the R601 road. Another view of the approach to Courtmacsherry Station, from the R601 road leading into the village. From this point on the the line ran along the road north towards Timoleague.
Between Courtmacsherry and Timoleague the line was constructed alongside the road, this been Ireland's only broad gauge roadside tramway. The line ran on the right hand side of the R601 and passed the front of the school house at Courtmacsherry, with its distinctive three windows. A view along the former line looking towards the station, with the Courtmacsherry school house on the left. The school, dating from 1877, predated the railway which opened in April 1891. This was the steep gradient on the line as it followed the road up towards the village at Courtmacsherry. The line ran along where the footpath is now sited.