Welcome to the Staverton Station’s home page.
Staverton Station is a small GWR railway station on the South Devon Railway branch line from Totnes to Buckfastleigh. Originally the branch terminated at Ashburton but sadly this section was lost when the A38 dual carriageway was built in the early 1970‘s.
Staverton is run and maintained by members of the Staverton Preservation Group (SPG), whose volunteering and fund raising events ensure Staverton remains a classic example of a country station.

SPG hope you enjoy this website and we look forward to seeing you when you visit the South Devon Railway.

HISTORY OF STAVERTON STATION
Staverton Station is the only intermediate station on the branch and was built when the line opened in 1872. A second goods shed was added in 1907 to cope with expanding local goods traffic. There was a large mill beyond the level crossing (now converted into flats), which needed timber and other raw materialsdelivering, and the manufactured goods collecting for distribution. There was also a deal of agricultural traffic and cider barrels to be collected and delivered. The branch goods train was generally marshalled in Hackney Yard near Newton Abbot; both incoming and outgoing goods being sorted ready either for the mainline or the branch. During the 1940‘s the timetable allowed for the goods to stand for 16 minutes at Staverton; lighter goods were transferred to and from the first shed via the platform.
The passenger service was typical of a small branch line. There would be people travelling to work at the mill or up and down to Totnes, Buckfastleigh and Ashburton, which were busy market towns. Totnes of course was the link to the GWR mainline, which would have generated more passenger traffic.

The heydays of Staverton Station were certainly from the late 1800‘s to just after the second world war. There was a Stationmaster (who lived in a house provided by the GWR near the station), a Signalman and at least one Porter.
Originally there was no signal box at Staverton; the up and down starters were worked from levers on the platform. The box was built some time around the 1914-18 war, controlling more signals protecting the level crossing and the pointwork accessing the goods sidings. The box you see today is the original, which was rescued from a garden and placed back over the lever frame when the line reopened under preservation.

The line became part of British Railways Western Region in 1948 and with increasing car ownership passenger traffic dwindled to the point that it was withdrawn on 3rd November 1958. Freight traffic continued until 7th September 1962.
In 1962 a group of businessmen were planning to re-open the line but it was not until 5th April 1969 that the first train ran under the auspices of the Dart Valley Light Railway Company (DVLR). The last two miles from Buckfastleigh to Ashburton were lost with the widening of the A38 trunk road.
At the end of 1989 the DVLR, who were also operating the Paignton to Kingswear line, decided the DVLR was not viable, resolving to find another operator for it. From 1st January 1991 the line and stations were passed to the South Devon Railway Trust and from 29th March 1991 services were operated under the name South Devon Railway.