Bailey Gate railway station was on the

Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway The Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, also known as the S&D, SDJR or S&DJR, was an English railway line connecting Bath (in north-east Somerset) and Bournemouth (now in south-east Dorset but then in Hampshire), with a branch from Evercre ...

in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

Usage

The station served the

United Dairies United Dairies is a former United Kingdom-based creamery, milk bottling and distribution company. The company was formed in 1915 and merged to form Unigate in 1959. During World War I, there were dire shortages of men, horses and vehicles com ...

cheese factory and the village of

Sturminster Marshall Sturminster Marshall is a village and civil parish in east Dorset in England, situated on the River Stour between Blandford Forum and Poole. The parish had a population of 1,895 at the 2001 census, increasing to 1,969 at the 2011 Census and ...

but was named after a local farm to avoid confusion with another station on the same railway at Sturminster Newton. The station had extensive sidings and was one of the largest depots for transporting milk on the UK railway system. Milk was carried in tanker wagons from Bailey Gate to London and was a major source of revenue for the railway. Sugar beet was also loaded onto wagons for transportation to refineries.

Buildings

The station consisted of three buildings, a Waiting Room/Ticket Office, a small shed for the lamps on the downside and a signalbox on the upside, behind the station were the sidings for transhipment. Access to the station from the west was via a small path that ran down from the slope of the bridge, which took the user to the up platform where, to gain access to the station buildings, one had to cross the railway lines via a small wooden crossing next to the bridge. Access from the east was via the main entrance to the goods sidings down the slope and around the side of the station via a gateway.

Closure

The station closed with the railway under the Beeching Axe in March 1966. Track was finally lifted in 1969, as the railway remained open until the closure of the goods terminal at

Blandford Blandford Forum ( ), commonly Blandford, is a market town in Dorset, England, sited by the River Stour about northwest of Poole. It was the administrative headquarters of North Dorset District until April 2019, when this was abolished and ...

that year. There is now an industrial estate off the

A350 road The A350 is a north–south primary route in southern England, that runs from the M4 motorway in Wiltshire to Poole in Dorset. Route Starting at junction 17 of the M4 motorway north of Chippenham, Wiltshire, Chippenham, the first three miles ar ...

called "Bailie Gate" at the site.

References

Bibliography

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External links

Bailey Gate Station map
Ordnance Survey Disused railway stations in Dorset Former Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1860 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1966 Beeching closures in England {{SouthWestEngland-railstation-stub