Weston Mill Halt railway station was named after a mill and quay with its lime kiln sitting on Weston Mill Lake next to the

River Tamar The Tamar (; kw, Dowr Tamar) is a river in south west England, that forms most of the border between Devon (to the east) and Cornwall (to the west). A part of the Tamar Valley is a World Heritage Site due to its historic mining activities. T ...

. The small settlement of

Weston Mill Weston Mill is a district in the ward of Ham, which is part of the City of Plymouth, Devon, England. It consists of two parts Weston Mill Village which was first mentioned in the Dooms day bookin 1155 and the other part which dates to the Victo ...

also lay near by and the halt was opened as part 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 ...

's suburban network development, together with other halts such as the nearby Camels Head Halt, by the

London and South Western Railway The London and South Western Railway (LSWR, sometimes written L&SWR) was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Originating as the London and Southampton Railway, its network extended to Dorchester and Weymouth, to Salisbury, Exeter ...

in 1906, closing in 1921 or Sunday 4 May 1942. It was located on the outskirts of the city not far from 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 ...

main line's Weston Mill Bridge.

Infrastructure

As stated the halt, with the entrance on Bridewell Road, was named after a well known local mill where housing developments had taken place and although it officially opened on 1 November 1906 it may have had services from Wednesday 26 September when suburban service was launched. Some disagreement exists over its closure date that is variously recorded as being from the 27 June 1921, 14 September 1921 or even Sunday 4 May 1942. Like Camels Head Halt, Weston Mill was probably built as two short wooden platforms of a single carriage length, with fencing and ramps with a shelter on a double track section of line. The halt was located in a cutting, now infilled. On the route west St Budeaux Victoria Road was the next station and was only a quarter of a mile distant, and Camels Head Halt stood on the line to the east of the halt, barely a quarter of a mile away.

History

was held by Weston Peverel in the Parish of Pennycross and was one of the oldest mill in the Plymouth area with a deed of Geoffrey de Weston. The halt officially opened on 1 November 1906 although services may have operated as early as 30 September 1906 as the result of a complaint by the

Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway The Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway (PD&SWJR) was an English railway company. It constructed a main line railway between Lydford and Devonport, in Devon, England, enabling the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) to reac ...

to the

that month that while they had constructed the halt, the LSWR had not provided any service, with a subsequent report that services commenced before the official opening date. Weston Mill Halt was one of a number of new halts that were constructed to allow a suburban service to be operated between Plymouth Friary and

St Budeaux St Budeaux is an area and ward in the north west of Plymouth in the English county of Devon. Original settlement The name St Budeaux comes from Saint Budoc, the Bishop of Dol (Brittany). Around 480, Budoc is said to have founded a settlement ...

for Saltash station in response to competition from tram lines. Weston Mill Halt always suffered from a severe lack of patronage and as stated closed in either 1921 or 1942, the former being more likely. The trains on the line were third class only and no Sunday service was provided. The wooden platforms posed a fire threat to the local houses and if the closure was in 1942 rather than 1921 then this would have been a part of the reason.

The site today

Nothing remains of the old mill, quay, station, etc. and most of the old line's cuttings, etc. have been infilled or removed and built over.

References

Notes

Sources