TRANSPORT

RAILWAYS (PART 1)
THE MIDLAND RAILWAY:
Strictly speaking, the first railways in CHARNWOOD were the tram roads which formed part of the CHARNWOOD FOREST CANAL. The first railway proper was the MIDLAND COUNTIES RAILWAY. This was started by the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire coalfield owners who were not happy with the service offered by the waterways. They also feared that the LEICESTER AND SWANNINGTON RAILWAY, opened in 1832, would adversely affect their coal sales in Leicester.

The railway was originally planned as a line from PINXTON in the EREWASH VALLEY area of the LEICESTERSHIRE coalfields into the city of Leicester itself. However, the scheme was transformed when Northern investors took an interest in it. The result was a main line connection between Nottingham and Derby, via Leicester to Rugby. Here, it joined the London and Birmingham Railway to give a through route between London and the Midlands.

The line in Leicestershire opened in two sections. The one which passes through CHARNWOOD took the line from Sawley Junction to LEICESTER and opened on May 5th 1840. To avoid wasteful competition, the company amalgamated with two rival companies in 1844 to form the MIDLAND RAILWAY. Local industry was quick to see the advantages of rail transport and a branch line from the Mountsorrel granite quarries was built in 1860. In return for supporting the project, the LEICESTER NAVIGATION COMPANY was given a guarantee of £200 worth of trade in MOUNTSORREL stone for twenty years. An impressive single span brick bridge carries the branch line over the Soar.

The line was originally a double track but two more goods lines were added north of Wigston in the early 1870s. Five of the eight Leicestershire stations were in CHARNWOOD, at LOUGHBOROUGH, BARROW ON SOAR & QUORN, SILEBY, COSSINGTON and SYSTON but they were not all completed until a couple of months after the line opened. Most of the village stations were of a similar design: single storey and quite small with shallow roofs and iron latticed windows. MIDLAND LINE stations were all built on either side of the tracks, with direct access to the platforms from the road or station approach. Platforms on the opposite line were usually accessed via a footbridge.

The opening of the MIDLAND RAILWAY made great differences to the villages along the line. Easy travel to urban centres and other villages was now possible, leading to the rise of commuting to work in towns and cities. The railway also stimulated trade in these villages and several new public houses were built in order to take advantage of the railway trade. As many stations were built outside established village centres, new building was stimulated along station access roads, sometimes dramatically shifting the "focus" of the village.

THE MIDLAND LINE STATIONS:
LOUGHBOROUGH STATION:
Two stations have been built on this line in LOUGHBOROUGH. The first was on the opposite side of the Nottingham Road bridge from the present station and the building still survives as a private house. It is a square, two storey building with square windows and a central door. Alterations became frequent as the importance of the station grew. A station master's house and rail shed were added in 1858 and the platforms raised and lengthened in the 1860s. But the station was quickly to prove too small and in May of 1872 the present station was opened on the north side of the bridge. This was a single story building of a design unique to the company with a good deal of iron and glass work, especially in the impressive platform canopies. Due to the length of the platforms, there were originally two footbridges here, one of which gave access to Nottingham Road. The bridge at the other end still exists. The station received Grade II Listed status in 1981 but the original station, interestingly, did not. There is also a plaque commemorating THOMAS COOK's famous excursion of the 1840s. The platforms were raised again in 1988 and a third, short platform was built in 1994 to accommodate the new IVANHOE LINE.

BARROW ON SOAR AND QUORN STATION:
This station was just north of BARROW High Street. It was a single storey building with a shallow, overhanging roof and iron stone latticed windows. The structure originally contained not only the booking hall and waiting room but also a house for the Station Master. After a separate house was built in 1868, this was converted into waiting rooms. When the tracks increased from two to four in the 1870s, the station was enlarged to almost double it's previous size. The original signal box was replaced in 1919 with a much taller box from which the signaller could see goods trains even while passenger trains were in the station. The public footpath bridge at the northern end gave access not only to the platforms but also to the goods yards and sidings. The station only became known as BARROW ON SOAR AND QUORN after the opening of the rival GREAT CENTRAL station of QUORN AND WOODHOUSE in 1899. Local traffic ended in 1968 and the station buildings were demolished very soon after this. The new two platform IVANHOE LINE station at BARROW was built a quarter of a mile further south where a new footbridge links up with Grove Lane.

SILEBY STATION:
The original plan here was to convert an existing house to serve as the station for SILEBY. However, this did not come about and a purpose built station had to be erected. This was located on King Street and the design was very probably similar to that of BARROW. The platforms were approached down a steep embankment via an inclined footpath. Waiting rooms were built in 1864 and a wood and glass screen added to the main building in 1871. A station master's house was also built this year which became the booking office when a second house was erected in 1913. The station closed when passenger services ceased in 1968 and the buildings - apart from the 1913 station master's house - were demolished a year later. The station, complete with new buildings, was reopened in 1994 as part of the IVANHOE LINE.

COSSINGTON GATE STATION:
This is a station which almost never happened at all. The MIDLAND LINE originally crossed the COSSINGTON to SEAGRAVE road on the level with only a small building for the crossing keeper on the north side. In 1845, after much public demand, this building became a station serving a single stopping train on Saturday mornings with another in the opposite direction on Saturday afternoons. The platforms were short and low - and were not to be required for long. In the mid 1850s, the service was reduced to just one train in the morning but no return train in the afternoon. Not surprisingly, this led to a dramatic reduction in passengers. What was the point of travelling in one direction if you could not get back again? It has been suggested that this was a deliberate move by the MIDLAND to reduce demand so far that they could close the station without protest. Whatever the reasons, the result was exactly that. In 1873 the original building disappeared to make way for the new goods lines, the level crossing was replaced by a road bridge - and the station closed on September 29th.

SYSTON STATION:
SYSTON is unique as it lies on two distinct lines - the MIDLAND and the SYSTON AND PETERBOROUGH. There have been two stations here, the first being a single storey design very similar to BARROW station. This was built on the eastern line, opposite to the present building. Pressure of traffic led to extensive additions and the erection of many new buildings during the 1840s, including accommodation for the station master in 1858. This was still insufficient and a completely new building was erected in 1868 on the western side of the line with access from Wanlip Road. Following the move from two to four lines in the 1870s, more alterations and additions were made, including a new station master's house in 1872. A second booking hall was added in 1904 but there were no further alterations until the station closed in 1968. With the opening of the IVANHOE LINE in 1994, a new platform was opened up just a few yards from the original building.

THE SYSTON AND PETERBOROUGH RAILWAY:
This was originally an independent scheme but was taken over at a very early stage by the MIDLAND RAILWAY. It formed part of an urgent expansion programme to counter rival companies, specifically, the London and York (later the Great Northern) railway. The Chair of the MIDLAND RAILWAY at this time was GEORGE HUDSON, famous for his bold expansionist approach.

The proposed route was first surveyed in 1844 and it was seen that 63 separate pieces of land would have to be purchased in REARSBY alone in order to build the line. An Act of Parliament was passed on June 30th 1845 to build the railway and 14 months later the line reached as far as Melton. The remainder of the line was completed in 1848 and at it's height in 1911, there were 33 passenger trains running every weekday. The route was relatively level and followed river valleys for the most part. For this reason, almost every station was next to a level crossing. The line remains a very important link between the Midlands and the east coast with stations in operation at MELTON and OAKHAM.

CHARNWOOD STATIONS ON THE SYSTON
TO PETERBOROUGH LINE:
SYSTON:
See MIDLAND RAILWAY.

QUENINBOROUGH STATION:
There was no original plan to have a station here but one was built in the Second World War to serve the Royal Ordnance Depot at REARSBY. For this reason, there were no advertised public services. The station was located south of the QUENIBOROUGH to RATCLIFFE road in what is now EAST GOSCOTE and had only one very long platform set apart from the main lines. The station ws first used in November 1941 and ceased operations near to the end of the war. It continued to take freight traffic until the closure of the Ordnance Depot in 1955. From then on the sidings were used for storing rolling stock and the site of the station is now past of a landscaped area next to the road called The Warren.

REARSBY STATION:
The station building in REARSBY still exists but has now been converted into a house. It is on the south side of the line and originally had a two storey booking hall with a single storey booking hall. The wooden platforms were replaced by stone in 1864 but there were few other alterations. It seems that the station never had a great number of passengers and by the time it was closed there was only an average of three per day. This led to REARSBY being one of the first stations on the line to close, in April of 1951.

THE GREAT CENTRAL RAILWAY:
In recent years, the MAIN LINE STEAM TRUST has given the GREAT CENTRAL RAILWAY a whole new lease of life as one of CHARNWOOD's most successful tourist attractions. So quickly did they take over after closure that the stations along the line are among the best preserved in Europe.

The line was originally called the MANCHESTER, SHEFFIELD AND LINCOLNSHIRE RAILWAY, but when the link to London, via Loughborough and Leicester was first planned, the name was changed to the GREAT CENTRAL. Work began in 1895, bringing hundreds of railway workers into the town, many of whom eventually decided to stay in the town.

The new line altered the landscape considerably. A 40 ft high embankment carried the line up to the 11 arch viaduct over the River Soar and a new bridge over the railway on Leicester Road cut straight through the previously straight stretch of road between SHELTHORPE COTTAGE and the Bull in the Hollow. A completely new road - Great Central Road - was built to lead to Loughborough Station.

One obstacle the builders of the Great Central had to overcome was SWITHLAND RESERVOIR which lay on the route of the new line. This had been completed in 1896 and was the last and largest of the CHARNWOOD reservoirs, built to supply water for Leicester. The problem was overcome by the building of a viaduct over the reservoir, which also gave - and still gives - spectacular views over one of the most beautiful stretches of water in the county. The Great Central also pioneered special season tickets, sold to transport riders and horses from London to Leicestershire in the hunting season.

The high speed line was opened in 1899, employing 5,500 people and breaking the monopoly of the MIDLAND RAILWAY. It greatly enhanced the development of the Soar Valley villages which lay on the line, such as BIRSTALL, ROTHLEY and QUORN. New buildings sprang up around the village stations, most of which were some way outside the village itself. In BIRSTALL, houses soon sprang up along the road between the station and village, becoming known locally as "NEW BIRSTALL". QUORN had a similar expansion, the MANOR HOUSE HOTEL being built specifically to exploit trade from the new line. All villages with a new station also benefited from the new ease of access to LOUGHBOROUGH, LEICESTER and beyond and commuting began to have a real effect on the pattern of housing and industry.

Also in 1899, there was a plan to build a branch line linking ROTHLEY, GROBY POOL and NEWTOWN LINFORD but it came to nothing. The days of the railway were numbered as the importance of road transport rose and the line was closed by Beeching in the 1960s.

The GREAT CENTRAL was superbly engineered for high speed travel and run with great efficiency by SIR SAM FAY, the general manager. But despite the benefits to CHARNWOOD, the line never made a profit. For many years the GREAT CENTRAL had the fastest train link between LONDON and the North but despite this shareholders never received a penny in dividends. Comment at the time claimed that "MSL" stood for "Money Sunk and Lost" while "GC" really meant "Gone Completely"!

The stations on the GREAT CENTRAL were substantially different from those of the MIDLAND LINE. Firstly, most were built between two villages in an attempt to generate passenger traffic from both. For example, QUORN AND WOODHOUSE station, although now part of QUORN due to later development, was originally midway between the two villages; ROTHLEY station was built midway between ROTHLEY and CROPSTON. The rival MIDLAND RAILWAY seems to have picked up on the possible advantages of this by renaming their BARROW station BARROW AND QUORN in 1899, the year the GREAT CENTRAL opened. The second difference is that the stations were all built on the "island" model. This means that the station platform was positioned between the "up" and "down" lines, one set of buildings (and staff!) serving both. This undoubtedly saved a huge amount on wages and building costs but also meant that access had to be by stairs, either up from the road or down from a bridge. Things were a little more convenient at LOUGHBOROUGH station, which had a lift.

All of the village stations were built to the same basic design: a square block containing the booking office and station master's office; a waiting room block, with separate room for ladies; and a roofless, decidedly inconvenient convenience for gentlemen at the end of the platform. The red brick buildings themselves were quite attractively designed and the unique station signs were all of decorated cast iron. Following years of falling receipts, the GREAT CENTRAL LINE stations were closed to passenger traffic in March 1963, despite a campaign by LORD LANESBOROUGH of SWITHLAND HALL to have them converted into unstaffed halts. As far as BRITISH RAILWAYS were concerned, the line closed completely on May 5th 1969. But that was very far from the end of the story. Thanks to the tireless work and dedication of the MAIN LINE STEAM TRUST, trains were running between LOUGHBOROUGH and QUORN again as early as 1974. By 1976 they had reached ROTHLEY and by 1990 they were running all the way through to the site of the old BIRSTALL station. Thanks to the commitment of these volunteer conservationists, not only the line but also the stations at LOUGHBOROUGH, QUORN and ROTHLEY have been expertly preserved for future generations.

And the GREAT CENTRAL is not only a highly successful tourist attraction - it is also paying it's way as a favourite location for film and television directors. Whenever a "period" steam railway is needed, it seems the glitterati of the media all head north to CHARNWOOD. Productions which have featured the GREAT CENTRAL include "SHINE ON HARVEY MOON"; "SHADOWLANDS"; "BUSTER" and, most recently, "ENIGMA". In recent years, many local people have carved out a second career for themselves as film and television extras! This income from tourism and location work could well mean that the CHARNWOOD section of the GREAT CENTRAL is making more money now than it ever did as a commercial railway!

STATIONS ON THE GREAT CENTRAL LINE:
LOUGHBOROUGH CENTRAL:
Access to LOUGHBOROUGH CENTRAL STATION is from GREAT CENTRAL ROAD, which was newly built to serve the line. The entrance is from the brow of a road bridge directly into the booking hall and former parcels and luggage offices. From here a wide stairway leads down to the platforms. Passenger facilities were housed in two long blocks running along the centre of the island platform. As with the other stations, a gents convenience stands alone at the far end of the platform. As originally built, there was a refreshment room complete with cellars and separate waiting rooms for first class passengers. Underneath the booking hall were former porters' rooms and the shaft for a lift which was added in the 1950s.

The whole of the station has been well renovated since the MAIN LINE STEAM TRUST took over the building and some rooms have been converted as book and souvenir shops. The base of the old lift shaft has now been made into an entrance to the museum which extends beneath the booking hall. The old Station Masters house has not survived. This was between LIttle Moor Lane and the Empress Road Bridge and was unusual in that it was bought rather than built by the railway.

Already world famous as a film and television location, LOUGHBOROUGH CENTRAL STATION is soon be once more seen by millions in the film "ENIGMA". This is based on THOMAS HARRIS's best selling novel and charts the fight of the World War II code breakers at Bletchley and BEAUMANOR.

QUORN & WOODHOUSE STATION:
This station is of the standard GREAT CENTRAL design but in recent years it has been given a predominantly blue colour scheme to recreate a pre-war look. Early specifications laid down that GREAT CENTRAL stations should have lamps and guttering painted in red, other metalwork in two shades of blue and doors and valences in two shades of oak. An open coal fire cheered up the waiting rooms on cold winter days.

QUORN station was in the heart of hunting country and many of it's passengers were travelling to take part in the QUORN hunt. One local story tells that KING EDWARD VIII visited the station while Prince of Wales and changed out of his riding clothes in the station ticket office! After 1930, fewer and fewer people were using the station and it's administration was combined with the station at ROTHLEY.

The land on which this station is built was formerly the property of the FARNHAM family, who laid down a very specific condition before agreeing to it's construction. In return for permission to build, the GREAT CENTRAL RAILWAY pledged to maintain a service to the station "forever". This point was extensively used as an argument against closure in 1963 but to no avail.

The station has had a late career change since it was taken over by the MAIN LINE STEAM TRUST. As well as being a focus for tourists and steam enthusiasts, it has had several starring parts as a location for films and television. LINDA ROBSON and KENNETH CRANHAM came to QUORN in 1985 when the television series "SHINE ON HARVEY MOON" filmed at the station. Local people were also surprised to see MICK JAGGER at the station last year, supervising shooting for his production company's film of "ENIGMA". This adptation of THOMAS HARRIS's best selling novel charts the fight of the World War II code breakers at Bletchley and nearby BEAUMANOR.

SWITHLAND STATION:
Although no station was ever opened at SWITHLAND, this was the original site preferred over ROTHLEY. There are also remnants of a later station here which was never completed. When plans were first announced for the main line station at SWITHLAND, there were huge protests from ROTHLEY that they were not to get one as well. Most of the objections were orchestrated by the then Lord of the Manor of ROTHLEY, FREDERICK MERTTENS. In the end, the protesters prevailed and the station site was switched from SWITHLAND to ROTHLEY. Another reason for the change was probably that LORD LANESBOROUGH of SWITHLAND HALL would only grant permission to build on condition that he could "flag down" any train he wished, which would then be obliged to stop for him!

The second proposed station at SWITHLAND came later. This was to be a small halt for day trippers and would have been located at the southern end of SWITHLAND RESERVOIR. The entrance and steps up to the station were built and tracks laid out before it was decided that, with ROTHLEY station less than a mile away, the plan was not viable. The steps that would have led up to the halt still exist, cut into the bridge over the SWITHLAND to ROTHLEY road but today they lead nowhere.

ROTHLEY STATION:
ROTHLEY only got it's station after fierce protest against the preferred candidate SWITHLAND. The site finally chosen turned out to be of immense archaeological interest as, during construction in the 1890s, traces of a SAXON burial ground and a small ROMAN settlement were discovered here. It is thought locally that this is the reason the station is reputed to be haunted. Travellers on the restored GREAT CENTRAL have reported seeing a figure dressed in Victorian or Edwardian costume on the station. Also, the ghosts of a farmer and his dog (killed on the line in the 1940s) have regularly been seen both on the platform and walking the line. The ghost of a very friendly and helpful Station Porter was also seen on the platform in 1983, proving that not all hauntings have to be scary ones!

Several original features have survived at ROTHLEY STATION. One is the very popular open fire in the waiting room and the other is the atmospheric gas lighting system. The station was not connected to an electricity supply until after Beeching's closure and the Victorian feeling the gas lights must have given was in all probability another reason it became thought of as haunted.

The station now has it's own small museum underneath the stairway, dressed to look like the old parcels office. The ROTHLEY signal box has been moved closer to the station but otherwise very little has changed here since the days of steam.

BELGRAVE AND BIRSTALL STATION:
As in LOUGHBOROUGH, the BELGRAVE AND BIRSTALL station was accessed via a newly constructed road. This led off the A6 not only to the station but also to the BIRSTALL Golf Club. The station was not a long term success, mainly due to the fact that the most frequent destination - LEICESTER -was becoming more and more easily accessibly by improving road transport. There was no room for goods facilities at BIRSTALL as the station was in a deep cutting.

After the passenger line closed in 1963, vandals became a real problem at the station. Despite efforts to improve matters, the damage continued and the buildings were finally demolished in 1977. The platforms were also removed in 1981 and the MAIN LINE STEAM TRUST developed plans to build an entirely new station here at the line's southern terminus - now renamed LEICESTER NORTH. So far a long platform has been built on the "down" line (heading north) and a shorter one on the "up" line (heading south). An old railway carriage earns it's keep as a ticket office. The proposal as it stands in late 2000 is to build a two storey, Victorian style station similar to the one at Marylebone, complete with iron and glass canopies. It will be interesting to see how the latest chapter in this conservation success story unfolds.

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