Trent railway station was situated near Long Eaton in Derbyshire at the junction of the Midland Railway line from London to Derby and Nottingham. It was unusual in that it did not serve any community, being simply an interchange.
The complex network of tracks in this area is popularly known as Trent Junction, though strictly this was the junction of the Derby and the Leicester line at the south of the triangular layout, later renamed Trent South. It was built in 1839 by the Midland Counties Railway which linked Derby and Nottingham with Leicester and thence to London St Pancras. Other individual junctions within the complex are Attenborough Junction, Sheet Stores Junction, Toton Centre, Toton East, Trent East (now just Trent) and Trent South. Additionally the Meadow Lane, South Erewash/Trent Station North, Sawley Junction and Platt's Crossing components were removed when those sections of line disappeared.
Between 1847 and 1862, the Midland built a line from Chesterfield (now known as the Erewash Valley Line). This had a curve to join the northbound line towards Nottingham, but crossed the Derby-Nottingham curve on the level at Platt's Crossing to meet the southbound line.
At this time passengers from Nottingham travelled to Derby before heading for London, an 18 miles (29km) round trip. Trent Station was built in 1862 as an island platform, in typical "Midland Gothic" style, on the Nottingham-Leicester arm. Through its century long existence it barely changed - even retaining the gas lighting.
Platt's Crossing was removed and the Derby line brought round in a sharp curve to enter the station from the north. This curve was so tight that it was said that passengers in the leading coaches could see the tail of their own train. At the same time a curve was built from the south of the station on to the Derby line.
It was particularly remarkable in that, although there was an up and a down platform, trains for a given destination might face in either direction. There is a famous comment by Sir Edmund Beckett:[2]You arrive at Trent. Where that is I cannot tell. I suppose it is somewhere near the River Trent; but then the Trent is a very long river. You get out of the train to obtain refreshment, and having taken it, you endeavour to find your train and your carriage. But whether it is on this side or that, and whether it is going north or south, this way or that way, you cannot tell. Bewildered, you frantically rush into your carriage; the train moves off around a curve, and then you are horrified to see some red lights glaring in front of you, and you are in immediate expectation of a collision, when your fellow passenger calms your fears by telling you that they are only the tail lamps of your own train!
In 1869 a further line was built from Sawley, from what was known as Sheet Stores Junction, to Stenson which allowed trains for the West Midlands to bypass Derby.
On 13 August 1886 lightning struck a chimney stack. The stone coping and brickwork fell through the glass roof doing considerable damage. Many passengers were on the platform, but no one was injured.[3]
Goods traffic increased to such an extent that, in 1893, the quadruple track was extended from Ratcliffe to Trent across Trent Viaducts and through a second Red Hill Tunnel and, with the growth of the sidings at Toton, the goods line was taken at high level over the Nottingham line in 1901.
Through the early part of the 20th century, the station was an important changing point for a variety of local services. In addition the Erewash Valley was used by expresses from London to Leeds and the north, such as the Thames-Clyde Express, which first ran as a named train in 1927.
Some of the Nottingham expresses instead used the line through Melton Mowbray and Corby, which opened to Kettering in 1880. Derby continued to handle the services from London to Manchester along what is now the Derwent Valley Line, some of which bypassed Trent due to the difficulty of negotiating the North Curve.
A Down empties from the Derby/Burton direction passes Trent Station South Box in 1965
On 22 September 1920 a collision occurred at 4.40am. A goods train from Derby to Nottingham was passing down the outside line and another goods train from Leicester to Nottingham was passing down the platform line. Both lines converged at the junction, and this is where the trains met. No one was injured but 10 freight wagons were derailed and damaged. Passenger services to Long Eaton were worked on the single line until the wagons were rerailed and traffic restored around 11.00 am.[4]
On 1 December 1930 the LMS Manchester to Yarmouth express derailed at the station when 5 coaches left the rails, destroying 100 yards (91m) of permanent way.[5]
After the station closed on 1 January 1968, Trevor Park MP for South East Derbyshire raised a complaint to Sir Edmund Compton, Parliamentary Commissioner. By the time the commissioner had made a ruling in September 1968, the station had already been demolished.[6] The North Curve was also removed, in spite of much local opposition. The route of Fields Farm Road now uses the trackbed of the former curve. The name Trent remains however, perpetuated on the Power Signal Box built in 1969.
The Midland Main Line (MML) is a major railway line from London to Sheffield in Yorkshire via the East Midlands. It comprises the lines from London's St Pancras station via Leicester, Derby/Nottingham and Chesterfield.
The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It amalgamated with several other railways to create the London, Midland and Scottish Railway at grouping in 1923.
The Midland Counties' Railway (MCR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom which existed between 1839 and 1844, connecting Nottingham, Leicester and Derby with Rugby and thence, via the London and Birmingham Railway, to London. The MCR system connected with the North Midland Railway and the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railway in Derby at what become known as the Tri Junct Station. The three later merged to become the Midland Railway.
Long Eaton is a town in the Erewash district of Derbyshire, England, just north of the River Trent, about 6 miles (9.7 km) south-west of Nottingham and 9 miles (14 km) south-east of Derby. The town population was 37,760 at the 2011 census. It has been part of Erewash borough since 1 April 1974, when Long Eaton Urban District was disbanded.
Sandiacre is a village and civil parish in the borough of Erewash in Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England adjoining the border with Nottinghamshire. The population of the parish was 8,889 at the 2011 Census.
Clay Cross railway station was a railway station built by the North Midland Railway in 1840. It served the town of Clay Cross in Derbyshire, England.
Stapleford is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Broxtowe, Nottinghamshire, England, 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Nottingham. The population of the civil parish at the 2001 census was 14,991, at the 2011 census it was 15,241, and 15,453 at the 2021 census.
Long Eaton railway station serves the town of Long Eaton in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the Midland Main Line and the Derby-Nottingham line 120 miles 28 chains (193.7 km) north of London St Pancras. The station is managed by East Midlands Railway, but CrossCountry operates some services.
Langley Mill railway station on the Erewash Valley Line serves the large village of Langley Mill and the towns of Heanor in Derbyshire and Eastwood in Nottinghamshire, England. The station is 12 miles (19 km) north of Nottingham.
East Midlands Parkway railway station is located north of Ratcliffe-on-Soar on the Midland Main Line in the East Midlands of England. It provides park and ride facilities for rail passengers on the routes from Leicester to Derby and Nottingham. It is also the closest station to East Midlands Airport, some 4 miles (6.4 km) away, but without public transport link.
Burton-on-Trent railway station is a mainline railway station located in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by East Midlands Railway, although only CrossCountry services call at this station.
Bottesford railway station serves the village of Bottesford in Leicestershire, England. The station is 15 miles east of Nottingham, on the lines to Grantham and Skegness. It is the least used station in Leicestershire.
The Erewash Valley Line is a railway line in England, running from Long Eaton, located between Nottingham and Derby, and Clay Cross, near Chesterfield. The southern part was opened by the Midland Railway in 1847 as far as Codnor Park, where it connected to established ironworks, and soon after, a line to Pinxton and Mansfield.
Draycott railway station was a station which served the village of Draycott, Derbyshire, England. It was located on the south side of Station Road.
The original Long Eaton railway station was built in 1839 for the Midland Counties Railway.
The Castle Donington line also known as Weston On Trent Branch Railway is a railway line in Derbyshire, England, that runs between Stenson Junction in the west and Sheet Stores Junction in the east. There are no passenger services that serve this line regularly but passenger services are occasionally routed across it. Regular passenger services are routed via Derby. The line is regularly used by freight trains and serves the East Midlands Gateway freight interchange. There are no current passenger stations on the line which previously served stations at Castle Donington and Weston-on-Trent and also linked to the Melbourne Line.
Ilkeston Town railway station was a railway station which served the town of Ilkeston in Derbyshire, England. It was opened in 1847 by the Midland Railway.
East Midlands Hub was a planned new railway station on the Leeds Branch of High Speed 2. It was intended to be located on the existing railway sidings in Toton, situated between Nottingham and Derby. The station would have been located adjacent to the M1 motorway in Nottinghamshire, on the border with Derbyshire.
This Long Eaton railway station was built in 1863 for the Midland Railway.
This Long Eaton railway station was built in 1847 for the Midland Railway.
↑ "Trent". Derbyshire Advertiser and Journal. England. 9 September 1892. Retrieved 15 February 2020– via British Newspaper Archive.
↑ "Items of Local Interest". Nottingham Evening Post. England. 23 October 1908. Retrieved 15 February 2020– via British Newspaper Archive.
↑ "Presentation to Stationmaster". Long Eaton Advertiser. England. 1 July 1938. Retrieved 15 February 2020– via British Newspaper Archive.
Bibliography
Higginson, M, (1989) The Midland Counties Railway: A Pictorial Survey, Derby: Midland Railway Trust.
Kingscott, Geoffrey, (2006) Last train from Trent Station: a history of a celebrated Midland Railway interchange 1862-1968 Long Eaton: Geoffrey Kingscott Consultants Ltd.
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