Forest of Dean Railway on a contiguous line built by the GWR. Newnham was the main line junction station, although some branch trains ran through to Gloucester. As motor bus services became dominant, the passenger services became unprofitable and they were withdrawn in 1958. The network was closed completely in 1967 as mineral traffic ceased. The Forest of Dean Coalfield had long been a source of mineral working, for iron ore and coal. Free Miners had statutory rights in the Forest, which protected them from external competition. However this limited the extent to which large scale operations could be undertaken. A number of short
Forest of Dean Central Railway the Forest of Dean has been an important site of mineral extraction: coal and iron ore, and also stone. Free Miners had certain exclusive rights to minerals, but the restriction on outside involvement had prevented the introduction of capital and large scale industrial processes. Moreover the extremely poor road network in the area, due in part to the very hilly terrain, added cost to the products of the Forest. The Crown interest in timber had resulted in statutory control of development. The small scale mining operations needed to get their output to market, generally by river transport on the Severn