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Crofthead railway station or Fauldhouse and Crofthead was a station on the
/ref> It was accessed off Bridge Street near the hamlet of Drybridge, close to Fauldhouse.Linlithgowshire, Sheet 12 (includes: Livingston; West Calder; Whitburn). Survey date: 1854-5. Publication date: 1856
/ref>Linlithgowshire, Sheet 11 (includes: Cambusnethan; Shotts; Whitburn). Survey date: 1854-5. Publication date: 1856
/ref> In 1895 the station site is shown with several buildings, sidings and loading docks in addition to a single platform.Linlithgowshire 011.11 & 12 (includes: Cambusnethan; Shotts; Whitburn). Publication date: 1898. Revised: ca. 1895.
/ref>
The Caledonian Railway (CR) established a goods and mineral depot nearby and Fauldhouse station is also located in the vicinity of the old Fauldhouse and Crofthead station. A number of mineral lines ran from near the station to collieries in the area, Polkemmet Moor, Cult, Rigghouse, etc.
The station is also recorded by the North British Railway. List of Stations with opening and closing dates from 1828 to 2003.
/ref>
The line was worked by steam although the early intention may have been to work the line as a horse drawn waggonway with independent hauliers.
Sporadic passenger services had started from 1845 and a road coach ran between Edinburgh to the original terminus at Longridge from 16 May 1846, passengers disembarking travelling on by train to Townhead. In 1847 two hours was the railway section of the journey, calling at all the stations on the Wilsontown line.Thomas, John (1984) revised J S Paterson, ''A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 6, Scotland, the Lowlands and the Borders'', Newton Abbott : David and Charles. .
The Caledonian Railway opened its line from Carlisle to Garriongill Junction in 1848 and its trains then ran through to Glasgow over the WM&CR. The demands on the line's capacity may led to the WM&CR passenger service being terminated at this time before being reinstated for a short time a few years later.Cobb, M.H. (2003). ''The Railways of Great Britain -- A Historical Atlas''. Shepperton : Ian Allan Publishing Limited. .
The passenger service on the line restarted On 1 October 1864 between Morningside and Bathgate on the 1850 extension, with intermediate stations now only at Blackhall, Crofthead, Bents and Whitburn. The passenger service was sparse with in 1895 only two trains a day from Bathgate and three making the journey west, with one extra service on Saturdays.''Bradshaw's General Steam Navigation and Railway Guide'', 12th mo, (December) 1895, reprinted by Middleton Press, Midhurst, 2011,
RailScot photographs at the site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crofthead railway station Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1845 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1848 Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1850 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1852 Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1864 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1930 Disused railway stations in West Lothian 1845 establishments in Scotland Transport in North Lanarkshire
Wilsontown, Morningside and Coltness Railway
The Wilsontown, Morningside and Coltness Railway was a railway opened in 1845, primarily for mineral traffic, although a passenger service was run sporadically. The line ran from a junction with the Wishaw and Coltness Railway at Chapel, to Longri ...
(WM&CR) that served the area of Crofthead and its miners rows, Greenburn and Gowanbrae near Fauldhouse in West Lothian
West Lothian ( sco, Wast Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Iar) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its shires of Scotland, historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geogra ...
. The station was located 7 miles 40 chainsReport dated 11 June 1845 in Parliamentary Papers Railway Department, Session: 22 January – 28 August 1846 east of Morningside railway station.
The company at first adopted the standard track gauge
In rail transport, track gauge (in American English, alternatively track gage) is the distance between the two rails of a railway track. All vehicles on a rail network must have wheelsets that are compatible with the track gauge. Since many d ...
for mineral lines of 4 ft 6 in, often referred to as Scotch gauge
Scotch most commonly refers to:
* Scotch (adjective), a largely obsolescent adjective meaning "of or from Scotland"
**Scotch, old-fashioned name for the indigenous languages of the Scottish people:
***Scots language ("Broad Scotch")
*** Scottish G ...
. The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway
The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was authorised by Act of Parliament on 4 July 1838. It was opened to passenger traffic on 21 February 1842, between its Glasgow Queen Street railway station (sometimes referred to at first as Dundas Street) and ...
took over the WM&CR in 1849, the track gauge already having been changed in August 1847, from the now almost obsolete 4 ft 6 in to the generally accepted standard gauge of 4 ft 8½ in.Knox, Harry (2010). ''The Story of Bathgate's Railways - 1849 to 2010'', Bathgate Historic Conservation Society]
Crofthead station had at first just a single short platform and this is clearly indicated on the OS map of 1854,Linlithgow Sheet XI.12 (with inset XI.11) (Whitburn). Survey date: 1854. Publication date: 1856./ref> It was accessed off Bridge Street near the hamlet of Drybridge, close to Fauldhouse.Linlithgowshire, Sheet 12 (includes: Livingston; West Calder; Whitburn). Survey date: 1854-5. Publication date: 1856
/ref>Linlithgowshire, Sheet 11 (includes: Cambusnethan; Shotts; Whitburn). Survey date: 1854-5. Publication date: 1856
/ref> In 1895 the station site is shown with several buildings, sidings and loading docks in addition to a single platform.Linlithgowshire 011.11 & 12 (includes: Cambusnethan; Shotts; Whitburn). Publication date: 1898. Revised: ca. 1895.
/ref>
The Caledonian Railway (CR) established a goods and mineral depot nearby and Fauldhouse station is also located in the vicinity of the old Fauldhouse and Crofthead station. A number of mineral lines ran from near the station to collieries in the area, Polkemmet Moor, Cult, Rigghouse, etc.
The station is also recorded by the North British Railway
The North British Railway was a British railway company, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1844, with the intention of linking with English railways at Berwick. The line opened in 1846, and from the outset the company followe ...
(NBR) study group as opening on 02/06/1845 and closing under the London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was the second largest (after LMS) of the " Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain. It operated from 1 January 1923 until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. At th ...
(LNER) as Fauldhouse and Crofthead on 1 May 1930./ref>
Services
The line was worked by steam although the early intention may have been to work the line as a horse drawn waggonway with independent hauliers.
Sporadic passenger services had started from 1845 and a road coach ran between Edinburgh to the original terminus at Longridge from 16 May 1846, passengers disembarking travelling on by train to Townhead. In 1847 two hours was the railway section of the journey, calling at all the stations on the Wilsontown line.Thomas, John (1984) revised J S Paterson, ''A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 6, Scotland, the Lowlands and the Borders'', Newton Abbott : David and Charles. .
The Caledonian Railway opened its line from Carlisle to Garriongill Junction in 1848 and its trains then ran through to Glasgow over the WM&CR. The demands on the line's capacity may led to the WM&CR passenger service being terminated at this time before being reinstated for a short time a few years later.Cobb, M.H. (2003). ''The Railways of Great Britain -- A Historical Atlas''. Shepperton : Ian Allan Publishing Limited. .
The passenger service on the line restarted On 1 October 1864 between Morningside and Bathgate on the 1850 extension, with intermediate stations now only at Blackhall, Crofthead, Bents and Whitburn. The passenger service was sparse with in 1895 only two trains a day from Bathgate and three making the journey west, with one extra service on Saturdays.''Bradshaw's General Steam Navigation and Railway Guide'', 12th mo, (December) 1895, reprinted by Middleton Press, Midhurst, 2011,
Station site and infrastructure
The WMCR stations originally had no waiting rooms or shelters. It was accessed off Bridge Street near the hamlet of Drybridge, close to Fauldhouse. In 1895 the station site is shown with several buildings, sidings and loading docks in addition to a single platform.References
;Notes ;Sources * *Cobb, M.H. (2003). ''The Railways of Great Britain -- A Historical Atlas''. Shepperton : Ian Allan Publishing Limited. . *Thomas, John (1984) revised J S Paterson, ''A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 6, Scotland, the Lowlands and the Borders'', Newton Abbott : David and Charles. .External links
RailScot photographs at the site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crofthead railway station Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1845 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1848 Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1850 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1852 Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1864 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1930 Disused railway stations in West Lothian 1845 establishments in Scotland Transport in North Lanarkshire