Facit Incline was a steep main gauge rail track that lowered stone in rail wagons from Facit quarries on the moor top to the processing site located at the valley bottom. The full railway trucks of stone were allowed to descend slowly and to haul up the empty wagons without steam or power other than gravitation. This operation was performed by means of a long wire rope coiled on a wooden drum 12 feet in diameter and 6 feet broad, and controlled simply by two strong rim brakes, almost the circumference of the drum.
Historical Summary:
Working Life: Connected to the Lancashire and Yorkshire main line in 1871. The incline was abandoned in 1946 but the lower finishing works continued to saw and smooth stone for flags untill the mid 1960s.
Quarry Firms: Built by Henry Heys 1871 combining to form Heys & Sanderson from 1932 - 33 - to form the largest sandstone quarry in the UK.
Transport: Main guage incline with passing place to serve moor top quarries at Facit. ‘Lymm’ the railway engine served the moor top railway system above Facit for 72 years and was scrapped in the late 1950s, being the last quarry railway system in the district. The locomotive was built by the Hunslet Engine Company, at Leeds in 1888.
Summary of Surviving Remains: The clear bed of the incline has been left as an access corridor to the moor top. The processing works by the side of the main line were landscaped away in 1987 but the flue system and chimney on the incline survive. The late 19th century chimney has recently been restored through the Valley of Stone project.
At the top of the incline the converted cottages have the overall shape of the loco and work sheds.
The Facit Quarry Incline video below was produced by a group of young people as part of the CAR Video Unit project.