Articles

Loco Remembered

Date Posted: 2:39 PM on Tue, 14 February 2023

Council Celebrates Netherfield's Railway History with recreation of famous Loco Depot

Railway enthusiasts from the Nottingham Model Railway School will be recreating a scale model of the Colwick Locomotive depot, known as the Loco, the railway yard where the locomotives were kept as part of an event to celebrate the heritage of Netherfield. The model will be over 4 foot long and include key details about how the Loco depot looked and how it housed large trains. There will also be other static models of the locomotive types in various scales and other railway models linked to the history of the town.

The ‘Loco Remembered’ event to celebrate Netherfield's rich railway history will be held at the Crossing Social Club on Station Road, Netherfield on Saturday, March 4th.

Once a thriving railway town, Netherfield was home to the largest freight concentration yard in Europe, built by the Great Northern Railway in 1875. The yard was used to gather coal traffic from the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire coalfields and dispatch it to London. The railway prospered and grew, with a locomotive department and housing for the workforce.

However, by the mid-20th century, the decline of traffic due to road competition and internal railway politics led to the closure of the yards and locomotive department in 1970. Today, the site of the old railway is occupied by the Victoria Retail Park.

This free event is being organised by the Nottingham Model Railway Society in partnership with Gedling Borough Council. The event remembers through the media of models, photos and memorabilia, the Colwick railway sidings and sheds, that closed over 50 years ago, and shows how Netherfield as a community was shaped by the railway.

Residents and visitors are encouraged to attend and learn more about this important part of the town's history.

Leader of Gedling Borough Council, Councillor John Clarke MBE said

"Remembering our history is crucial in understanding who we are as a community and where we come from, this event is a wonderful opportunity for us to come together and celebrate Netherfield's rich railway history and its impact on the town."

Hayden Reed from the Nottingham Model Railway Society said:

“We are incredibly pleased to be a part of this exciting project. We are recreating the model of the Loco to show the size of this building, which was central to the entire railway system in Netherfield and may residents will not be aware of this existing where they live. We hope it will help bring the community together to celebrate the rich history of this, once railway town.”

For more information about the event visit www.gedling.gov.uk/whatson