Midford railway station was a single-platform station on the Bath extension of the Somerset and Dorset Railway, just to the north of the point where the double-track became a single track. It served the village of Midford. The station was closed with the rest of the line in March 1966 under the Beeching axe, though it had been unstaffed for some years before that.
Midford | |
|---|---|
 Station building and platform in 1962 | |
| General information | |
| Location | Midford, Bath and North East Somerset, Somerset England |
| Grid reference | ST761607 |
| Platforms | 1 |
| Other information | |
| Status | Disused |
| History | |
| Pre-grouping | Somerset and Dorset Railway |
| Post-grouping | SR and LMSR Western Region of British Railways |
| Key dates | |
| 20 July 1874 | Opened |
| 10 June 1963 | Closed to goods traffic |
| 7 March 1966 | Closed to passenger traffic |
There was a small goods yard to the north of the station, towards the entrance to the Combe Down Tunnel, which loaded Fuller's earth from Tucking Mill.[1] South of the station, a signal box presided over the double track junction: the railway then ran across the Midford valley on a high viaduct that still exists.
For about four years from 1911 to 1915, Midford had a second railway station, Midford Halt located on the GWR Camerton Branch, which passed under the S&DJR viaduct.
Services
edit| Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wellow Line and station closed |
Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway LSWR and Midland Railways |
Bath Green Park Line and station closed |
The site today
editAfter a long period in private hands the site is now part of a surfaced cycleway and footpath — the Two Tunnels Greenway. The platform and remains of the goods shed survive.
The station is now owned by the New Somerset and Dorset Railway who have plans to rebuild the station building and relay the track, when the cycleway will be diverted or accommodated. The site has been cleared to uncover the remains of the old station.[2]
The New Somerset and Dorset Railway
editThe New Somerset and Dorset Railway[3] formed in early 2009 aims to restore the whole line to mainline operations, so it is possible that Midford will one day see passengers again.
As the initial objectives of the New S&DR are focused on the southern end of the line (notably Blandford-Bournemouth), in the short term Midford will be restored as a cafe and information centre, in much the same way the North Dorset Railway (previously the Shillingstone Station Project) is undertaking at Shillingstone railway station.
-
The remains of Midford railway station, September 2007 -
East-west beneath north–south: Camerton branch viaduct (left) dwarfed by Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway viaduct at Midford.
References
edit- ^ Macmillen, Neil (2009). A history of the Fuller's Earth mining industry around Bath. Lydney: Lightmoor Press. p. 39. ISBN 978-1-899889-32-7.
- ^ "Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway: Searching for a lost line". www.gebejay.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk. Archived from the original on 6 October 2008.
- ^ "New Somerset and Dorset Railway". Archived from the original on 21 August 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
- Somerset Railway Stations by Mike Oakley, Dovecote Press, 2002