Wolf's Castle Halt railway station
Encyclopedia
Wolf's Castle Halt railway station was on the Clarbeston Road and Letterston line
of the Great Western Railway
. It served the villages of Wolf's Castle
and Ford between 1913 and 1964.
, s subsidiary of the Great Western Railway
(GWR), was opened on 30 August 1906, but at first there were no intermediate stations. However, there was a signal box at Wolf's Castle, because although most of the route was built as double track, a portion near the middle, which included Spittal
Tunnel and the cutting through Treffgarne
Gorge, was single-track, and it was necessary to have signal boxes at each end of the single-track section. The single-track section was later doubled, but although the temporary signal boxes at Spittal and Treffgarne closed with the introduction of full double-track working on 17 December 1906, Wolf's Castle signal box was retained to break the section, allowing two trains to proceed in the same direction between Clarbeston Road and Letterston simultaneously; there was also a crossover.
The first of three intermediate stations to open on the line was Wolf's Castle Halt on 1 October 1913. It was situated 251 miles (403.94434 km) from Paddington (via the Severn Tunnel), and was on a level stretch of line to the east of the signal box. The stations to either side in 1923 were and . Unusually for a GWR halt, the two platforms were built of brick rather than wood, as were the shelters. The up platform was 115 feet (35.1 m) long, and the down platform was 155 ft (47.2 m) long. The station nameboards stated "Wolf's Castle Halt for Treffgarne Rocks". The service was operated using GWR steam rail motors
running between and ; there were three trains a day in each direction.
The crossover was removed in 1924, and the signal box was taken out of use on 17 February 1925; it was transferred to .
The station closed on 6 April 1964, as did all the other stations between Clarbeston Road and Fishguard Harbour.
In 2011, the waiting shelters on the platforms no longer exist and the line has been reduced to a single track positioned about halfway between the platforms, which would prevent any future use. The track is also raised on an embankment of ballast, so even if it was still alongside the platform the train doors would be some distance above the platform height.
Clarbeston Road and Letterston Railway
The Clarbeston Road and Letterston Railway was a small railway company formed to give the Great Western Railway a more direct route to the port at Fishguard Harbour.-History:...
of 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...
. It served the villages of Wolf's Castle
Wolf's Castle
Wolfscastle also spelt Wolf's Castle, is a village in Pembrokeshire, between Haverfordwest and Fishguard, in southwest Wales.- Geography and transport links :...
and Ford between 1913 and 1964.
History
The Clarbeston Road and Letterston RailwayClarbeston Road and Letterston Railway
The Clarbeston Road and Letterston Railway was a small railway company formed to give the Great Western Railway a more direct route to the port at Fishguard Harbour.-History:...
, s subsidiary of 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...
(GWR), was opened on 30 August 1906, but at first there were no intermediate stations. However, there was a signal box at Wolf's Castle, because although most of the route was built as double track, a portion near the middle, which included Spittal
Spittal, Pembrokeshire
Spittal is a village and community that lies approximately halfway between Haverfordwest and Fishguard, near the village of Wolf's Castle in the county of Pembrokeshire in west Wales. It gets its name from the same root as Hospital and Spitalfields in London: the village possessed a hospitium ...
Tunnel and the cutting through Treffgarne
Treffgarne
Treffgarne is a small village in Pembrokeshire, south-west Wales.- Location & History :It lies to the south of the Preseli Hills. The village name is derived from 'tref' meaning town and 'garne' meaning rock, or the 'town of the rock'...
Gorge, was single-track, and it was necessary to have signal boxes at each end of the single-track section. The single-track section was later doubled, but although the temporary signal boxes at Spittal and Treffgarne closed with the introduction of full double-track working on 17 December 1906, Wolf's Castle signal box was retained to break the section, allowing two trains to proceed in the same direction between Clarbeston Road and Letterston simultaneously; there was also a crossover.
The first of three intermediate stations to open on the line was Wolf's Castle Halt on 1 October 1913. It was situated 251 miles (403.94434 km) from Paddington (via the Severn Tunnel), and was on a level stretch of line to the east of the signal box. The stations to either side in 1923 were and . Unusually for a GWR halt, the two platforms were built of brick rather than wood, as were the shelters. The up platform was 115 feet (35.1 m) long, and the down platform was 155 ft (47.2 m) long. The station nameboards stated "Wolf's Castle Halt for Treffgarne Rocks". The service was operated using GWR steam rail motors
GWR steam rail motors
The steam rail motors were self-propelled carriages operated by the Great Western Railway in England and Wales from 1903 to 1935. They incorporated a steam locomotive within the body of the carriage.-History:...
running between and ; there were three trains a day in each direction.
The crossover was removed in 1924, and the signal box was taken out of use on 17 February 1925; it was transferred to .
The station closed on 6 April 1964, as did all the other stations between Clarbeston Road and Fishguard Harbour.
In 2011, the waiting shelters on the platforms no longer exist and the line has been reduced to a single track positioned about halfway between the platforms, which would prevent any future use. The track is also raised on an embankment of ballast, so even if it was still alongside the platform the train doors would be some distance above the platform height.