CAN you guess where this week’s Mystery Photograph was taken?

Each week, the Journal invites readers to test their local knowledge by identifying a historic location from days gone by.

Last week’s Mystery Photograph was taken at the Midsomer Norton Station (Somerset & Dorset).

Congratulations to Jeff Parsons who got that correct, he said: “This week, the picture shows the S&D station at Midsomer Norton, taken around 1905 and known at that time as Midsomer Norton and Welton (renamed from Midsomer Norton around 1898).

The line was originally single track when the Bath Extension was built from Evercreech Junction to Bath Queen Square in 1874 and was only doubled in 1886. It retained this name until the early 1950s, when it was renamed Midsomer Norton Upper, and then Midsomer Norton South until the line closed in 1966.

The picture is taken facing Radstock, on the climb up to the Mendips Summit at Masbury.”

Midsomer Norton South Station was a significant railway hub on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway (S&DJR), which operated between Bath and Bournemouth. Opened on July 20 1874, the station served as a vital link for both passenger and freight services in the region.

It was strategically located on a steep incline leading up to the Mendip Hills, making it a crucial point for trains ascending towards the summit at Masbury.

Over the years, the station underwent several name changes. Initially known as Midsomer Norton, it was renamed Midsomer Norton and Welton on October 16 1898, and later became Midsomer Norton South on 26 September 1949.

These changes reflected the evolving structure and operations of the railway network during that period. Despite these modifications, the station remained a central part of the S&DJR until its closure on March 7 1966, following the Beeching cuts that led to the dismantling of many rural railway lines.

Thank you again for playing this weeks Mystery Photograph.