Bygone Railways of East Lincolnshire

Yesterday marked 50th anniversary of the closure of the branch line to Horncastle. Opened on 11th August 1855 between Kirkstead (subsequently renamed Woodhall Junction), with one intermediate station at Woodhall Spa. Passenger trains ceased on 13th September 1954 after which the line continued to be served by goods trains only until 5th April 1971. The following cuttings are from 1978 issues of the Horncastle News , and their look back into earlier issues covering the opening of the line.

Below are extracts from the L&NER Working Timtable showing the Mablethorpe Louth; Louth - Bardney; Horncastle; Spilsby; and Cranwell branch lines. These show both passenger and goods. Passenger Trains are marked "OP" at the top of columns. The star symbol in the timings shows a goods train which calls there if required. Click on any image for a larger version.