Immingham (Eastern Jetty) | |
|---|---|
 A postcard of the station in the 1910s | |
| General information | |
| Location | Immingham, North East Lincolnshire England |
| Coordinates | 53°37′51″N 0°10′55″W / 53.6307°N 0.1819°W |
| Grid reference | TA203165 |
| Platforms | 1[1] |
| Other information | |
| Status | Disused |
| History | |
| Original company | Great Central Railway |
| Pre-grouping | Great Central Railway |
| Post-grouping | London and North Eastern Railway |
| Key dates | |
| 15 May 1912 | opened |
| 1939 | closed[2][3] |
Immingham (Eastern Jetty) railway station was a special excursion station built along the port's eastern jetty[4] to cater for traffic to passenger ships on cruises to the North Cape, Norwegian Fjords and the Baltic.
The station was not much more than a long wooden platform along the jetty. It was only used for the transfer of the passengers and luggage from train to ship and vice versa so little in the way of facilities was needed or provided. The critical provision was numerous staff to guide travellers and handle their belongings.[5][6][7]
Traffic[edit]
The cruise ships sometimes berthed in the dock itself,[8][9] but usually they moored at the seaward side of the jetty where they were adjacent to all-First Class, Restaurant Car special trains.[10][11][12] These operated along two routes:
- to and from Manchester Central and Sheffield Victoria with a connecting carriage from Liverpool Central, and
- to and from Marylebone, travelling either via Retford and the Waleswood Curve or via the LDECR and Mansfield Central.[13] In both cases they then used the main line via Leicester Central.
Locomotives[edit]
Originally these trains were hauled by Great Central Railway 4-6-0 locomotives[14] but following grouping in 1922 Great Northern Railway motive power took many of them over.[15]
Spectacle[edit]
Visits by such ships drew crowds of sightseers and passed into local folklore, none more so than the vessel SS Arandora Star which was torpedoed in 1940 with heavy loss of life.
Closure[edit]
The cruises terminated in 1939, just prior to the Second World War. Although the platform remained for some time, the station was effectively closed. One source suggests GCR passenger vessels plied between here, Antwerp, Hamburg and Rotterdam.[6]
Afterlife[edit]
By 2015 the tracks on the jetty had long been lifted, but the structure remained well used, handling oils, spirits, and liquid chemicals.
Liners known to have used Immingham[edit]
- SS Arandora Star[12][16]
- SS Avon[17][18]
- SS Calgaric[17]
- SS Empress of Australia[19][20][21]
- SS Orford[22][23][15]
- SS Orontes[12][24]
References[edit]
- ^ King 2019, p. 92.
- ^ Butt 1995, p. 127.
- ^ Croughton, Kidner & Young 1982, p. 88.
- ^ Dow 1965, p. 260.
- ^ Mummery & Butler 1999, pp. 88–98.
- ^ a b Mitchell & Smith 2017, Photo 105.
- ^ WEA 1994, p. 29.
- ^ Mummery & Butler 1999, p. 95.
- ^ SS Calgaric, with the lines to the Eastern Jetty curving under the camera Getty Images
- ^ Burgess 2007, p. 21.
- ^ Ludlam 2016, pp. 7 & 28.
- ^ a b c Crossland & Turner 2012, p. 57.
- ^ Ludlam 2006, pp. 429–432.
- ^ Tuplin 1967, Plate 26.
- ^ a b Ludlam 1996, p. 65.
- ^ Mummery & Butler 1999, pp. 96–98.
- ^ a b Crossland & Turner 2012, p. 55.
- ^ Mummery & Butler 1999, pp. 89, 90 & 95.
- ^ Crossland & Turner 2012, p. 58.
- ^ Mummery & Butler 1999, p. 89.
- ^ Grainger 2012, p. 40.
- ^ Crossland & Turner 2012, p. 56.
- ^ Mummery & Butler 1999, pp. 91 & 93.
- ^ Mummery & Butler 1999, p. 92.
Sources[edit]
- Burgess, Neil (2007). Lincolnshire's Lost Railways. Catrine: Stenlake Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84033-407-4.
- Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
- Crossland, G J; Turner, C E (2012) [2006]. Immingham A History of the Deep Water Port. T&C Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9543051-2-3.
- Croughton, Godfrey; Kidner, R. W.; Young, Alan (1982). Private and Untimetabled Railway Stations, Halts and Stopping Places. The Oakwood Press. ISBN 978-0-85361-281-0. OCLC 10507501.
- Dow, George (1965). Great Central, Volume Three: Fay Sets the Pace, 1900–1922. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 978-0-7110-0263-0. OCLC 500447049.
- Grainger, Ken (2012). Gellatly, Bob (ed.). "Immingham Dock Centenary Souvenir 1912-2012". Forward. Holton le Clay: Brian Bell for the Great Central Railway Society. ISSN 0141-4488.
- King, Paul (2019). The Railways of North-east Lincolnshire, Part 2: Stations. Grimsby: Pyewipe Publications. ISBN 978-1-9164603-1-7.
- Ludlam, A.J. (2016). Immingham - A Lincolnshire Railway Centre (Lincolnshire Railway Centres). Ludborough: Lincolnshire Wolds Railway Society. ISBN 978-0-9954610-0-0.
- Ludlam, A.J. (1996). Railways to New Holland and the Humber Ferries. Headington: The Oakwood Press. ISBN 978-0-85361-494-4. LP 198.
- Ludlam, A.J. (July 2006). Kennedy, Rex (ed.). "Immingham-Gateway to the Continent". Steam Days (203). Bournemouth: Redgauntlet Publications. ISSN 0269-0020.
- Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2017). Branch Lines North of Grimsby, including Immingham. Midhurst: Middleton Press (MD). ISBN 978-1-910356-09-8.
- Mummery, Brian; Butler, Ian (1999). Immingham and the Great Central Legacy (Images of England). Stroud: Tempus. ISBN 978-0-7524-1714-1.
- NotRecorded, X (Summer 2002). Bell, Brian (ed.). "Not recorded". Forward. 50. Holton le Clay: Brian Bell for the Great Central Railway Society. ISSN 0141-4488.
- Tuplin, William Alfred (1967). Great Central Locomotives. London: George Allen & Unwin. OCLC 753041210.
- WEA (1994). Immingham - the way we were : more memories of a marsh village. Immingham: WEA. ISBN 978-0-9524259-2-2.
External links[edit]
- The Eastern Jetty and tracks on a 1932 OS map National Library of Scotland
- The station Rail Map Online
- The Eastern Jetty in modern times World Port Source
- The Eastern Jetty and tracks Britain from Above (free login needed to zoom)
- Cruise ship train arriving at the Eastern Jetty Getty Images
