Crieff and Methven Junction Railway
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The Crieff and Methven Junction Railway was a
Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
, opened in 1866, connecting
Crieff Crieff (; gd, Craoibh, meaning "tree") is a Scottish market town in Perth and Kinross on the A85 road between Perth and Crianlarich, and the A822 between Greenloaning and Aberfeldy. The A822 joins the A823 to Dunfermline. Crieff has become ...
with a branch line that ran from Methven to
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
. As a purely local concern, the line was dependent on local traffic, and when that declined in the middle of the twentieth century, the railway became unsustainable. It closed to passengers in 1951 and completely in 1967.


History

The company received parliamentary authorisation to build the line on 14 July 1864, with the line being completed in 1867. Perth was linked to the growing Scottish railway network when the
Scottish Central Railway The Scottish Central Railway was formed in 1845 to link Perth and Stirling to Central Scotland, by building a railway line to join the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway near Castlecary. The line opened in 1848 including a branch to South Alloa. The ...
opened its main line from Castlecary, near Falkirk, in 1848. The Scottish Central was allied with 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 ...
, connecting with Glasgow and Carlisle, and 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 ...
built northwards from Perth, also opening in 1848, giving connection to Forfar and over other lines to Aberdeen.Peter Marshall, The Scottish Central Railway: Perth to Stirling, Oakwood Press, Usk, 1998, Places served by these main lines experienced an economic benefit: the prices of commodities such as lime and coal brought in fell considerably, and the cost of delivering their manufactured goods and agricultural products to market also reduced. By contrast, towns not yet connected experienced a worsening in their position, and business interests in Methven proposed a railway to their town, and the
Perth, Almond Valley and Methven Railway The Perth, Almond Valley and Methven Railway was a Scottish railway line that connected Methven with Perth. It opened in 1858. A line onwards to Crieff was built from a junction on the line south of Methven; that line opened in 1866. The Met ...
opened from a junction north of Perth to Methven on 1 January 1858. The important town of Crieff also suffered from the lack of a railway connection, and in 1856 the
Crieff Junction Railway The Crieff Junction Railway was opened in 1856 to link the town of Crieff to the main line railway network in Scotland, at a junction at the present day station (then called Crieff Junction). In the second half of the twentieth century railway ...
opened, from a location then called Crieff Junction, on the main line between Stirling and Perth: it is now known as Gleneagles station. This more southerly connection was convenient for transits towards Glasgow and Edinburgh, but Perth was a major commercial and agricultural centre at this period, and passengers from Crieff to Perth preferred to travel by road coach to Methven, continuing their journey over the Almond Valley line.John Thomas and David Turnock, ''A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 15: North of Scotland'', David & Charles (Publishers), Newton Abbot, 1989, A railway link was suggested and on 14 July 1864 the Crieff and Methven Junction Railway obtained Parliamentary authorisation. The company's capital was £66,000.E F Carter, ''An Historical Geography of the Railways of the British Isles'', Cassell, London, 1959 The line opened on 21 May 1866, from a junction with the Methven line a mile south of the Methven terminus.Christopher Awdry, ''Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies'', Patrick Stephens Limited, Wellingborough, 1990, The line ran broadly west, following the Pow Water, entering the eastern margin of Crieff alongside the Crieff Junction line, and using that company's station facilities. The Crieff Junction line was absorbed by the Scottish Central Railway in 1865, and the Crieff and Methven Junction Railway was worked by the Scottish Central Railway until absorption by the Caledonian Railway in 1868. In the latter half of the century tourism developed considerably and Strathearn became a destination of great importance. Road tours were arranged from Crieff, and in 1893 the Crieff and Comrie Railway built westward from Crieff; this involved a new and more commodious station at Crieff. The Comrie line was extended still further, eventually reaching Lochearnhead and Balquhidder on the route of the
Callander and Oban Railway The Callander and Oban Railway company was established with the intention of linking the sea port of Oban to the railway network. This involved a long line from Callander through wild and thinly populated terrain, and shortage of money meant that ...
. The importance of the town of Methven was considerably reduced in the later years of the nineteenth century, and the decline continued in the twentieth; the section from Methven Junction to Methven terminus closed to passengers on 27 September 1937. The remaining line was continuous from Crieff to Perth (Almond Valley Junction) and was operated by the Caledonian Railway as a single route. However carryings on the line declined as well, and on 1 October 1951 passenger traffic on the line ceased. Goods traffic continued until that too was discontinued on 11 September 1967.Bernard Byrom, ''The Railways of Upper Strathearn'', Oakwood Press, Usk, 2004,


Topography

Passenger stations on the line were: * Methven Junction (station); it was an unadvertised exchange station from 1889 until closure of the Methven section in 1937; * Balgowan; * Madderty; * Abercairny; certain early publications spelt the station ''Abbercairny'' and also ''Abercairney''; * Innerpeffray; closed 1 January 1917; re-opened 2 June 1919; * Crieff; Crieff Junction Railway station; relocated on the opening of the Comrie line on 1 June 1893.Col M H Cobb, ''The Railways of Great Britain -- A Historical Atlas'', Ian Allan Publishing Limited, Shepperton, 2003, M E Quick, ''Railway Passenger Stations in England Scotland and Wales—A Chronology'', The Railway and Canal Historical Society, 2002


Connections to other lines

*
Perth, Almond Valley and Methven Railway The Perth, Almond Valley and Methven Railway was a Scottish railway line that connected Methven with Perth. It opened in 1858. A line onwards to Crieff was built from a junction on the line south of Methven; that line opened in 1866. The Met ...
at Methven Junction *
Crieff Junction Railway The Crieff Junction Railway was opened in 1856 to link the town of Crieff to the main line railway network in Scotland, at a junction at the present day station (then called Crieff Junction). In the second half of the twentieth century railway ...
at
Crieff Crieff (; gd, Craoibh, meaning "tree") is a Scottish market town in Perth and Kinross on the A85 road between Perth and Crianlarich, and the A822 between Greenloaning and Aberfeldy. The A822 joins the A823 to Dunfermline. Crieff has become ...
* Crieff and Comrie Railway at
Crieff Crieff (; gd, Craoibh, meaning "tree") is a Scottish market town in Perth and Kinross on the A85 road between Perth and Crianlarich, and the A822 between Greenloaning and Aberfeldy. The A822 joins the A823 to Dunfermline. Crieff has become ...


References


Sources

* * {{Historical Scottish railway companies Pre-grouping British railway companies Caledonian Railway Closed railway lines in Scotland Early Scottish railway companies Railway companies established in 1864 Railway lines opened in 1867 Railway companies disestablished in 1869 British companies established in 1864 British companies disestablished in 1869