Bygone Railways of East Lincolnshire

Alford Town has at least retained it's impressive station building, now in industrial use. It is located on the ironically named Beechings Way. Photographs taken today, exactky 50 years since it last saw a passenger train call. The course of the line looking towards Louth. More information about Alford Town can be  seen here.

Legbourne Road was one of the earliest stations on the East Lincolnshire Line to lose it's passenger service, on 7th December 1953. The service hitherto was less than frequent, the British Railways timetable from 15th September 1952, shows the following in weekdays (no Sunday service): 0621 Boston 0904 Grimsby Town 1138 Louth 1324 Grimsby Town 1546 Boston 1625 Willoughby Goods traffic lasted until 16th June 1964. My pictures taken today, show the station house in good condition as a private residence. The signalbox was relocated here and was originally "Tramway Crossing" and was located at the point where the Willoughby to Mablethorpe line was crossed by the Alford & Sutton Tramway. This rather uninspiring view, looks from the level crossing and the trackbed towards Louth. For a few years, up until 1998, the station housed a Railway Museum. I took the following a year before it closed as such. ...

Following closure.on 5th October 1970,  the fine station at Louth lay derelict for many years as illustrated in this 1978 view. Thankfully, it was saved from the bulldozers and was restored to residential accommodation some years ago, as illustrated in my pictures taken today. Looking from the former trackbed c.1979 And viewed today (not possible to get the same angle as housing now occupies the site). With extensive redevelopement and new housing on the trackbed south of the station, it rules out any possibility of the station seeing trains again. We tgerefore take a look back to the last passenger carrying train on 20th December 1980. A Grimsby-Louth Preservation Society special to Grimsby. More information about the station can be  seen here.

Louth North signalbox views earlier today. The Great Northern box, stands where the railway from Grimsby once crossed Keddington Road. The box and former level crossing. Looking north along the former trackbed towards Grimsby. This section closed on 20th December 1980. Looking south from the level crossing towards the station, the course of the line has been much redeveloped. A comparison view to the above taken c.1979

Earlier this week, the long defunct section of the footbridge at Spalding was removed after many years of disuse. Originally it was used to access platforms 5 and 6 until they were lifted in 1984. It reflected an era when Spalding was an important junction with lines to Peterborough, Boston, Sleaford, March, Bourne, and King's Lynn. Latterly, the additional platforms only saw use one day of the year, when numrous special trains visited for the annual Tulip Parade is also a thing if the past. 1985, and the track now lifted, looking towards the section of the recently removed footbridge spanning the trackbed. Housing now occupies the location from where I took these pictures. Looking from the present footbridge, the closed section was at this time fenced off. This entrance was subsequently bricked up. Expecting this part of the bridge to be removed, I ventured beyond the fence, this view from the now removed section, looks East towards the station....

The easy answer to what remains of this section is "very little", as the majority of the trackbed now lies under the main A16 road. However, odd bits and reminders to it are still to be found today (Images: Google Street View). The Railway public house located on London Road in Boston once stood close to the level crossing. Now the A16 which can be seen on the left. The site of Kirton Station. The remains of the station were completely obliterated when the road was constructed, the only reminder to it ever being there is the sign for Station Road, which leads off to the right. One remarkable survivor is Algakirk & Sutterton Station complete with Goods Shed. Surfleet was less fortunate and, like Kirton, completely gone except for the entrance to the Goods Yard. Looking toward the location of the station, the A16 on the right runs along the former railway line. The Ri...