The Culloden Viaduct is a railway viaduct on the Highland Main Line, to the east of the city of Inverness, in the Highland council area of Scotland.
It was designed by Murdoch Paterson [1] and opened in 1898 as part of the Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway, which was built by the Highland Railway. The 29 span viaduct crosses the wide valley of the River Nairn. At 1800 ft (549 m) in length, it is the longest masonry viaduct in Scotland.
Historic Scotland added the viaduct to its "Category A listed building" protected status on October 5, 1971. [2] It is nearby two important sites: Culloden battlefield and the Clava cairn, a trio of Bronze Age burial cairns.
Culloden Moor railway station was situated at the northern end of the viaduct, but the station was closed in the 1960s. The viaduct remains in use as of 2024.
It is known also as the Nairn Viaduct, the Culloden Moor Viaduct or the Clava Viaduct. [1]
Grantown-on-Spey is a town in the Highland Council Area, historically within the county of Moray. It is located on a low plateau at Freuchie beside the river Spey at the northern edge of the Cairngorm mountains, about 20 miles (32 km) south-east of Inverness.
The County of Nairn is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. The county was used for local administration until the county council, based at the county town of Nairn, was abolished in 1975 under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, the area becoming one of the eight districts of the two-tier Highland region. This arrangement ended in 1996 when the Highland council area was made a unitary authority.
The Highland Railway (HR) was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921, operating north of Perth railway station in Scotland and serving the farthest north of Britain. Based in Inverness, the company was formed by merger in 1865, absorbing over 249 miles (401 km) of line. It continued to expand, reaching Wick and Thurso in the north and Kyle of Lochalsh in the west, eventually serving the counties of Caithness, Sutherland, Ross & Cromarty, Inverness, Perth, Nairn, Moray and Banff. Southward it connected with the Caledonian Railway at Stanley Junction, north of Perth, and eastward with the Great North of Scotland Railway at Boat of Garten, Elgin, Keith and Portessie.
Culloden is a village three miles east of Inverness, Scotland and the surrounding area. 3 mi (5 km) east of the village is Drumossie Moor, site of the Battle of Culloden.
The Strathspey Railway (SR) in Badenoch and Strathspey, Highland, Scotland, operates a ten-mile (16 km) heritage railway from Aviemore to Broomhill, Highland via Boat of Garten, part of the former Inverness and Perth Junction Railway which linked Aviemore with Forres. It is one of only a handful of former primary/secondary main lines to be preserved in Britain today.
The Highland Main Line is a railway line in Scotland. It is 118 mi (190 km) long and runs through the central Scottish Highlands, mainly following the route of the A9, and linking a series of small towns and villages with Perth at one end and Inverness at the other. Today, services between Inverness and Edinburgh, Glasgow and London use the line. At Inverness the line connects with the Far North Line, the Aberdeen-Inverness Line and the Kyle of Lochalsh Line. All trains are diesel-powered.
Aviemore railway station serves the town and tourist resort of Aviemore in the Highlands of Scotland. The station, which is owned by Network Rail (NR) and managed by ScotRail, is on the Highland Main Line, 83 miles 31 chains from Perth, between Kingussie and Carrbridge, and is also the southern terminus of the Strathspey preserved railway.
Nairn railway station is a railway station serving the town of Nairn in Scotland. The station is managed and served by ScotRail and is on the Aberdeen to Inverness Line, between Forres and Inverness Airport, measured 128 miles 72 chains (207.4 km) from Perth via the former Dava route. It is a category B listed building.
The Inverness and Nairn Railway was a railway company that operated between the burghs in the company name. It opened its line in 1855 and its passenger business was instantly successful. At first it was not connected to any other line. However it was seen as a first step towards connecting Inverness and Central Scotland, via Aberdeen and when feasible, directly southwards.
Allanfearn was a railway station located near Culloden, outside Inverness, Highland, Scotland. It was initially named Culloden when opened, but was renamed to Allanfearn in November 1898, to avoid confusion with the station at Culloden Moor on the newly opened direct line from Inverness to Aviemore.
The Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway was a section of railway built by the Highland Railway to provide a shorter and more direct route between Inverness and Aviemore, carrying its main line traffic to Perth and the south.
The Inverness and Perth Junction Railway (I&PJR) was a railway company that built a line providing a more direct route between Inverness and the south for passengers and goods. Up to the time of its opening, the only route was a circuitous way through Aberdeen. The I&PJR was built from a junction with the friendly Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway at Forres to the Perth and Dunkeld Railway at Dunkeld.
Daviot railway station served the village of Daviot, Highland, Scotland, from 1897 to 1965 on the Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway.
Culloden Moor railway station served the village of Culloden, Highland, Scotland from 1898 to 1965 on the Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway.
The River Nairn is a 35 mile long river in the Scottish Highlands.
Strathnairn is an area of the Scottish Highlands approximately 8 miles southwest of Inverness, bordering the Monadhliath Mountains. The Strath's borders reach to the north where Clava cairn and the Battle of Culloden lie, following the River Nairn south through Daviot, Farr, Brin, Croachy, and finally ending near Dunmaglass.
The Dava Way is a 38 km (24 mi) long-distance path that mostly follows the route of the former Highland Railway between Grantown and Forres. The railway line, built as a route between Inverness and Perth, opened in 1863 and closed in 1965. The route was reopened as a long distance path in 2005. It is listed as one of Scotland's Great Trails by NatureScot, and links directly to two further Great Trails: the Moray Coast Trail and the Speyside Way. It is currently the shortest of the Great Trails, but can be combined with sections of the Moray Coast Trail and Speyside Way to form a 153 km (95 mi) circular route known as the Moray Way. About 5,000 people use the path every year, of whom about 400 complete the entire route.
Murdoch Paterson was an engineer and architect based in Inverness, Scotland, who was chief engineer of the Highland Railway.
There are three Clava cairns in or near the Scottish Highland town of Aviemore. All three were described by Caleb George Cash, an honorary fellow of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, in 1906.
57°28′41″N4°03′46″W / 57.4780°N 4.0627°W