Ballater railway station

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Ballater
Ballater Station, for Balmoral Castle - geograph.org.uk - 1747043.jpg
Ballater railway station in 1961
General information
Location Aberdeenshire
Scotland
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original company Great North of Scotland Railway
Pre-groupingGreat North of Scotland Railway
Post-grouping London and North Eastern Railway
Key dates
17 October 1866Station opened
28 February 1966Station closed to passengers
18 July 1966station closed to goods
12 May 2015Fire seriously damages former station

Ballater railway station is a former station in the village of Ballater in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The station was formerly the terminus of a branch line from Aberdeen. [1]

Contents

It was the nearest station to Balmoral Castle, a personal residence of the British monarch.

History

Opened on 17 October 1866 by the Aboyne and Braemar Railway this was the third of a series of openings (Aboyne to Ballater), by three different companies to connect Ballater with Aberdeen, the others were Aboyne to Banchory by the Deeside Extension Railway and Banchory to Aberdeen by the Deeside Railway. [2]

All three sections of the branch were operated by the Great North of Scotland Railway (GNSR) and in 1876 they were all acquired by it. [2]

The GNSR became part of the London and North Eastern Railway during the Grouping of 1923, passing on to the Scottish Region of British Railways during the nationalisation of 1948.

The station was host to a LNER camping coach from 1937 to 1939. [3]

The station closed for passengers on 28 February 1966 and for goods on 18 July 1966. [4] [5]

Royal events

In August 1912, Ballater railway station played an important role when the body of Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife, the son-in-law of King Edward VII, was transferred to Mar Lodge, Braemar, from St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. On 9 August 1912 the Glasgow Herald reported on the funeral: [6]

The casket arrived at Aberdeen from Euston at 7.15 yesterday morning, being conveyed in a special saloon which at Aberdeen was attached to the 8.5 a.m. train for Ballater. Heavy rain showers had fallen on Deeside in the early morning, and when the train reached Ballater shortly after ten o'clock the atmosphere was depressingly gloomy, while the distant hills to the West were thickly enveloped in mist, adding a further melancholy note to the circumstances attending the sad home-bringing of the departed Chief of the Duffs. Travelling in the special saloon from London to Ballater were Sir Maurice Abbot Anderson and Lady Anderson and Dr Essery, while awaiting the arrival of the train at Ballater were Mr W[illia]m Mackintosh, factor and commissioner on the Mar estates; Mr C. H. Taylor, private secretary to the late Duke; and eight members of the Duff Highlanders, specially selected to transfer the casket from the train to a motor hearse which was in waiting to convey the remains over the 18 odd miles to New Mar Lodge. Many hundreds of residents and visitors to the district had assembled in the Station Square and reverently observed the Highlanders transfer the massive polished oak coffin from the saloon to the hearse. Over the casket was laid a Union Jack, which was the only touch of colour associated with the sombre vehicle.

Ballater Station was the location of an infamous event on 23 September 1936. On this day, King Edward VIII was due to open a new hospital in Aberdeen; however, he sent the then Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth) in his place, citing that he was unable to attend as the Court was still in mourning. This was a foil. Edward VIII was seen at precisely the same time as the Yorks' opened the hospital, meeting Mrs Wallis Simpson off a train at Ballater Station. Mrs Simpson at the time was the mistress of Edward VIII though this fact was relatively unknown to the British public at this time owing to a 'silence' in the British press. Mrs Simpson was the King's special guest at Balmoral. [7]

Services

Preceding station Disused railways Following station
Cambus O'May
Line and station closed
  Great North of Scotland Railway
Deeside Railway
 Terminus

Fire

The former station, in use as Ballater visitor centre in 2014, a year prior to the fire Ballater visitor centre 26.03.14R.jpg
The former station, in use as Ballater visitor centre in 2014, a year prior to the fire

In the early hours of 12 May 2015, fire crews were called out to a major blaze at the station. The fire was fought for around three hours but reports say the building was "around 90 per cent destroyed". [8] The fire is believed to have started in the Station Restaurant, one of several businesses at the station.

Current use

After the fire, the old station was rebuilt and adapted. [9] Containing Queen Victoria's waiting room, it is a once visitor centre[ clarification needed ], with a replica royal carriage. [10] The station houses the public library and a restaurant and cafe.

The former station site is the western trailhead of the Deeside Way, a long-distance footpath that follows the length of the former railway to Aberdeen. [11]

The station was awarded Project of the Year, and the Conservation award, in 2019 in the Aberdeen Society of Architects annual design awards. [12]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aboyne railway station</span> Former railway station in Aberdeenshire, Scotland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Banchory railway station</span> Disused railway station in Banchory, Aberdeenshire

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holburn Street railway station</span> Disused railway station in Aberdeen, Scotland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dinnet railway station</span> Former railway station in Scotland

Dinnet railway station was opened on 17 October 1866 by the Aboyne and Braemar Railway and served Dinnet village from 1899 to 1966 as an intermediate station on the Deeside Railway that ran from Aberdeen (Joint) to Ballater. Dinnet is located close to the River Dee in the parish of Glenmuick, Tullich And Glengairn, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambus O'May railway station</span> Disused railway station in Scotland

Cambus O'May railway station or Cambus O'May Halt, served Aberdeenshire, Scotland from 1876 to 1966 on the Deeside Railway. It was intended to serve the anglers on the River Dee, tourists, the 1874 Cambus O'May House hunting lodge and the local population of this rural district and stood 39 3⁄8 miles (63.4 km) from the Aberdeen (Joint) station. It was the last stop before Ballater.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glassel railway station</span> Closed railway station in Britain

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aboyne Curling Pond railway station</span>

Aboyne Curling Pond railway station, Loch of Aboyne Platform or Curlers' Platform was a private station opened on the Deeside Extension Railway for the use of the curlers, who played on the nearby Loch of Aboyne close to the old Deeside Railway that ran from Aberdeen (Joint) to Ballater.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Cults railway station</span> Railway station

West Cults railway station served the small suburban village of West Cults area within the parish of Peterculter from 1894 to 1937 on the Deeside Railway that ran from Aberdeen (Joint) to Ballater. It lay very close to Cults and Bieldside.

References

  1. British Railways Atlas.1947. p.38
  2. 1 2 Grant, Donald J. (2017). Directory of the Railway Companies of Great Britain (1st ed.). Kibworth Beauchamp, Leicestershire: Troubador Publishing Ltd. pp. 6 & 142. ISBN   978-1-78803-768-6.
  3. McRae, Andrew (1997). British Railway Camping Coach Holidays: The 1930s & British Railways (London Midland Region). Vol. Scenes from the Past: 30 (Part One). Foxline. p. 11. ISBN   1-870119-48-7.
  4. Quick, Michael (2022) [2001]. Railway passenger stations in Great Britain: a chronology (PDF). version 5.04. Railway & Canal Historical Society. p. 64. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 November 2022.
  5. Hurst, Geoffrey (1992). Register of Closed Railways: 1948-1991. Worksop, Nottinghamshire: Milepost Publications. pp. 41 & 44 (refs 1921 & 2040). ISBN   0-9477-9618-5.
  6. "The Duke of Fife". The Glasgow Herald. 9 August 1912. p. 8.
  7. King Edward VIII, by Philip Ziegler, Kindle Edition, retrieved 2015.
  8. "Royal station in Ballater destroyed by fire". BBC News. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  9. "Fire-damaged Ballater station set to reopen". BBC News. 19 August 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
  10. "The old Royal Station at Ballater". Royal Deeside. Archived from the original on 24 July 2008. Retrieved 13 August 2008.
  11. "Aboyne to Ballater". www.deesideway.org. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  12. "ASA Design Awards 2019 – Winners & Commendations – ASA". aberdeenarchitects.org. Retrieved 18 March 2023.

Further reading

57°03′03″N3°02′25″W / 57.05074°N 3.04024°W / 57.05074; -3.04024