Great Northern Railway and London & North Western Railway Joint Line from Market Harborough to Bottesford and Saxondale via Melton Mowbray

Bottesford

The northernmost point of the joint line was the village of Bottesford, also the northernmost point of Leicestershire. The GNR Newark line ran straight under the west – east GNR Nottingham to Grantham line about a mile west of the village. The GNR built a north – west curve and a south – east curve between the two lines, the former solely for their own use. The south – west curve was built as the through line from the joint line to the GNR but this curve would be superseded by the Barnstone branch which was built and opened at the same time as the joint line in 1879. (The Barnstone branch in fact was not a branch but a south – west curve between the joint line and the GNR Nottingham – Grantham).

The bridge work at the crossing of the joint line and the GNR Nottingham – Grantham was bricked up soon after closure. The through curve from Bottesford south junction to Bottesford west on the GNR, although little used, remained open until 1895 when the joint committee agreed to sever the curve at the south junction and the tracks were used as stabling sidings for colliery traffic bound for the Nottinghamshire coalfields. The track connections were remade in final years of the joint line for the short lived workings to Stathern Ironwork sidings.

Map showing the northern end of the joint line during WWII

Bottesford South Station

Two hundred yards south of the South Junction stood Bottesford South Station. It was sited immediately south of the bridge carrying the main road from Nottingham to Grantham, the A52, over the Joint Line. The station was fairly large with a goods yard beyond the passenger station, the goods yard being on the up side of the line. On the down side there was another yard with access to the public road. Nothing remains of this station except the waste ground and the staff dwellings. The station master's house was on the up side and is now occupied, three cottages are on the west side of the line. The station was on the west side of the village, but was closed when the Newark-Northampton passenger trains ceased to run.

Redmile Station

Approximately two miles south of Bottesford south junction stood the station of Redmile. Nipped between the road which ran from the Nottingham to Grantham (A52) at Whatton and Redmile village, and the Grantham Canal, whose shareholders had played a key role in the ‘Ambergate, Boston and Eastern Junction Railway and Canal Company’ some 30 years before, the station, which was reached by an approach road on the east, was perhaps one of the most unusual on the line.

About two miles east of Redmile station stands Belvoir Castle, the seat of the Dukes of Rutland, who had exerted great influence in opposing and then encouraging the railway. Naturally the facilities at Redmile were designed to meet the requirements of the Duke and his guests, who on occasion included the royal family. Queen Victoria had visited Bevoir in December 1843, arriving from Chesterfield at Nottingham by train and taking a carriage on to Belvoir. Queens Road in Nottingham, named after her visit, still exists today.

The GNR, who were responsible for the design of the station, provided an ample awning for the carriages of the Duke. An ornate awning was provided on the public platform side as well which was unmatched at any other station on the joint line. The Dukes private waiting room was on the up line and decorated to the standards of the castle itself. In fact it is said that the fireplace, surround and over mantle were copied from a similar sized room at Belvoir. The corner pillars were carved wood representing sheaves of corn, and the centre-piece overmantle a carved figure of a gamekeeper set in a sylvan scene, also made of wood. The walls were lined with seats with carved wood ornamentations and wainscotted to the ceiling. I would be interested to hear from anyone who knows what happened to the panels, but apparently the waiting room was damaged by troops billeted there in WWII to guard the nearby fuel dump.

An interesting feature of the station was the provision of a foot crossing for use on Ducal occasions. Opposite the private waiting room and set into the platform, a trapdoor revealed steps down to a wooden crossing at rail level. The crossing survived until the station was demolished but the steps were dismantled in 1930. The staff dwellings were situated facing the front of the station across the approach road and can still be seen today.

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