Rolleston Junction–Mansfield line

Rolleston Junction to Mansfield line
Mansfield
Mansfield Colliery
to Rufford, Clipstone collieries
Blidworth and Rainworth
Blidworth Colliery
Farnsfield
Kirklington and Edingley
Southwell
Fiskerton
Rolleston

The Rolleston Junction to Mansfield line was a railway line in Nottinghamshire, England linking the village of Rolleston with Mansfield. Opened by the Midland Railway in 1871, by the 1920s the dominant traffic was to the collieries east of Mansfield. Passenger services ceased in 1929 and the line closed completely in 1983.

History

The line first opened 1 July 1847 as a short branch off the Nottingham and Lincoln line from Rolleston Junction to Southwell.[1] The Midland Railway then extended the line to Mansfield on 3 April 1871, with intermediate passenger stations at Kirklington and Edingley, Farnsfield, and Rainworth.[2]

In the first few decades of the 20th century a number of collieries opened in the area east of Mansfield, and the railway was extended to serve them:

  • Mansfield Colliery via Mansfield Colliery Junction (opened 11 January 1905, closed 18 July 1967)[2][3]
  • Rufford Colliery via Rufford Junction (opened 20 June 1912, closed 17 October 1983)[2][3]
  • Clipstone Colliery via Rufford Junction (opened spring 1929, closed 29 August 1983)[3]
  • Blidworth Colliery via Blidworth Junction (opened 21 December 1925, closed 24 June 1967)[2]

On 30 November 1931 a branch to the LMS and LNER joint railway to Ollerton was opened.[3][4] The line only ever served coal traffic and was closed south of Bilsthorpe on 7 September 1962.[3]

Closure

Passenger numbers declined through the first part of the 20th century, and passenger service was ultimately withdrawn between Mansfield and Southwell on 12 August 1929.[5] A shuttle service between Southwell and Rolleston Junction remained in high demand, with 17 trains per day operated by the "Southwell Paddy", a single carriage pulled by a steam locomotive. This service was finally withdrawn on 16 June 1959.[6]

Despite the lack of passenger traffic, the line remained popular with coal and other goods traffic until the 1960s. By 1968 the line had been closed from Rufford Junction to Rolleston Junction;[5] the last section between Mansfield and Rufford Junction closed 17 October 1983.[3]

References

  1. "Nottingham and Lincoln Railway". Leicestershire Mercury. 3 July 1847. Retrieved 29 August 2016 via British Newspaper Archive.
  2. Gough, John (1989). The Midland Railway - A Chronology. Railway & Canal Historical Society.
  3. Maund, Richard (5 January 2021). "Rail Chronology: East of Mansfield". Rail Chronology. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  4. Booth, Chris (5 April 2019). The Lancashire, Derbyshire and East Coast Railway. Vol. 2. Fonthill Media. ISBN 978-1-78155-660-3.
  5. "Discover Southwell Trail" (PDF). Nottinghamshire County Council. April 2018. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  6. "The Southwell Railway". Retrieved 13 July 2023.
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