Rolleston-on-Dove railway station opened 2nd November 1894 on the route between Burton upon Trent and Tutbury, a line that had been open since 1848. The station closed in 1949 and all railway services along the line ceased circa 1968. The following years witnessed the site and track bed becoming a wilderness with the route, a cutting betwwen Rolleston and the neighbouring village, Stretton threatened with being used for land-fill. In 1984 both Parish Councils purchased the land on condition it should become a nature trail. The ‘Jinny Nature Trail’ takes its name from the passenger train that, for 100 years, served the community.
Rolleston-on-Dove railway station, the model, was built as a way to celebrate the Millenium and, apart from being featured in specialist magazines, appeared at various exhibitions. Having gathered reference from the overgrown station area, the modeller became inspired to create a heritage site by preserving the remainins and installing interpretation panels featuring maps and photographs of the bygone railway. To enhance the nature trail, a wildflower meadow has been planted between the two platforms with a woodland area to complement it throughout the seasons.
Station site address: Station Road, Rolleston, Burton upon Trent, DE13 9AD – Contact: clivegbaker@icloud.com
