Beighton railway station

Beighton
Site of Beighton railway station in 1963
General information
Location	Beighton, City of Sheffield England
Coordinates	53°21′04″N1°20′08″W / 53.351140°N 1.335500°W / 53.351140; -1.335500
Grid reference	SK443840
Platforms	2
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Pre-grouping	Sheffield and Lincolnshire Junction Railway Great Central Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway London Midland Region of British Railways
Key dates
June 1840	First station opened
2 January 1843	First station closed
12 February 1849	Second station opened
February 1852	Second station closed temporarily
March 1854	Second station reopened
1 November 1893	Second station closed
1 November 1893	Third station opened
1950	Extensively rebuilt
1 November 1954	Closed [1]

Beighton railway station is a former railway station near the village of Beighton on the border between Derbyshire and South Yorkshire, England.

Three stations

Beighton station existed on three sites at different times:

• The first station, believed to have been little more than a halt, was opened by the North Midland Railway when it built its Chesterfield to Rotherham Masborough line, which is now predominantly a freight route. At 1+1⁄4 miles (2.0 km) south of Woodhouse Mill, it stood approximately halfway between what is now Beighton Junction and the overbridge, which still carries passenger trains east–west between Sheffield and Worksop. ^[2] This original station was opened when the line opened in June 1840; it was not near to or convenient for the village of Beighton, and closed in January 1843.
• In 1849, the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) completed its Sheffield to Worksop line, which included a branch from just east of Woodhouse to join the North Midland line at what became known as Beighton Junction. They built Beighton's second station at a site on their line only, close to, but not on, the junction. The MS&LR hurried to open this branch to enable a revenue earning service to Eckington to commence and give connections to North Midland trains. This second station closed temporarily from 1852 to 1854, then continued in use until 1892.
• In 1892, the MS&LR opened its "Derbyshire Lines" route near Beighton. This would eventually become part of the Great Central Main Line. On 1 November 1893, the MS&LR closed Beighton's second station, and opened its third and final station at a site 132 yards (121 m) north west of the second site, immediately north of the Rotherham Road level crossing. ^[3]

At the time, this station was within Derbyshire but following changes in boundaries, the site is now within the City of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England.

Context

All three stations were in the flood plain of the River Rother, which repeatedly led to problems. ^{[4] [5]} In 1950, these issues, plus the generally poor state of the station building, led British Rail to raise platform levels and undertake other remedial works. ^[6]

Beighton station closed for the third and final time on 1 November 1954. It has since been demolished.

Beighton station and related lines

Northbound freight on the ex-GC main line in 1951

Up coal train at Beighton Junction in 1963

In 1897, the Lancashire, Derbyshire and East Coast Railway opened in a branch from Langwith Junction. The original hope had been to join the MS&LR line into Sheffield Victoria, but it was rebuffed, so a goods yard and connection to the ex-North Midland line at Beighton was built instead, though this did not touch Beighton station. The LD&ECR obtained running rights along the Midland line to Treeton Junction, and entered Sheffield via the Sheffield District Railway when it opened in 1900. ^{[7] [8]}

In March 2021, the 120-year-old Beighton Station Junction signal cabin, the last remaining relic of the station, was demolished, with control of the lines passing to the York Rail Operating Centre. ^[9]

Proposed reopening

In 2024, a previously approved plan to reopen the station as part of the Barrow Hill line was put on hold, following a government spending review. ^[10]

References

Notes

1. Butt 1995, p. 31.
2. [ 53°21′13.44″N1°19′53.6″W / 53.3537333°N 1.331556°W / 53.3537333; -1.331556 Approximate location of first Beighton station]
3. Hurst 1989, p. 33.
4. Grainger 2002, p. 63.
5. Beighton Station flood: via picturesheffield
6. Grainger 2002, pp. 61–2.
7. Cupit & Taylor 1984, p. 14.
8. Dow 1965, p. 170.
9. "Sheffield: 120-year-old signal box to be demolished in rail upgrade". BBC News . 13 March 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
10. Thake, Simon (1 August 2024). "Barrow Hill: Plan to reopen freight line to passengers in doubt". BBC News . Retrieved 4 May 2025.

Sources

• Butt, R. V. J. (October 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. OL   11956311M.
• Cupit, J.; Taylor, W. (1984) [1966]. The Lancashire, Derbyshire & East Coast Railway. Oakwood Library of Railway History (2nd ed.). Headington: Oakwood Press. ISBN   0-85361-302-8. OL19.
• Dow, George (1965). Great Central, Volume Three: Fay Sets the Pace, 1900–1922. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN   0-7110-0263-0.
• Grainger, Ken (2002). Sheffield Victoria to Chesterfield Central, The "Derbyshire Lines" of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway Part 1. Bredbury, Cheshire: Foxline Limited. ISBN   1-870119-83-5.
• Hurst, Geoffrey (1989). Great Central East of Sheffield Volume 1. Worksop, Nottinghamshire: Milepost Publications. ISBN   0-947796-00-2.
• Pixton, Bob (2001). North Midland: Portrait of a Famous Route: Part 2 Chesterfield-Sheffield-Rotherham. Nottingham: Runpast Publishing, (now Book Law). ISBN   1-870754-51-4.

External links

• Beighton Station signalbox images: via flickr
• Beighton Station history: via disused-stations
• Beighton Station railway environs: via signalboxes
• Beighton Station: via picturesheffield

Preceding station		Disused railways		Following station
Woodhouse Station open, line closed		Great Central Railway Derbyshire Lines		Killamarsh Central Line and station closed