Much Wenlock railway station

Much Wenlock railway station
Postcard stamped 1914
General information
Location	Much Wenlock, Shropshire England
Coordinates	52.599249°N 2.556918°W / 52.599249; -2.556918
Grid reference	SJ624003
Platforms	1
Other information
Status	Disused
History
Original company	Much Wenlock and Severn Junction Railway
Pre-grouping	Great Western Railway
Post-grouping	Great Western Railway
Key dates
1 February 1862	Opened
19 April 1866	resited
23 July 1962 [1]	Closed

The original Much Wenlock railway station was opened 1 February 1862 by the Much Wenlock and Severn Junction Railway, linking Buildwas with Much Wenlock. The line later formed part of the Wellington to Craven Arms Railway and was, for much of its working life, operated by the Great Western Railway.

The original, but temporary, dead-ended station - whose buildings are now the club house of Much Wenlock Bowling Club.[2] - was replaced by the through station illustrated - about ¼ mile (ca. 400 metres) further east on 19 April 1866[3] for the extension to Marsh Farm Junction (Craven Arms)).

The latter station was built at the gates of the Games Field where the Wenlock Olympian Games were held. The buildings were commented on by Pierre de Coubertin when on his visit to the 1890 games, he likened them to "a delightful cottage".[4]

The passenger service to Craven Arms was withdrawn from 31 December 1951,[5] but the service to Wellington continued until withdrawn from 23 July 1962.[6]

Present day

Today the station building is a private dwelling. The section of former railway line to Buildwas is now a footpath.

References

1. Railway Magazine, August 1962
2. Beale, Catherine (2011). Born Out of Wenlock, William Penny Brookes and the British origins of the modern Olympics. DB Publishing, Derby. p. 157. ISBN 978-1-85983-967-6.
3. Railway Passenger Stations by M.Quick page 327
4. Born Out of Wenlock, William Penny Brookes and the British origins of the modern Olympics. p. xi(plates).Caption to picture of the station.
5. The Times, 31 December 1951
6. Railway Magazine, August 1962

Further reading

• Jones, Ken (1998). The Wenlock Branch. Oakwood Press.
• Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2008). Craven Arms to Wellington. Middleton Press. figs. 34-50. ISBN 9781906008338. OCLC 750867075.
• Knowles, Adrian (2022). The Wellington, Much Wenlock and Craven Arms Railway. Lydney: Lightmoor Press. ISBN 9781911038993.

Preceding station		Disused railways		Following station
Farley Halt Line and station closed		Great Western Railway Wellington to Craven Arms Railway		Westwood Halt Line and station closed