Stepford railway station

Stepford railway station
Location
Place	Stepford
Area	Dumfries and Galloway
Operations
Original company	Cairn Valley Railway
Pre-grouping	Glasgow & South Western
Platforms	1
History
1 March 1905	Opened
3 May 1943	Closed to passengers
4 July 1949	Closed to freight
Disused railway stations in the United Kingdom
Closed railway stations in Britain A B C D–F G H–J K–L M–O P–R S T–V W–Z
UK Railways portal

Stepford (NX864815) was one of the minor request stop stations on the Cairn Valley Light Railway branch from Dumfries. It served a very rural area in Dumfries and Galloway The line was closed to passengers during the Second World War.^[1] Cairn Valley Junction lay to the east.

History

The CVR was nominally independent, but was in reality controlled by the Glasgow and South Western Railway.^[2] The line was closed to passengers on 3 May 1943, during the Second World War^[1] and to freight on 4 July 1949,^[3] and the track lifted in 1953.

The station was very basic with just a short wooden platform with a tin shelter and a siding with a loading bank for goods traffic.^[4] A station master's house was provided, designed by the company with a pyramid roof truncated by a central chimney stack.^[4] The shelter had been demolished by 1949.^[4] The station master's house, a simple cottage, rather than the standard company design, survives as a private dwelling.

Morrington Quarry was nearby and was rail connected,^[5] however the contract was lost to a road haulier in around 1943.^[6]

The siding was worked by down trains only, goods for Dumfries being taken to the nearest station along. The points were unlocked with an Annett's key that was kept in a locked box on a post adjacent to the point.^[7]

Trains were controlled by a 'lock and block' system whereby the trains operated treadles on the single line to interact with the block instruments.^[2]

Other stations

• Irongray
• Newtonairds
• Dunscore
• Crossford
• Kirkland
• Moniaive

Re-opening

Suggestions have been made for a re-opening of the line.

See also

• List of closed railway stations in Britain

References

Notes

1. Awdry, page 64
2. Sanders, page 50
3. Thomas, page 203
4. Kirkpatrick, Page 21
5. Kirkpatrick, Page 45
6. Kirkpatrick, Page 71
7. Kirkpatrick, Page 91

Sources

• Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-8526-0049-7. OCLC 19514063.
• Kirkpatrick, Ian (2000). The Cairn Valley Light Railway. Usk : The Oakwood Press. ISBN 0-85361-567-5.
• Sanders, Keith and Hodgins, Douglas (1995). British Railways. Past and Present South West Scotland. No. 19. ISBN 1-85895-074-0.
• Thomas, David St John & Whitehouse, Patrick (1993). The Romance of Scotlands Railways. Newton Abbot : David St John Thomas. ISBN 0-946537-89-5.

External links

• Disused stations

Coordinates: 55°06′55″N 3°46′56″W / 55.1153°N 3.7822°W