GAINSBOROUGH

Yes, we're off to Gainsborough in this post, but first we must cross the Trent to East Ferry. Watch out for the paddle steam Scarborough passing by. 

There's a pub in East Stockwith, the Ferry House, but no real ales these days.

Follow the map (here) and you'll come to Blyton, where there's the White Hart ready to slake your thirst.

Blyton station was a long way from the village. The platforms had gone by 1967 (Ben Brooksbabk - Create Commons Licence).

Northorpe station was another early closer, but the GCR signal box survived to control the level crossing.

Almost a U Turn now and we come to Morton, just north of Gainsborough and contiguous with it.

A Humber Keel, the Loxley, passes Morton on the River Trent.

The Aegir (or Eagre) is a natural phenomenon on the Trent, similar to the Severn Bore. Here it is at Morton Corner.

Morton was home to Eagre Coaches.

Eagre Coaches ran a service into Gainsborough and here are a few of their buses in the town.

Lincolnshire Road Car had a depot in Gainsborough.

Here are a few Road Car buses on service in Gainsborough.

Barnard's was a short lived independent serving Gainsborough.

All Saints church, Gainsborough, 1989.

Gainsborough Old Hall tower, a famous location in the town (Creative Commons License).

The Market Place and Silver Street.

Gainsborough's wharves beside the Trent.

The Aegir passes through Gainsborough.

A souvenir from the long closed Friendship Hotel in the town centre.

The Elm Cottage is worth seeking out.

There's a Wetherspoons, the Sweyne Forkbeard.

Leaving the best until last, the Eight Jolly Brewers.

The Gainsborough Model Railway Society has an O Gauge model railway, occupying a former school. The layout is based on the ECML from Kings Cross to Leeds.

Well situated for the town, but today with a very sparce train service, Gainsborough Central station was once a busy place, Here's a view from the air in 1939.

A visit to an almost empty Central station in the late 1960s.

The nearby Marshall's factory had a Fowler diesel shunter.

Gainsborough other station is Lea Road, with trains at least hourly. Here are two pre-grouping views.

The signal box here survived into the 1980s, but was later destroyed by fire.

A southbound class 31 arrives.

Now we must cross the Trent into Nottinghamshire, but I'm not paying the toll!

So, we'll use the railway. Both lines come together at Trent Junction. A different type of coming together took place just prior to WW1.

Just on the Lincolnshire side, here's Gainsborough Trent Junction signal in 1979, with West Burton power station in the background.

We'll be exploring that bit of Nottinghamshire in the next post.

OF FERRIES, SLUICES AND BASINS

The village of Owston Ferry is our next stop. There used to be a ferry across the Trent, but it's long gone. Here's the Market Place.

Two windmills - Owston Ferry.

Regatta Day on the River Trent.

The White Hart is still in business today, with a couple of cask beers.

Setting out from Owston Ferry on Scutt's charabanc.

Scutt's continued in business into the 1980s, based in the village.

Isle Coaches also operated from a garage in Owston Ferry. They've only recently ceased trading.

Follow the map here to see our route and you'll find us approaching Haxey on the Isle of Axholme Joint Railway, through a cutting, seen here being excavated.

Haxey Town station, on the AJR, was well situated in the centre of things.

Here's an old postcard of Haxey.

A mile or so away is Westwoodside, centred around the village pond.

In 1991, a couple of preserved buses passing through Westwoodside, en route to the Sandtoft Gathering,

To the south of Haxey is a bit of ribbon development called Graizelound.

South of here the Axholme Joint met the GN & GE Joint line at Haxey Junction.

The GN & GE Joint line station here was known as Haxey for Epworth. The AJR station can be seen in the left of this photo.

Haxey for Epworth station in 1969, after closure, but still intact.

A class 31 passes on a down freight, circa 1972.

A DMU stops for instructions at the signal box.

The former goods shed at Haxey for Epworth was, in the 1970s, used to house several preserved buses.

Into Nottinghamshire now, along the GN & GE Joint, to Misterton station.

A short branch line ran from Misterton, towards the Trent, to a factory at West Stockwith, as seen on this period map.

There was once a ferry across the Trent at West Stockwith.

The River Idle joins the Trent here, via this sluice gate. At times, the Idle is navigable right up to Bawtry.

The Chesterfield Canal terminates at a basin in West Stockwith, with a lock providing access to the Trent.

West Stockwith is blessed with two good pubs, the Waterfront Inn and the White Hart.

That's where I'll leave you for this post. We'll have a wander around Gainsborough next time.