Friday 31 May 2013
Carmarthenshire railway station restoration needs your help
- Region & Route:
- | Wales & Western: Wales & Borders
- | Wales & Western
Network Rail is calling on the local community to help them to restore Pantyffynnon railway station in Carmarthenshire.
Believed to date from 1857 and built to an Isambard Kingdom Brunel chalet design, the station lies on the Heart of Wales Line at its junction with the branch lines to Brynamman and Abernant.
The hope is to restore the Grade 2 listed former station building at Pantyffynnon station over the next year with funding from Network Rail and the Railway Heritage Trust.
However, the project team in charge of restoring one of the few examples of this design back to its former glory need the support of the local community to pinpoint the finer detailing of the building in times gone by. They are particularly interested in any photographs of the north end of the building, as that would assist in determining the original form.
Network Rail's director of route asset management for Wales, Jonathan Pegg, said: “This is a magnificent building which will be brought back into use as a result of our renovation. However, we simply do not have the historical information on its design as some records have been lost over the passage of time.
“We are appealing to any former railway workers, local historians, rail users or enthusiasts to provide any old photographs, engravings or records of the building. We need them to help piece together the history of this unique building so that we can faithfully restore this important local building.
“Items dating from its early life between 1860 and 1920 are of particular interest to the project, but any information that the community can give will be gratefully received.”
Any information should be sent to Adam Checkley, Network Rail, 5 Callaghan Square, Cardiff, South Glamorgan, CF10 5BT, or email Adam.Checkley@networkrail.co.uk . Any documents sent to Network Rail will be returned to its owner by recorded delivery within 14 days of receipt.
Notes to editors
The station was originally fairly large and built adjacent to the Dynevor tinplate works and included station buildings, signal box, freight yard and from 1931 a small railway locomotive shed.
The signal box is the only surviving example on the Heart of Wales route and since 1986, it has supervised the entire line north of here to Craven Arms using a system of working known as No Signalman Token Remote (NSTR).
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