Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Bridgwater was a factory between the villages of Puriton and Woolavington in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England that produced high explosives for munitions. It was slightly above sea level, between the 5-and-10-metre contour lines on Ordnance Survey maps. BAE Systems closed it when decommissioning was completed in July 2008.
The Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, also known as the S&D, SDJR or S&DJR, was an English railway line connecting Bath and Bournemouth, with a branch from Evercreech Junction to Burnham-on-Sea and Bridgwater. Strictly speaking, the main line ran from Bath Junction to Broadstone, as the line between Broadstone and Bournemouth was owned by the London and South Western Railway, while the line between Bath Junction and Bath was owned by the Midland Railway.
The Glastonbury Canal ran for approximately 14 miles (23 km) through two locks from Glastonbury to Highbridge in Somerset, England, where it entered the River Parrett and from there the Bristol Channel. The canal was authorised by Parliament in 1827 and opened in 1834. It was operated by The Glastonbury Navigation & Canal Company. Most of it was abandoned as a navigation in 1854, when a railway was built along the towpath.
Highbridge is a market town on the edge of the Somerset Levels near the mouth of the River Brue. It is in the County of Somerset, and is about 20 miles (32 km) northeast of Taunton, the county town of Somerset. No longer a market town, the market site is now a housing estate. Highbridge is in the District of Sedgemoor, being about 7 miles (11 km) north of Bridgwater, the district's administrative centre. Highbridge closely neighbours Burnham-on-Sea, forming part of the combined parish of Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge and shares a town council with the resort town. The 2001 Census recorded Highbridge's population as 5,986. In the 2011 Census the population of the town was included in the ward of Highbridge and Burnham Marine, which totalled 7,555.
Highbridge and Burnham railway station is situated on the Bristol to Taunton Line within the town of Highbridge, Somerset, and also serves the neighbouring town of Burnham-on-Sea. It is 145 miles 25 chains from the zero point at London Paddington via Box. It is unstaffed but managed by Great Western Railway who operate all the regular services.
Evercreech Junction was a railway station at Evercreech on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway.
Binegar railway station was a station on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway in the county of Somerset in England. Opened on 20 July 1874, the station consisted of two platforms, with a building on the down platform. There was a substantial goods yard with two sheds and sidings, controlled from a 24 lever signal box. Being the first station north of the line's summit at Masbury Binegar was also where locomotives used as banking engines on north-bound trains would drop off and cross the line ready to return south.
Huntspill is a village and former civil parish on the Huntspill Level in Somerset, England. It lies on the A38 road, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south of Highbridge. The village is the principal settlement in the civil parish of West Huntspill. In 2019 it had an estimated population of 1102.
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.
East Huntspill is a village and civil parish on the Huntspill Level, near Highbridge, Somerset, England. The civil parish includes Cote, Hackness and Bason Bridge.
Pylle railway station was a station on the Highbridge branch of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway. Opened 3 February 1862 on the original S&DJR main line, the railway was reduced to branch status when the extension from Evercreech Junction to Bath was opened. It was built with a passing loop on the single line however the loop was removed in 1929 at the same time as the signal box. It was reduced to halt status on 4 November 1957 and closed with the railway, on 7 March 1966.
West Pennard railway station was a station on the Highbridge branch of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway. Opened on 3 February 1862, it was reduced to halt status on 25 June 1962. Originally the S&DJR main line, the railway was reduced to branch status when the extension to Bath was built. A passing point on the single line, the station was adjacent to a level crossing on the A361 road from Shepton Mallet to Glastonbury. The station closed with the railway on 7 March 1966.
Glastonbury and Street railway station was the biggest station on the original Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway main line from Highbridge to Evercreech Junction until closed in 1966 under the Beeching axe. It was the junction for the short branch line to Wells which closed in 1951.
Polsham was a railway station on the Somerset and Dorset Railway in the village of Polsham, Somerset in England.
Ashcott railway station was a station on the Highbridge branch of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway. Opened by the Somerset Central Railway in 1856 as Ashcott and Meare, the name changed to Ashcott in 1876. Consisting of a short wooden platform and station building, the station was next to a road level crossing. This was operated with a 10 lever ground frame.
Burnham-on-Sea railway station was located within the town of Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset, and was the terminus of the Burnham branch of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway. Opened as Burnham by the Somerset Central Railway on 3 May 1858, it was renamed in 1920.
Wellow railway station was a station on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway at Wellow in the county of Somerset in England. Opened on 20 July 1874, the station consisted of two platforms, a goods yard and sidings, controlled from an 18 lever signal box.
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 1⁄4 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.
