As the size of Fox's steelworks expanded, better transport links were needed, and the railway was authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1874.

The company was to have three directors, and these were named as Samuel Fox, Henry Unwin, and James Halliday in the act, on the understanding that when the first ordinary meeting of shareholders was held, they could retain these men or elect others as they thought appropriate.

At that time, the steelworks also owned 11 steam locomotives for use internally, all but one with the 0-6-0 wheel formation, and with a mixture of side and saddle tanks.

[1] Some idea of the size of the undertaking can be gained from the fact that in 1954 it carried 490,912 tons of traffic, and 22 staff were employed to operate the railway.

The pitch was made by Miriam Cates, the MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, the Sheffield City Region Mayoral Combined Authority, and the Don Valley Railway group.

On the 4th of October 2023 Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed that the Don Valley Railway between Stocksbridge and Sheffield would be on the list of lines to be reopened as part of the government's "Network North" Scheme which was launched to replace HS2.

The preferred route ran along the southern edge of Fox's site, close to the road, but in order to fit it in, the Little Don River needed to be diverted to the south, and a bridge constructed to carry the railway over the revised course.

From the western end of the site, the new line continued under Underbank Lane, and ran on the north side of the road from Stocksbridge to Flounce.

Within the steelworks, construction was carried out by Fowler and Marshall, a contract which included diverting the river and building the bridge.

[11] After 1907, the tracks were retained for another five years or so, and occasional trains of chalk were worked up to Langsett Reservoir by locomotives from the steelworks.

[12] Deepcar station was on the Woodhead line between Sheffield and Manchester Central, which was electrified in the 1950s, with electric locomotives running right through from September 1954.

[13] However, the line was closed in 1981, only 27 years later, although trains from Sheffield to Huddersfield via Penistone continued to pass through Deepcar until 1983, when they were re-routed through Barnsley and West Silkstone.

[15] In order to enable steel trains to continue reaching Stocksbridge, once the Woodhead line had closed, the track between Deepcar and Nunnery Junction in Sheffield was singled and retained as a long siding.

The line turned to the west, where there were a number of exchange sidings, after which it crossed a viaduct over the River Don, some 56 feet (17 m) below.