Menheniot railway station

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Menheniot
Location
Place	Menheniot
Local authority	Caradon
Operations
Managed by	First Great Western
Platforms in use	2
Annual entry/exit 04/05	5,782 **
History
4 May 1859	Opened
National Rail - UK railway stations
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
** based on sales of tickets in 2004/05 financial year which end or originate at Menheniot. Disclaimer (PDF)

Menheniot railway station serves the village of Menheniot in Cornwall, UK. The station, along with all others in Cornwall, is operated by First Great Western.

1 History
2 References
3 External link

[edit] History

The station opened with the Cornwall Railway on 4 May 1859. It was described at the time as "of small extent, consisting of a departure station, a stone building, having a projecting roof thrown over the platform for the protection of passengers. At the 'arrival' side of the line a stone erection, with a covered seat, has been provided, but no enclosed room". The following year saw two cottages built for the use of the railway staff working here.

[edit] Accident

On 2 December 1873 two goods trains arrived at the station where they could pass each other before resuming their journey on the single tracks towards St Germans and Liskeard. The crossing loop was not at that time equipped with starting signals. The train for the latter had a clear line and so the signalman called out "All right Dick," to the guard. Unfortunately the guard for the other train was also called Dick and so told his driver to start, but the line was not clear as another train was already on the way down from St Germans. Luckily the train crews survived the resulting collision.

[edit] Aftermath

The accident illustrated the need for starting signals, block working, and some interlocking between the starting signals and the block instruments.

[edit] Accident 2

On 9 February 1895 a second, and worse, accident was to occur here, when a nearby viaduct collapsed as a train was passing over it. Twelve people were killed.

[edit] Amalgamation

The Cornwall Railway was amalgamated into the Great Western Railway on 1 July 1889. The Great Western Railway was nationalised into British Railways from 1 January 1948 which was privatised in the 1990s.

[edit] References

The records of the Cornwall Railway can be consulted at The National Archives at Kew.
West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser, Railway Special Edition, 1859.
The Great Western Railway in East Cornwall, Alan Bennett, Runpast Publishing, Cheltenham 1990, ISBN 1-870754-11-5