MSO7801 - Brendon Hill Railway Station (Building)

ST03SW OLD CLEEVE CP BRENDON HILL 7/63 Former Brendon Hill Mineral Railway Station, at NGR ST 0225 3435 11.6.75 II. Mineral railway station, now store. 1861, altered late 20th century. Rendered over red sandstone, rusticated quoins, plinth, door and window surrounds, hipped slate roof, brick stack left, deep projecting eaves on facade, lower independently roofed gabled wings. Single storey, 1:2:1 bays, wooden casements, right wing inserted 20th century window in rendered earlier doorway opening, probably to WC. Central three-quarter glazed double doors. Eaves supported at ends by 20th century rendered walls with side lights, replacing original timber supports. The Brendon iron mines opened 1851; the final section of the mineral railway to the coast, the incline from Camberow to the summit at Brendon Hill opened 1861. Mining finally ceased in 1910. (Shown but not described at ST 02253435 on OS 6" 1904; West Somerset Mineral Railway - Lin 103). [1] Additional Bibliography. [2-4] Extant former station house and platform. Single storey building with main rectangular plan and set back flanking additions to the north and south. Slate covered pitched roof with cast iron rainwater goods and rendered elevation with red stone quoins. [5] Described as retaining much of its character and as being the best of the surviving stations on the line. [6] The central block contained an office, booking hall and ladies' room. Toilets were provided within wings at each end of the building; male toilets at the north end accessed from an external door; female toilets to the south end accessed directly from the ladies' waiting room. A small store was located behind the ladies waiting room, entered from the outside. The station is one of three constructed when it was intended to open the upper section of the line to passenger traffic in 1864. However, due to the stringent safety requirements stipulated by the Board of Trade before fare-paying passengers would be allowed to use the railway, these stations were never officially used. The building was used as a office by the Somerset Mineral Syndicate from 1907-9, and later as a store. The building began to be converted to residential function in the 1970s. [7-8] The building was visited in June 2013 as part of the rapid condition survey of Exmoor's Listed Buildings 2012-13. It received a BAR score of 4. [9] The railway station at Brendon Hill survives in good condition, and is as described by authy 1. Although the building is now used as astore, it was a domestic dwelling unti recently, hence its survival. [10,11] A file was collated on the site by the RCHME. [12] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [13] The railway station is mentioned in a publication on the industrial archaeology of Somerset. [14] The station was assessed as part of the rapid condition survey of Exmoor’s Listed Buildings 2018-19, receiving a BAR score of 4. [15]