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Crewkerne Railway Station, Somerset
A charming, Grade II listed country station
(Photos © urban75, April 2010)
The nearest station for Beaminster, some five miles distant, Crewkerne is a fine example of a country railway station and sits just over the border in Somerset.
Opened by the London and South Western Railway on 19 July 1860 and designed by Sir William Tite, the station has been designated as a Grade II listed building.
Although the station has suffered major rationalisation, with the second running line removed and only one passenger platform left in use, the station retains its Victorian character.
Currently operated by South West Trains, the station is on the London Waterloo to Exeter Railway Line and enjoys regular services towards the capital and down country towards Devon.
» The station building
» Station platforms
» Goods yard and signal box
The station building
Listed in March 1973, many original features remain intact.
Here's the description of the building in the English heritage website:
Crewkerne Railway Station .3.73 II Railway station. 1859, for opening of the London and South-Western Railway in 1860. Probably designed by Sir William Tite. Ham stone ashlar; steeply-pitched Welsh slate roofs with ornamental clay tile ridges between very high coped gables; stone chimney stacks.
Mostly single storey, but the station-masters house 3 storeys with attic, north roadside elevation 7 bays, of which bay 2 is the house, with leanto to east; bays 3, 4 and 5 the ticket office and entrance throughway; bay 6 is an office crosswing and bay 7 double-roof plan offices. High Victorian gothic style. Plinth; chamfered mullioned windows with plain sashes, the leanto has a 2-light above and two single-lights below.
House has 4-centre arched doorway to left, with incised spandrils under label with deep drop, 3-light window to right; above a single-and a 3-light to first floor, 3-light to second in pointed segemental-arched opening, with slim gable vent to attic: bays 3, 4 and 7 have 2-light windows and bay 6 a 3-light, with shield plaque in gable over; moulded segmental arched doorway to bay 5. The south platform side to match, with the date 1859 in the crosswing gable: simple platform canopy on cast iron columns, the west end bay apparently rebuilt. (VCH Somerset Vol IV, 1978, p62).
View of the main station building.
Roof detail of the Grade II listed structure.
Platform entrance to the booking office.
Looking down at the station from the road overbridge.
A lattice footbridge used to provide access to the platforms, and this was replaced in 1946 by an austere Southern Railway concrete affair. With the removal of the second running line in 1967, the new footbridge was demolished.
Looking down at the disused platform from the road bridge.
Station platforms
Arriving at the station.
A generous and distinctive canopy covers the remaining platform
Looking towards Exeter.
Looking west, with the disused down platform visible.
The stone supports for the former two-storey high water tower, which was removed in May, 1967.
A roof was added after the tower was taken out of use, and it now serves as storage space.
The platforms extends west under the road bridge..
Looking towards Exeter.
Looking east back at the station from the far end of the platform.
Sign on the disused platform.
Goods yard and signal box
The original wooden 1875 signal box was replaced by this brick construction in 1960, which is now abandoned. The main goods yard stood behind the signal box.
Daffodils in the old goods yard.
The signal box remains in good order despite being taken out of use in February, 1967.
The substantial, stone-built goods shed remains in good condition, although no longer in rail use.
Goods shed.
Old corrugated iron building by the goods yard.
Looking towards London.
Waiting for the London train.
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Crewkerne station
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