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Wikipedia

Afon Wen railway station

Afon Wen was a railway station in Afon Wen, Gwynedd, Wales, four miles (6 km) west of Criccieth.[6]

Afon Wen
Pwllheli - Bangor train in 1962
General information
LocationAfon Wen, Gwynedd
Wales
Coordinates52°54′33″N 4°18′49″W / 52.90909°N 4.31348°W / 52.90909; -4.31348
Grid referenceSH 444 371
Platforms3[1][2]
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyAberystwith and Welsh Coast Railway
Pre-groupingCambrian Railways
Post-groupingGreat Western Railway
Key dates
2 September 1867Opened
7 December 1964[3][4][5]Closed

The station formed a junction between the Aberystwith and Welsh Coast Railway and the Carnarvonshire Railway and opened to traffic in September 1867.

History

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Trains on the Aberystwyth and Welsh Coast Railway line were operated by the Cambrian Railways, then absorbed into the Great Western Railway. Trains from the Carnarvonshire Railway were operated by the London and North Western Railway and so passed to the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.

The station was host to a GWR camp coach from 1934 to 1939.[7]

The station passed on to the Western Region of British Railways on nationalisation in 1948 (later passing to the London Midland Region in 1963). It was then closed by the British Railways Board on 7 December 1964 (concurrently with the line from Caernavon, both as a result of the Beeching Axe).[4]

In addition to local services Afon Wen was served by trains from both London Paddington and London Euston. Those from Paddington would reach it on Cambrian rails through Machynlleth and Porthmadog, proceeding onward to terminate at Pwllheli. From Euston the train would travel via Crewe, Bangor and Caernarfon: at Afon Wen the front portion of the train would proceed forward to terminate at Porthmadog and the rear carriages would be detached for Pwllheli.

Afon Wen is often quoted as a defining feature of the Great Western Railway in Wales, namely its inheritance of junctions in unlikely and inconvenient locations. Other examples are Moat Lane Junction, Talyllyn Junction, Dovey Junction and Barmouth Junction (renamed Morfa Mawddach in 1960).[8]

The signal box and passing loop initially remained in use after the station closed, but after the lifting of the Caernarfon line, these were decommissioned in 1967 and removed three years later (leaving only the old westbound platform line in use as the running line to Pwllheli). Demolition of the surviving buildings and westbound platform followed by the late 1970s.[4]

The site today

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Trains on the Cambrian Line pass the site of the former station.

The only evidence of the junction that can now be seen from Cambrian Coast trains is the earthworks of the line heading north and the island platform, although the branch side has been filled in.

Preceding station Historical railways Following station
Abererch
Line and station open 		  Cambrian Railways
Aberystwith and Welsh Coast Railway 		  Criccieth
Line and station open
Chwilog
Line and station closed 		  London and North Western Railway
Carnarvonshire Railway 		  Terminus
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  • Afon Wen station is known to many through the song Ar y Trên i Afon Wen (On the train to Afon Wen) by the popular Welsh pop group, Sobin a'r Smaeliaid, fronted by Bryn Fôn.[9]

References

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  1. ^ Mitchell & Smith 2010, Photos 76-80 & Map XXI.
  2. ^ Mitchell & Smith 2009, Photos 88-96 & Map XXI.
  3. ^ Butt 1995, p. 13.
  4. ^ a b c Disused Stations - Afon Wen Fifoot, L and Wright, P Disused Stations Site Record; Retrieved 2 August 2017
  5. ^ Turner 2003, p. 7.
  6. ^ "Afon Wen station". flickr.
  7. ^ McRae 1997, p. 31.
  8. ^ Jones & Jenkins 1995, Plate 56.
  9. ^ Sain Records

Sources

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Further material

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  • Clemens, Jim (2003) [1959-67]. North Wales Steam Lines No. 6 (DVD). Uffington, Shropshire: B&R Video Productions. BRVP No 79.
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