Notes: Talacre station was opened by the London & North Western Railway (LNWR) on 1 May 1903. The station was situated on the Chester and Holyhead railway which had opened in stages between 1848 and 1850. It was located close the point where the River Dee enters the Irish Sea at Point of Ayr. By the start of the 20th century the Sandy beaches of this location had become a popular holiday destination, especially with the populations of Liverpool and Manchester which were easily accessible by train. Numerous camping grounds had opened up in the area and Talacre station was opened specifically to cater for this traffic.

By 1903 the section of line through Talacre was a quadruple track railway but the new station was provided with only two platforms on the ‘up’ (Holyhead direction) and the ‘down’ (Chester direction) slow lines. There was no need to have platforms on the fast lines as express services did not need to call at Talacre.

Originally the platforms were of timber construction being replaced by concrete later in the century.

Access was via steps that connected to Station Road (presumably renamed when the station opened) which passed over the line to the east of the station (in the 19th century the road had passed over the line via a level crossing a little further to the east).

The station was provided with goods facilities which were located on the east side of the overbridge.

Just to the east of the station lay the Point of Ayr Colliery. Opened in the 1880s it was initially served by coastal ships but in April 1909 sidings were opened on the north side of the line so that coal could be moved by rail. The sidings were controlled by Point of Ayr signalbox which opened at the same time.

Talacre station would have been at its busiest in the summer months during the holiday season.

In 1923 the station became part of the London Midland & Scottish Railway (LMS) and from 1 January 1948 British Railways London Midland Region (BR[LMR]).

The station closed to public goods services on 4 May 1964 and completely on 14 February 1966.

The buildings were demolished but both platforms were extant in September 2021.

CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTOS OF THE POINT OF AYR COLLIERY SIDINGS

Tickets from Michael Stewart. Route map by Alan Young

Sources:

• Baughan, P A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain Volume II - North & Mid Wales (David & Charles, 1980)
• Johnson, S Johnson's Atlas & Gazetteer of The Railways of Ireland (Midland Publishing, 1997)
• Quick, M Railway Passenger stations in great Britain - A Chronology (RCHS, 2009)

To see other stations on the Chester - Holyhead line click on the station name: Sandycroft, Queensferry, Connahs Quay, Bagillt, Holywell Junction, Mostyn, Prestatyn (1st site), Prestatyn (2nd site and Dystrth branch platform), Foryd, Llandulas, Llysfaen, Old Colwyn, Mochdre & Pabo,
Llandudno Junction (1st site), Conway, Conway Marsh, Llanfairfechan, Aber, Menai Bridge, Britannia Bridge, Gaerwen & Valley