Yes, I looked in Butt, which is my reference work for all stations up to about 1980. (It even includes Grantham Old Wharf) and couldnt find an Ilkeston Victoria.

I've just found this image on another internet site stating that it's "Ilkeston North" station. It's not a brilliant image but it's taken from almost exactly the same position as my photo. The site also has a photo from the same spot taken recently showing a patch of waste ground and a depressing modern building plonked across the old trackbed - i.e. a typical view of modern England!

Just looked in "Lost Railways of Derbyshire" and on page 105 is a picture of Ilkeston North Station in the early 1900's which looks to be exactly the same Building.

The same pic is on http://www.picturethepast.org.uk/fro...n=zoom&id=9156

Regards, 62440.

I had wondered if 'Victoria' was the terminal station at the end of the short branch from the Midland's Erewash Valley route at Ilkeston Junction & Cossall? I'd never heard of it referred to as Victoria, but I believe it eventually became a bus depot for what used to be the Midland General company, long since swallowed up by Trent/Barton. Whether it still is such I don't know.
Generally, though, you only found 'Victoria' stations in the major cities.

like Barnstaple ...

It's Ilkeston North
Country Stations had names like North or South or Central

You get Victoria's in places like Sheffield and Nottingham
Interestingly Derby only ever had one MAIN line station the present Midland as it used to be called
unlike Town (Chesterfield) which had it's Midland, Central and Market place and the infamous Horns bridge where all the tracks of the individual railways crossed the river and roads to Clay Cross and Hasland

....and Southend, Manchester and LONDON! :)

Yes, but like Derby, only the Midland at Chesterfield was really a main line. Central was on a loop (nowadays if the GC was still active they would have stuck a 'Parkway' where it crossed the A632 between Chesterfield and Bolsover) and even if the founders of the LD&EC had visions of a main line through Market Place it never materialised. Horns Bridge was quite something though.

By the way, why do you call Chesterfield 'Town'? I've often heard the football club referred to in that way although it doesn't have that handle to its name, but yours is the first reference I've seen to the place itself being called 'Town'.

As far as I can remember

Chesterfield has almost always been called "Town" that I can remember could be a reference to the Football club but locally we tend to go to town

now it tends to be called Chezvagas :)

Re the GCR yes it was a loop but it had a really nice mainline style station and it of course is now underneath the A61 not a parkway BUT the tunnel is still there preserved too

Ah yes, Chesterfield tunnel. The southern portal is still visible, even if surrounded by massive concrete walls beside the "new" road. I attach a (slightly faded) photo of it which I took around 1972. The actual tunel portal has a standard rounded top which I assume was always hidden by the road (now demolished at that point) shown in the photo. On a recent visit to Chesterfield I had trouble establishing exactly where the northern portal used to be. Armed with a reasonably accurate GPS and old large scale map, the position would perhaps seem to be almost over where the new road is now but I'm not sure. There is a big square concrete block beside the road, visible even on Google Earth, which evidently gives access to the tunnel but whether it's exactly over the portal or they cut just into the tunnel, I don't know.