Barnstaple Victoria Road railway station

Last updated

Barnstaple Victoria Road
Barnstaple (Victoria Road) Station - geograph.org.uk - 1762818.jpg
Barnstaple Victoria Road railway station in 1964
General information
Location Barnstaple, North Devon
England
Grid reference SS566327
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyDevon & Somerset Railway
Pre-grouping Great Western Railway
Post-groupingGreat Western Railway
Western Region of British Railways
Key dates
1 November 1873Opened as "Barnstaple"
26 September 1949Renamed "Barnstaple Victoria Road"
13 June 1960Closed to passengers
1970Closed to goods

Barnstaple railway station (Barnstaple Victoria Road railway station from 1949) was the western terminus of the Devon and Somerset Railway. It was situated on the south eastern side of Barnstaple in Devon, England. It was served by passenger trains from 1873 until 1960, and by freight trains until 1970.

Contents

History

The Devon and Somerset was a 7 ft (2,134 mm) broad gauge line that opened from Taunton to Wiveliscombe in 1871 and completed to Barnstaple on 1 November 1873. The line was operated by the Bristol and Exeter Railway when that company was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway (GWR) in 1876. [1] It was converted to 4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge in 1881. [2]

A line was opened on 1 June 1887 from the D&SR station to the London and South Western Railway's Barnstaple Junction railway station, enabling trains from London and Taunton to reverse at Barnstaple then continue on to Ilfracombe. On 1 July 1905 a chord was opened between the two lines (thus forming a triangular junction) which enabled direct running from the Taunton line into Barnstaple Junction. This new line was mainly used on summer Saturdays; at other times through trains on the Ilfracombe line continued to reverse at the station. [3]

The station in 1969 Barnstaple (GWR) Railway Station.jpg
The station in 1969

From 1 January 1948 the station was managed by the Western Region of British Railways. All parcels business for Barnstaple was now handled at this station, which was given the 'Victoria Road' suffix on 26 September 1949 to avoid confusion with Barnstaple Junction or Barnstaple Town. Victoria Road was closed to passengers from 13 June 1960, after which the Devon and Somerset line trains ran directly to Barnstaple Junction until the line was closed on 3 October 1966. The goods yard remained open until 1970, trains in later years only operating via Barnstaple Junction. [4]

Description

Victoria Road had a very long single platform which was used for the arrivals, plus a bay at the eastern end that was used for departures. The single-storey building was wooden and was provided with a large canopy that extended to the platform edge. From the west end it contained a parcels office, refreshment room (later used as a store and cycle room), booking office, waiting room and ladies' toilet, gentlemen's toilet, station master's office and porter's room. [3] There was a signal box at the eastern end of the platform and a small engine shed and turntable on the south side of the line between the station and the line to Barnstaple Junction. [4] [5]

The large goods yard was on the south side of the line, opposite the passenger platform. This included a large goods shed, cattle pens, and facilities to discharge oil tank wagons. Other traffic regularly received included animal feed, bananas, beer, biscuits, cement, coal, fertiliser, furniture, and tea. Outgoing goods comprised animal skins, farm machinery, gloves, lace, pottery, sugar beet, tar, thatching reed, timber, and wool. [3]

Services

Five passenger and two goods trains were scheduled to operate daily in each direction between Barnstaple and Taunton in the October 1880 timetable, as they still were immediately before World War I. By 1898 through coaches were detached from trains from London Paddington and the North of England at Taunton then conveyed via Barnstaple to Ilfracombe attached to local coaches. Through trains from Paddington to Ilfracombe were running in the summer by 1905. Before World War II the passenger service had increased to seven trains. [3]

Preceding station Disused railways Following station
Swimbridge
Line and station closed
  Devon and Somerset Railway
Great Western Railway
  Barnstaple Junction
Line closed, station open

After closure

The station buildings have now been demolished and the site is part of an industrial estate. However, the goods shed survives and is used as a church and the platforms are visible alongside the A39 and are used as a car park for Western Power Distribution, an electricity provider. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Somerset Railway</span> Heritage railway line in Somerset, England

The West Somerset Railway (WSR) is a 22.75-mile (36.6 km) heritage railway line in Somerset, England. The freehold of the line and stations is owned by Somerset County Council; the railway is leased to and operated by West Somerset Railway plc ; which is supported and minority-owned by charitable trust the West Somerset Railway Association (WSRA) and the West Somerset Steam Railway Trust (WSSRT). The WSR plc operates services using both heritage steam and diesel trains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Exeter St Davids railway station</span> Railway station in Devon, England

Exeter St Davids is the principal railway station serving the city of Exeter in Devon, England. It is 193 miles 72 chains from the zero point at London Paddington on the line through Bristol which continues to Plymouth and Penzance. It is also served by an alternative route to London Waterloo via Salisbury and branch lines to Exmouth, Barnstaple, and Okehampton. It is currently managed by Great Western Railway and is served by trains operated by Great Western Railway, South Western Railway and CrossCountry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taunton railway station</span> Railway station in Somerset, England

Taunton railway station is a junction station on the route from London to Penzance, 143 miles (230 km) west of London Paddington station. It is situated in Taunton, Somerset, and is operated by Great Western Railway. The station is also served by CrossCountry trains and by the West Somerset Railway on special event days and by mainline steam excursions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiverton Parkway railway station</span> Railway station in Devon, England

Tiverton Parkway railway station is on the Bristol to Exeter line in Devon, England. The "Parkway" name signifies that the station is a distance from Tiverton town itself: it is actually located in the civil parish of Burlescombe, near Sampford Peverell, 6 miles (9.7 km) to the east of Tiverton, and close to the junction of the M5 motorway with the A361 North Devon link road. It is 177 miles 28 chains from the zero point at London Paddington via Bristol Temple Meads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnstaple railway station</span> Railway station in Devon, England

Barnstaple railway station is the northern terminus of the Tarka Line and serves the town of Barnstaple, Devon. It is 39 miles 75 chains (64.3 km) from Exeter Central at milepost 211.25 from London Waterloo. It is managed by Great Western Railway, which also operates the train service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol and Exeter Railway</span> Former English railway company

The Bristol and Exeter Railway (B&ER) was an English railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter. It was built on the broad gauge and its engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It opened in stages between 1841 and 1844. It was allied with the Great Western Railway (GWR), which built its main line between London and Bristol, and in time formed part of a through route between London and Cornwall.

The North Devon Railway connected Barnstaple to the growing railway network in 1854 and as Ilfracombe developed as a watering place, it was obvious a railway connection to the town was needed. The hilly terrain was very difficult, but an Ilfracombe Railway was authorised in 1864 but failed when a major shareholder was unable to respond to a subscription call. After several false starts the Barnstaple and Ilfracombe Railway, soon taken over by the London and South Western Railway, opened in 1870.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norton Fitzwarren railway station</span> Former railway station in England

Norton Fitzwarren railway station is an untimetabled station on the West Somerset Railway in Somerset, England. It was built in 2009 about 14 mile (0.4 km) north of the site of the old station that served the village of Norton Fitzwarren from 1873 until 1961. There were fatal railway accidents in the vicinity in 1890, 1940 and 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devon and Somerset Railway</span> Former railway line in England

The Devon and Somerset Railway (D&SR) was a cross-country line that connected Barnstaple in Devon, England, to the network of the Bristol and Exeter Railway (B&ER) near Taunton. It was opened in stages between 1871 and 1873 and closed in 1966. It served a mostly rural area although it carried some through services from east of Taunton to the seaside resort of Ilfracombe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Devon Railway</span> Former English railway company

The North Devon Railway was a railway company which operated a line from Cowley Bridge Junction, near Exeter, to Bideford in Devon, England, later becoming part of the London and South Western Railway's system. Originally planned as a broad gauge feeder to the Bristol & Exeter Railway, it became part of a battle between the broad gauge group and the standard gauge railway interests. In this context, standard gauge lines were often described as narrow gauge.

There are 22 disused railway stations in the 75 miles (121 km) between Bristol Temple Meads and Exeter St Davids, 12 of which have structures that can still be seen from passing trains. Most were closed in the 1960s but four of them, especially around Weston-super-Mare, were replaced by stations on new sites. 13 stations remain open on the line today, but there have been proposals to reopen stations at Cullompton and Wellington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berks and Hants Railway</span>

The Berks and Hants Railway comprised two railway lines built simultaneously by the Great Western Railway (GWR) south and west from Reading in an attempt to keep the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) out of the area that it considered to be its territory in England.

The Langport and Castle Cary Railway is a railway line from Castle Cary railway station to Cogload Junction near Taunton, Somerset, England, which reduced the length of the journey from London to Penzance by 20+14 miles (32.6 km).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chard branch line</span>

The Chard branch lines were two lines serving the town of Chard in Somerset, England. One was a northward branch, opened in 1863, from the Salisbury to Exeter main line, and the other, opened in 1866, ran south-eastwards from the Bristol – Taunton main line. Each branch had its own Chard passenger station at first, although the two lines connected in Chard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chard Junction railway station</span> Disused railway station in England

Chard Junction railway station was situated on the London and South Western Railway’s West of England Main Line about 1 mile (1.6 km) southeast of the village of Tatworth in Somerset, England. It was the junction of a short branch line to Chard. It was opened in 1860 as Chard Road, and closed in 1966. An adjacent milk depot was served by its own sidings from 1937 to 1980. Chard Junction signal box remains open to control Station Road level crossing and a passing loop on the long section of single track railway between Yeovil Junction and Pinhoe.

The Stert and Westbury Railway was opened by the Great Western Railway Company in 1900 in Wiltshire, England. It shortened the distance between London Paddington station and Weymouth, and since 1906 has also formed part of the Reading to Taunton line for a shorter journey from London to Penzance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reading–Taunton line</span> Major branch of the Great Western Main Line

The Reading–Taunton line is a major branch of the Great Western Main Line from which it diverges at Reading railway station. It runs to Cogload Junction where it joins the Bristol to Exeter and Penzance line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol–Exeter line</span> Railway line in England

The Bristol to Exeter line is a major branch of the Great Western Main Line in the West of England and runs from Bristol, to Exeter, from where it continues as the Exeter to Plymouth line. It was one of the principal routes of the pre-1948 Great Western Railway which were subsequently taken over by the Western Region of British Railways and are now part of the Network Rail system.

The Yeovil–Taunton line was a railway line in England, built by the Bristol and Exeter Railway (B&ER) to connect its main line with the market town of Yeovil in Somerset. It opened in 1853 using the broad gauge of 7 ft 14 in and was the first railway to serve Yeovil. It ran from a junction at Durston although in later years passenger trains on the line ran through to and from Taunton where better main and branch line connections could be made.

References

  1. MacDermot, E T (1931). History of the Great Western Railway. Vol. 2 (1863-1921) (1 ed.). London: Great Western Railway. pp. 171–173.
  2. MacDermot 1931 , pp. 326–327
  3. 1 2 3 4 Turner, Chris (2002). "Barnstaple". Great Western Railway Journal. Wild Swan Publications (42): 62–87. ISSN   0964-6809.
  4. 1 2 3 Oakley, Mike (2007). Devon Railway Stations. Wimbourne: The Dovecote Press. pp. 26–27. ISBN   978-1-904349-55-6.
  5. Cooke, RA (1979). Track Layout Diagrams of the GWR and BR WR, Section 15: North Devon. Harwell: RA Cooke. p. 11.

51°04′35″N4°02′51″W / 51.076283°N 4.047587°W / 51.076283; -4.047587