East Anstey railway station served the village in Devon

Devon

Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

 to the west of Dulverton

Dulverton

Dulverton is a town and civil parish in the heart of West Somerset, England, near the border with Devon. The town has a population of 1,630. The parish includes the hamlets of Battleton and Ashwick which is located approximately north west of Dulverton...

. It was on the Devon and Somerset Railway

Devon and Somerset Railway

The Devon and Somerset Railway was a branch line from near in Somerset to in North Devon. It was operated from the outset by the Bristol and Exeter Railway which became part of the Great Western Railway on 1 January 1876.-History:...

 that ran between Taunton

Taunton railway station

Taunton railway station is a junction station on the route from London to Penzance, from London Paddington station. It is situated in Taunton, Somerset, England and is operated by First Great Western...

 and Barnstaple

Barnstaple Victoria Road railway station

Barnstaple Victoria Road railway station was the terminus of the Devon and Somerset Railway line from Taunton railway station. It served the town of Barnstaple in Devon, England and was opened when the Devon and Somerset line was extended from Wiveliscombe to Barnstaple on 1 November...

. The Devon and Somerset was operated by the Bristol and Exeter Railway

Bristol and Exeter Railway

The Bristol & Exeter Railway was a railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter.The company's head office was situated outside their Bristol station...

 and was taken over with the Bristol and Exeter Railway

Bristol and Exeter Railway

The Bristol & Exeter Railway was a railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter.The company's head office was situated outside their Bristol station...

 by the Great Western Railway

Great Western Railway

The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...

.

The section of the line between and Barnstaple opened on 1 November 1873. East Anstey station was originally on a single track part of the line at the highest point of the line, 800 feet (243.8 m) above sea level, and had a single platform on the down side of the line (towards Barnstaple). A crossing loop was installed with a second platform in 1876. The station had a signal box on the down platform and a small goods yard to the west of the station, with a goods shed that held cattle pens.

Goods traffic was limited and was withdrawn from East Anstey in 1963 and the station closed to passenger traffic with the closure of the Devon and Somerset line on 3 October 1966. The station building and the goods shed have been converted into houses.

The station was used as a location setting for the Ealing Studios

Ealing Studios

Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever since...

 1940 film The Halfway House.