Blaenavon High Level is a railway station on the preserved
Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway
The Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd Pont-y-pŵl a Blaenafon) is a volunteer-run heritage railway in South Wales, running trains between a halt platform opposite the Whistle Inn public house (famed for its collection of mi ...
, serving the
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
and town of
Blaenavon
Blaenavon ( cy, Blaenafon) is a town and community (Wales), community in Torfaen county borough, Wales, high on a hillside on the source of the Afon Lwyd. It is within the boundaries of the historic county of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshi ...
, south
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
.
It is currently the southernmost terminus of the P&BR, reopened thanks to an Order under the
Transport and Works Act 1992
The Transport and Works Act 1992 (TWA) was established by the Parliament of the United Kingdom to provide a system by which the construction of rail transport, tramway, inland waterway and harbour infrastructure could proceed in the UK by orde ...
to extend and operate its line from the Whistle Inn halt in the north to the site of Blaenavon (High Level) some two miles to the south.
Originally the station was simply called 'Blaenavon'. The "High Level" suffix came after the 1948 nationalisation to differentiate it from
Blaenavon Low Level – the other Blaenavon station, which was previously operated by the
GWR.
In its time Blaenavon (High Level) station had up and down platforms. The up platform contained the main station buildings and was approached by a wide road providing for vehicular access. Also, on the up side was a loco shed and a goods shed. The down platform was built with a stone front wall and relatively narrow stone coping stones along its edge, behind the copers the majority of the platform was of ash or macadam stone.
The platform was approached from the main road by a steep footpath and the two platforms were joined by a
barrow crossing
There are around 6,000 level crossings in the United Kingdom, of which about 1,500 are public highway crossings. This number is gradually being reduced as the risk of accidents at level crossings is considered high. The director of the UK Rail ...
. The platform contained a sizeable waiting room, and a notably tall signal box. The waiting room was fronted by blue diamond-cut setts rather than ash, whilst the area in front of the signal box was clad with wooden planks overlaying a cavity through which the rods and wires were channelled.
History
The line from Brynmawr to Blaenavon was originally built in 1866 by the
Brynmawr and Blaenavon Railway
The Brynmawr and Blaenavon Railway was a railway line in South Wales, within the historic boundaries of Brecknockshire and Monmouthshire, originally built in 1866 and immediately leased to the London and North Western Railway to transport coal ...
and immediately leased to the
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the L&NWR was the largest joint stock company in the United Kingdom.
In 1923, it became a constituent of the Lo ...
to transport coal to the Midlands via the
Heads of the Valleys line. The line was completed in the late eighteen sixties and the LNWR were operating passenger trains over the line by 1872.
Eight years later it was extended to meet the
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
at
Abersychan & Talywain. Here the line carried on down the valley through Pontypool Road Station to the coast at Newport. In 1922 the LNWR was grouped into the
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally u ...
. In later years the line saw a variety of GWR locomotives operating from pit to port, however the railway retained its LNWR infrastructure up until the very last days before its closure.
The line was closed to passengers in 1941 due to the exigencies of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Blaenavon shed closed in 1942 and eventually goods also ceased in 1954. The line was retained for wagon storage until 1953, and around 1960, a temporary siding was laid in connection with opencast workings on the Blorenge nearby.
Not long after closure to passengers all the buildings on both the up and down platforms were eventually demolished by
British Rail
British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...
. All, except some vestigial remains of the up platform were swept away, post-war, when the area was later occupied by a concrete works.
Preservation
Despite the fact that virtually everything had been demolished, the preservation society were determined to save what had remained.
Firstly the volunteers cleared away the undergrowth the limited remains of the platform, with its attractive stone front wall and stone coping stones came into view. Unfortunately a minor setback occurred when the majority of the cut coarse stone was stolen within a year or two of its reconstruction. This forced the society to incorporate straightforward dense concrete blocks laid broad face down to replace what was taken from vandal attacks.
In late 2008 as work continued it was discovered that much of the original waiting room remained. Although the building had been demolished to the level of the original platform, the foundation walls were still retained, much of the brickwork was simply thrown into the intact cellars below. These walls were massively thick, and although their geometry was complicated, with some picking about, a clear footprint of the building emerged.
With the extension to Blaenavon (High Level) now re-opened, the railway preservation society intends to rebuild the entire original waiting room and replace the LNWR signal box on the platform in due course, returning the station to its original appearance and former glory.
References
External links
Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway Development
{{s-end
Heritage railway stations in Torfaen
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1866
Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1941
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 2010
Former London and North Western Railway stations
History of Monmouthshire
1866 establishments in Wales