Above: On Thursday 9th April 1964 the attention of these young spotters outside the Inspectors’ Office on platform 2 must be on an approaching northbound express . Posters advertise the British Transport Commission’s railway museums at York and Swindon, and ‘Weekends in Amsterdam from £15’ in early May by British Railways shipping services from Harwich.
Today it’s easy to overlook the reasons for the popularity of the railway with many boys who grew up in the 1950s and early 1960s. Railways were prominent in most town and country settings and the hobby of trainspotting was accepted as a harmless pastime by most parents. For those who participated it provided opportunities for outdoor entertainment, justification for being away from home for hours on end, excuses for travel to places far away from where you lived, and rivalry and ‘bragging rights’ among friends.
For this section of Tracks through Grantham we've gathered together the recollections of local spotters about both their home town station and their ventures further afield. There are also memories of others for whom the railway scene at Grantham became an attraction which drew them from a distance.
If you have memories of train spotting at Grantham or nearby we'd love to hear from you. You may no longer have your spotting books, but we are sure you will still have a story to tell, whether it's just a few lines or an epic! Any period will do, any Grantham related anecdote - rain, wind or shine.
The contributions are set out in three sections; follow the links: