Pleasley West railway station

Pleasley West is a former railway station in Pleasley, Derbyshire, England on the Nottinghamshire border near Mansfield. It opened in 1886 and closed to scheduled services in 1950, though it was served by excursion trains until 1964.

This article is about the former Midland Railway station. For the former Great Northern Railway station, see Pleasley East railway station.

Pleasley West
LocationPleasley, Bolsover
England
Coordinates53°10′30.68″N 1°15′6.94″W
Grid referenceSK 501 644
Platforms2 originally, reduced to 1 before 1950
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyMidland Railway
Post-groupingLMSR
Key dates
11 May 1886Opened as "Pleasley", Teversall & Pleasley Branch
1 September 1890Opened Doe Lea Branch
28 July 1930[1]Both lines closed to timetabled passenger traffic
1950Renamed "Pleasley West"
1963Last excursion train
3 March 1964Line severed to the North[2]
7 January 1981Line closed completely
by November 1982Tracks lifted

Context

The station was built by the Midland Railway near the junction of the circuitous Mansfield Woodhouse to Westhouses via Teversall Manor line known as "The Teversall & Pleasley Branch" and the equally circuitous Barrow Hill to Pleasley line[3] known as the Doe Lea Branch because it ran for much of its length along the valley of the River Doe Lea.

The railways always spelt Teversal as "Teversall", most other sources use "Teversal." In this article Teversall is used for railway items, and Teversal otherwise.[4]

History

The station was opened without ceremony on 11 May 1886 when the Teversall & Pleasley Branch opened to passenger traffic. It initially provided a service of four trains each way between Mansfield and Alfreton via Mansfield Woodhouse, Teversal and Tibshelf, taking about 40 minutes from end to end.[5] Services more than doubled on 1 September 1890 when the Doe Lea Branch opened, giving four trains a day from Mansfield to Chesterfield via Mansfield Woodhouse, Bolsover and Barrow Hill.[6][7]

The station originally had two platforms[8] with a typical MR country station building on the western (northbound) side.[9][10] Unusually the signal box was on one of the platforms. By 1950 all trace of the southbound platform had been erased.[11]

By 1930 the passenger service South from Pleasley West to Westhouses was down to one train a day southbound and, curiously, two a day northbound.[12] Normal passenger traffic along the Doe Lea Branch was three trains a day with an extra on Saturdays. On 28 July 1930 both passenger services were withdrawn.[13] Glapwell Colliery and others in the Doe Lea Valley were still going strong at this time, but all their coal went out northwards, so very little traffic passed through the steep line through Rowthorn Tunnel. The opportunity was therefore taken to abandon the line from just south of Glapwell station to Pleasley Colliery West Junction, a short distance South of Pleasley West, though a short length was left at the Pleasley end as a siding.

Although closed in 1930 the station remained physically intact and was used until 1963 for excursion traffic to places such as Skegness.[14] It was therefore duly renamed in 1950 from "Pleasley" to "Pleasley West"[15] to avoid confusion with its neighbour which became "Pleasley East".

Through traffic was rendered impossible from 1964 when the line North from Pleasley Colliery to the junction with what is now the Robin Hood Line closed. Pleasley Colliery subsequently sent its coal underground to Shirebrook and Teversal Colliery closed in 1980 after which the line through Pleasley West was redundant. It was closed on 7 January 1981 and lifted by November 1982.[12] The station has been razed to the ground.

Modern times

Parts of the trackbed and those of neighbouring lines have been turned into public footpaths and bridleways.[16][17]

Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Rowthorn and Hardwick
Line and station closed		   Midland Railway
Doe Lea Branch		   Mansfield Woodhouse
Line closed, station open
Teversall Manor
Line and station closed		   Midland Railway
Teversall & Pleasley Branch		  

References
  1. Butt 1995, p. 186.
  2. Anderson & Cupit 2000, p. 45.
  3. Kay 1998, Sheet 12.
  4. Spelling of Teversal: via oldnotts
  5. Hurst 1987, p. 61.
  6. The service in 1890 Old Miner
  7. Hurst 1987, p. 76.
  8. Kay 1998, Sheet 12 dated 1909.
  9. Hurst 1987, p. 64.
  10. Goode 1983, p. 19.
  11. Anderson & Cupit 2000, p. 40.
  12. Hurst 1987, p. 62.
  13. Hurst 1987, p. 77.
  14. Hurst 1987, p. 63.
  15. Anderson & Cupit 2000, p. 44.
  16. Rowthorne Trail: via Derbyshire County Council
  17. Teversal and Pleasley Trails: via cycletrails

Sources
  • Anderson, Paul; Cupit, Jack (2000). An Illustrated History of Mansfield's Railways. Clophill: Irwell Press. ISBN 978-1-903266-15-1.
  • Butt, R. V. J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199.
  • Goode, C.T. (1983). Railway Rambles on the Notts. & Derbyshire Border. Hull: C. T. Goode. ISBN 978-0-9508239-2-8.
  • Hurst, Geoffrey (1987). The Midland Railway Around Nottinghamshire, Volume 1. Worksop: Milepost Publications. ISBN 978-0-947796-05-1.
  • Midland Railway System Maps (The Distance Diagrams), volume 2 - Leeds to Leicester and branches; Derby to Manchester and branches; Cheshire Lines (1909-1923 ed.). Teignmouth: Peter Kay. 1998. ISBN 978-1-899890-17-0.
  • Kaye, A.R. (1988). North Midland and Peak District Railways in the Steam Age, Volume 2. Chesterfield: Lowlander Publications. ISBN 978-0-946930-09-8.
  • DVD (2004). East Midlands Steam. Bradford: Marsden Rail. Marsden Rail 26.
  • Quick, Michael (2009) [2001]. Railway passenger stations in Great Britain: a chronology (4th ed.). Oxford: Railway and Canal Historical Society. ISBN 978-0-901461-57-5. OCLC 612226077.

Further reading
  • Howard Anderson, P. (1973). Forgotten Railways: The East Midlands. Newton Abbott: David & Charles. ISBN 978-0-7153-6094-1.
  • Kingscott, Geoffrey (2007). Lost Railways of Derbyshire. Newbury: Countryside Books. ISBN 978-1-84674-042-8.
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