Beighton station existed on three sites at different times:
the first station, believed to have been little more than a halt, was opened by the North Midland Railway when it built its Chesterfield to Rotherham Masborough line, which is now predominantly a freight route. At 1.25 miles (2.01 km) south of Woodhouse Mill it stood approximately halfway between what is now Beighton Junction and the overbridge which still carries passenger trains east–west between Sheffield and Worksop.[2] This original station was opened when the line opened in June 1840, it was not near to or convenient for the village of Beighton and closed in January 1843.
in 1849 the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) completed its Sheffield to Worksop line, which included a branch from just east of Woodhouse to join the North Midland line at what became known as Beighton Junction. They built Beighton's second station at a site on their line only, close to, but not on, the junction. The MS&LR hurried to open this branch to enable a revenue earning service to Eckington to commence and give connections to North Midland trains. This second station closed temporarily from 1852 to 1854 then continued in use until 1892.
in 1892 the MS&LR opened its "Derbyshire Lines" route near Beighton. This would eventually become part of the Great Central Main Line. On 1 November 1893 the MS&LR closed Beighton's second station and opened its third and final station at a site 132 yards (121 m) north west of the second site, immediately north of the Rotherham Road level crossing.[3]
All three stations were in the flood plain of the River Rother, which repeatedly led to problems.[4][5] In 1950 these plus the generally poor state of the station building led British Railways to raise platform levels and undertake other remedial works.[6]
Beighton station closed for the third and final time on 1 November 1954. It has since been demolished.
Beighton station and related linesNorthbound freight on the ex-GC main line in 1951Up coal train at Beighton Junction in 1963
In 1897 the Lancashire, Derbyshire and East Coast Railway opened in a branch from Langwith Junction. The original hope had been to join the MS&LR line into Sheffield Victoria but it was rebuffed, so a goods yard and connection to the ex-North Midland line at Beighton was built instead, though this did not touch Beighton station. The LD&ECR obtained running rights along the Midland line to Treeton Junction and entered Sheffield via the Sheffield District Railway when it opened in 1900.[7][8]
In March 2021, the 120-year-old Beighton Station Junction signal cabin, the last remaining relic of the station, was demolished, with control of the lines passing to the York Rail Operating Centre.[9]
Cupit, J.; Taylor, W. (1984) [1966]. The Lancashire, Derbyshire & East Coast Railway. Oakwood Library of Railway History (2nd ed.). Headington: Oakwood Press. ISBN0-85361-302-8. OL19.
Dow, George (1965). Great Central, Volume Three: Fay Sets the Pace, 1900–1922. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN0-7110-0263-0.
Grainger, Ken (2002). Sheffield Victoria to Chesterfield Central, The "Derbyshire Lines" of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway Part 1. Bredbury, Cheshire: Foxline Limited. ISBN1-870119-83-5.
Hurst, Geoffrey (1989). Great Central East of Sheffield Volume 1. Worksop, Nottinghamshire: Milepost Publications. ISBN0-947796-00-2.
Pixton, Bob (2001). North Midland: Portrait of a Famous Route: Part 2 Chesterfield-Sheffield-Rotherham. Nottingham: Runpast Publishing, (now Book Law). ISBN1-870754-51-4.
