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Published:
September 8, 2007
It's
45 years since Burnham-On-Sea Railway Station closed
It
is 45 years this week since Burnham-On-Sea Railway Station closed
to passenger traffic. To mark the anniversary, Burnham-On-Sea.com
takes a look back at the station's history...
The
station, in Pier Street, closed to regular passenger traffic in
October 1951, although summer excursions continued until 8th September
1962.
 The
station in Pier Street, pictured, was opened on 3rd May 1858 with
the name 'Burnham' and it was not until 12th July 1920 that the
suffix 'on-Sea' was added.
The
Burnham Branch extended two or three miles westwards from Highbridge,
requiring a special 'diamond crossing' over the main line and
a gated level-crossing over the A38.
The
Burnham line was a key element in the original planning for the
Somerset and Dorset line and was built with the expectation of
picking up passengers from paddle-steamer ferries from South Wales
and transporting them to the south coast of England.
Unfortunately,
the passengers never came in substantial numbers and by the 1950s
the Burnham branch was used mostly for carrying summer excursion
traffic only.
Hundreds
of posters like the one shown here were distributed around the
country to promote the idea of visiting the resort by train -
and these are now collectors items. The final summer excursion
travelled out of the station on 8th September 1962.
The
site of the station is now taken up by Burnham's lifeboat station.
The signalbox which used to stand alongside the platforms has
been restored and is now based at Washford on the West Somerset
Railway.
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