# Shillingstone Station, Blandford Forum, Dorset - being restored . . .



## BeckyBoo (Nov 5, 2009)

As I run the official website for the Shillingstone Station Project I feel that this can be my first proper thread.

Shillingstone Station opened on the 31st August 1863, and was build by The Dorset Central Railway it is the Shillingstone Station buildings and trackbed. it is the last surviving station built by the Dorset Central Railway. Overlooked by the hill-fort of Hambledon Hill, which was in military use by General Wolfe for training his troops, as recently as 1759, and with the River Stour meandering by in the foreground, it was arguably the most picturesque station on the former Somerset and Dorset Railway.






*Shillingstone Station in it's heyday.​*





In 1948, shortly after the end of war the railways were nationalised, the line came under the control of the Southern Region of British Railways. Through passenger traffic built up to a peak in the mid 1950's with many passenger trains from places like Birmingham and Wolverhampton including the Pines Express which ran from Manchester to Bournemouth West. The Pines Express was the only named train on the S&DJR. 

Shillingstone station is situated, to the north east of the mile-long village, (formerly Shilling Okeford). It consisted of two platforms, the up platform, which was the shorter of the two, a passing loop; this was the second longest loop 960 feet long between Templecombe & Blandford, the longest was Stalbridge at 1452 feet. The brick built station buildings were located on the up platform, with a small wooden shelter on the considerably longer down platform.






The station never had electricity installed, instead used in total twelve oil lamps for all its lighting, two inside the station, one in the signal box and nine outside and six signal lamps. 

A small goods yard was located on the up side of the line, just North of the station with three sidings and a head shunt. There was also a small siding off the down loop. This had a small goods shed, loading dock and a 5 ton crane, as considerable agricultural traffic came from the local villages. There was also a long siding just to the south of the station at the end of the passing loop on the down side. Controlled by two ground signals with enough room for about sixty wagons. Increased use of road transport saw the closure of the yard on 5th April 1965, and in May 1965 the down sidings were lifted.

The station area was controlled from a small wooden 16 lever signal box located at the northern end of the up platform. There were eight signals, two ground signals and six tall signals consisting of - 2 starters, 2 homes and 2 distant.

Maintained with pride by its staff, Shillingstone Station was also host to both King and Poet in its 103 year history. King Edward VII who visited on several occasions, alighting here to go to Iwerne Minster House, now Clayesmore School, and it was as a result of the King’s visits that the station acquired its ornate canopy.

With the outbreak of World War I, Rupert Brooke the poet joined the army and found himself at Blandford Camp, from there his battalion and himself marched to Shillingstone Station, there they boarded a train to Avonmouth, and onto a troop ship for Gallipoli. Brooke never completed the journey, he died at 27 and was buried on the Greek Island of Skyros, along with him lies the poignancy of his poem “The Soldier”.

The goods that where transported from Shillingstone included cream and milk for the big Bournemouth hotels - the local factory despatched gallons of cream daily to the Bournemouth to Poole area. Facilities for trade included a loading bay where milk chums would be loaded onto a wagon which each day would be attached to the 3.40pm from Bournemouth West for transit to Templecombe and then onto London via the Southern Railway. Live rams for breeding purposes and the unusual traditional trade - the gathering of moss from the Dorset hills and transported to supply the Covent Garden flower market in London, which would meet a London bound train at Templecombe to go on to Waterloo. There was a great deal of commercial trade operating from the various Somerset & Dorset stations. This included the transportation of calves from Sturminster Newton market, mushrooms from Blandford, watercress from Bailey Gate and Winterbourne Houghton in addition . A branch also took ordnance up to Blandford Camp. Turkey chicks were also despatched from Shillingstone to various places for fattening up for the Christmas trade.

In the early 1960s, the Naval Authorities moved oak trees felled at Wooland and the foot of Bulbarrow; they were brought to Shillingstone by lorry and a crane was brought to load them onto rail wagons to take them to Chatham in Kent.

The Station had a small beautiful garden, and a greenhouse, tended by the Station Staff, which from photographic evidence were well tended and cared for, you can see that the S&DJR staff had great pride in their work place. The staff propagated seeds in the greenhouse, which when the time was right were planted into the station’s flower borders. Shillingstone won "Best Kept Station" awards for many years.




​*Shillingstone's Greenhouse - we have since found the footings of the greenhouse​*



[/CENTER]

The Station had a number of staff – Station Master, Booking Clerk, one leading porter, two porters, one goods porter, three signalmen, and a lorry driver, four gangers who worked from Sturminster Newton to Blandford Forum. Shillingstone was lucky in that all it’s stationmasters were considerate, caring, competent and trustworthy.

Fourteen trains went through the station each day, seven up and seven down with four freight trains passing, again two in each direction. The Pines Express did not stop at Shillingstone, but thundered through the station on its journey either North to Bath and on to Manchester, or South to Bournemouth.

The Station opened at 7.30am and closed at 10pm Monday to Friday, on Saturdays it closed at 11pm. There were no Sunday services. There were two telephone lines – a Railway and National (GPO) line and the station’s telephone number was Child Okeford 488.

As roads began to improve and the local railways began to diminish in importance, the S&D was run down and eventually closed, sharing a common end with many branch lines, which Dr. Beeching eliminated from the national railway network. 

To start with the famous Pines Express was re-routed to the GWR line via Basingstoke & Reading. 9F 2-10-0 92220 Evening Star piloted the last Pines Express on the S&D on 8th September 1962. According to the Book "Portrait of the Pines Express by Stephen Austin", The Bournemouth Railway Club suggested putting Evening Star on the the last S&DJR Pines Express, this was, as history tells us done and Evening Star ran into the history books as being the final locomotive to haul the Pines Express unassisted on the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway, on this final historic run, she hauled the weight of 426 tons unassisted over the Mendips, a record which would and now cannot ever be beaten! 

Two years later freight trains were withdrawn and re-routed to avoid the S&D, and so began the slow and sad demise of a beloved and beautiful railway line.

During the second half of 1965 it was announced by the Western Region that the S&DJR would close from the beginning of 1966. During the second half of 1965 it was announced by the Western Region that the S&DJR would close from the beginning of 1966. The line did have a short reprieve when local bus companies were not ready to commence with the replacement bus services. Over the last few months many special trains ran over all parts of the entire S&DJR lines with hundreds of enthusiasts from all over the country travelling over the line as mark of reverence. Many of the last working passenger trains running on 5th March 1966 carried wreaths on the smoke box or even coffins, which were ceremoniously loaded onto the train, to mark the end of their beloved railway. Many more people came out to wave to the last trains as they made their last ever journey on the Swift and Delightful line.

It is very fortunate that the main station building has survived. After the closure the station remained empty for quite some time. A company called Pilgrims began to use the buildings in the station yard – building chicken houses for battery farming, and then expanding into manufacturing furniture and fitted kitchens. Meanwhile the trackbed was earmarked for the Shillingstone bypass road and Dorset County Council bought the stretch of track from Haywards Lane Bridge to a point past the Holloway Lane Bridge. This purchase included the station, which would have been demolished if the road had been built!

In the late 1970s the modern industrial units were built and were completely taken up by a single company called Intasco, again manufacturing furniture. In the 1980s this company very fortunately converted the station building to their needs as a workshop, and so yet again the station escaped potential demolition.

In August 1998 after change in ownership , the furniture company Intalays Ltd, went into liquidation and the industrial estate and station once again lay empty.

More recently the By-pass has been permanently shelved and has therefore enabled Dorset County Council to consider disposal of this land.

In August 2001 North Dorset District council applied for the station to have listed status, although this was not achieved it did highlight just how important the station was both architecturally and historically. It was at the time on the local councils "Buildings At Risk" register. the station was going to be listed but this failed - which has for the restoration of it been a good thing - far less paperwork!

When we eventually got the lease of the station this is what it looked like inside:-




and





outside was not much better . . .





But now it looks like this inside:-



and this outside





We still have much to do rebulding the signal box, track laying - and so the list goes on . . .

Please do not post these photos elsewhere without permission - these come from the Official Website which I run myself. On behalf of the North Dorset Railway Trust which is a registered charity.

Loads and I mean LOADS more info can be found there. The Station is open on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday from 10am till 4pm - Free Admission.


----------



## Labb (Nov 5, 2009)

Very good pictures. From the website I understand that there is a lot to be done. Good luck. Sorry the station is that fare away from Norfolk.


----------



## diehardlove (Nov 5, 2009)

nice work mate your going a grand job you really are,
and nice first thread


----------



## Flexible (Nov 5, 2009)

Disused railways are among my favourite interests and it's great to see one 'coming back to life'. Thanks for an interesting report and I wish you the very best of luck with the project.


----------



## night crawler (Nov 6, 2009)

Good to see that, only one like that roun dwhere I live has been turned into a house.


----------

