# Yeovil Pen Mill railway station

Yeovil Pen Mill is one of two railway stations that serve the town of Yeovil, Somerset, England. It is situated just under a mile to the east of the town centre. The station is located 59.5 miles (96 km) south of Bristol Temple Meads, on the Heart of Wessex Line. It is managed by Great Western Railway, who operate services along with South Western Railway.

## History

The station was opened by the Great Western Railway (GWR) as part of the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth route on 1 September 1856. The route was completed to Weymouth on 20 January 1857. The Bristol and Exeter Railway's (B&ER) line from Taunton, which initially terminated at Yeovil Hendford, was extended to connect with the GWR at Yeovil Pen Mill from 2 February 1857. Both these lines were built using the 7 ft (2,134 mm) broad gauge. The GWR line was converted to what become the 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge in June 1874. The B&ER line was mixed and had trains of both gauges from 12 November 1868 but broad gauge trains ceased operation after 30 June 1879 by which time the B&ER had been taken over by the GWR.
The station originally had two platforms, one for each direction, with a train shed for protection. A fire on 18 April 1859 resulted in one building being burnt down. All trains then used the 'up' platform (that built for trains towards Frome and London Paddington) until the station was rebuilt in the 1880s.
The GWR opened a locomotive depot at the station in September 1856, which operated until January 1959, when it was closed and the locomotives transferred to Yeovil Town depot.
A connection between the GWR line and the Southern Railway line to Exeter was established during World War II to allow trains direct access between Yeovil Junction and Yeovil Pen Mill. This was opened on 13 October 1943 and offered a new route for trains of war materials as well as a diversion route in the event of bomb damage.

### 1913 accident

A passenger train, hauled by GWR City Class 4-4-0 No. 3710 City of Bath, overran a signal on 8 August 1913 and hit the rear of another passenger train. Two people were killed and ten injured.

### Stationmasters

* George Roberts ca. 1857
* William Clarke 1860 - 1863 (formerly station master at Warminster)
* George Pinkerton 1863 - 1872 (formerly station master at Taplow, afterwards station master at Salisbury)
* George King Forster 1876 - 1887
* Richard Stonnill 1887 - 1894 (formerly station master at Aberdare, afterwards station master at Westbury)
* Samuel Martin 1894 - 1899
* J. Parry 1899 - 1907
* W.F. Vaughan 1907 - 1916
* Frank George Dunford 1916 - 1926
* P. Williams 1926 - 1933 (afterwards station master at Highbridge)
* William Gard ca. 1942
* L.E. Hole 1944 - ca. 1956 (formerly station master at Maiden Newton)

## Description

Yeovil Pen Mill has three platform faces but only two are in use. Platform 1 is used predominantly by trains heading north and platform 3 is used mostly by trains heading south to Weymouth. The former platform 2 is now unused; there is only a single track between platforms 1 and 2 but trains open their doors on the platform 1 side.

## Services

Great Western Railway operate the majority of services at Pen Mill on their route between Weymouth and Gloucester, via Bristol Temple Meads.
South Western Railway operate a few services between London Waterloo and Pen Mill, some via Yeovil Junction and others via Westbury.
| Preceding station | National Rail | National Rail | National Rail | Following station |
| Castle Cary | | Great Western Railway Heart of Wessex Line | | Thornford |
| Castle Cary | | South Western Railway Heart of Wessex Line | | Yeovil Junction |
The town is also served by Yeovil Junction, around two miles away, on the West of England Main Line; it is also served by South Western Railway. Commencing in December 2015, a limited regular passenger service began using the connection between the two lines.