Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
A view of Brașov’s Old Town.
Romania • 12 days, 11 nights
Legends of Romania: Castles, Ruins & Culinary Delights
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
The Eye of God at Newchurch in Pendle
St. Govor’s Well.
St. Govor’s Well
Shivsrushti
Pierced domes of Hammam Seffarine.
Hammam Seffarine
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Cacio e pepe lasagna combines two classics.
C'è pasta... E pasta!
Spaghetto taratatà is named for the sound of rattling sabers.
Giano Restaurant
The gnocchi here get blanketed in a sugo with braised oxtail.
Cesare al Pellegrino
Romans insist you should feel the cracked peppercorns and cheese grains on your tongue.
Flavio al Velavevodetto
Tripe is fried to a crisp.
L’Osteria della Trippa
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Grasshopper Chapel and grounds.
How the Rocky Mountain Locust Plague Spawned Federal Disaster Relief
about 9 hours ago
The Guy Bradley Visitor Center at Flamingo in Everglades National Park.
America’s First Game Warden Died Fighting for the Birds
about 10 hours ago
Echo Park Time Travel Mart.
Atlas Obscura Presents: Traveling Back in Time for Coconut Cake With The Sporkful
1 day ago
One of the PATH’s many entrances.
A Supposedly Boring Mall I Might Actually Visit Again
2 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United Kingdom England Manchester Mayfield Railway Station

Mayfield Railway Station

Manchester's abandoned train depot lingers in a post-industrial purgatory.

Manchester, England

Added By
Dylan Thuras
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
The remains of Mayfield Station from outside   Pit-yacker on Wikipedia
The remains of Mayfield Station from outside   Pit-yacker on Wikipedia
Interior, showing 1910 buffer stops   philld on Wikipedia
Overgrown station platforms   philld on Wikipedia
Station interior   philld on Wikipedia
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
  rbenn250 / Atlas Obscura User
The site now hosts street food fairs and outdoor art.   JamazingClayton / Atlas Obscura User
‘Everything is Connected’ sign outside Mayfield Railway Station.   JamazingClayton / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
  SEANETTA / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Just a stone's throw from Manchester's ultra-modern Piccadilly Station sits the decaying remnants of England's transportation past: the Mayfield Railway Station. Unfortunately, no one quite knows how to transform this mass of potential into the face of Manchester's future. 

Opened on August 8th, 1910 by the London & North Western Railway (LNWR), according to most accounts, the old Mayfield Railway Station has seen better days. Yet, with the notable exception of a fire ripping through its roadside building in 2005 and gutting its interior, the station and trainshed remain intact to this day. Mayfield's hulking, two-story red brick exterior has withstood over a century of weather, even as nature threatens to retake the station's three train platforms. Inside, the line's enormous original 1910 buffers tops rest as undisturbed as the interior walls, which sit surprisingly undisturbed by vandals.

In the nearly half-century since its official closing on August 23, 1960, much debate has taken place over the future of Mayfield. Never LNWR's busiest station, Mayfield was only built as an overfill station to deflect some of the traffic from Manchester's bustling London Road station. In the last decade, several plans to redevelop the building into everything from an entertainment center to a government center have imploded.

Until a viable plan for Mayfield's redevelopment arrives, occasional film and television crews have made themselves content to use the quiet station as the perfect dystopian backdrop for bringing their post-apocalyptic fantasies to life. 

Update June, 2017: Mayfield is now being developed into spaces for community, recreation etc. On weekends it now hosts a street food fair called Grub.

Related Tags

Abandoned Trains

Community Contributors

Added By

Dylan

Edited By

littlebrumble, jordankirby1, SEANETTA, JamazingClayton...

  • littlebrumble
  • jordankirby1
  • SEANETTA
  • JamazingClayton
  • rbenn250

Published

January 26, 2016

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/m/manchester_mayfield/
  • http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/misc-sites/11506-mayfield-ghost-station-manchester.html#.VpgXYcArLZs
  • https://www.escapetofreightisland.com
  • https://depotmayfield.com
  • I work there
  • https://mayfieldmanchester.co.uk/the-park/
  • https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/first-glimpse-one-manchesters-founding-20674913
Mayfield Railway Station
Fairfield Street
Manchester, England
United Kingdom
53.475833, -2.228056
Get Directions

Nearby Places

'Journey'

Manchester, England

miles away

A Monument to Vimto

Manchester, England

miles away

Godlee Observatory

Manchester, England

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Manchester

Manchester

England

Places 49
Stories 2

Nearby Places

'Journey'

Manchester, England

miles away

A Monument to Vimto

Manchester, England

miles away

Godlee Observatory

Manchester, England

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Manchester

Manchester

England

Places 49
Stories 2

Related Places

  • Bartlett, New Hampshire

    The Abandoned Train of Bartlett, New Hampshire

    An old locomotive hides deep in the forest.

  • Obihiro, Japan

    Kofuku Train Station

    On an abandoned railway line, "happiness" station is still a popular destination for lovers.

  • TY 51 locomotive.

    Krakow, Poland

    Kraków-Płaszów Train Graveyard

    This cemetery of rusting Soviet-era steam locomotives and train cars offers an apocalyptic glimpse into a bygone era.

  • Vienna-style architecture

    Kazichene, Bulgaria

    Royal Station Kazichene

    The Bulgarian royal family exclusively used this ornate, now-abandoned train station.

  • The otherworldly Kokudo Station.

    Yokohama, Japan

    Kokudō Station

    Unchanged for decades, World War II-era bullet holes and nostalgic ghost signs still haunt this desolate train station.

  • View from above, on the entrance and driveway

    Houyet, Belgium

    Halte Royal d'Ardenne

    The private train station King Leopold II built for the Belgian royal family now lies abandoned.

  • Hadiyah, Saudi Arabia

    Hadiyah Railway Station

    Once a major stop on the Hejaz Railway, this desert station (complete with steam locomotive) has been abandoned for decades.

  • The station.

    Toyoura, Japan

    Koboro Station

    Inaccessible by foot, Japan's most secluded train station sits in the middle of nowhere.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.