Powfoot Halt railway station explained

Powfoot
Status:Disused
Borough:Powfoot, Dumfries and Galloway
Country:Scotland
Grid Name:Grid reference
Platforms:2
Original:LMS
Years:May 1941[1]
Events:Opened
Years2:Before 1966
Events2:Closed

Powfoot Halt railway station was a railway station in Powfoot, near Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, south of Cummertrees serving the workers at the MOD Powfoot Nitro-cellulose factory within the Parish of Cummertrees.

History

The Powfoot Nitro-cellulose factory was established by the War Office in 1940 and was supplied with materials by train from Bishopton. The factory was re-opened during the Korean and the Falklands wars. The site was run by Nobel's Explosives on behalf of the Ministry of Defence and Royal Ordnance. The processing facility closed in 1992.[2] [3] The halt was not open to the general public and only served workers at the munitions factory.

The halt is recorded on the OS map published in 1954 on the line next to the Longfords Cottage to Broom lane.[4]

Newbie Junction Halt railway station was another workers only halt that existed between 1898 and 1904 close to Annan where it served the factory workers of Cochran's & Co. boilers and the Newbie Brick and Tile works.

Infrastructure

The relatively short platforms were built on the double track line from wood and were reached by a set of wooden steps leading up from the Longfords to Broom lane. In 1966 the halt was still present.[5]

The site today

A line ran into the factory that has now been removed and nothing remains of the halt. The old factory site is partly camouflaged by tree plantations.[6]

Sources

54.9851°N -3.3081°W

Notes and References

  1. Railway Passenger Stations by M.Quick page 341
  2. https://canmore.org.uk/site/66510/powfoot-royal-ordnance-factory-nitrocellulose-factory Powfoot, Royal Ordnance Factory, Nitrocellulose Factory
  3. Wham, Alasdair (2017). Exploring Dumfries & Galloway's Lost Railway Heritage. Catrine:The Oakwood Press. . p. 36.
  4. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15&lat=54.9845&lon=-3.3089&layers=10&b=1 NY16, Surveyed: 1938 - 1952, Published: 1954
  5. Wham, Alasdair (2017). Exploring Dumfries & Galloway's Lost Railway Heritage. Catrine:The Oakwood Press. . p. 24.
  6. Wham, Alasdair (2017). Exploring Dumfries & Galloway's Lost Railway Heritage. Catrine:The Oakwood Press. . p.146.