Location type

Name and dates

Description

In 1942 the government opened a munitions factory at Charlesfield, near St Boswells.

It was located in the 'V' formed by the junction of the Waverley route and the Kelso branch to the south of Kelso Junction.

Built by ICI, Charlesfield specialised in the production of incendiary bombs.

The factory was provided with a freight only rail link consisting of a spur off the Kelso branch to the east, while a quarter of a mile to the west a passenger 'Halt' for the use of factory workers was opened on the Waverley route.

Approximately 1,300 people were employed at the site at the peak of production.

At the end of WWII bomb production ceased (in 1946) and Charlesfield became a Royal Navy armaments depot in 1949, remaining in military use until 1961/63.

During the 1970s, following several years of of use by agricultural organisations, the site was gradually transformed into what is now a busy industrial estate, with ready access to the A68 trunk road less than half a mile to the east.

The siding off the Kelso branch into the site was disconnected shortly after the end of the war, while the last recorded use of Charlesfield Halt was in late 1959, with official closure taking place in 1961.

Tags

External links