The Yatton
to
​Clevedon Branch line

We are most grateful for this fine picture taken by Peter O'Brien on the very last day of the branch. October 1st 1966. Copyright

No connection with Clevedon at all really but a chance to mention Ruslip Lido Railway at which Peter O'Brien is very active - the longest 12" gauge line in the world - take a look at the web site.

This picture by my late father John Stanford. It shows a single power car DMU coming through the outskirts of Yatton, approaching the station - behind the photographer. The siding behind the DMU served Caperns Birdseed Factory. Photo taken July 1964' just over 2 years before the line closed fully. Post line closure in October 1966, a part of the line (about 2-1/2 miles from Yatton) remained in use to train in-track machine drivers - but was fully lifted by 1970/71. Copyright Paul Stanford.

There is limited coverage available on the web click here for the link  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clevedon_Branch_Line

Also try  -  For excellent coverage of both Clevedon stations and the Weston, Clevedon and Portishead Railway with stations and maps.
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=clevedon+railway+station&biw=1366&bih=667&tbm=isch&imgil=qqs-cvZUtGfX6M%253A%253B7E1u2yaTVtHz1M%253Bhttp%25253A

And in addition please take a look at the article by Colin Burges using the link below - your time will be well spent.

It's odd that you published Richard Giles's piece about Clevedon without mention of what I sent you on Friday, which included the mural in Station Road, Clevedon. I expect you were inundated at the weekend with all the events.

https://www.teignrail.co.uk/scouting/83-clevedon-and-portishead/

Cheers, Colin.

The timetable for the branch line for June 19th to 23rd September 1951 Yatton to Clevedon branch

Photograph by the late John Stanford showing a Weston to Pasdington train slowing to call at Yatton station. Note the signal box is still functional closed in January 1972 and the Clevedon branch connection and Clevedon bay platform (right hand side in shot, is still in situ). Indeed there are box vans in the bay. Copyright Paul Stanford

A general view of Yatton station looking towards Taunton - the Clevedon banch used the right hand bay and that to Cheddar and Witham, the left hand bay. The lines closing on 3rd October 1966 and the 9th September 1963 respectively. This picture 28th June 1986 Copyright Roger Winnen

Yatton station buildings on the up side - the bay platform for Clevedon lay on this side protected by the canopy shared with the up platform. 28th June 1986 Copyright Roger Winnen

Looking across the bay platform which served the Cheddar line across the down main and at the up platform on the rear of which lay the Clevedon bay platform. The trackbed of the Clevedon branch can be seen bearing away to the right before the gas holder. 28th June 1986 Copyright Roger Winnen

Another shot looking from the down platform across to the Clevedon Bay platform. The bay had, by this time been filled in and the space used for car parking facilities. Yatton West signlbox, (Closed in 1972) lay in between the up main and the branch metals which bore away to the right. Off the branch, even harder round to the right lay the locomotive shed - closed in August 1960. 28th June 1986 Copyright Roger Winnen The awnings, maybe both came from Dauntsey station.

It's the 29th June 1986 as a class 31 with quite a sizable freight train trundles in heading east. It may have been accelerating having come off the up loop which lies a short distance away. As can be seen by the 'feather' on the down side signal a loop also exists there. 28th June 1986

- and finally, also on the 28th June 1986 a view looking east with the former Clevedon Bay on the left. Copyright Roger Winnen

We are delighted to include further coverage of the branch from Clevdon to Yatton. Two collections, firstly by Martin Tester who provides excellent coverage of Clevedon station and the line a short while before closure
The second collection by Michael Bussell covers the destruction of Clevedon station and branch.

Clevedon 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

An interesting plaque - before the days of H & S. Martin Tester. 17th September 1966.

Clevedon - the goods shed stands in isolation. Goods were withdrawn 10th June 1963 - weeds are already taking over. 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

What a fine structure - the goods shed at Clevedon - 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

Clevedon 17th September 1966. The run round loop has already been removed, however the trains are still running though not for much longer - a lady sits waiting for the next service. 17th Septeber 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

The outside of the staion abutting onto Station Road. 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

Clevedon station a solitary car waits for an incoming passenger/ 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

A single car rounds the curve into the bay platform at Yatton. To the right can be seen the rear of Yatton Signalbox and in the distance Yattton Goods shed can be seen - the branch to Cheddar and Witham runs across in front of this. 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

The signal is down for yet another departure for Clevdon - the branch curving away sharply towards the seaside. 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester.

BG Vehicle at Yatton

BG vehicle at Yatton. 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester

BG vehicle at Yatton. 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester

BG vehicle at Yatton. 17th September 1966. Copyright Martin Tester

The above 3 photos of the BG vehicle at Yatton, all taken on Saturday 17th September 1966.

Probably around 100 years old at the time of the photo this vehicle was a remarkable survivor. It was positioned at the back of Yatton Loco Shed & was used as the enginemen's cabin until 1954 when it was replaced by a breeze-block structure. Loco shed & the new cabin were demolished in 1964 - some brick & concrete rubble can be seen in one of the photos - but this historic vehicle was untouched. Unfortunately it was destroyed by fire before a full investigation could be carried out by BG experts.

Colin Maggs, in magazine articles & his book on the Clevedon branch, described it as a horsebox but doubt has since been cast on this analysis because of the narrow doors. The large louvres above the doors (still remaining on one side) have prompted the theory that it was a B&ER 4-wheel fish van. Its destruction was a sad loss.

Best wishes,  Martin Tester. 

Many thanks for all of your Clevedon Entries Martin - well covered, just before the 'axe fell'.

​

​​Clevedon Station 1966-68
Michael Bussell

We now turn to a large collection very kindly supplied by Michael Bussell. These were taken a short while after Martin Tester had visited the station. 

The Clevedon line was a short branch built off the Bristol & Exeter Railway main line, which it left at Yatton. It opened on 28 July 1847 with a temporary station building at the Clevedon terminus. This, unusually for many West Country stations, was right in the middle of town. The line was initially broad gauge, but was converted to standard gauge in 1879. A new station building, with a short overall train shed, and a new goods shed were constructed using the local grey Pennant sandstone in 1890. (The station building replaced its ‘temporary’ timber predecessor that had served for no less than 43 years!) The passenger service was handled by single or two-car diesel units from 1960. Goods traffic ceased in June 1963, and a year or so later Clevedon Station became an unstaffed halt. The run-round loop was lifted, and the platform line was cut back, so that trains stopped short of the train shed (although passengers still had the benefit of a generous projecting canopy over the platform). The last passenger train ran on 1 October 1966, a couple of months after I made my first visit. My two later visits in 1968 recorded the melancholy sight of the passenger station building being demolished. The station site was subsequently cleared, and is now occupied by new developments. ‘The Clevedon Branch’ by Colin G Maggs (Wild Swan Publications, 1987) provides an informative and well-illustrated account of the line.
Clevedon, like a number of other towns along Brunel’s Great Western and Bristol & Exeter Railways, ultimately suffered from being bypassed by the main line, to be served instead by often quite short branches. This could make rail travel unattractive to passengers, who might have to follow an indirect route involving at least one change and possibly a wait for the connecting train(s) before reaching their destination. Both Clevedon and Portishead were so served. It is interesting, if pointless, to speculate on the attraction of an alternative route for the Bristol to Weston-super-Mare and Taunton main line, had it been located closer to the Bristol Channel and run via Portishead and Clevedon – following the route of the later Weston Clevedon & Portishead Railway. That, a late arrival on the railway scene and offering only a local service conducted with Colonel Stephens’s characteristic frugality, was itself undone by the growth of bus and lorry traffic on the roads. But a main line offering direct services to Bristol, Weston, Taunton, even London, with through stations at Clevedon and Portishead, might – who knows? – still have had these stations on the national rail network today.

Clevedon July 1966

1 One of my few 1960s station photographs with a train actually present! A single railcar awaits the ‘right away’ on the shortened platform track. The timber canopy is enhanced by elegant cast iron brackets supporting its cantilevered main rafters. July 1966. Copyright Michael Bussell.

2  The lengthy platform canopy 

2 The lengthy station canopy seen from the station yard. July 1966 Copyright Michael Bussell.

3 Moving north, a closer view of the station building and its entrance canopy. July 1966 Copyright Michael Bussell.

4 The junction of the timber platform and yard canopy with the stone-built station building. July 1966. Copyright Michael Bussell.

5 The gable end of the station building on the left, with the north stone wall of the train shed on the right facing into Station Road. The door in this wall originally gave direct access to the platform beyond, but this had subsequently been blocked off. July 1966. Copyright Michael Bussell.

6 Another view of the north wall of the train shed that presents a face to the town centre, while the west train shed wall on the right is of simpler timber construction. July 1966. Copyright Michael Bussell.

7 The attractive goods shed of 1890, now standing abandoned in a trackless goods yard with the passenger platform and its single line beyond. July 1966. Copyright Michael Bussell.

8 A closer view of the goods shed from the south. July 1966. Copyright Michael Bussell.

9 The northern end of the goods shed, a photo taken somewhat into the sun. July 1966. Copyright Michael Bussell.

Clevedon 18th May 1968.

10 The track remains, but the demolition crew have started work, removing the hipped end of the train shed roof. (If I recall aright, this was a Saturday, so there was no work going on during my visit.) 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

11 The platform canopy has gone. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

12. The first of four views from the station yard, showing the full east façade of the boarded-up station building. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

13 From nearer the station building, the west wall of the train shed can be seen in process of demolition. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

14 A closer view of the southern end of the east façade of the station building. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

15 The entrance canopy and the door from the yard into the station. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

16 The gable end of the station building from Station Road, for the moment looking unaffected by the demolition work beyond. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

17 The north wall of the train shed looks similarly unaffected. Station Road on the right ‘morphs’ into Kenn Road on the left. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

18 However, work is well under way to remove the timber west wall of the train shed. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

19 As can also be seen in this photo. The timbers appear to have been charred by fire, but this is more likely to be the patterning effect of creosote. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

20 The south end of the station building on the platform side has suffered only local damage, as yet, but looks very forlorn. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

21 The train shed awaits its end. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

22 A poorly-lit view (I not having flash) up inside the train shed, aiming to show the junction of the train shed roof eaves with the stone station building wall, with a rainwater downpipe. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

23 Looking along the platform towards Yatton. Some debris from the canopy is in the foreground; the platform gas lamps are still present. 18th May 1968. Copyright. Michael Bussell.

24 Another view towards Yatton, from inside the train shed. The shortened platform track ends just outside the train shed. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

25 The train shed roof construction is made more clearly visible by the removal of part of the west wall. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

26 The door that formerly gave direct access to the platform from Station Road has long been blocked, and a cycle rack stands against it inside the train shed. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

27 The booking office will never again sell tickets. 18th May 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

2nd June 1968

​ (I was using a half-frame 35 mm camera with colour slide film for some of these photos, rather than the elderly 620 roll-film camera on which I took most of my photos in black-and-white at that time.)

28 Just two weeks later, and the station building and train shed have gone. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

29 Looking from the station platform across the site of the train shed into the centre of Clevedon, known as the Triangle. The local Pennant stone used for the railway buildings was also widely used for buildings in the town. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

30 Smashed cast iron canopy brackets and burnt timbers – a sad waste of good materials. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

31 A distant view north along the platform. The gas lamps on the platform seen two weeks ago have since been ‘beheaded’. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

32 The goods shed, seen here from the south, remains intact as yet. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

33 A closer view of the goods shed from the south; it today might be judged to be worthy of listing as of historical and architectural interest. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

34 The goods shed from the west. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

35 And the goods shed from the north. The substantial attached office with an attic window suggests that goods traffic once generated a lot of paperwork. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

36 Reverting to black-and-white film, this is the melancholy view along the line from track level, seen from the site of the train shed. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

37 A small, typical brick-built weigh-house and weighbridge in the goods yard. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

38 Another view of these features. The goods yard is already accumulating car parts – either an enterprising start-up business, or dumped scrap. 2nd June 1968. Copyright Michael Bussell.

Our sincere appreciation to Michael for making his photographs of the sad demise of Clevedon station and the branch available to all our viewers.

Recent Artwork at Clevedon - Richard Giles.

This is Station Road, Clevedon on 2nd January 2019. During 2018 the local Council had given permission for several walls in the town area to be brightened up with murals, this one ‘round the corner’ from the former Great Western Railway (GWR) and Weston, Clevedon, Portishead Railway (WC&P) stations (closed in October 1966 and May 1940 respectively) turned out to be quite effective and a reminder as the WC&P railway crossed close to the Town Centre (and near this location) in a similar shop front type setting which included W.H. Smiths which in 2023 still remains open and trading from the same location!
 

An unknown artist at work at Clevedon. One cannot help but marvel at the quality of the work he is doing and from such a difficult position. Copyright Richard Giles.

The finished work. brilliant isn't it? Copyright Richard Giles.