High Dyke branch line

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Has anyone any reminiscences about this line, which I believe carried bulk ironstone or any information in general.

 

[D841 Roebuck]

A small batch of Class 31 diesels were fitted with tablet catchers for use on this line.

 

[Cab2Cab]

Has anyone any reminiscences about this line, which I believe carried bulk ironstone or any information in general.

Hi,

Where was the high dyke branch?

Cheers

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Near Ancaster in Lincolnshire I think, it served an old iron works or similar. Closed in 1973. Oddly I have many books on both Lincolnshire and closed railways but I can find no reference to it at all!

 

[Ploughman]

There is an extensive thread on the Highdyke branch on the LNER forum.

http://www.lner.info/forums/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3620&hilit=highdyke

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

There is an extensive thread on the Highdyke branch on the LNER forum.

http://www.lner.info/forums/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3620&hilit=highdyke

Thank you for this link. It will be of help to me. I have an old and "yellowed" 8-page extract copy from a pamphlet called "Ironstone Tramways of the Midlands" that I recently came across in my railway archives".

 

[High Dyke]

Near Ancaster in Lincolnshire I think, it served an old iron works or similar. Closed in 1973. Oddly I have many books on both Lincolnshire and closed railways but I can find no reference to it at all!

No it was south of Grantham. 101 miles from Kings Cross, just at the northern end of Stoke Tunnel. The branch trailed in from the west to join the down side. The box: http://tillyweb.biz/abcw/highdyke1.jpg

Another view here (looking South): http://www.rcts.org.uk/features/mysteryphotos/show.htm?img=Y-264-03A&serial=2347&page=146

Reference to the branch is made here: http://www.irsociety.co.uk/Archives/3+4/Ironstone_3.htm

The site of Easton Mine is now the McCains potato factory / Salvesens cold store - i did a year there as a YTS trainee. For those familiar with travelling passed Colsterworth on the A1 the steel bridge for the branch passed over the A1 just north of the village (for years it had the 'Gouranga' tagging on it.) It was replaced a few years ago when they altered the A1 road junctions; the line of route now carries the access road.

The line continued onto Sproxton, Stainby and by linking various branches to the Market Overton system - well known as the one time home of 'Flying Scotsman' and 'Pendennis Castle'; High Dyke branch was the only rail access to Market Overton. Via the Buckminster system it linked to the GN branch to the Grantham - Nottingham line at 'Belvoir Sdgs (Muston).

Over the years many types of industrial loco's served the quarries up to the exchange sidings including former BR Class 14s. As already mentioned class 31s had tablet catching apparatus for the branch.