Campbell's Platform railway station
Encyclopedia
Campbell's Platform is a private, unstaffed halt on the Welsh narrow gauge Ffestiniog Railway
, which was built in 1836 to carry dressed slate from Blaenau Ffestiniog
to Porthmadog
for export by sea. It is 9 miles and 7 chains
from Porthmadog and is at 510 feet above sea level.
is said to have stayed during his campaign against the Royalists of North Wales.
Colonel Andrew Campbell bought the house in 1962 and undertook a complete restoration. Road access to Plas Dduallt is recent and during the 1960s the Colonel kept his own locomotive on a siding by the halt. He ran his own train to and from Tan-y-Bwlch
under running powers granted by the Ffestiniog Railway.
The Colonel allowed the use of his outhouses for hostel accommodation for volunteers. He was a licensed explosives handler and as a volunteer he did much of the rock blasting required on the spiral section of the deviation
and beyond. A slate seat has been erected at Dduallt in his memory.
Campbell's Platform (named in his honour) is a private halt available for use only by residents and visitors staying at Plas Dduallt. Intending passengers must check with the Ffestiniog Railway Company before embarking on their journey.
Between Campbell's platform and Tan-y-Bwlch
is Coed-y-Bleiddiau cottage, a private residence that was built c1860 for the Ffestiniog Railway's Inspector of the Line. The cottage is over half a mile by steep footpath from the nearest road, and in the 1930s it was used as a holiday home by several families, including that of Kim Philby
the Russian spy. This cottage also has its own private railway platform, which displays a name board. However, this is not available for public use, and the location features on the map in the Traveller's Guide, but not on the company web.
Ffestiniog Railway
The Ffestiniog Railway is a narrow gauge heritage railway, located in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a major tourist attraction located mainly within the Snowdonia National Park....
, which was built in 1836 to carry dressed slate from Blaenau Ffestiniog
Blaenau Ffestiniog
Blaenau Ffestiniog is a town in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It has a population of 5,000, including Llan Ffestiniog, which makes it the third largest town in Gwynedd, behind Caernarfon & Porthmadog. Although the population reached 12,000 at the peak of the slate industry, the population fell due to...
to Porthmadog
Porthmadog
Porthmadog , known locally as "Port", and historically rendered into English as Portmadoc, is a small coastal town and community in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd, in Wales. Prior to the Local Government Act 1972 it was in the administrative county of Caernarfonshire. The town lies east of...
for export by sea. It is 9 miles and 7 chains
Chain (unit)
A chain is a unit of length; it measures 66 feet or 22 yards or 100 links . There are 10 chains in a furlong, and 80 chains in one statute mile. An acre is the area of 10 square chains...
from Porthmadog and is at 510 feet above sea level.
History
The halt was established in 1965 to serve Plas Dduallt, a small Welsh Manor House (just below the railway) dating in part from the 15th century and where Oliver CromwellOliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
is said to have stayed during his campaign against the Royalists of North Wales.
Colonel Andrew Campbell bought the house in 1962 and undertook a complete restoration. Road access to Plas Dduallt is recent and during the 1960s the Colonel kept his own locomotive on a siding by the halt. He ran his own train to and from Tan-y-Bwlch
Tan-y-Bwlch railway station
Tan-y-Bwlch station is the principal intermediate passenger station on the narrow gauge Ffestiniog Railway, which was built in 1836 to carry dressed slate from Blaenau Ffestiniog to Porthmadog for export by sea...
under running powers granted by the Ffestiniog Railway.
The Colonel allowed the use of his outhouses for hostel accommodation for volunteers. He was a licensed explosives handler and as a volunteer he did much of the rock blasting required on the spiral section of the deviation
Deviation
Deviation may refer to:* Deviation , the difference between the value of an observation and the mean of the population in mathematics and statistics** Standard deviation, which is based on the square of the difference...
and beyond. A slate seat has been erected at Dduallt in his memory.
Campbell's Platform (named in his honour) is a private halt available for use only by residents and visitors staying at Plas Dduallt. Intending passengers must check with the Ffestiniog Railway Company before embarking on their journey.
Between Campbell's platform and Tan-y-Bwlch
Tan-y-Bwlch railway station
Tan-y-Bwlch station is the principal intermediate passenger station on the narrow gauge Ffestiniog Railway, which was built in 1836 to carry dressed slate from Blaenau Ffestiniog to Porthmadog for export by sea...
is Coed-y-Bleiddiau cottage, a private residence that was built c1860 for the Ffestiniog Railway's Inspector of the Line. The cottage is over half a mile by steep footpath from the nearest road, and in the 1930s it was used as a holiday home by several families, including that of Kim Philby
Kim Philby
Harold Adrian Russell "Kim" Philby was a high-ranking member of British intelligence who worked as a spy for and later defected to the Soviet Union...
the Russian spy. This cottage also has its own private railway platform, which displays a name board. However, this is not available for public use, and the location features on the map in the Traveller's Guide, but not on the company web.
External links
- The Ffestiniog Railway Company's website
- Interactive Route Map on Live.com
- Ffestiniog Railway Timetables
- Plas y Dduallt's own website
- Plas y Dduallt (BBC website)