Bude railway station

Bude

*Porthbud*
Bude; Porthbud
	The station in 1964
General information
Location	Bude, Cornwall ; England
Grid reference	SS210059
Platforms	2
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Pre-grouping	London and South Western Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway ; Western Region of British Railways
Key dates
11 August 1898	Opened
7 September 1964	Closed to freight
3 October 1966	Closed to passengers

Last updated November 10, 2024

Bude railway station (Cornish : Porthbud) was the western terminus of the Bude Branch. It was opened in 1898 by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to serve the coastal town of Bude and closed in 1966 after having been proposed for closure in the Beeching Report.

History

The opening of Bude station in 1898 marked the completion of the LSWR's branch line from Okehampton which had taken nineteen years and four acts of Parliament. The original line had been authorised as far as Holsworthy where a station was opened on 20 January 1879. From there, the LSWR operated a "smart coach service" to Stratton and Bude. When the railway company showed no sign of wishing to extend services westwards towards the coast, the residents of Stratton and Bude, anxious for a connection to the expanding railway network, clubbed together in 1883 to raise £1,000 towards the cost of promoting a bill for a 9.5 miles (15.3 km) extension to the railway line which would follow a route taking in the two towns as well as the small village of Bridgerule.^[1]

The LSWR took up their offer and the Holsworthy and Bude Railway Act 1883 (46 & 47 Vict. c. ccii) was passed on 20 August 1883. However, apart from a ceremonial cutting of the first sod, no works were commenced on the extension and the deadline for completion of the line by October 1891 was looking unlikely to be met, resulting in the LSWR asking for an extra year to complete the works. Nevertheless, since by the end of 1891 no progress had been made, a further bill was promoted seeking the abandonment of the line; the act, the Holsworthy and Bude Railway (Abandonment) Act 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c. xx), was passed on 20 May 1892. This did not deter the residents of Stratton and Bude who, in 1894, successfully lobbied the LSWR to promote a second bill. The South Western Railway Act 1895 (58 & 59 Vict. c. cxliv) was passed on 6 July 1895 and authorised a somewhat different route than that set out in the first act.^[1]

The LSWR was, at the time, investing heavily in the construction of the North Cornwall Line and adopted a more direct route to Bude which reduced the projected costs by some £10,000 avoiding the construction of a viaduct, but also avoiding Stratton altogether. To construct the line, the LSWR hired John Aird & Co. who were later involved in the Welsh Highland Railway.^[1]

Stationmasters

Thomas Furze 1898 - 1924^[2] (formerly station master at Holsworthy)
R. J. Trigger 1924 - 1938^[3] (formerly station master at Callington, afterwards station master at Bideford)
Arthur M. White ca. 1939
R. England 1947^[4] - ca. 1950 (formerly station master at Pinhoe)

The station

Bude station was deliberately sited on the outskirts of the town in order to please the residents of Stratton whose, at the time, larger town had been bypassed by the railway company. It was solidly constructed of local stone, with a refreshment room and a large bay-windowed house for the Stationmaster. From the station, a short branch was laid to the canal basin to tap the commercial traffic in sand which was used in construction, as well as to facilitate the distribution of coal which arrived in sloops from South Wales. Although traffic was heavy in the early days, the decline set in during the interwar period with the introduction of chemical fertilisers and competition from road haulage services; freight facilities were eventually withdrawn in 1964, but in reality the station saw very little traffic in its latter years. The station did not see many changes during its 68-year life, but the track layout was modified somewhat in April/May 1939 to accommodate twelve coach trains. Longer trains comprising fifteen coaches or more were handled by dividing the train between the two platforms.^[5]

Passenger services were never very frequent to Bude, although there were several useful daily through-coaches to London, with whole trains operating during Summer weekends. In addition, there was the Atlantic Coast Express , a through train from London Waterloo at 10:35, running non-stop from Exeter St Davids to Halwill, then calling at Holsworthy and Bude only, arriving at Bude at 15:25. Most trains conveyed through coaches to Padstow, usually marshalled in front of the Bude coaches in the down direction. The portions were divided at Halwill. The pattern of services changed after the handover of the line to the Western Region of British Railways from 1 January 1963 when services became more local and the through-coaches to Waterloo were discontinued. The new operator was committed to dieselisation and DMU units were introduced from September 1964, resulting in the closure of Bude's engine shed.^[5]

Bude's last direct link with London ended in Summer 1965 when the through-trains from Waterloo were diverted to London Paddington and services now reversed at Exeter St Davids. This left Bude with only a local shuttle service to and from Okehampton for the final months of its life. It was, however, the final stronghold of the Bulleid Pacifics which operated from the end of April 1962, appearing on excursion services and through-weekend trains.^[5]

The station's closure in 1966 left residents of Bude and the surrounding area with Okehampton station, some 30 miles (48 km) away, as their nearest connection to the railway. This increased to 33 miles (53 km) in January 1972 when Okehampton itself closed, leaving Barnstaple as the nearest railhead.

The station today

Nothing remains of Bude Station today, except for one brick entrance pillar covered in ivy, as the site has been built over with low-cost housing, leaving the railway bridge over the River Neet as almost the sole clue as to there ever having been a railway in the town. Walking back along the route of the line, there are still a couple of sides to what would have been the bridges, and cattle creeps that can be seen adjacent to the new cycle path. The cycle path was built adjacent to the original trackbed.^[6]

Services

Preceding station		Disused railways		Following station
Whitstone and Bridgerule		British Rail Western Region Bude Branch		Terminus

Related Research Articles

The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Originating as the London and Southampton Railway, its network extended to Dorchester and Weymouth, to Salisbury, Exeter and Plymouth, and to Padstow, Ilfracombe and Bude. It developed a network of routes in Hampshire, Surrey and Berkshire, including Portsmouth and Reading.

Exeter Central railway station is the most central of the stations in the city of Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom. It is 171 miles 30 chains (275.8 km) down the line from London Waterloo. The station is smaller than Exeter St Davids on the west side of the city. Great Western Railway manages the station and operates most services, with South Western Railway providing the rest. It is the second busiest station in Devon, and the fourth busiest in South West England.

The Atlantic Coast Express (ACE) is an express passenger train in England that has operated at various times between London and seaside resorts in the South West England. It is currently operated as a summer only service by Great Western Railway between London Paddington and Newquay.

The Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway was a railway line opened in 1834 in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It linked the quays at Wadebridge with the town of Bodmin and also to quarries at Wenfordbridge. Its intended traffic was minerals to the port at Wadebridge and sea sand, used to improve agricultural land, inwards. Passengers were also carried on part of the line.

Okehampton railway station is a terminus railway station on the Dartmoor line serving the town of Okehampton in Devon, England. The station closed to regular traffic in 1972, but heritage and occasional mainline services ran from 1997 to 2019. Regular railway services resumed in November 2021.

The South Devon and Tavistock Railway linked Plymouth with Tavistock in Devon; it opened in 1859. It was extended by the Launceston and South Devon Railway to Launceston, in Cornwall in 1865. It was a broad gauge line but from 1876 also carried the standard gauge trains of the London and South Western Railway between Lydford and Plymouth: a third rail was provided, making a mixed gauge. In 1892 the whole line was converted to standard gauge only.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Exeter and Crediton Railway</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Exeter and Crediton Railway was a 7 ft broad gauge railway that linked Exeter and Crediton, Devon, England. It was 5¼ miles (8½ km) long.

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.

The North Cornwall Railway (NCR) also known as the North Cornwall Line, was a standard gauge railway line running from Halwill in Devon, to Padstow in Cornwall, at a distance of 49 miles 67 chains via Launceston, Camelford and Wadebridge. The line was opened in late 19th century by the North Cornwall Railway Company with support throughout much of its construction and existence by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR).

The Okehampton–Bude line was a railway line built to serve Holsworthy in Devon, and Bude on the Cornish coast near the Devon border in England. The line branched from the main line at Meldon Junction to the west of Okehampton on the northern edge of Dartmoor. The line opened in 1879 to Holsworthy and in 1898 to Bude. It is now closed.

Halwill is a village and civil parish in the Torridge district, in Devon, England just off the A3079 Okehampton to Holsworthy road. About a mile away on the main road is another settlement called Halwill Junction. In 2011 the parish had a population of 930.

The Exeter to Plymouth railway of the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) was the westernmost part of a route competing with that of the Great Western Railway (GWR) and its 'associated companies' from London and Exeter to Plymouth in Devon, England. Whereas the GWR route from Exeter followed the coast to Newton Abbot and then went around the southern edge of Dartmoor, the LSWR route followed the northern and western margins of Dartmoor, passing through the towns of Crediton, Okehampton, and Tavistock.

This article describes the history and operation of the railway routes west of Salisbury built by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) and allied companies, which ultimately became part of the Southern Railway in the United Kingdom. Salisbury forms a natural boundary between the Southern Railway core routes in the counties surrounding London, and the long route connecting with the Devon and Cornwall lines.

Halwill Junction Railway Station was a railway station in Halwill Junction, near the villages of Halwill and Beaworthy in Devon, England. It opened in 1879 and formed an important junction between the now-closed Bude Branch and North Cornwall line. It closed in 1966 along with the lines which it served, a casualty of the Beeching Report.

Padstow railway station was the western terminus of the North Cornwall Railway. It was opened in 1899 by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to serve the port of Padstow. It closed in 1967 having been proposed for closure in the Beeching Report.

Holsworthy was a railway station in Devon, England, on the now-closed railway line from Okehampton to Bude. It opened in 1879 to serve the market town of Holsworthy and closed in 1966, a victim of the Beeching Axe.

North Tawton railway station was a railway station serving the town of North Tawton in Devon, England. North Tawton lies on the River Taw.

Maddaford Moor Halt was a railway station on the Bude Branch that closed in 1966. The halt was located where the line passed under the A3079, at a hamlet now known as Thorndon Cross, four miles west of Okehampton. Maddaford Moor Halt was opened in 1926 by the Southern Railway (SR) many years after the line to serve the coastal town of Bude was opened in 1898.

Dunsland Cross was a railway station on the Bude Branch that closed in 1966. Dunsland Cross station in the parish of Holsworthy was 6 miles East of the village, now town of Holsworthy. The station was opened in 1879 by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) when Holsworthy station was the terminus of the line, some years before the route to serve the coastal town of Bude was finally opened in 1898.

Whitstone and Bridgerule was a railway station on the Bude Branch that closed in 1966. The station was opened in 1898 by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) when the line was extended from Holsworthy station to the new terminus of the line at Bude.

References

1 2 3 Southern E-Group, "Bude"
↑ "At the end of May" . Hartland and West Country Chronicle. England. 18 June 1924. Retrieved 18 July 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
↑ "Bude Presentation" . Western Times. England. 7 January 1938. Retrieved 18 July 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
↑ "Another Promotion" . Exeter and Plymouth Gazette. England. 6 June 1947. Retrieved 18 July 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.
1 2 3 Pryer, G.A.; Bowring, G.J. (1980). An Historical Survey of Selected Southern Stations: Volume One. Oxford: Oxford Publishing Company. p. 31. ISBN 0-86093-016-5.
↑ Southern E-Group, "Bude"

External links

Bude station on navigable 1946 O. S. map

50°49′30″N4°32′34″W / 50.82490°N 4.54287°W / 50.82490; -4.54287

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[semg1-1] 1 2 3 Southern E-Group, "Bude"

[2] "At the end of May" . Hartland and West Country Chronicle. England. 18 June 1924. Retrieved 18 July 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.

[3] "Bude Presentation" . Western Times. England. 7 January 1938. Retrieved 18 July 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.

[4] "Another Promotion" . Exeter and Plymouth Gazette. England. 6 June 1947. Retrieved 18 July 2021– via British Newspaper Archive.

[pryer-5] 1 2 3 Pryer, G.A.; Bowring, G.J. (1980). An Historical Survey of Selected Southern Stations: Volume One. Oxford: Oxford Publishing Company. p. 31. ISBN 0-86093-016-5.

[6] Southern E-Group, "Bude"

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]