Oxfordshire Ironstone Railway

The Oxfordshire Ironstone Railway (the O.I.R.) was a standard gauge railway that served an ironstone quarry near the village of Wroxton in Oxfordshire. It linked to the Great Western Railway about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) to the east, just north of the town of Banbury. Both the quarry and line opened in 1917 and closed in 1967, when the Ironstone ran out. It never became part of British Rail and was run by the quarry's owners.

The quarry was heavily worked in the Second World War, due to extra war needs. A newer quarry close by is now served by trucks only.

The OIR operated its own fleet of steam locomotives: 0-6-0 T, 0-6-0ST and 0-4-0ST's.^[1]

Heavy clay and Ironstone deposits surround Banbury.^[2]

Oxfordshire Ironstone Railway Media

The former Wroxton Quarry in Oxfordshire. Top left is the trackbed between Drayton and Horley, right is the trackbead in Hardwick and the bottom is the old mine itself during the year 2001.

Related pages

Historic imagery of the site

A picture of the former Wroxton Qarry's Pin Hill farm grading works in Banbury, Oxfordshire in 2001.
Picture of the former ironstone quarry works at Wroxton in 2001.
Pictures of the surviving huts at the former quarry in 2001 and the track bed in Hardwick during 2001.
A picture of the mine manager's office in 2001.
A picture of the former ironstone quarry works at Wroxton in 2001.
A picture of Drayton's OIR mine's tool shed or possible staff privy in 2003.
Oxfordshire Ironstone Railway's OIR P-hut at Drayton, Oxfordshire in 2005. At the far right is a pile of rubble was ware a signal post used to be.
Horley's OIR derelict tool hut or a p-hut in 2002. It's overgrown and in the bushes now.
Some shots of Wroxton's old ironstone mine in 2001.
Horley's OIR tool hut or a p-hut in 2001. It's overgrown and in the bushes now.
Horley's OIR tool hut or a p-hut in 2001. It's overgrown and in the bushes now.
The former OIR bridge supports by the former Alcan works in Banbury in 2001.
A OIR track to sleeper pin in Drayton. The words stamped on it say it was made by the Great Western Railway in 1928. It was found in 2002.
Drayton's OIR tool shed in 2004.
A broken old pipe in Hardwick. It is not part of any mains system I know of and looks very old and corroded, so it was probably part of the OIR's grading works.