NINTEEN SIXTY TWO
PART 50
Michael L. Roach
PART 50
Michael L. Roach
Yeovil - An Interesting Luggage Label
In Part 48 the series arrived at Yeovil with a couple of photos of pannier tank 5410 at Yeovil Town Station. To celebrate reaching Part 50 readers will be given a conundrum to think about before the consensus is revealed one day perhaps. The arrival of the railways at Yeovil in Somerset was a complicated affair; and the routes that the trains operated on even more so in the early years. Although I had visited Yeovil several times by train in the nineteen sixties I had not realised just how convoluted the early years were perhaps made worse by the two main lines, which both remain in use, always being on the outskirts of the town. It was on 22 August 2023 that I spotted the attached Great Western luggage label on Ebay. I knew immediately that it was an interesting label because I could not work out why it should have both GWR and B&ER (Bristol and Exeter Railway) as owners of the origin/dispatch station. In addition only a very small proportion of GWR luggage labels had both an origin and a destination station on them – perhaps 2 to 3 percent; the reason for this is unknown but perhaps there was a very regular flow between the two stations in question. The label was “buy-it-now” so I did just that, buying it immediately and it was in perfect condition when it arrived two days later despite its great age. The luggage label was headed G.W.R. and read Yeovil (B. & E.) TO Morebath.
My first task was to make a table of opening dates (attached below) of the various railways arriving at, and serving, Yeovil in the 1850s and 1860s. There were three: the Bristol and Exeter from Durston on the Bristol to Taunton line; the Great Western (ex-Wilts, Somerset & Weymouth) from Frome; and the London & South Western from Salisbury. The last station to be built was the best and most convenient for the centre of the town and unfortunately the one to close leaving two stations on the outskirts: Yeovil Pen Mill and Yeovil Junction. Yeovil Town Station was a joint enterprise between the B&ER and the L&SWR and opened on 1 June 1861. This was a year after the L&SWR had arrived at Yeovil Junction and started running its trains to Hendford Station on the B&ER's branch to Durston. Yeovil Town remained a joint station until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. The GWR and the B&ER were two of the four “Associated Companies” which amalgamated on 1 January 1876 under the name Great Western Railway. I have not discovered the date when the joint station was actually named Yeovil Town.
My thoughts are that the luggage label was printed between 1853 when the B&ER opened their branch from Durston to Hendford on the outskirts of Yeovil and 1875 because, in theory, the name Bristol and Exeter Railway disappeared on 1 January 1876; but which of Yeovil's four stations was the dispatch station ? I think two stations can be eliminated immediately, but that still leaves two possible candidates: Hendford and Yeovil Town. But why was it necessary to have both GWR and B&ER on the luggage label; and can we narrow down the date of printing even ! more. For comparison I enclose a scan of a pure B&ER luggage label at Axbridge.
My final thought as this piece was being completed was that I was looking at the wrong end of the trip from Yeovil to Morebath. Morebath is a small village on the edge of the Exmoor National Park and just over two miles north of Bampton which had a railway station on the Exe Valley line. Morebath's own railway station was most inconviently situated for the village and most villagers would later have used the much more conveniently situated Morebath Junction Halt provided by the GWR in 1928. Morebath Station was on the Taunton to Barnstaple line which was built by the Devon and Somerset Railway but operated by the Bristol & Exeter Railway. Therefore the whole journey from Yeovil to Morebath was on the trains of the Bristol and Exeter Railway up until amalgamation on 1 January 1876. In which case why was it necessary to have GWR in the heading of the luggage label; perhaps it was at the insistence of the GWR who may even have printed the label for the Bristol and Exeter as the styles are very similar.
Passenger Route Operator Notes
B & E R First Length – Bristol to Bridgwater. 14.06.1841
B&ER worked by the GWR 1841 – 1849
B & E R Durston to Hendford 01.10.1853 Hendford was a temporary terminus.
G W R Frome to Pen Mill. 01.09.1856 WS&W taken over 1850
B & E R Hendford to Pen Mill Mill 02.02.1857 B&ER used GWR's Pen Mill Station.
L & S W R Salisbury to Yeovil Junction 01.06. 1860
L & S W R Yeovil Junction to Henford. 01.06.1860 L&SWR used B&ER's Hendford Station
L & S W R Yeovil Junction – Yeovil Town. 01.06.1861
B&E / L&SWR Yeovil (Town) Joint syation. 01.06.1861 When did it become Yeovil Town?
B & E R
In Part 48 the series arrived at Yeovil with a couple of photos of pannier tank 5410 at Yeovil Town Station. To celebrate reaching Part 50 readers will be given a conundrum to think about before the consensus is revealed one day perhaps. The arrival of the railways at Yeovil in Somerset was a complicated affair; and the routes that the trains operated on even more so in the early years. Although I had visited Yeovil several times by train in the nineteen sixties I had not realised just how convoluted the early years were perhaps made worse by the two main lines, which both remain in use, always being on the outskirts of the town. It was on 22 August 2023 that I spotted the attached Great Western luggage label on Ebay. I knew immediately that it was an interesting label because I could not work out why it should have both GWR and B&ER (Bristol and Exeter Railway) as owners of the origin/dispatch station. In addition only a very small proportion of GWR luggage labels had both an origin and a destination station on them – perhaps 2 to 3 percent; the reason for this is unknown but perhaps there was a very regular flow between the two stations in question. The label was “buy-it-now” so I did just that, buying it immediately and it was in perfect condition when it arrived two days later despite its great age. The luggage label was headed G.W.R. and read Yeovil (B. & E.) TO Morebath.
My first task was to make a table of opening dates (attached below) of the various railways arriving at, and serving, Yeovil in the 1850s and 1860s. There were three: the Bristol and Exeter from Durston on the Bristol to Taunton line; the Great Western (ex-Wilts, Somerset & Weymouth) from Frome; and the London & South Western from Salisbury. The last station to be built was the best and most convenient for the centre of the town and unfortunately the one to close leaving two stations on the outskirts: Yeovil Pen Mill and Yeovil Junction. Yeovil Town Station was a joint enterprise between the B&ER and the L&SWR and opened on 1 June 1861. This was a year after the L&SWR had arrived at Yeovil Junction and started running its trains to Hendford Station on the B&ER's branch to Durston. Yeovil Town remained a joint station until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. The GWR and the B&ER were two of the four “Associated Companies” which amalgamated on 1 January 1876 under the name Great Western Railway. I have not discovered the date when the joint station was actually named Yeovil Town.
My thoughts are that the luggage label was printed between 1853 when the B&ER opened their branch from Durston to Hendford on the outskirts of Yeovil and 1875 because, in theory, the name Bristol and Exeter Railway disappeared on 1 January 1876; but which of Yeovil's four stations was the dispatch station ? I think two stations can be eliminated immediately, but that still leaves two possible candidates: Hendford and Yeovil Town. But why was it necessary to have both GWR and B&ER on the luggage label; and can we narrow down the date of printing even ! more. For comparison I enclose a scan of a pure B&ER luggage label at Axbridge.
My final thought as this piece was being completed was that I was looking at the wrong end of the trip from Yeovil to Morebath. Morebath is a small village on the edge of the Exmoor National Park and just over two miles north of Bampton which had a railway station on the Exe Valley line. Morebath's own railway station was most inconviently situated for the village and most villagers would later have used the much more conveniently situated Morebath Junction Halt provided by the GWR in 1928. Morebath Station was on the Taunton to Barnstaple line which was built by the Devon and Somerset Railway but operated by the Bristol & Exeter Railway. Therefore the whole journey from Yeovil to Morebath was on the trains of the Bristol and Exeter Railway up until amalgamation on 1 January 1876. In which case why was it necessary to have GWR in the heading of the luggage label; perhaps it was at the insistence of the GWR who may even have printed the label for the Bristol and Exeter as the styles are very similar.
Passenger Route Operator Notes
B & E R First Length – Bristol to Bridgwater. 14.06.1841
B&ER worked by the GWR 1841 – 1849
B & E R Durston to Hendford 01.10.1853 Hendford was a temporary terminus.
G W R Frome to Pen Mill. 01.09.1856 WS&W taken over 1850
B & E R Hendford to Pen Mill Mill 02.02.1857 B&ER used GWR's Pen Mill Station.
L & S W R Salisbury to Yeovil Junction 01.06. 1860
L & S W R Yeovil Junction to Henford. 01.06.1860 L&SWR used B&ER's Hendford Station
L & S W R Yeovil Junction – Yeovil Town. 01.06.1861
B&E / L&SWR Yeovil (Town) Joint syation. 01.06.1861 When did it become Yeovil Town?
B & E R
7391 The interesting luggage label which prompted this article. Copyright Michael L. Roach.
4013 Typical B&ER luggage label “Axbridge”. Copyright Michael L. Roach.
7504 Small prairie 4593 is seen at Yeovil Town Station on the 4.00pm Pen Mill to Taunton train on 13 June 1964 which was the last day of passenger services. It was one of the last routes partially operated by the small prairies. Copyright Michael L. Roach.
7505 Large prairie 4131 has arrived at Yeovil Town with the 5.55pm Taunton to Pen Mill, the penultimate train in that direction. 4131 would work the last train to Taunton. Copyright Michael L. Roach.
Many thanks indeed Michael for your copious rcords and research. Any further comments anybody.
Oxford
Michael Adams
Michael Adams
Hello Roger, Here is a picture from Michael Adams of 50015 ‘Valiant’ at Reading on 20 May1987 with a van train for the West Country. Thanks, best wishes, Michael Copyright Michael Adams
The next day we see 58044 passing through Oxford , in torrential rain, with empty mgr wagons from Didcot power station, probably to Welbeck colliery, Notts. Copyright Michael Adams
Many Thanks Michael
Golant
Roger Geach
Roger Geach
Many CDA's - 66009 seen at Golant on the 7th April 2008. Copyright Roger Geach
Nice one Roger, caught before the tide comes in and the leaves come out - thank you.