Nottinghamshire's Railway Heritage

Author Michael Vanns (left) and Councillor John Cottee officially launch the book at the Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre at Ruddington near Nottingham, Saturday 4th December, 2010.

Mr Vanns & Cllr. Cottee enjoy the rare privilege of standing on the footplate of GWR locomotive 3717 'City of Truro' on loan to the Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre

A new book by local author

Dateline 1604; Location: Wollaton Hall, Nottingham: One of the world's very first lines of (wooden) rail-way is laid to transport coal.

August 1852; Location: Nottingham's Midland station: Kidnappers imprison a Great Northern locomotive as it enters the station, holding it captive for seven months.

These and many other facinating insights - colourful and curious - are contained in a new book tracing the turbulent history of Nottinghamshire's railways by Newark-born author, Michael Vanns.

All the railway companies that had a stake in Nottinghamshire are discussed including the Midland, Great Northern, Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire; the Lancashire, Derbyshire & East Coast, Great Central, LMS and LNER.

And with so many companies competing for access to the county, its railway history is littered with anomalies and condundrums. 

As Mr. Vanns remarks, "Perhaps the two most obvious questions that may be asked of the railways in Nottinghamshire are, why does the county's premier electrified main line pass through Newark and Retford, and not through the city of Nottingham?  Why do the fastest trains between London and Yorkshire race through either Newark or on a line up the Erewash Valley midway between Nottingham and Derby?"

"Surprisingly", he continues, "just four words can be used in answer, which together neatly encapsulate Nottinghamshire's railway history:  coal, geography, competition, and politics."

Nottinghamshire's railway history is defined by "Coal, Geography, Competition and Politics

The book, An Outline History of the Railways of Nottinghamshire covers the period from the very first appearance of steam locomotion in the county, right through to the high-speed privatised lines of today - over 170 years of railway history in one book.

Priced £7.50, the book covers 88 pages and is extensively illustrated with over 70 rarely seen photographs of Nottinghamshire's railway heritage.  For details on how to obtain your copy, click here