The line and the station were built by the Midland Railway. The station was designed by the Midland Railway company architect John Holloway Sanders. In 1951, the station was renamed "Shirebrook West" despite being on the eastern edge of the village. This was to "avoid confusion" with three other stations:
built by the LD&ECR in 1897. Despite its name, Shirebrook North was not actually in Shirebrook, but in nearby Langwith Junction.
built by the GNR on their line from Langwith Junction to via. This line used to pass through the middle of Shirebrook by a massive embankment, cutting the village in two. Shirebrook South actually was in southern Shirebrook.
Shirebrook Colliery for colliery workmen's trains only.
Shirebrook South closed to regular passenger services in 1931, but excursions continued to call at least until 1957. Shirebrook North closed to regular passenger services in 1955, but excursions continued to call until 1964. Shirebrook Colliery Sidings closed by June 1954.
Station masters
James Garner ???? - 1930
Branch lines
Two branch lines are plainly visible veering off north of the bridge at the north end of Shirebrook station. The double tracks branching off eastwards to the side of the signalbox joined the LD&ECR's one-time main line to Lincoln, next stop. The branch only ever carried a regular passenger service for a few years in Edwardian times. It did, however, carry Summer holiday trains such as the Summer Saturdays Radford to Skegness in at least 1963. The branch's main purpose was always freight traffic, with coal being overwhelmingly dominant. In 2013 the line gives access to UK Coal'sThoresby Colliery and to the High Marnham Test Track. There is some hope of reopening the line as a branch off the Robin Hood Line and reopening, Edwinstowe and Ollerton stations, providing an hourly service to Mansfield and Nottingham. The single line veering off westwards was removed in the 1940s and relaid in 1974. It used to have a matching second track coming down on the other side of the main lines, behind the signalbox as viewed from the station, but that was not reinstated. The reinstated single line serves W H Davis's wagon works in Langwith Junction. From 1900 to 1939 the pair of lines enabled trains to run from Sheffield through,, Creswell's old "Top Station",, Shirebrook West, and to. Finally, up to 1974 the next station north from Shirebrook on what is now the Robin Hood Line was not but simply "". That station was at Langwith Maltings. In the 1964-1998 closure period it was demolished. As a new station would have to be built at Langwith when the Robin Hood Line was to be reopened it was decided that the community would be better served by a station at Nether Langwith/Whaley Thorns than at the old station site.
Services
Monday to Saturdays, there is generally an hourly service from Shirebrook eastbound towards Worksop and southbound to Mansfield and Nottingham. On Sundays from 22 May 2011, the Robin Hood line train service runs between Nottingham and Mansfield Woodhouse only. Bus service RH1 replaces Robin Hood line trains between Worksop and Mansfield Woodhouse. It calls at Whitwell, Creswell, Langwith Whaley Thorns and Shirebrook stations and connects with selected trains at Mansfield Woodhouse.
