Watchet railway station

Last updated

Watchet
Station on heritage railway
Watchet 832.jpg
General information
Location Watchet, Somerset
England
Coordinates 51°10′51″N3°19′48″W / 51.1808°N 3.3301°W / 51.1808; -3.3301
Grid reference ST071432
Operated by West Somerset Railway
Platforms1
History
Original company West Somerset Railway
Post-grouping Great Western Railway
Key dates
31 March 1862Opened
4 January 1971Closed
28 March 1976Opened in preservation

Watchet railway station is a station on the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway in Somerset, England. It is situated in the small harbour town of Watchet.

Contents

History

Terminus: 1862–1873

The station opened on 31 March 1862 when the West Somerset Railway (WSR) opened from Norton Junction (later Norton Fitzwarren), serving as the WSR's original line terminus. Watchet was chosen as the WSR line's terminus, as it had been since the Middle Ages an important regional port on the Bristol Channel. Local iron ore, timber and paper products were exported, whilst from the same time, it had become an important national port for the import of French wine and salt. The commercial aim of the WSR in choosing Watchet as its terminus was hence to provide a wider and cheaper distribution route for goods from the port.

The station forecourt originally linked both the station building and goods shed, hence the now unusual alignment of the station building facing towards Taunton. From the planning stage, the harbour was to be served by a network of tracks, reached by way of a steep incline down from the goods shed. The compact area available and the steep access inclines restricted the maximum shunting length to six railway wagons. On the mainline access track from the northeast, there was a goods loop and sidings to allow easier shunting and composition of outbound freight trains from the harbour. An engine shed was also located here, which remained open until 1882. The harbour tracks and goods tracks remained in place until the line was closed by British Railways in 1971.

The harbour was also linked to the independent West Somerset Mineral Railway, which brought iron ore from mines in the Brendon Hills southwest of the town, with the mineral railway tracks running further inland, roughly parallel with the mainline as far as Washford.

Development: 1874

On 16 July 1874 the line was extended westwards by the Minehead Railway Company, and an industrial railway siding was also provided for Wansbrough Paper Mill. The footbridge was built to maintain the public right of way when the line was extended across the original forecourt to Minehead. [1] A signal box on the embankment above the platform was provided to handle traffic on the line to Minehead. [2]

Both lines were operated by the Bristol and Exeter Railway which became a part of the Great Western Railway (GWR) in 1876. The Minehead Railway was taken over by the Great Western in 1897, [3] but the West Somerset Railway remained an independent company until 1922 when it too was absorbed by the Great Western.

GWR 1930s development

The GWR increased the capacity of the line in the 1930s. Because of the position of the goods shed opposite the platform, it was not possible to add a second track and platform, and a passing loop was constructed at Kentford just 0.75 miles (1.21 km) west of the station. It opened on 10 July 1933 but the signal box was only used during the daytime each summer. [4]

Nationalisation in 1948 saw the GWR become the Western Region of British Railways. On 24 August 1952, the signal box at Washford closed, and the one at Kentford remained open until 7 May 1964 when it also closed. [4] Freight traffic was withdrawn on 6 July 1964 and passenger trains on 4 January 1971.

Preservation

The station was reopened by the new West Somerset Railway on 28 August 1976. [2]

Description

The ticket office Watchet railway station building.jpg
The ticket office

The station still has a single platform and station building, located on the opposite side of the single track running line from Watchet town centre and harbour. It is connected to them by a footbridge at the west end of the station, and a pedestrian level crossing at the east end. The former goods shed on the opposite side of the track is now occupied by the Watchet Boat Museum. [2]

Services

Trains run between Minehead and Bishops Lydeard at weekends and on some other days from February to October, daily during the late spring and summer, and on certain days during the winter. [5]

Preceding station HR icon.svg   Heritage railways Following station
Washford   West Somerset Railway   Doniford Halt

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol Temple Meads railway station</span> Major railway station for the city of Bristol, England

Bristol Temple Meads is the oldest and largest railway station in Bristol, England. It is located 118 miles 31 chains away from London Paddington. It is an important transport hub for public transport in the city; there are bus services to many parts of the city and surrounding districts, with a ferry to the city centre. Bristol's other major station, Bristol Parkway, is a more recent station on the northern outskirts of the conurbation. It is the busiest station in South West England.

<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 Council. The railway is leased to and operated by West Somerset Railway plc, which is supported and minority-owned by the West Somerset Railway Association (WSRA) charitable trust and the West Somerset Railway Heritage Trust (WSRHT). WSR operates services using both heritage steam and diesel trains.

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

Yeovil Junction is the busier, but less central, of two railway stations serving the town of Yeovil in Somerset, England; the other is Yeovil Pen Mill. The station is sited 2 miles (3.2 km) outside the town, in the village of Stoford; although Yeovil is in Somerset, the station was in Dorset until 1991. It is located 122 miles 48 chains (197.3 km) down the line from London Waterloo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Watchet</span> Human settlement in England

Watchet is a harbour town, civil parish and electoral ward in the county of Somerset, England, with a population in 2011 of 3,785. It is situated 15 miles (24 km) west of Bridgwater, 15 miles (24 km) north-west of Taunton, and 9 miles (14 km) east of Minehead. The town lies at the mouth of the Washford River on Bridgwater Bay, part of the Bristol Channel, and on the edge of Exmoor National Park.

<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, 163 miles 12 chains (263 km) west of London Paddington station, measured via Box. 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">Salisbury railway station</span> Railway station in Wiltshire, England

Salisbury railway station serves the cathedral city of Salisbury in Wiltshire, England. It is 83 miles 43 chains (134.4 km) from London Waterloo on the West of England line to Exeter St Davids. This is crossed by the Wessex Main Line from Bristol Temple Meads to Southampton Central. The station is operated and served by South Western Railway (SWR), and is also served by Great Western Railway (GWR).

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

Bridgwater railway station serves the town of Bridgwater in Somerset, England. It is on the Bristol to Taunton Line and is operated by Great Western Railway. It is 151 miles 47 chains from the zero point at London Paddington via Box.

<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.

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

Minehead railway station is situated in Minehead, Somerset, England. First opened in 1874 as the terminus and headquarters of the Minehead Railway, it was closed by British Rail early in 1971. It reopened in 1976 and is now the terminus and headquarters of the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway.

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

The West Somerset Mineral Railway was a standard gauge line in Somerset, England. Originally expected to be 13 miles 420 yards (21.3 km) long its length as built was 11+12 miles (18.5 km), with a 310-yard (280 m) branch to Raleigh's Cross Mine. The line's core purpose was to carry iron ore northwards from mines on the Brendon Hills to Watchet harbour on the Bristol Channel. From there the ore was shipped northwards to Newport where it was unloaded onto railway wagons and hauled to ironworks at Ebbw Vale. The line opened as intended in 1861. Passenger services commenced in 1865. The mines' and line's "period of prosperity" ended in 1875 and by 1883 all mining had ceased. The line lingered on for passengers and small goods until 1898, when it closed.

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

Dunster railway station is near Dunster, Somerset, England and is on the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway.

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

Washford railway station is a station on the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway in England. The station is situated in the village of Washford, which is itself within the civil parish of Old Cleeve in the county of Somerset.

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

Williton railway station in Williton, Somerset, England, was opened by the West Somerset Railway in 1862 and closed by British Rail in 1971. It was reopened in 1976 as a heritage line. The locomotive workshops here are the headquarters of the Diesel and Electric Preservation Group (DEPG).

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

Stogumber railway station is a station in Kingswood, Somerset, England which serves the nearby village of Stogumber. It was opened by the West Somerset Railway in 1862 and closed by British Rail early in 1971. It was subsequently reopened in 1978 by the West Somerset Railway, a heritage line. It has a different layout to most stations, in that the main building lies on the opposite side of the tracks to the platform.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crowcombe Heathfield railway station</span> Heritage railway station in Somerset, England

Crowcombe Heathfield railway station is a station on the West Somerset Railway, a heritage railway in Somerset, England. It is situated 2 miles (3.2 km) from the village of Crowcombe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishops Lydeard railway station</span> Heritage railway station in Somerset, England

Bishops Lydeard railway station is a heritage railway station in the village of Bishops Lydeard, Somerset, England. It is the southern terminus for regular trains on the West Somerset Railway.

<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">Watchet (WSMR) railway station</span> Former railway station in England

Watchet was the northern passenger terminus of the West Somerset Mineral Railway (WSMR), which was built primarily to carry iron ore from mines to Watchet harbour in Somerset, England. The line was unconnected to any other, though it passed under what is now the West Somerset Railway south of the village of Watchet.

Washford was an intermediate station on the West Somerset Mineral Railway (WSMR), which was built primarily to carry iron ore from mines to Watchet harbour in Somerset, England. The line was unconnected to any other, though it passed under what is now the West Somerset Railway south of the village of Watchet.

References

  1. "WSR :: West Somerset Railway :: Watchet Station" . Retrieved 14 October 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 Oakley, Mike (2006). Somerset Railway Stations. Bristol: Redcliffe Press. ISBN   1-904537-54-5.
  3. MacDermot, E T (1931). History of the Great Western Railway. Vol. 2 (1863–1921) (1 ed.). London: Great Western Railway.
  4. 1 2 Coleby, Ian (2006). The Minehead Branch 1848–1971. Witney: Lightmoor Press. ISBN   1-899889-20-5.
  5. "Timetables". West Somerset Railway. 2014. Retrieved 6 July 2014.