Alyth Railway
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The Alyth Railway was a short branch railway line built in Strathmore in Scotland, connecting the town of
Alyth Alyth () ( gd, Ailt) is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, northeast of Blairgowrie and about northwest of Dundee. In 2016 the town had an estimated population of 2,400. First mentioned by name in a 12th-century royal charter of Willia ...
to the main line network. It opened in 1861. Its junction was remote from any large population centre except
Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
, which was only reached by a primitive line with three rope worked inclines. This was modernised in 1868 and the Alyth branch, now with a good connection to Dundee, became busy. Nonetheless, the population of Alyth declined, and so did usage of the line, and it closed in 1951.


History

The
Scottish Midland Junction Railway The Scottish Midland Junction Railway was authorised in 1845 to build a line from Perth to Forfar. Other companies obtained authorisation in the same year, and together they formed a route from central Scotland to Aberdeen. The SMJR opened its ...
opened its main line between Perth and Forfar, forming part of a network of associated companies connecting central Scotland and Aberdeen. The line ran through Strathmore and adopted and upgraded two moribund railways, the ''Newtyle and Coupar Angus Railway'' and the ''Newtyle and Glammiss Railway''. The SMJR was amalgamated with the
Aberdeen Railway The Aberdeen Railway was a Scottish railway company which built a line from Aberdeen to Forfar and Arbroath, partly by leasing and upgrading an existing railway. The line opened in stages between 1847 and 1850, with branches to Brechin and ...
in 1856, together forming the
Scottish North Eastern Railway The Scottish North Eastern Railway was a railway company in Scotland operating a main line from Perth to Aberdeen, with branches to Kirriemuir, Brechin and Montrose. It was created when the Aberdeen Railway amalgamated with the Scottish Midland ...
(SNER). Promoters in Alyth saw the advantages of a railway connection, and they obtained an Act of Parliament for a branch line to their town, on 14 June 1858; the ''Alyth Railway'' company was authorised, with capital of £33,000.E F Carter, ''An Historical Geography of the Railways of the British Isles'', Cassell, London, 1959 to build a branch line to Alyth from Meigle, a junction on the SNER main line. The branch was just over 5 miles (8 km) long. It opened on 2 September 1861According to Ross, Quick and Carter; Awdry, Stansfield and Butt say 12 August 1861. and was worked by the SNER.Christopher Awdry, ''Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies'', Patrick Stephens Limited, Wellingborough, 1990, David Ross, ''The Caledonian: Scotland's Imperial Railway: A History'', Stenlake Publishing Limited, Catrine, 2014, M E Quick, ''Railway Passenger Stations in England Scotland and Wales—A Chronology'', The Railway and Canal Historical Society, 2002R V J Butt, ''The Directory of Railway Stations'', Patrick Stephens Limited, Sparkford, 1995, An Act of 23 June 1864 authorised the lease of the line in perpetuity to the Scottish North Eastern Railway, which had taken over the Scottish Midland Junction Railway. The lease charge was 45% of gross receipts. The SNER was itself taken over by the
Caledonian Railway The Caledonian Railway (CR) was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century with the objective of forming a link between English railways and Glasgow. It progressively extended its network and reached Edinburgh an ...
in 1866 and the lease transferred to the Caledonian. The population of Alyth had been 3,422 in 1861 but this declined to 2,837 by 1921 and did not recover. Use of the line declined accordingly, and it closed to passengers on 2 July 1951.John Thomas and David Turnock, ''A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 15, North of Scotland'', David and Charles, Newton Abbot, 1989, Complete closure followed in January 1965.


Topography

The point of junction with the main line was named Alyth Junction; the
Dundee and Newtyle Railway The Dundee and Newtyle Railway opened in 1831 and was the first railway in the north of Scotland. It was built to carry goods between Dundee and the fertile area known as Strathmore; this involved crossing the Sidlaw Hills, and was accomplish ...
had been connected to the former SMJR main line by two ancillary railways, the Newtyle and Coupar Angus Railway and the Newtyle and Glammiss Railway. (Glammiss is spelt Glamis nowadays.) These two lines approaching from Dundee forked to run south-west and north-east respectively, and Alyth Junction was in the middle of the base of the triangle. As Dundee was a significant destination from Alyth, a connecting line from Newtyle was built by the Caledonian Railway, and it was made to cross over the main line to avoid conflict with main line trains. This opened on 3 August 1868.W A C Smith and Paul Anderson, ''An Illustrated History of Tayside's Railway, Dundee and Perth'', Irwell Press, Clophill, 1997, The typical passenger timetable gave nine return trips daily, eleven on Saturdays, with most trains proceeding to Dundee. The original Meigle station was located at the convergence of the Newtyle and Glammiss line with the main line, but the Newtyle spur line was lifted and the station was closed; a new Meigle Junction station was opened, sited at Alyth Junction. The Dundee and Newtyle line had been laid with stone block sleeper track to a unique gauge of 4 ft 6.5in (1,384 mm) and had three rope-worked inclines. The
Caledonian Railway The Caledonian Railway (CR) was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century with the objective of forming a link between English railways and Glasgow. It progressively extended its network and reached Edinburgh an ...
took over the line and modernised it, eliminating the inclines; this work was completed on 31 August 1868. By now the Caledonian had taken over the SNER as well, and commenced running through passenger trains from Dundee to Alyth, which "became a busy country terminus over the next few years".


Passenger stations

* Alyth; * Porterochnie; opened June 1912; soon renamed Pitcrocknie; mainly for golfers: there is a golf course adjacent; closed 1 January 1917; reopened September 1919 as Pitcrocknie Platform; in 1938 shown as Pitcrocknie Halt, and then Pitcrocknie Siding from 28 October 1940;Gordon Stansfield, ''Perthsire and Kinross-shire's Lost Railways'', Stenlake Publishing, Catrine, 2001, in 1922 and 1938 ''Bradshaw'' has most trains on the branch marked "Stops when required to set down Golfers or take up when there are passengers on the platform."''Bradshaw's General Railway and Steam Navigation Guide'', 7th mo, (July) 1922, reprinted by Guild Publishing, London, 1985''Bradshaw's July 1938 Railway Guide'', David & Charles (Publishers) Limited, Newton Abbot, 1969, , The stop was removed from the public timetable following nationalisation in 1948 but it was not officially closed and still picked up passengers until the line closed; * Jordanstone; * Fullarton; renamed Meigle 1 November 1876; * Meigle (sometimes known as Meigle Junction); junction on SNER main line; renamed Alyth Junction on 1 November 1876.Col M H Cobb, ''The Railways of Great Britain -- A Historical Atlas'', Ian Allan Publishing Limited, Shepperton, 2003,


Notes


References

{{Historical Scottish railway companies Transport in Angus, Scotland Pre-grouping British railway companies Railway companies established in 1858 Early Scottish railway companies 1858 establishments in Scotland 1951 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Transport in Perth and Kinross