125-529: The West Somerset Mineral Railway was a standard gauge line in Somerset , England. Originally expected to be 13 miles 420 yards (21.3 km) long its length as built was 11 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles (18.5 km), with a 310-yard (280 m) branch to Raleigh's Cross Mine . The line's core purpose was to carry iron ore northwards from mines on the Brendon Hills to Watchet harbour on
250-669: A Tesco and a Morrisons supermarket on its outskirts as well as a new Lidl . The South West Coast Path National Trail starts at a marker, erected in Minehead in 2001, partly paid for by the South West Coast Path Association . The UK's longest long-distance countryside walking trail, it runs along the South West Coast to Poole in Dorset . The town's location—sea to the north and Exmoor to
375-451: A 2-tier system to match the rest of Somerset and the majority of education authorities in the UK. The Anglican parish church of St Michael dates from the 15th century and has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building ; its tower used to display a beacon light for ships approaching the harbour. After being caught in a violent storm at sea, Robert Quirke dedicated
500-464: A Charter of Incorporation, established a free Borough and Parliamentary representation, but was made conditional on improvements being made to the port. The harbour silted up and fell into disrepair so that in 1604 James I withdrew the town's charter. Control reverted to the Luttrells and a new harbour was built, at a cost of £5,000, further out to sea than the original, which had been at the mouth of
625-649: A country (for example, 1,440 mm or 4 ft 8 + 11 ⁄ 16 in to 1,445 mm or 4 ft 8 + 7 ⁄ 8 in in France). The first tracks in Austria and in the Netherlands had other gauges ( 1,000 mm or 3 ft 3 + 3 ⁄ 8 in in Austria for the Donau Moldau line and 1,945 mm or 6 ft 4 + 9 ⁄ 16 in in
750-491: A footpath. The incline from there is not visible because of tree growth and it is difficult to get access to it without unreasonable encroachment on private property, although the OS map shows a public footpath crossing the incline about two-thirds of the way up. The remains of Brendon Hill station are Grade II listed . The remains of the summit winding house can be approached but are dangerous to enter: they are located just west of
875-508: A formal passenger service between Comberow and Watchet, which started with great celebration on 4 September 1865. In the full year 1866 13,000 passengers were carried; by 1872 this had risen to 19,000 and peaked at 19,680 in 1874. Four passenger trains ran each way daily at first, but this was later reduced to two, and then to one. Passenger trains took half an hour to travel from Comberow to Watchet. Proper stations were provided at Watchet , Washford , Roadwater and Comberow . Brendon Hill , at
1000-606: A fourth venture. In September 1918 the Timber Supply Department of the Board of Trade applied for and were granted permission to lay a light railway on the lower trackbed and to use either Washford or Roadwater station buildings. The line was used to carry timber to Watchet from a government sawmill at Washford, using mules as motive power. The track was removed in early 1920. Recorded simply as "narrow", research continues as to its gauge. In 1923 an Act of Parliament
1125-418: A new beach. This beach sits between four rock groynes and has been built at a much higher level than the previous beach so that the waves are broken before they reach the new sea wall. Any waves that do reach the new wall are turned back by its curved shape. The town's new sea defences were officially opened in 2001. Blenheim Gardens, which is Minehead's largest park, was opened in 1925. The bandstand within
1250-401: A population of approximately 11,981, making it the most populous town in the western part of the now-defunct Somerset West and Taunton local government district, which in turn, is the worst area in the country for social mobility . This figure includes Alcombe and Woodcombe , suburban villages which have been subsumed into Minehead. There is evidence of human occupation in the area since
1375-623: A second in 1866. The two locomotives spent short spells at Watchet in the 1890s. When the line reopened in 1907 just one locomotive was used. This was a Beyer Peacock 4-4-0T built in 1879 for the Metropolitan Railway in London, it was number 37 of their A Class condensing locomotives. It arrived on the railway on 30 June 1907 by way of a temporary connection from the Great Western Railway (GWR) at Kentsford and
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#17327728612471500-730: A section of the mineral railway track-bed adjacent to it has been scheduled as an ancient monument . It was added to the Heritage at Risk Register because of vulnerability from scrub and tree growth. Standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ). The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson ), international gauge , UIC gauge , uniform gauge , normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It
1625-685: A ship and its cargo to God's service, as well as donating a cellar near the quay for prayers to be offered for those at sea. Dating from 1628 and known as the Gibraltar Celler [ sic ], it is now the Chapel of St Peter. Quirke also donated money from the sale of the ship and its cargo to build almshouses . St Michael's parish church contains a number of historical highlights, including an impressive late medieval rood screen and rood stair , and an attractive stained glass window designed by Sir Henry Holiday . There are views from
1750-537: A small on-site chapel , and over the Easter period the resort hosts an annual Spring Harvest , the largest Christian festival in the UK. The Catholic parish of Minehead covers an area of 200 square miles (520 km ) and is served by the Sacred Heart Parish Church, built in 1896, as well as a mass centre in the nearby village of Watchet . There are also religious sites serving the needs of
1875-528: A small town close to the regional centre of Laval in the Mayenne département of France. Blenheim Gardens, which is Minehead's largest park, was opened in 1925. The town is also the home of a Butlins Holiday Park which increases Minehead's seasonal tourist population by several thousand. There is a variety of schools and religious, cultural and sporting facilities including sailing and wind surfing and golf . One popular ancient local tradition involves
2000-510: A standard gauge of 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,435 mm ), and those in Ireland to a new standard gauge of 5 ft 3 in ( 1,600 mm ). In Great Britain, Stephenson's gauge was chosen on the grounds that existing lines of this gauge were eight times longer than those of the rival 7 ft or 2,134 mm (later 7 ft 1 ⁄ 4 in or 2,140 mm ) gauge adopted principally by
2125-702: A storm in 1990 caused flooding. Minehead is governed by a town council , which was created in 1983. In addition to the parish church of St. Michael on the Hill in Minehead, the separate parish church of St Michael the Archangel is situated in Church Street, Alcombe. Alcombe is also home to the Spiritualist Church in Grove Place. Since 1991, Minehead has been twinned with Saint-Berthevin ,
2250-423: A time-consuming and expensive process. The result was the adoption throughout a large part of the world of a "standard gauge" of 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ), allowing interconnectivity and interoperability. A popular legend that has circulated since at least 1937 traces the origin of the 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ) gauge even further back than
2375-538: A water tank over the boiler with a rectangular profile—and two were delivered ready for the line's opening. However one was later replaced following the fatal collision at Kentsford in August 1857. One was returned to Ebbw Vale in 1883 but the fleet was increased to two again in December 1896. They usually operated above the incline: below that point larger Sharp, Stewart 0-6-0STs were used. The first arrived in 1857 and
2500-708: A year. On 7 November 1898 traffic was suspended by agreement with the Ebbw Vale Company, who paid £5,000 per annum in compensation. In 1907 another venture, the Somerset Mineral Syndicate, leased the railway and resumed mining, re-opening the railway on 4 July 1907 with a one-off special train and the town band. The lower section of the line and the incline were brought back into use, but the Gupworthy extension from Brendon Hill remained closed. The incline reverted to gravity operation. £1,500
2625-524: Is a Farmers' Market in the Parade every Friday from 8:30 am to 2 pm, selling local produce. The town hosts the annual Minehead and Exmoor Festival, a week-long classical music festival that has been running since 1963. Richard Dickins has held the post of artistic director for the festival since 1982. The wooded bluffs above Minehead feature as the Hermit's abode "in that wood which slopes down to
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#17327728612472750-508: Is around 800–900 mm (31–35 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest. The predominant wind direction is from the south-west. The town's major tourist attraction is Butlins holiday camp . Others include: the terminus of the West Somerset Railway ; the town's main ornamental park, Blenheim Gardens, off Blenheim Road; and
2875-766: Is currently operated by the Ghana Railway Company Limited . Kojokrom-Sekondi Railway Line (The Kojokrom-Sekondi line is a branch line that joins the Western Railway Line at Kojokrom ) Indian nationwide rail system ( Indian Railways ) uses 1,676 mm ( 5 ft 6 in ) broad gauge. 96% of the broad gauge network is electrified. The railway tracks of Java and Sumatra use 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ). Planned and under construction high-speed railways to use 1,668 mm ( 5 ft 5 + 21 ⁄ 32 in ) to maintain interoperability with
3000-480: Is defined in U.S. customary / Imperial units as exactly "four feet eight and one half inches", which is equivalent to 1,435.1 mm. As railways developed and expanded, one of the key issues was the track gauge (the distance, or width, between the inner sides of the rails) to be used. Different railways used different gauges, and where rails of different gauge met – a " gauge break " – loads had to be unloaded from one set of rail cars and reloaded onto another,
3125-547: Is sometimes referred to as the Brendon Hill Incline and occasionally as the Brendon Hills Incline. A rise in altitude of 803 feet (245 m) to reach the mines was accomplished by a gravity worked incline , 0.75 miles (1.21 km) long, on a gradient of 1 in 4 (25%). To achieve the constant gradient, formidable earthworks were necessary, and construction took four years with a Mr Gunn as
3250-489: Is the coldest month with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (34 °F) and 2 °C (36 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region with mean daily maxima around 21 °C (70 °F). In general, December is the dullest month and June the sunniest. The south west of England enjoys a favoured location, particularly in summer, when the Azores High extends its influence north-eastwards towards
3375-430: Is the community based West Somerset Radio. The local newspapers are West Somerset Free Press and Somerset County Gazette . In Minehead, there are two first schools , one middle school (Minehead Middle School) and an upper school , West Somerset College , which provides education for 1,298 students between the ages of 13 and 18. In 2006 there was debate about changing West Somerset 's 3-tier school system to
3500-571: Is the most widely used track gauge around the world, with about 55% of the lines in the world using it. All high-speed rail lines use standard gauge except those in Russia , Finland , Uzbekistan , and some line sections in Spain . The distance between the inside edges of the rails is defined to be 1,435 mm except in the United States, Canada, and on some heritage British lines, where it
3625-563: The Baptist , Evangelical , Methodist and United Reformed communities and the Plymouth Brethren . Alcombe is also home to the Spiritualist Church in Grove Place. Minehead has one of the UK's three remaining Butlins holiday camps, and tourism has been a part of Minehead's economy since Victorian times. At the height of the season in late July and early August, the town's population is significantly increased by tourists. There
3750-539: The Bay of Fundy in Eastern Canada . The town is overlooked by North Hill, which rises steeply from the harbour shoreline. The town lies just outside the boundaries of Exmoor National Park . The cliff exposures around the shoreline are dramatic and fossils are exposed. Areas of the town include Higher Town, Quay Town and Lower or Middle Town, although they are no longer separate. In 1990, much of Minehead's beach
3875-496: The Bristol Channel . From there the ore was shipped northwards to Newport where it was unloaded onto railway wagons and hauled to ironworks at Ebbw Vale . The line opened as intended in 1861. Passenger services commenced in 1865. The mines' and line's "period of prosperity" ended in 1875 and by 1883 all mining had ceased. The line lingered on for passengers and small goods until 1898, when it closed. A new mineral venture
West Somerset Mineral Railway - Misplaced Pages Continue
4000-525: The Bronze and Iron Ages . Before the Norman conquest , it was held by Ælfgar, Earl of Mercia and after it by William de Moyon and his descendants, who administered the area from Dunster Castle , which was later sold to Sir George Luttrell and his family. There was a small port at Minehead by 1380, which grew into a major trading centre during the medieval period. Most trade transferred to larger ports during
4125-549: The Butlins Holiday Park . The trees, identified as a species resembling modern palm trees, known as calamophyton, date back to the Devonian period , between 419 and 358 million years ago. Evidence of prehistoric occupation of the area are Bronze Age barrows at Selworthy Beacon and an Iron Age enclosure at Furzebury Brake west of the town, although there is also possible evidence in the intertidal area, where
4250-577: The Hobby Horse which takes to the streets for four days on the eve of the first of May each year, with accompanying musicians and rival horses. The town is the starting point of the South West Coast Path National Trail, the nation's longest long-distance countryside walking trail. The Minehead Railway was opened in 1874 and closed in 1971 but has since been reopened as the West Somerset Railway . The town sits at
4375-608: The Liverpool and Manchester Railway , authorised in 1826 and opened 30 September 1830. The extra half inch was not regarded at first as very significant, and some early trains ran on both gauges daily without compromising safety. The success of this project led to Stephenson and his son Robert being employed to engineer several other larger railway projects. Thus the 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,435 mm ) gauge became widespread and dominant in Britain. Robert
4500-703: The Queen's Hall . The steamship SS Pelican grounded in Minehead Bay on 22 June 1928, on an unmarked reef known as the Gables that circles Minehead Bay, 0.7 miles (1.1 km) from land. The Pelican was sailing from Port Talbot to Highbridge . The crew of five were rescued by the Minehead Lifeboat . Evacuees were billeted in Minehead during the Second World War. During the war, the town
4625-524: The War of the Spanish Succession from 1702 to 1713. The first cranes were installed after further improvements to the port in 1714. By the beginning of the 18th century, trade between Minehead and Ireland, South Wales, Bristol and Bridgwater grew, with forty vessels based in the harbour for trade and herring fishing. It was also a departure point for pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela . Until
4750-602: The 19th century, trade continued with Ireland but Minehead vessels started to travel further afield to Virginia and the West Indies . In 1808 a ship, believed to be the Bristol Packet which had been built in 1801, was wrecked on Madbrain Sands. Further problems with the port continued and led to a decline in trade and the fisheries in the late 18th century and in 1834 the port lost its jurisdiction to Bridgwater. In
4875-518: The 20th century most trade transferred to larger ports, but pleasure steamers did call at the port. Minehead Lifeboat Station was established in 1901 near the harbour. The pier was demolished during the Second World War as it obstructed the view from the gun battery set up on the quay head, as part of the coastal defence preparations, which stopped steamers calling at the harbour until it was cleared in 1951. Major rebuilding took place in
5000-548: The 20th century, but pleasure steamers did call at the port. Major rebuilding took place in the Lower or Middle town area following a fire in 1791 and the fortunes of the town revived with the growth in sea bathing, and by 1851 was becoming a retirement centre. There was a marked increase in building during the early years of the 20th century, which resulted in the wide main shopping avenue and adjacent roads with Edwardian-style architecture . The town's flood defences were improved after
5125-476: The Bratton Stream. It incorporated a pier, dating from 1616, and was built to replace that at Dunster which was silting up. Trade was primarily with Wales for cattle , sheep , wool, butter , fish and coal. These are commemorated in the town arms which include a woolpack and sailing ship. Privateers based at Minehead were involved in the war with Spain and France during 1625–1630 and again during
West Somerset Mineral Railway - Misplaced Pages Continue
5250-629: The Bute Works Supply Company in 1920 they were sold on to the Cambrian Railways in 1921 as their numbers 10 and 1. They were absorbed into the Great Western Railway as 1328 and 1329. As the railway was effectively split into two halves by the incline, two engine sheds were needed, one for the lower level line from Watchet to Comberow and another for the upper level south of the incline top. Initially
5375-534: The French. The Government sent an agent to investigate, but found they were, indeed, "mere poets" . Cecil Frances Alexander wrote the popular Anglican hymn All Things Bright And Beautiful in Minehead and in nearby Dunster the verse: "The purple headed mountain, The river running by, The sunset and the morning, That brightens up the sky;−" Refers to Grabbist Hill and the River Avill that runs near it through
5500-840: The Great Western Railway. It allowed the broad-gauge companies in Great Britain to continue with their tracks and expand their networks within the "Limits of Deviation" and the exceptions defined in the Act. After an intervening period of mixed-gauge operation (tracks were laid with three rails), the Great Western Railway finally completed the conversion of its network to standard gauge in 1892. In North East England, some early lines in colliery ( coal mining ) areas were 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ), while in Scotland some early lines were 4 ft 6 in ( 1,372 mm ). The British gauges converged starting from 1846 as
5625-421: The Lower or Middle town area following a fire in 1791. In that year a Carrara marble statue of Queen Anne , sculpted by Francis Bird was presented to the town by Sir Jacob Bancks , who served as the local Member of Parliament from 1698 to 1715. It originally stood in the parish church but was moved to Wellington Square in 1893, when the marble pedestal and canopy by H. Dare Bryan were added. Lower town and
5750-448: The Minehead & West Somerset Golf Club, Somerset 's oldest golf club, established in 1882, which has an 18-hole links course. A variety of sailing and wind surfing options are on offer, as well as the usual beach activities. There are many other attractions and amusement arcades, for example "Merlins" and a variety of well-known high street stores such as WHSmith and Boots , together with independent local shops. The town has both
5875-647: The Netherlands for the Hollandsche IJzeren Spoorweg-Maatschappij ), but for interoperability reasons (the first rail service between Paris and Berlin began in 1849, first Chaix timetable) Germany adopted standard gauges, as did most other European countries. The modern method of measuring rail gauge was agreed in the first Berne rail convention of 1886. Several lines were initially built as standard gauge but were later converted to another gauge for cost or for compatibility reasons. 2,295 km (1,426 mi) Victoria built
6000-449: The UK. Cloud often forms inland, especially near hills, and reduces exposure to sunshine. The average annual sunshine totals around 1,600 hours. Rainfall tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions or with convection. In summer, convection caused by solar surface heating sometimes forms shower clouds and a large proportion of the annual precipitation falls from showers and thunderstorms at this time of year. Average rainfall
6125-597: The advantages of equipment interchange became increasingly apparent. By the 1890s, the entire network was converted to standard gauge. The Royal Commission made no comment about small lines narrower than standard gauge (to be called "narrow gauge"), such as the Ffestiniog Railway . Thus it permitted a future multiplicity of narrow gauges in the UK. It also made no comments about future gauges in British colonies, which allowed various gauges to be adopted across
6250-797: The area by the prospect of employment in the mines grew around the Brendon ridge. However changes in the availability of imported ore made the mines a less attractive proposition and by 1883 the mines were closed and mineral traffic on the railway ceased. In 1879 the railway announced that the wages of all staff would be reduced. The passenger service continued until 7 November 1898; a brief resumption took place from 1907 (but not west of Brendon Hill) until final closure to passengers in 1910. The 1895 Bradshaw Railway Guide shows two return trips every day, at 09:15 and 15:10 from Watchet, calling at Washford, Roadwater and Comberow, taking 30 minutes; return trains were at 10:45 and 16:15, also taking 30 minutes. As well as
6375-539: The automatic control trials. This extension was removed after the trial locomotives were taken away. The shed stood east of the line in the Whitehall area, a short distance south of Watchet (WSMR) station. It was open for three periods: April 1857 to 7 November 1898, 4 July 1907 to 1910 and 1911–14. In 2015 it was in use as a dwelling. The upper level had two sheds which covered different periods; they were both known as "Brendon Hill". The first had one "road" (track) and
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#17327728612476500-644: The buildings and other structures. In the mid-nineteenth century, the proprietors of the Ebbw Vale Iron Works acquired an interest in iron ore deposits in the Brendon Hills on the north side of Exmoor . Iron ore had been known there for centuries but not exploited industrially until the Brendon Hills Iron Ore Company was formed in 1853. At an altitude of over 1,000 feet (300 m) and remote from usable roads,
6625-605: The churchyard of the surrounding hills and coastline. The Church of St Michael the Archangel in Alcombe was built in 1903 as a chapel of ease for the Dunster parish, but in 1953 it became the Parish Church of Alcombe in its own right. St Andrew's Church , on Wellington Square in the town, was built of red sandstone in 1877–1880, by George Edmund Street . Butlins Minehead is the only Butlins resort still to have
6750-483: The coal mines of County Durham . He favoured 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ) for wagonways in Northumberland and Durham , and used it on his Killingworth line. The Hetton and Springwell wagonways also used this gauge. Stephenson's Stockton and Darlington railway (S&DR) was built primarily to transport coal from mines near Shildon to the port at Stockton-on-Tees . Opening in 1825,
6875-493: The coalfields of northern England, pointing to the evidence of rutted roads marked by chariot wheels dating from the Roman Empire . Snopes categorised this legend as "false", but commented that it "is perhaps more fairly labeled as 'Partly true, but for trivial and unremarkable reasons. ' " The historical tendency to place the wheels of horse-drawn vehicles around 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ) apart probably derives from
7000-534: The colonies. Parts of the United States, mainly in the Northeast, adopted the same gauge, because some early trains were purchased from Britain. The American gauges converged, as the advantages of equipment interchange became increasingly apparent. Notably, all the 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ) broad gauge track in the South was converted to "almost standard" gauge 4 ft 9 in ( 1,448 mm ) over
7125-522: The company assuming any responsibility for their safety. When doing so passengers climbed on and off wagons using a ladder and sat on planks laid crosswise. Trains conveying passengers on the upper level ran with the locomotive pushing the wagon. Mitchell and Smith point out that the Ordnance Survey map shows "Station" at Gupworthy : the Company's building there evidently seemed to be a station to
7250-438: The contractor. While this was going on mining had been proceeding apace and large stocks of ore were waiting at the incline head to be conveyed to the harbour. Ore was brought down the incline while it was being completed, from 31 May 1858, and it was not fully finished until March 1861, when two 18-foot (5.5 m) diameter winding drums were installed on a single axle, located below the track, at Brendon Hill. Public goods traffic
7375-459: The course of two days beginning on 31 May 1886. See Track gauge in the United States . In continental Europe, France and Belgium adopted a 1,500 mm ( 4 ft 11 + 1 ⁄ 16 in ) gauge (measured between the midpoints of each rail's profile ) for their early railways. The gauge between the interior edges of the rails (the measurement adopted from 1844) differed slightly between countries, and even between networks within
7500-690: The deposits needed a form of transport to get the ore to South Wales . Thomas Brown (1803–1884), managing partner of the Ebbw Vale company, realised that a railway to the quay at Watchet was the solution. The line was designed by Rice Hopkins. The Ebbw Vale proprietors formed the West Somerset Mineral Railway for the purpose, and obtained Parliamentary authority on 16 July 1855 for a standard gauge 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ) line from Watchet Quay to Heath Poult (or " Exton "). The authorised capital
7625-684: The first railways to the 5 ft 3 in ( 1,600 mm ) Irish broad gauge. New South Wales then built to the standard gauge, so trains had to stop on the border and passengers transferred, which was only rectified in the 1960s. Queensland still runs on a narrow gauge but there is a standard gauge line from NSW to Brisbane. NMBS/SNCB 3,619 km (2,249 mi) Brussels Metro 40 km (25 mi) Trams in Brussels 140 km (87 mi) 1,032 km (641 mi) The Toronto Transit Commission uses 4 ft 10 + 7 ⁄ 8 in ( 1,495 mm ) gauge on its streetcar and subway lines. Takoradi to Sekondi Route,
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#17327728612477750-421: The foot of a steeply rising outcrop of Exmoor known as North Hill, and the original name of the town was mynydd , which means mountain in Welsh . It has also been written as Mynheafdon (1046), Maneheve (1086), Menehewed (1225) and Menedun (also 1225), which contain elements of Welsh and Old English words for hill. The earliest known fossilised forest was discovered in the Hangman Sandstone Formation near to
7875-418: The form of a road, past Cleeve Abbey and Roadwater , where the station buildings survive with an extension to form a bungalow. The line continues to Comberow. The siding group that was at the foot of the incline is clearly identifiable at Comberow, to the west of the bridge that carried the incline, as is the station master's house and traces of the platform. Part of the line northwards from there seems to be
8000-416: The harbour) by December 1857. In the interim, however, another accident occurred when two locomotives collided, killing three men. Although the line was continuous, it was effectively split into three sections from the south: An Act was obtained on 27 July 1857 to extend the line to Minehead , with a branch to Cleeve ; an additional £35,000 capital was authorised, but this work never started. The incline
8125-411: The head of the incline, had cost £82,000 compared with the estimate of £65,000 for construction of the entire line. Further construction was delayed, therefore, but it resumed in 1863 and reached Gupworthy in September 1864. The goal of reaching Heath Poult, the originally intended western terminal of the line, was abandoned. By now the Ebbw Vale Company Ltd had taken over the Iron Works company, and also
8250-525: The horse is covered with ribbons and strips of fabric. A long fabric skirt, painted with rows of multicoloured roundels, hangs down to the ground all round. A long tail is attached to the back of the frame. Each horse is accompanied by a small group of musicians and attendants. The Town Horse is accompanied by "Gullivers", dressed similarly to the horse but without the large frame; as at Padstow, smaller, children's horses have sometimes been constructed. The horses' visits are (or were) believed to bring good luck. In
8375-416: The incline but they never carried fare-paying passengers. Further extensions were proposed but not built. Several different locomotives were used during the operation of the line, including 0-4-0ST "Box" tanks built by Neilson and Company and larger Sharp, Stewart 0-6-0STs . A section of the inclined plane has been scheduled as an ancient monument . It can still be seen, along with the remains of some of
8500-465: The incline the track was flat-bottomed with light chairs, weighing 70 pounds per yard. On the incline the rails were spiked straight to the sleepers. The ruling gradient was 1 in 43. All tracks except the few yards embedded in the quayside at Watchet were removed by 1920, but other features were removed or altered piecemeal over time. By 1940, for example, no trace remained of Washford station, but both sets of level crossing gates remained in place. Today
8625-429: The initial gauge of 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ) was set to accommodate the existing gauge of hundreds of horse-drawn chaldron wagons that were already in use on the wagonways in the mines. The railway used this gauge for 15 years before a change was made, debuting around 1850, to the 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ) gauge. The historic Mount Washington Cog Railway ,
8750-434: The junction of the B3224 and B3190 roads. A chapel built to attend to the spiritual needs of the miners and their families still stands at the junction. The line is located in the Exmoor National Park , and funds have been made available for conservation through the Heritage Lottery Fund and other sources. Work has been undertaken on the incline winding house, trees cleared from the incline and repairs undertaken to preserve
8875-428: The line ran a service or not. In 1864 the Board decided to seek powers to extend the railway beyond Gupworthy to workings in Joyce's Cleeve in the Quarme Valley. Preliminary notices to this effect were published, but no application was made. Had the line been built it would have entailed another incline, which ore would have had to ascend before travelling eastwards to Brendon Hill where it would travel down again. At
9000-659: The location of ' Britain's Strongest Man ' contest, most recently in 2004, and since 2006 the Butlin's Resort has been one of the venues for the World Wrestling Entertainment 's UK winter tour. In 2010 stage four of the Tour of Britain road cycling race started in Minehead. In April 2010 RadioMinehead.com started to broadcast music, travel news, events guide and general to and for the Minehead community. The 2011 European Outdoor Tug of War Championships
9125-420: The lower level used a temporary locoshed at Torre siding. This was replaced by a permanent one "road" (track) structure known as "Watchet". It was originally built of wood, but was rebuilt in masonry and slate in the winter of 1872–1873, with part of the original shed retained at the northern end to act as a workshop. In 1911 the shed was extended at the southern end to cater for the two locomotives participating in
9250-429: The lower section of the line to test and demonstrate an automatic signal warning device . The demonstration of the system took place at Kentsford on 5 July 1912, which turned into something of a gala for local people, watching two hired GWR tender locos, the only tender locos to work this line, being brought safely to a halt rather than the anticipated head-on collision. Testing of this system continued intermittently until
9375-474: The mine on a new double track incline worked by a stationary steam engine using a two-cylinder winch drive with twin drums. The tramway, which included a wooden viaduct, ran nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) to Brendon Hill, where the ore was tipped into standard gauge wagons which were lowered down the incline and hauled to Watchet. The Colton investment sought to give an income while the Syndicates' greater hope
9500-540: The mines not only had the immediate effect of ending the line's core traffic, it led to depopulation of the villages south of the incline, reducing further what was in any event "trifling" income from goods and passengers. To add insult to injury, the closure of Gupworthy Old Pit removed the water supply for the line's only water crane south of the incline, so the crane and water tank had to be moved and erected at Brendon Hill. The estimated receipts from 1852 to 1883 were £40,000 for all non-ore traffic, i.e. less than £1,300
9625-412: The mines, and a new lease of the line was made to them lasting 55 years and three months. The terms of this lease meant that "the railway company was to receive a net sum of £5,575 every year until Michaelmas 1919", an agreement which was to prove much to its advantage as it meant that after mining ceased around 1880 the Ebbw Vale company had to continue paying the sum every year for 39 more years, whether
9750-607: The old 4 ft ( 1,219 mm ) plateway was relaid to 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ) so that Blenkinsop's engine could be used. Others were 4 ft 4 in ( 1,321 mm ) (in Beamish ) or 4 ft 7 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,410 mm ) (in Bigges Main (in Wallsend ), Kenton , and Coxlodge ). English railway pioneer George Stephenson spent much of his early engineering career working for
9875-485: The outbreak of war. The War Department requisitioned the rails during the First World War and they were lifted for scrap in 1917. A majority of the railway company board proposed seeking an abandonment order at once, but a rival Board was established; they continued to receive the Ebbw Vale Company's contracted lease payments until the lease expired in 1919. While all this was going on the line became host to
10000-477: The outward terminal of the line was to be the quay at Watchet, the west pier had been practically unusable for some considerable time, and boats were beached and loaded direct from carts brought on to the foreshore. After considerable public pressure, the Watchet Harbour Act was passed in 1857, placing it under the control of Commissioners; they built a new east pier and rebuilt the west pier; the work
10125-471: The park is used to host musical events. Along with the rest of South West England , Minehead has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. The annual mean temperature is about 10 °C (50 °F) with seasonal and diurnal variations, but due to the modifying effect of the sea, the range is less than in most other parts of the United Kingdom. January
10250-523: The past there was also a similar hobby horse based at the nearby village of Dunster , which would sometimes visit Minehead. The first of May has been a festival day in Minehead since 1465. Minehead Barbarians, the town's rugby club, have been playing together since the 1930s, but the main local football club, Minehead A.F.C. , is even older, founded in 1889. In September 2007, the TWIF European Outdoor Tug of war Championships
10375-573: The paucity of output: "Generally the locomotive made one visit to Comberow and back daily, but on some days it did not leave its shed." It will never be known if Timwood would have become profitable, as ore had yet to be reached there when the whole undercapitalised venture collapsed in March 1910. The jetty was sold for £70 and the briquette kiln for £5. Evocative contemporary descriptions of the line in its later years have been preserved. In 1911 A.R. Angus, an Australian inventor, brought two locomotives onto
10500-423: The popular tourist location Snowdrop Valley on Exmoor Minehead was the setting of Monty Python's 1970 "Mr. Hilter" sketch, in which Adolf Hitler (posing as a "Mr. Hilter"), Joachim von Ribbentrop ("Ron Vibbentrop") and Heinrich Himmler ("Heimlich Bimmler") conspire at a local rooming house to win the local by-election as the "National Bocialist" candidate and unite Minehead with neighbouring Taunton (in
10625-539: The quay area were rebuilt and the fortunes of the town revived with the growth in sea bathing, and by 1851 was becoming a retirement centre. Early areas of development of the town include Higher Town with its cottages, many of which are "listed" buildings of historic interest, some of which are still thatched, and the Quay area. In Victorian times wealthy industrialists built large houses on North Hill and hotels were developed so that tourism became an important industry. It
10750-436: The rails is better, thus the minimum distance between the wheels (and, by extension, the inside faces of the rail heads ) was the important one. A standard gauge for horse railways never existed, but rough groupings were used; in the north of England none was less than 4 ft ( 1,219 mm ). Wylam colliery's system, built before 1763, was 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ), as was John Blenkinsop 's Middleton Railway ;
10875-446: The remaining industrial structures. The line continued west to Gupworthy with modest earthworks; these are still visible, together with some bridge abutments, where minor roads cross the alignment. There is a private house at the former Gupworthy station (at SS963356 ); this was the railway house and the alignment is visible there. The Grade II listed incline site is owned by Exmoor National Park. The Carnarvon New Pit iron mine and
11000-500: The remains of a submerged forest still exist. Minehead was part of the hundred of Carhampton . It is mentioned as a manor belonging to William de Moyon in the Domesday Book in 1086, although it had previously been held by Ælfgar, Earl of Mercia . William de Mohun of Dunster, 1st Earl of Somerset and his descendants administered the area from Dunster Castle , which was later sold to Lady Elizabeth Luttrell. There
11125-411: The rest of the network. All other railways use 1,668 mm ( 5 ft 5 + 21 ⁄ 32 in ) ( broad gauge ) and/or 1,000 mm ( 3 ft 3 + 3 ⁄ 8 in ) metre gauge . BLS , Rigi Railways (rack railway) 449 km Several states in the United States had laws requiring road vehicles to have a consistent gauge to allow them to follow ruts in
11250-488: The road. Those gauges were similar to railway standard gauge. Minehead Minehead is a coastal town and civil parish in Somerset , England. It lies on the south bank of the Bristol Channel , 21 miles (34 km) north-west of the county town of Taunton , 12 miles (19 km) from the boundary with the county of Devon and in proximity of the Exmoor National Park . The parish of Minehead has
11375-520: The sea", in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Romantic poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge . The poet lived nearby, at Nether Stowey (between Bridgwater and Minehead). His statue can be seen at the nearby harbour at Watchet . He and Wordsworth (who lived nearby at Alfoxton House ) would often roam the hills and coast on long night walks; leading to local gossip that they were 'spies' for
11500-402: The sixth had three compartments, one each for 1st, 3rd and 2nd Class passengers. This vehicle was withdrawn in 1894 and used as a store at Watchet. Research continues as to the fate of the others. No photograph has been published showing a train with more than two carriages. Though sometimes productive, no nineteenth century iron mine on the Brendon Hills was profitable and the venture as a whole
11625-500: The south—means that transport links are limited. Minehead is located on the A39 road , and is 28 miles (45 km) north-west of the M5 motorway at junction 24. Local bus services are operated by First West of England and Quantock Motor Services . Minehead railway station is close to the beach. The Minehead Railway was opened on 16 July 1874, linking the town to Taunton and beyond. It
11750-711: The style of the Anschluss in 1938). One popular ancient local tradition involves the Hobby Horse , or Obby Oss, which takes to the streets on the eve of the first of May each year, with accompanying musicians and rival horses, for four days. In fact there are three rival hobby horses, the Original Sailor's Horse, the Traditional Sailor's Horse and the Town Horse. They appear on May Eve (called "Show Night"), on May Day morning (when they salute
11875-411: The sunrise at a crossroads on the outskirts of town), 2 and 3 May (when a ceremony called "The Bootie" takes place in the evening called "Bootie Night" at part of town called Cher). Each horse is made of a boat-shaped wooden frame, pointed and built up at each end, which is carried on the dancer's shoulders. As at Padstow , his face is hidden by a mask attached to a tall, pointed hat. The top surface of
12000-432: The surveyors. The line also had stopping places at Torre and Clitsome where passengers could be picked up or set down on request. The line was used on occasions for special passenger trains, the commonest being organised by religious and temperance groups. Conventional cardboard tickets were issued, colour coded by class, for journeys below the incline. The line operated successfully and settlements of people attracted to
12125-492: The term "narrow gauge" for gauges less than standard did not arise for many years, until the first such locomotive-hauled passenger railway, the Ffestiniog Railway , was built. In 1845, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , a Royal Commission on Railway Gauges reported in favour of a standard gauge. The subsequent Gauge Act ruled that new passenger-carrying railways in Great Britain should be built to
12250-399: The top of the incline the line ran along the Brendon ridge in both directions, eastward to Raleigh's Cross and westward to a heathland terminus named after the nearby village of Gupworthy. Considerable numbers of miners lived in these remote areas. For some time the Company had permitted them and their families to travel on the line free of charge and at their own risk. It was decided to operate
12375-456: The top of the incline, sometimes referred to as Raleigh's Cross and referred to internally by the railway as "Top of Incline", was also considered to be a station, but the Board decided against spending the monies needed to bring the incline, track and Luxborough Road station up to the standard required for fare paying passengers. Passengers were conveyed on trucks up the incline free and without
12500-445: The trackbed can still be seen in places, although much of it is private property. The former station at Watchet was converted into flats, known as the "Old Station House", and the nearby goods shed also survives. The line of route runs parallel to the West Somerset Railway from Watchet to Washford where it forms a footpath. Washford station has been demolished and a bungalow is on the site. The line then curves south west, partly in
12625-410: The use of planks on wagons on and south of the incline the railway appears to have had six coaches, though not all at the same time. None was bought new. Three carriages appeared in the press in 1865, with a fourth appearing in the Board of Trade Returns of 1874-5. The company bought two vacuum-braked coaches in 1894, completing their fleet. All vehicles had four wheels. Details of five are unclear, but
12750-479: The width needed to fit a carthorse in between the shafts. Research, however, has been undertaken to support the hypothesis that "the origin of the standard gauge of the railway might result from an interval of wheel ruts of prehistoric ancient carriages". In addition, while road-travelling vehicles are typically measured from the outermost portions of the wheel rims, it became apparent that for vehicles travelling on rails, having main wheel flanges that fit inside
12875-426: The world's first mountain -climbing rack railway , is still in operation in the 21st century, and has used the earlier 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ) gauge since its inauguration in 1868. George Stephenson introduced the 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ) gauge (including a belated extra 1 ⁄ 2 in (13 mm) of free movement to reduce binding on curves ) for
13000-642: Was a small port at Minehead by 1380, but it was not until 1420 that money given by Lady Margaret Luttrell enabled improvements to be made and a jetty built. During the reign of Elizabeth I , the town had its own Port Officer similar to the position at Bristol . Vessels in the 15th century included the Trinite which traded between Ireland and Bristol, and others carrying salt and other cargo from La Rochelle in France. Other products included local wool and cloth which were traded for coal from South Wales . In 1559
13125-417: Was accepted from 28 September 1859. A single wagon containing five tons of ore could be lowered down the plane in twelve minutes. Railway-type signals were used to indicate that an ascending wagon had been attached to the rope; the brakesman at the upper level then levered the descending, loaded wagon to the brow of the hill, and the descent and ascent began. The descent was controlled by braking. The WSMR line
13250-566: Was afforded lavish local publicity in the July. Two tender locomotives were used to demonstrate the Angus automatic train control equipment; they had originally been West Midland Railway 2-4-0s numbers 103 and 104. They were on the WSMR from 17 December 1911 and used for a demonstration on 5 July 1912. On 4 November 1917 they were moved to Taunton, where they were stored until 1919. After being sold to
13375-399: Was attempted in 1907, for which much of the line was re-opened and a 2 ft ( 610 mm )-gauge extension was added, but this failed and the line closed again in 1910. A section of the track was used to test and demonstrate an automatic signal warning device in 1911 and occasionally used in that connection up to 1914. The tracks were lifted for scrap in 1917, after which a light railway
13500-519: Was bombed by KG 54 , a Luftwaffe bomber wing on the night of the 7/8 April 1941. Butlins opened in 1962, and has brought thousands of visitors to the town. The civil parish of Minehead is governed by a town council , which was created in 1983. In 2002, the parish was estimated to have a population of 10,330. Since April 2023 Minehead has been part of the unitary authority area administered by Somerset Council . Administrative tasks and services are shared between unitary and town councils. Minehead
13625-446: Was developed — a new iron mine near the foot of the incline at Timwood . The concept was to mine laterally into the foot of the hill rather than downwards from the top, which inevitably involved significant costs in pumping water, raising ore and lowering it again. Like Colton Pit, Timwood used 16 in ( 406 mm ) gauge hopper wagons underground. At Colton they were pushed to the 2 ft gauge tracks described above. The ore
13750-479: Was expended on a new jetty at Watchet, the previous one having been wrecked by storms. A kiln costing £2,000 was built at Washford to process the ore into briquettes , thereby reducing volume and impurities. and a new 2 ft ( 610 mm ) gauge tramway was built from Brendon Hill to the Colton Iron Mine's western adit. This was at a lower altitude than Brendon Hill, so the tramway had to ascend from
13875-417: Was financially ruinous. Furthermore, the industry as a whole was prone to boom and bust, with a sharp decline from the early 1880s. The railway continued in operation after the end of mining, although it had lost its primary traffic. A second-hand Robey semi-portable steam engine was installed at the head of the incline to power the drums, hauling wagons up in the absence of a regular downhill flow. Closing
14000-579: Was finished in 1862, and 500 ton vessels could enter the harbour. The WSMR used the west pier, and the newly arrived, broad gauge West Somerset Railway , a branch from the Bristol and Exeter Railway , used the east pier. The West Somerset Railway opened as far as Watchet on 3 March 1862. Although a connection with the WSMR was suggested, involving laying of mixed gauge on the Mineral line, this never happened. Construction as far as Raleigh's Cross, at
14125-648: Was held at the football club's stadium. Minehead Cricket Club, based at the West Somerset College in Alcombe, field four men's teams and one women's team while Minehead Hockey Club plays close by at the West Somerset Sports & Leisure Centre. There were plans for a swimming pool to be built in the grounds of the West Somerset College and there is a bowls club on Irnham Road. Minehead has on several occasions been
14250-508: Was in the Victorian and Edwardian era that tourism in the town increased. There was a marked increase in building in the early years of the 20th century when the landowners, the Luttrells of Dunster Castle, released extensive building land. Probably the most prolific Edwardian architect was W.J.Tamlyn from North Devon who settled in the town and was responsible for designing several hundred domestic properties as well as Minehead Town Hall and
14375-531: Was laid on part of the trackbed in 1918 to carry timber. This ended in 1920 and the company was wound up in 1925. The line included a massive rope-worked inclined plane 3,272 feet (997 m) long to bring the ore down a 770-foot (230 m) vertical interval on a 1-in-4 (25%) gradient . There were stations on the sections of the line below the inclined plane at Watchet , Washford , Roadwater and Comberow ; trains also called by request at stopping places at Torre and Clitsome . Three stations were built above
14500-664: Was leased to the Brendon Hills Iron Ore Company for seven years from 1859, and the latter was to work the line. The lease was extended and transferred to the Ebbw Vale Iron Company on 24 June 1864. In the same year an advertisement was placed in the Somerset County Gazette announcing that "coal, culm , lime corn, flour, manure, building materials and other goods" would be carried on the railway at reduced rates. Although
14625-672: Was located within the Raleigh's Cross Mine site. It opened with the public goods service on 28 September 1858 and closed before 1880. It was subsequently used as a carpenter's workshop until the mine closed in 1882. The second shed also had a single "road", and was located south of the line south of the site of Carnarvon Pit. It was open for two periods: from lifting of the Raleigh's Cross branch in Summer 1884 to 7 November 1898 and from 4 July 1907 to 1910. Both Brendon Hill sheds have long been demolished. The 2 ft ( 610 mm ) Colton Tramway
14750-504: Was operated by the Bristol and Exeter Railway which was amalgamated into the Great Western Railway in 1876. The Minehead Railway was itself absorbed into the GWR in 1897, which in turn was nationalised into British Railways in 1948. It was closed on 4 January 1971 but has since been reopened as the West Somerset Railway , which is notable for being the longest standard-gauge heritage railway in Britain. Minehead's local radio station
14875-504: Was passed authorising abandonment of the railway. its effects were auctioned on 8 August 1924 and the final general meeting wound the company up on 7 July 1925. The debenture holders received 70% of the nominal value of their holdings and the shareholders received nothing. Two different types of locomotives were used during the first period of operation of the line. The smaller locomotives were 0-4-0ST tanks built by Neilson and Company . The earliest ones were so-called "box tanks"—they had
15000-593: Was previously in the district of Somerset West and Taunton and before that West Somerset . Until 1974 it was part of Minehead Urban District. The town falls within the Tiverton and Minehead parliamentary constituency Minehead is located on the Bristol Channel coast of South West England , and thus experiences one of the highest tidal ranges in the world. The tidal rise and fall in the Bristol Channel can be as great as 48 feet (15 m), second only to
15125-533: Was reported to have said that if he had had a second chance to choose a gauge, he would have chosen one wider than 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,435 mm ). "I would take a few inches more, but a very few". During the " gauge war " with the Great Western Railway , standard gauge was called " narrow gauge ", in contrast to the Great Western's 7 ft 1 ⁄ 4 in ( 2,140 mm ) broad gauge . The modern use of
15250-415: Was tipped onto a stockpile then gravity-fed into 2 ft tipplers which were taken to the standard gauge line, tipped again then lowered down the original incline. At Timwood the 16 inch gauge tipplers were to be pushed a short distance to the standard gauge line and tipped once, completely bypassing both narrow and standard gauge inclines. Traffic levels on the WSMR in his period give a clear indication of
15375-502: Was washed away in a severe storm which also caused serious flooding in the town. A £12.6 million sea defence scheme by the Environment Agency was designed to reduce the risk of this erosion and flooding happening in the future. The Environment Agency built 1.1 miles (1.8 km) of new sea wall and rock or concrete stepped revetments between 1997 and 1998 and imported 320,000 tons of additional sand in 1999 to build
15500-561: Was worked by two small locomotives, both of which faced the main line at Brendon Hill. These locomotives were housed in a locoshed near the loading bay at Brendon Hill. The signals used were of the ancient disc and crossbar type, installed when the line opened and never modified. They remained in use up to the line's closure in 1898. Only one locomotive was used in the Syndicate period so signals were not required. By 1913 some had fallen down but others remained in working order. Apart from on
15625-465: Was £50,000. The first sod was cut at Roughmoor on 29 May 1856 and a locomotive was obtained in the following November; however it was put out of action in January 1857 by serious damage to the boiler. The line was ready for traffic from Watchet to Roadwater by April 1857, and for the time being that acted as the railhead for the minerals; the line was extended to Comberow (6.5 miles (10.5 km) from
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