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In June 1848, when the Blackburn, Darwen and Bolton Railway reached Bromley Cross, the Signal Box was the first station building to be constructed. The first signal box was of timber construction and was replaced in December 1875 by a brick and timber structure constructed by E.S. Yardley & Co. of Manchester.
At the time the brick box was built by the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway, which had been formed from the amalgamation of several railway companies including the Blackburn, Darwen and Bolton Railway, they installed signalling equipment designed by William Smith which was standard across their network.
The William Smith signalling equipment was replaced in 1902 with lever frame equipment built at Horwich engineering workshops of the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway, which had then recently opened.
The Bromley Cross Signal Box at one stage in its life helped to manage the boundary between the incompatible power signalling systems of the Manchester and Preston railway areas. However, its importance has subsequently been dramatically reduced and now its only role is to operate the gates for the pedestrian crossing at the northern end of the station.
The signal box was refurbished in 2004 when the wooden window frames and facias were replaced with PVC and the steps up to the box were enclosed in a metal safety cage.
Source: “Bolton in 50 Buildings” edited by Ray Jefferson and Jeff Layer (ISBN: 978-1-4456-7873-3)
