PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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BILLACOMBE STATION
Billacombe Station, on the Great Western Railway's Yealmpton Branch, comprised a limestone faced main building, edged with Staffordshire blue bricks. This contained the booking office cum waiting room, a ladies' waiting room and a men's toilet. Outside there was a goods shed and a goods office, both of similar construction to the main building. Although a loop line was provided there was only a single platform, on the Up side. Both tracks gave access to the small goods yard. There was no signal box only a ground frame to operate points and signals for the goods yard. Adjacent to the Station was the Moorcroft Quarry operated by Messrs F J Moore Ltd, which provided much of the freight traffic on the Branch. The coach building works of Messrs W Mumford & Sons was also out on the main road but there is no record of it having provided freight traffic although its raw materials might well have arrived by rail. Billacombe Station was opened to the public on Monday January 17th 1898. It was closed first as from Monday July 7th 1930 but re-opened again on Monday November 3rd 1941. In response to the shortage of housing at the end of the Second World War, the Billacombe Station building was converted into a home for Mr S Willcocks, a cloak-room attendant at North Road Station, and his family. [2] Final closure to passenger traffic was from Monday October 6th 1947. The last freight train ran on the afternoon of Friday February 26th 1960.
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