This artwork, entitled Cheshire Lines, depicts our community’s rich railway heritage in three evocative scenes from the golden age of steam.
This major piece of work is by local artist Rachelle Cleary as part of our I C Art programme to bring urban art to Irlam and Cadishead.
The three pieces that comprise Cheshire Lines tell the story of the Manchester to Liverpool railway line that runs through Irlam.
The central picture celebrates the opening of the line in 1873, with the two city crests of Liverpool and Manchester in the top corners. Competition for passengers in those days was fierce, hence the slogan ‘Punctual services, hourly express trains’ and the painting showing a steam locomotive speeding between the North West’s two great industrial cities.
The left hand painting is a scene at Irlam Station during the Second World War, with the train full of servicemen waving goodbye to their loved ones and two evacuee children waiting to travel to the safety of the countryside during the ‘Blitz’.
On the right is an image of the footplate of a locomotive as it climbs the gradient to the canal viaduct with the Steelworks on the right..
For further information see the HDT page.
Installed on the old railway bridge supports on Liverpool Rd. at Irlam Brew:
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