Barnstaple Victoria Road railway station the station was managed by the Western Region of British Railways. All parcels business for Barnstaple was now handled at this station, which was given the 'Victoria Road' suffix on 26 September 1949 to avoid confusion with Barnstaple Junction or . Victoria Road was closed to passengers from 13 June 1960, after which the Devon and Somerset line trains ran directly to Barnstaple Junction until the line was closed on 3 October 1966. The goods yard remained open until 5 March 1970, trains in later years only operating via Barnstaple Junction. Victoria Road had a very long single platform which
Barnstaple tanneries, sawmills and foundries, and shipbuilding was also carried on. The Bear Street drill hall was completed in the early 19th century. Barnstaple was one of the boroughs reformed by the Municipal Reform Act 1835. Between the 1930s and the 1950s the town swallowed the villages of Pilton, Newport, and Roundswell through ribbon development. The historic Borough of Barnstaple was long governed by the Mayor of Barnstaple and the Corporation. The seat of government was the Barnstaple Guildhall. The mayor served a term of one year and was elected annually on the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin (15