Bingham Railway Station
Photographed November 2013
Station Master J.H. Fisher at the time of his appointment to Bingham in 1961
ABOVE: 'Operation Eyesore' - Part of Bingham Station being demolished in 1973
BELOW: The same view today (November 2013)
Snippets from across the years
Bingham Railway station was designed by Nottingham architect T.C. Hine
British Railways Best-Kept Station Garden
In August 1959, after a year-round effort, the local newspaper reported that Bingham had won first prize in th British Railways best-kept station garden competition.
Stationmaster Mr F.L. Cantwell said "We have been trying for several years in this competition, and have won several second class prizes, but this is the first time we have won a first class".
Bingham Station's garden was located actually on the platform itself, raised beds being sited atop the ashphalt, contained by an edge comprised of house bricks.
New Stationmaster
In 1961 a new stationmaster, Mr. J.H. Fisher (aged 43) took over at Bingham, having formerly been Stationmaster at Woodhall Spa and, latterly, Saxilby in Lincolnshire.
'Operation Eyesore'
In May 1973 The Nottingham Evening Post (23rd May) reported on work being carried out to partially demolish Bingham station to reduce its size - part of the government's 'Operation Eyesore'.
The paper quoted a British Rail spokesman as saying "We don't need all these buildings - booking offices and so on - now Bingham is a Pay Train station".
As work proceeded, however, it became clear that the old building still harboured at least one final interesting secret:-
"Workmen busy demolishing the station have found hundreds of historic documents. And most have been thrown away and burned because they were not thought valuable".
Fortunatley, it was reported that pupils from Toot Hill comprehensive school in Bingham salvaged a selection for the school library - old tickets, bills for transporting goods, messages and railway regulations, some, from the 1870s, even detailing the distribution of free foot warmers to first and second class passengers.
Survival
As the modern day photos on this page show, 'Operation Eyesore' did not result in the complete demolition of the station buildings. The majority remain, although features such as the substantial chimney stacks and fine bay window jutting out over the platform have been sadly reduced - in the case of the latter the stout stone lintel may still be seen in the brickwork on the left-hand bay of the surviving structure.
A report in the South Notts Advertiser in April 1976 noted that the high level of hooliganism at Bingham station had resulted in BR having to demolish the waiting rooms and replace them with aluminium ones "because the hooligans will not respect the amenities they have got".
Mr Ian King, divisional passenger manager for BR, went further and said "We know that whatever we do at your station [Bingham] is going to be ruined within a week".
Recent Times
"Lazy train travellers at Bingham are risking death by crossing the lines", reported the South Notts Advertiser newspaper (14th June 1991)
A section of new raised platform at Bingham Station
Photographed November 2013
Sergeant Clive Jones of the British Transport Police reported how some people stepped off the train from Nottingham, walked alongside it whilst it stood in the station, and then proceeded to cross the lines in front of it.
"A footbridge is provided but some people are too lazy to use it. If this does not stop, we intend to take out prosecutions because walking over the lines is so dangerous", sergeant Jones said
Back in 1985, meanwhile, the South Notts Advertiser (26th July) reported that British Rail had turned down a request from Bingham Town Council to raise the platforms at the station. The council had taken up the plight of travellers who claimed the drop from the train to the platform was too steep.
Readers may be interested to learn that in 2013 the ascent and descent to/from trains has been eased by the laying of sections of raised platform (see right).