There are seventeen disused railway stations on the
Cornish Main Line
The Cornish Main Line ( kw, Penn-hyns-horn Kernow) is a railway line in Cornwall and Devon in the United Kingdom. It runs from Penzance to Plymouth, crossing from Cornwall into Devon over the famous Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash.
It directly ...
between
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
in
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...
and
Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
in
Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
, England. The remains of nine of these can be seen from passing trains. While a number of these were closed following the so-called "
Beeching Axe
The Beeching cuts (also Beeching Axe) was a plan to increase the efficiency of the nationalised railway system in Great Britain. The plan was outlined in two reports: ''The Reshaping of British Railways'' (1963) and ''The Development of the ...
" in the 1960s, many of them had been closed much earlier, the traffic for which they had been built failing to materialise.
Background
The railway from Plymouth to Truro was opened by the
Cornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...
on 4 May 1859, where it joined up with the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
which had been completed from there to
Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
on 16 April 1855. The section from
Carn Brea to
Angarrack
Angarrack ( kw, An Garrek) is a village in west Cornwall, England, UK. It is in the parish of Gwinear-Gwithian a mile to the east of Hayle. Immediately south of the village Angarrack viaduct carries the Cornish mainline railway over the Angar ...
dates back to the
Hayle Railway
The Hayle Railway was an early railway in West Cornwall, constructed to convey copper and tin ore from the Redruth and Camborne areas to sea ports at Hayle and Portreath. It was opened in 1837, and carried passengers on its main line from 1843.
...
, opened on 23 December 1837. It now forms
Network Rail
Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...
's
Cornish Main Line
The Cornish Main Line ( kw, Penn-hyns-horn Kernow) is a railway line in Cornwall and Devon in the United Kingdom. It runs from Penzance to Plymouth, crossing from Cornwall into Devon over the famous Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash.
It directly ...
.
Plymouth to Truro
Plymouth Millbay
The trains of the
South Devon Railway finally reached the town of
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
on 2 April 1849. Docks were opened adjacent to the station and a new headquarters office was built next door. The station was expanded ready for the opening of the
Cornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...
on 4 May 1859 and the
South Devon and Tavistock Railway
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 t ...
on 22 June 1859. It became known as Plymouth Millbay after other stations were opened in the town in 1876–7 at
Mutley and
North Road.
The station was closed to passengers on 23 April 1941 after bombs destroyed the nearby goods depot; the passenger station being used thereafter only for goods traffic and access to the carriage sheds. All traffic ceased from 14 December 1969 except for goods trains running through to the docks which continued until 30 June 1971.
The site is now occupied by the
Plymouth Pavilions
Plymouth Pavilions is an entertainment and sports complex in Plymouth, Devon, England. It has an ice rink and indoor arena. The arena is used as an entertainment venue and also for corporate hire.
The Pavilions is built on the site of the form ...
leisure complex. Two granite gate posts outside the Millbay Road entrance are all that is left of the station, although a goods shed on what used to be Washington Place is still extant nearby
Wingfield Villas Halt
This suburban halt near Devonport Junction in
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
was opened by 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 ...
on 1 June 1904. It was served by the
Plympton
Plympton is a suburb of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England. It is in origin an ancient stannary town. It was an important trading centre for locally mined tin, and a seaport before the River Plym silted up and trade moved down river to Plym ...
to
Saltash
Saltash (Cornish: Essa) is a town and civil parish in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It had a population of 16,184 in 2011 census. Saltash faces the city of Plymouth over the River Tamar and is popularly known as "the Gateway to Corn ...
railmotor
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
Steam railcars
Overview
In th ...
service introduced at that time to compete with the electric
tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
ways in the town. It was closed in June 1921.
Ford Halt
Ford was one of the halts opened by 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 ...
for its
railmotor
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
Steam railcars
Overview
In th ...
services on 1 June 1904. It was located to serve the northern district of
Devonport which had grown around
the naval dockyard; other stations serving this traffic were opened at
Keyham (1900) and
Dockyard Halt (1905). The denuded remains of the southbound platform still remain, just west of an underbridge into the Royal Navy Dockyard and at the commencement of the cutting before
Keyham.
It was closed on 6 October 1941, during the
World War II
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 ...
blitz
Blitz, German for "lightning", may refer to:
Military uses
*Blitzkrieg, blitz campaign, or blitz, a type of military campaign
*The Blitz, the German aerial campaign against Britain in the Second World War
*, an Imperial German Navy light cruiser b ...
of Plymouth and Devonport.
Defiance Platform
![Defiance platform 2009](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/2009_at_Defiance_platform.jpg)
Defiance Platform ()
was opened by the Great Western Railway on 1 March 1905 and served naval personnel travelling to the nearby torpedo training school on
HMS ''Defiance'' which was moored nearby. Most trains were the
railmotor
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
Steam railcars
Overview
In th ...
s and
auto trains from which were run for an extra beyond
Saltash
Saltash (Cornish: Essa) is a town and civil parish in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It had a population of 16,184 in 2011 census. Saltash faces the city of Plymouth over the River Tamar and is popularly known as "the Gateway to Corn ...
where they otherwise terminated.
The line was doubled and moved on 4 February 1906 and Wearde became the junction for a deviation line to that allowed the removal of the remaining
timber viaducts on the
Cornish Main Line
The Cornish Main Line ( kw, Penn-hyns-horn Kernow) is a railway line in Cornwall and Devon in the United Kingdom. It runs from Penzance to Plymouth, crossing from Cornwall into Devon over the famous Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash.
It directly ...
. As a result of the deviation the platform was moved in 1907, where access to the platform was by steps from a bridge that carried a road across the railway to Wearde Quay. The signal box that had been at the original location was also relocated and was situated at one end of the platform.
The station closed to passengers on 27 October 1930 but continued to be used for loading goods traffic until the 1950s. The platforms are still in existence and alterations to the road bridge to accommodate the new alignment of 1906 can be clearly seen. The old line was retained as carriage sidings for Saltash until 2 December 1964 and another siding behind the platform was kept in use until 1972.
Doublebois
Doublebois station ()
was situated at the west end of a cutting
which is the summit of the
Cornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...
. A siding was provided here when it opened on 4 May 1859 to enable trains to be split into smaller parts to enable them to be worked over the steep inclines up from
Liskeard
Liskeard ( ; kw, Lyskerrys) is a small ancient stannary and market town in south-east Cornwall, South West England. It is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Plymouth, west of the Devon border, and 12 miles (20 km) eas ...
and
Bodmin Road
Bodmin Parkway railway station ( kw, Fordh Bosvena) is on the Cornish Main Line that serves the nearby town of Bodmin and other parts of mid-Cornwall, England. It is situated south-east of the town of Bodmin in the civil parish of St Winnow, ...
.
In January 1860 the railway company was asked to provide a facility here for goods traffic, which they acceded to after local people subscribed £130 towards it and offered the necessary land. Because of this the company offered to build an accompanying passenger station. The station opened on 1 June 1860, providing a service to people and mines in the
St Neot area, providing a passing loop until the line was doubled in 1894. A signal box was provided part way along the platform, with sidings at both ends on the down side. During
World War II
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 ...
, the eastern sidings were used by the military for ammunition.
The station was closed on 5 October 1964, and the sidings were taken out of use in January 1968. Extant earthworks are still visible from passing trains.
Respryn
Due to delays in securing the site for
Bodmin Road
Bodmin Parkway railway station ( kw, Fordh Bosvena) is on the Cornish Main Line that serves the nearby town of Bodmin and other parts of mid-Cornwall, England. It is situated south-east of the town of Bodmin in the civil parish of St Winnow, ...
, the
Cornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...
provided a temporary station a little further west for the opening of the line on 4 May 1859 until the permanent station was ready on 27 June 1859.
Burngullow
Once it was open, the
Cornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...
found there was a demand for facilities to transport
china clay
Kaolinite ( ) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4. It is an important industrial mineral. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral ...
from the
St Stephens district to
Par harbour
Par Docks is an Imerys-owned harbour in the village of Par, Cornwall, United Kingdom, which was used for the export of china clay from the numerous Imerys sites in the clay-rich region of Mid-Cornwall.
History
Joseph Treffry (born Joseph A ...
. To satisfy this they opened a station consisting of a single platform at
Burngullow () on 1 February 1863. The construction costs were largely met by Mr Robartes, who had interests in the extraction of the china clay.
A branch line to Nanpean was opened for goods traffic by the
Newquay and Cornwall Junction Railway
The Newquay and Cornwall Junction Railway was a broad gauge railway intended to link the Cornwall Railway with the horse-worked Newquay Railway. It opened a short section to Nanpean in 1869, the remainder being built by the Cornwall Minerals ...
on 1 July 1869. A small engine shed was built by them on the north side of the station. The shed closed in 1922 and was removed in 1931.
The station was closed and rebuilt a little further west ()
on 1 August 1901, this time with two platforms, and closed to passengers on 14 September 1931. The sidings and branch continue to handle heavy china clay traffic.
The large dryer and storage sheds alongside the main line are the Blackpool clay works; Burngullow clay works are smaller and situated alongside the branch line a short distance from the junction.
Two railway accidents have happened here, both involving runaway china clay trains. On the first occasion a train had left Burngullow with wagons for
Par harbour
Par Docks is an Imerys-owned harbour in the village of Par, Cornwall, United Kingdom, which was used for the export of china clay from the numerous Imerys sites in the clay-rich region of Mid-Cornwall.
History
Joseph Treffry (born Joseph A ...
on 29 October 1872. It was unable to stop for signals at
St Austell
St Austell (; kw, Sans Austel) is a town in Cornwall, England, south of Bodmin and west of the border with Devon.
St Austell is one of the largest towns in Cornwall; at the 2011 census it had a population of 19,958.
History
St Austell wa ...
but the driver of the passenger train coming in the other direction saw the train sliding towards it and reversed his train back to
Par.
On 9 June 1952 a similar problem occurred with a train on the branch line approaching Burngullow. This time the train ran into a siding where it collided with a stationary engine. Unfortunately the driver of the runaway train, who had stayed at the controls in an attempt to bring it to a halt, later died from his injuries.
The former 'up side' (London bound) station building still remains some seventy years plus after closure.
The signal box was closed in 1986 when the Burngullow to Probus section of the main line was singled, and the signals were then controlled by the Signal Box at
Par railway station
Par railway station serves the villages of Par, Tywardreath and St Blazey, Cornwall, England. The station is from via . It is the junction for the Atlantic Coast Line to .
The station is managed by Great Western Railway, which operates the ...
. The double line was re-instated in 2004.
Grampound Road
![The Railway Line through Grampound Road - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ae/The_Railway_Line_through_Grampound_Road_-_geograph.org.uk_-_200286.jpg)
A two-platform station ()
to serve
Grampound
Grampound ( kw, Ponsmeur) is a village in Cornwall, England. It is at an ancient crossing point of the River Fal and today is on the A390 road west of St Austell and east of Truro.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 204 ''Truro & Falmouth'' ...
was opened in a cutting by the
Cornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...
on 4 May 1859, but it was known as "Grampound Road" due to the distance from that town. Wooden waiting shelters were provided on each platform, and a newspaper at the time of opening reported merely that "it comprises arrival and departure stations exactly similar to those at
Par."
There was a loop on the up line at the down end of the station with a trailing crossover. A
goods shed
A goods shed is a railway building designed for storing goods before or after carriage in a train. A typical goods shed will have a track running through it to allow goods wagons to be unloaded under cover, although sometimes they were built ...
was not provided until 1864 when one was erected in the up yard, but with up and down yards the goods traffic developed quickly: 3,580 cattle were dispatched in the twelve months to June 1869, more than any other station on the line. A
signal box
In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The ''IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing'' ...
was erected half way along the up platform of brick with a timber upper floor and
slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
roof.
Because of its remote location two cottages were built in 1860 for the station master and his staff. A small village known as
Grampound Road
Grampound Road ( kw, Fordh Ponsmeur) is a village in the parish of Ladock, Cornwall, England, north-west of Grampound.
The railway station of that name was opened on 4 May 1859 and closed in 1964. A small village known as Grampound Road grew ...
grew up around the railway station and continues to expand despite the station's closing (along with
Doublebois
Doublebois ( kw, Dewgoes) (pronounced ), is a village in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in the civil parish of Dobwalls approximately three miles (5 km) west of Liskeard.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 201 ''Plymouth & ...
,
Chacewater,
Scorrier
Scorrier is a village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in the civil parish of St Day, about northeast of the centre of Redruth and southeast of the coast at Porthtowan, on the A30 road at the junction of the A3047 road that leads we ...
,
Gwinear Road and
Marazion
Marazion (; kw, Marhasyow) is a civil parish and town, on the shore of Mount's Bay in Cornwall, UK. It is east of Penzance and the tidal island of St Michael's Mount is half-a-mile offshore. At low water a causeway links it to the town and ...
) on 5 October 1964, but the signal box remained open until June 1972. Harry Hingston was the last registered paid employee and station master.
The site is easily recognised from passing trains.
Probus and Ladock Halt
The halt ()
was nearer to
Probus than
Ladock
Ladock ( kw, Egloslajek) is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is about six miles (9.5 km) north-east of Truro.
Historically, Ladock was two small settlements; Bissick by the river and Ladock on the hill. No ...
which was actually nearer to
Grampound Road railway station
There are seventeen disused railway stations on the Cornish Main Line between Plymouth railway station, Plymouth in Devon and Penzance railway station, Penzance in Cornwall, England. The remains of nine of these can be seen from passing trains. W ...
and was opened by 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 ...
on 1 February 1908 as Probus and Ladock Platform, the term platform being used rather than Halt to indicate that it was staffed although it was later changed to an unstaffed halt. Platforms were provided on both sides of the track of mixed timber and brick construction with access to each platform directly by a footpath from the road, and a foot crossing at rail level as there was no footbridge. Characteristic Great Western Railway corrugated iron waiting shelters were provided on both of the wooden platforms at opening and remained in use throughout, and there was a signal box at the down end of the down platform. The station was closed on 2 December 1957, and by the early 1990s there was no trace of the down platform, but the section of the up platform that was built of brick was identifiable as a grassy mound with a signalling relay room on top.
Truro to Penzance
Chacewater
A station ()
was opened at
Chacewater by the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
on 25 August 1852. On 6 July 1903 a
branch line to Perranporth was opened from nearby Blackwater; it was extended to
Newquay
Newquay ( ; kw, Tewynblustri) is a town on the north coast in Cornwall, in the south west of England. It is a civil parish, seaside resort, regional centre for aerospace industries, spaceport and a fishing port on the North Atlantic coast of ...
on 2 January 1905. Blackwater Junction was closed on 9 November 1924 which resulted in the physical junction being moved the half mile to Chacewater station, although most trains ran through to
Truro
Truro (; kw, Truru) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Cornwall, England. It is Cornwall's county town, sole city and centre for administration, leisure and retail trading. Its ...
.
The Perranporth line closed on 4 February 1963. The station closed to passengers on 5 October 1964 but continued to be served by goods traffic for many years, latterly for Blue Circle Cement. The Penzance bound platforms can still be seen, complete with much altered station building.
There are two viaducts east of Chacewater. The 128 yard (181 m) Blackwater Viaduct is immediately east of the station site and the 93 yard (132 m) Chacewater Viaduct is a little further east towards Truro.
Scorrier
A station ()
was opened at
Scorrier
Scorrier is a village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in the civil parish of St Day, about northeast of the centre of Redruth and southeast of the coast at Porthtowan, on the A30 road at the junction of the A3047 road that leads we ...
by the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
on 25 August 1852. Initially known as "Scorrier Gate", the name was changed to "Scorrier" in March 1856. It reverted to "Scorrier Gate" from 1 June 1859 but became plain "Scorrier" once more on 1 October 1896. Originally stone-built waiting rooms were erected on both paltforms, each with a cantilever canopy, but at some stage an additional wooden building was erected on the down platform more than doubling the accommodation. The platforms were connected by an open footbridge of metal construction.
The last trains to call at Scorrier were on 3 October 1964.
Class 118 DMUs
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also ...
W51309 and W51324 formed the last down train, and W51304 and W51319 the last up train. It closed to passengers on 5 October 1964.
Carn Brea
A station ()
was opened near
Carn Brea on 23 May 1843 by the
Hayle Railway
The Hayle Railway was an early railway in West Cornwall, constructed to convey copper and tin ore from the Redruth and Camborne areas to sea ports at Hayle and Portreath. It was opened in 1837, and carried passengers on its main line from 1843.
...
and named "
Pool
Pool may refer to:
Water pool
* Swimming pool, usually an artificial structure containing a large body of water intended for swimming
* Reflecting pool, a shallow pool designed to reflect a structure and its surroundings
* Tide pool, a rocky pool ...
" after a nearby village. The railway was closed on 16 February 1852 and reopened by the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
on 11 March 1852, however Pool station remained closed until 25 August 1852, when it was reopened as "Carn Brea", only to be renamed "Pool" once more in June 1854. It reverted to "Carn Brea" on 1 November 1875. It was closed on 2 January 1961.
Carn Brea was the home of the West Cornwall Railway's workshops, where they maintained the locomotives and rolling stock.
Dolcoath Halt
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 ...
opened a
railmotor
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
Steam railcars
Overview
In th ...
halt ()
near
Dolcoath mine
Dolcoath mine ( kw, Bal Dorkoth) was a copper and tin mine in Camborne, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Its name derives from the Cornish for 'Old Ground', and it was also affectionately known as ''The Queen of Cornish Mines''. The site is n ...
on 28 August 1905 but it closed again on 1 May 1908; the days when Dolcoath was one of the biggest mines in Cornwall were long past. The halt was situated to the west of Dolcoath
level crossing
A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, overpass ...
, and the site can be recognised because of this.
Penponds
The
Hayle Railway
The Hayle Railway was an early railway in West Cornwall, constructed to convey copper and tin ore from the Redruth and Camborne areas to sea ports at Hayle and Portreath. It was opened in 1837, and carried passengers on its main line from 1843.
...
provided a station at
Penponds
Penponds ( kw, Pennpons) is a village west of Camborne, in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.
Geography
To the east is the former mining town of Camborne and to the north is the Cornish Main Line, Penzance to Plymouth railway line. West of ...
from 23 May 1843 until 16 February 1852. It was not replaced when the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
opened a month later.
Gwinear Road
A station known as "
Gwinear Road" ()
was opened by the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
on 11 March 1852, west of a
level crossing
A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, overpass ...
, and became a junction for the
Helston Railway
The Helston Railway is a heritage railway in Cornwall which aims to rebuild and preserve as much as possible of the former GWR Helston Railway between Nancegollen and Water-Ma-Trout on the outskirts of Helston. It is operated by the Helston ...
on 9 May 1887. The goods yard lay west of the station to the north of the line, but extensive sidings were constructed alongside the main line east of the level crossing to handle traffic for the branch. The main station building was of wooden construction and was located on the up platform with just a canopy on the down platform, the two platforms being connected by a footbridge of cast metal construction and utilitarian appearance. There were also two
signalboxes at Gwinear Road: Gwinear Road West Signal Box, located on the up end of the down platform, opened on 30 November 1916 and was closed on 31 October 1965 when the adjacent level crossing was converted from manual gates to Automatic Half Barriers. Gwinear Road East Signal Box was located in the goods marshalling yard and controlled access to the Helston branch.
The
branch line to Helston closed to passengers on 3 September 1962 and to goods on 5 October 1964 when Gwinear Road station also closed. The former 'down' (-bound) platform and Helston branch bay is still more or less intact. A
DMU which was a notable feature of the former station site and which was stored there awaiting restoration by the
Helston Railway Preservation Company
The Helston Railway is a heritage railway in Cornwall which aims to rebuild and preserve as much as possible of the former GWR Helston Railway between Nancegollen and Water-Ma-Trout on the outskirts of Helston. It is operated by the Helsto ...
in the old cattle dock just east of the level crossing, was moved to the company's
Prospidnick
Prospidnick is a small village and hill in the parish of Sithney in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It lies 0.6 miles east of Crowntown and 2.6 miles west of Wendron by road. It is divided into Lower Prospidnick and Higher Prospidnick.
History
Variou ...
base in the 2010s.
Angarrack
The
Hayle Railway
The Hayle Railway was an early railway in West Cornwall, constructed to convey copper and tin ore from the Redruth and Camborne areas to sea ports at Hayle and Portreath. It was opened in 1837, and carried passengers on its main line from 1843.
...
introduced passenger trains on 23 May 1843. The service was closed on 16 February 1852. On 11 March 1852 the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
opened a new station. The old station had been on the section of the Hayle Railway that was closed entirely as a steep
rope-worked incline descended from
Angarrack
Angarrack ( kw, An Garrek) is a village in west Cornwall, England, UK. It is in the parish of Gwinear-Gwithian a mile to the east of Hayle. Immediately south of the village Angarrack viaduct carries the Cornish mainline railway over the Angar ...
to sea level at Copperhouse, it was replaced by a much gentler incline to the new
Hayle railway station
Hayle railway station serves the small town of Hayle, Cornwall, United Kingdom. Great Western Railway manage the station and operate most train services.
It is on the Cornish Main Line north-east of , where the line terminates from . It is m ...
. However the new Angarrack station was closed in 1853. (See also
Angarrack viaduct
Angarrack railway viaduct crosses the valley of the Angarrack River at Angarrack in west Cornwall, United Kingdom.
Geography
The eleven-arch granite-built viaduct carries the Cornish Main Line railway across the steep-sided valley of the Angar ...
.)
Copperhouse Halt
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 ...
introduced
railmotor
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
Steam railcars
Overview
In th ...
services in west Cornwall and provided several small halts at which they called. Copperhouse was one of the small halts provided for these services, opening on 1 July 1905 to provide a service to the Copperhouse district in
Hayle
Hayle ( kw, Heyl, "estuary") is a port town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England. It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River (which discharges into St Ives Bay) and is approximately seven miles (11 km) northeast of Penzance. ...
. It closed in 1908.
An earlier station had been provided at Copperhouse nearer the waterfront by the
Hayle Railway
The Hayle Railway was an early railway in West Cornwall, constructed to convey copper and tin ore from the Redruth and Camborne areas to sea ports at Hayle and Portreath. It was opened in 1837, and carried passengers on its main line from 1843.
...
from 23 May 1843 until their line closed on 16 February 1852.
Marazion
![Marazion station 43189](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/05/Marazion_station_43189.jpg)
A station ()
was opened at
Marazion
Marazion (; kw, Marhasyow) is a civil parish and town, on the shore of Mount's Bay in Cornwall, UK. It is east of Penzance and the tidal island of St Michael's Mount is half-a-mile offshore. At low water a causeway links it to the town and ...
by the
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Pen ...
on 11 March 1852. New waiting rooms with corrugated iron pent roofs were completed in December 1878 or January 1879. The original single platform was situated on the south side of the line but the station was rebuilt about thirty years later, when a second platform was added. The line westwards to
Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
was doubled in 1893 and the goods yard expanded so that it could share in handling the large volume of perishable traffic – fish, fruit and vegetables – from the surrounding farms and harbours. The line eastwards to
St Erth
St Erth ( kw, Lannudhno) is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England.
St Erth takes its name from Saint Erc, one of the many Irish saints who brought Christianity to Cornwall during the Dark Ages, and is at the old crossing point of th ...
was not doubled until 1929. The station closed for passengers on 5 October 1964.
The station is situated on the shore of
Mount's Bay
Mount's Bay ( kw, Baya an Garrek) is a large, sweeping bay on the English Channel coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom, stretching from the Lizard Point to Gwennap Head. In the north of the bay, near Marazion, is St Michael's Mount; the origin o ...
with fine views of
St Michael's Mount
St Michael's Mount ( kw, Karrek Loos yn Koos, meaning " hoar rock in woodland") is a tidal island in Mount's Bay, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The island is a civil parish and is linked to the town of Marazion by a causeway of granite se ...
and for many years was home to six old
Pullman coaches that were formerly used as
camping coach
Camping coaches were holiday accommodation offered by many railway companies in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland from the 1930s. The coaches were old passenger vehicles no longer suitable for use in trains, which were converted to ...
es. Three of these were rescued and restored, and now provide sleeping accommodation at
Petworth railway station
Petworth railway station was a Train station, railway station nearly two miles (3 km) from the town of Petworth in West Sussex, England.
It was located on the former London, Brighton and South Coast Railway single track (rail), single tr ...
, which has been converted into a guest house. One was purchased privately, while the others were left to become derelict until broken up on site.
Abandoned lines and railways – Marazion
''(includes pictures of station and coaches)'' Accessed 05 Jun 2007 In 2006 the remains of these coaches was cleared away from the site to make way for nine holiday cottages, the old station has now been fully restored into a two bedroom bungalow currently owned by the developers. The 1880s station building still stands, but part of the line westwards is currently reduced to a single track.
See also
Disused railway stations (Exeter to Plymouth Line)
There are eleven disused railway stations between Exeter St Davids and Plymouth Millbay, Devon, England. At eight of these there are visible remains. Of the eleven stations, South Brent and Plympton are subject of campaigns for reopening while ...
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Disused Railway Stations (Plymouth To Penzance Line)
Plymouth to Penzance
Plymouth to Penzance
Plymouth to Penzance
Rail transport in Cornwall
Rail transport in Devon