The Shillingstone Railway Project (formerly the Shillingstone Station Project) is a heritage railway

Heritage railway

thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...

 project based at Shillingstone railway station

Shillingstone railway station

Shillingstone railway station was a station on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway , serving the village of Shillingstone in the English county of Dorset. Opened in 1863, the station was located between and stations, although between 1928 and 1956 the next station south was Stourpaine and...

 on the former Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway

Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway

The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway – almost always referred to as "the S&D" – was an English railway line connecting Bath in north east Somerset and Bournemouth now in south east Dorset but then in Hampshire...

. It is supported by the North Dorset Railway Trust (NDRT). The medium-term aim is to restore the current lease area (46 mile to 46 mile from Bath Junction) which equates to 1200 feet (366 m) of single track

Single track (rail)

A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....

 mainline with loop through the platforms. The signal box, coal store, motor trolley hut, p-way huts, signals and pole route will also be rebuilt, the signalling being controlled by the box in time. The North Dorset trailway runs alongside the formation and up over the 395 feet (120.4 m) 'down' platform.

Buildings

The station building currently houses a waiting/refreshment room, shop and offices. The former parcel shed contains a small museum. The bike shed has been rebuilt from its foundation ring. The south end of the up platform has been rebuilt and the picnic area above landscaped.

Activity

In 2009, 210 feet (64 m) of the up main track through the station was laid and ballasted using 110a and 113a flat bottom rail and wooden sleepers. The Ruston & Hornsby

Ruston (engine builder)

Ruston & Hornsby, later known as Ruston, was an industrial equipment manufacturer in Lincoln, England, the company's history going back to 1840. The company is best known as a manufacturer of narrow and standard gauge diesel locomotives and also of steam shovels. Other products included cars, steam...

  diesel shunter was moved from the isolated goods dock. This is the first standard gauge loco on the Somerset & Dorset mainline south of the Mendips

Mendips

*Mendip, a local government district of Somerset, UK**Mendip Hills , a group of hills in the above district**Chewton Mendip, a village in the Mendip Hills**Mendip TV Mast, a transmitter in the Mendips area...

 since the demolition train departed in July 1967, exactly 42 years before. The wooden box van has also been moved to the same track. Progress in 2010 included acquiring a tracked Priestman Mustang excavator, finishing construction of the up platform wall, regrading of the cattle dock track bed and preparations for tracklaying, and the connection of the station to the mains drainage system.

History

After the closure of Shillingstone railway station

Shillingstone railway station

Shillingstone railway station was a station on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway , serving the village of Shillingstone in the English county of Dorset. Opened in 1863, the station was located between and stations, although between 1928 and 1956 the next station south was Stourpaine and...

 in 1966, Dorset County Council

Dorset County Council

Dorset County Council is the county council of the Dorset in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are district councils, and town and parish councils...

 purchased the trackbed for a proposed Shillingstone

Shillingstone

Shillingstone is a village in the Blackmore Vale area of north Dorset, England, situated on the River Stour between Sturminster Newton and Blandford Forum...

 by-pass

Bypass (road)

A bypass is a road or highway that avoids or "bypasses" a built-up area, town, or village, to let through traffic flow without interference from local traffic, to reduce congestion in the built-up area, and to improve road safety....

. Various furniture manufacturing companies were sited in the station yard, over the years, occupying industrial buildings constructed in the late 1970s, some of them making partial use of the station building. By December 2002, the by-pass plan had been shelved and the station was unoccupied. Dorset County Council decided to dispose of the redundant station, and, after protracted negotiations, the North Dorset Railway Trust took over the lease in July 2005, with a view to re-opening the station as a heritage railway

Heritage railway

thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...

 attraction. Restoration work commenced in 2003 and has continued steadily since then.

Rolling stock

Reference

Locomotives

• Ruston & Hornsby
  Ruston (engine builder)
  Ruston & Hornsby, later known as Ruston, was an industrial equipment manufacturer in Lincoln, England, the company's history going back to 1840. The company is best known as a manufacturer of narrow and standard gauge diesel locomotives and also of steam shovels. Other products included cars, steam...
  
   0-4-0
  0-4-0
  Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-4-0 represents one of the simplest possible types, that with two axles and four coupled wheels, all of which are driven...
  
   diesel-mechanical shunter, works no. 466629

Wagons

• LMS
  London, Midland and Scottish Railway
  The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
  
   brake van
  Brake van
  Brake van and guard's van are terms used mainly in the UK, Australia and India for a railway vehicle equipped with a hand brake which can be applied by the guard...
  
  
• Petrol tanker
• LNWR wooden box van