The branch was opened by the Great Western Railway in 1857, and from 1862 when the Reading-Hungerford line reached Devizes it became part of the shortest route from London to the West Country.
Potential construction costs were high because Devizes stands on a hill, so the town was left without a station.
In 1854 the GWR finally began to build from near Holt Junction on the former WS&WR line eastward to Devizes, completing the branch in 1857.
[1] In 1862, the GWR extended its Reading-Hungerford line westward via Pewsey to Devizes, creating a direct link from London Paddington to Bristol which was shorter than any other route.
Apart from a few remaining bridges and the tunnel under the grounds of Devizes Castle, there is little evidence of the railway on the landscape, and all stations and halts were demolished in 1970.