Turntable At Yeovil Junction Station

The turntable at Yeovil Junction Station is a locomotive turntable built in 1947 by Cowans, Sheldon & Co Ltd. of Carlisle for the Great Western Railway. It has a diameter of 70 feet and is constructed from steel and iron plate, situated in a brick-lined pit with a concrete floor. The turntable is pivoted by runner wheels at either end, which run on a circular rail around the edge of the pit. The operating apparatus is located at one end of the deck, which is covered by a canopy with a corrugated sheet roof, and there are handrails on the deck.

Historically, the original Yeovil Junction Station was established in 1860 by the London and South Western Railway Company when it extended its main line from Salisbury to Exeter. In June 1864, the Great Western Railway opened the Clifton Maybank Railway, a broad gauge goods-only branch line from its line at Yeovil to a transfer shed at Yeovil Junction. The turntable was installed next to the transfer shed in 1947, replacing an earlier hand-propelled turntable from the mid-19th century. It operates using the vacuum or air brake system of the engine. The turntable is currently part of the Yeovil Steam Centre and remains in working order.

This turntable is a remarkably complete and rare example of a railway turntable that is still operational. It significantly contributes to the character of Yeovil Junction Station and has good group value with the nearby former engine transfer shed.