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.
The Nairn route was therefore on the main route from Inverness to Aberdeen, and from 1863 part of a new direct line to the south from Forres, the Inverness and Perth Junction Railway over a summit at Dava. On the opening of the Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway route in 1898 most southward trains were diverted away, to that route. Nowadays the Nairn line is part of the Inverness to Aberdeen route.
Aberdeen first
The engineer Joseph Mitchell, the driving force for railways at Inverness
As railways proliferated in the 1840s, the benefits to those places connected by them became plain. Local produce and manufactures could be got to market cheaply, and essential commodities could be brought in, also cheaply. Communities not connected to a railway suffered.
Aberdeen got its railway, connecting it to Central Scotland, in 1850,[1] and interests in Inverness looked for the possibility of a railway for their burgh. Whereas Aberdeen could connect southwards down a fertile and well-populated coastal strip, Inverness was isolated to the north of the Monadhliath Mountains. At the time it was scarcely conceivable that a railway could be carried over that formidable obstacle. In 1846 Parliament had thrown out a proposed railway directly connecting Inverness and Perth, as being impracticable.
Interests in Aberdeen proposed a line from there to Inverness, and in 1846 the Great North of Scotland Railway (GNoSR) was given its authorising Act of Parliament, but for a line from Aberdeen to Huntly only; the intention was to get authorisation for the remainder of the route later. Indeed it is likely that some interests in the GNoSR camp saw dominance of the whole of northern Scotland, via Aberdeen, as the end game, as implied by the company’s name.[2] However investors were reluctant to put money into the scheme, and of the £1.1 million of authorised capital, only £400,000 had been subscribed by 1852. Despite the deficient capital, the GNoSR line was tentatively opened for traffic in 1854.[3] Having taken stock, the Great North of Scotland Railway announced that they had decided to extend as far as Keith, but no further.
Inverness and Nairn
Nairn station in 2013
At the Inverness end of the line this seemed a very unsatisfactory position, and the engineer Joseph Mitchell (engineer) was energetic in 1853 in proposing railway connections from Inverness. With the GNoSR unwilling to build to Inverness as they had earlier promised, the time was right for Inverness interests to act. To avoid the huge expense of a lengthy and expensive line at the outset, he contented himself with promoting a line as far as Nairn, a distance of 15 miles. This he saw as the first step in a line turning south to Perth. Indeed the Parliamentary Bill was entitled, "The Inverness – Perth Railway section from Inverness to Nairn (or northern section)".
In Parliament the GNoSR lodged objections to the I&NR Bill, and it was urgently necessary to make peace with the Aberdeen company, which would be a formidable, and expensive, adversary. A draft agreement was drawn up, giving the GNoSR running powers over the I&NR line, from such time as the companies' lines met, and allowing for the GNoSR to have facilities for a booking clerk in the station at Inverness. On this basis, the Great North withdrew its opposition. The document, drawn up on 25 February 1854, was approved by the I&NR directors.[2]
The Bill got the Royal Assent on 24 July 1854.[4][5]
On 24 January 1855, a tender from Hawthorns of Leith for two engines, at £2,375 each, was accepted, and rolling stock to the value of £4,436 was also on order: three first-class, four third-class, carriages, and a van from Brown & Marshall; two carriage trucks and two cattle and sheep trucks from Faulds of Glasgow; and two horse-boxes, six timber trucks, and twenty open wagons from Watsons of Errol.[5]
So relatively short and level a line was no problem for Messrs Brassey and Falshaw, The line ran through easy terrain along the fertile coastal strip, and was soon ready. However it was not connected to any other line, and all the rolling stick and heavy construction components had to be brought in by coastal shipping, mostly from Leith. The selection of cargoes was rather chaotic and it considerably delayed the opening of the line.[6]
It was inspected by Lt Col Wynne for the Board of Trade on 3 October, but there were shortcomings in signals, turntables and rolling stock, and opening for passengers was refused. The line was reinspected on 27 October and the line opened for general traffic on 7 November 1855. There was a ceremonial opening on 5 November, and on that day and the following day certain special excursion tickets were sold. Large numbers travelled on those days.[7][8][9][5]
There were stations serving Inverness, Culloden, Dalcross, Fort George, Cawdor (not open at first, but only after a delay) and Nairn. The Inverness station had a single platform 20 yards long.[5] At Inverness there was a westward extension passing the station and running to a riverside location adjacent to Shore Street, reached at first by a wagon turntable. It was horse-operated.[note 1][10][5] The train service consisted of four trains each way daily, reduced to three daily from 1 December; the journey time was 45 minutes.[7] A goods service was started on 1 December 1855, including on the Harbour branch, but it was poorly patronised. Nevertheless the passenger service was very buoyant, and it was decided to order additional carriages to handle the anticipated extra traffic in the summer.[11][12][5]
The new railway stimulated an important traffic in pleasure visits to the seaside at Nairn; even in the first January of operation, about 300 farm workers were treated to a seaside trip by their employers.[13]
The Great North of Scotland Railway had been intended to complete the connection between Aberdeen and Nairn, but it had exhausted available capital and only reached Huntly at first, in 1854. Taking stock at that stage, it then decided to continue to Keith, opening in 1856.
Interests in Inverness had always seen the Nairn line as simply a first step, and during its construction phase plans were developed to extend towards Aberdeen. The Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway was authorised in 1856, opening from Nairn to Dalvey (Forres) on 22 December 1857 and taking over the working of the Inverness and Nairn Railway. The Aberdeen company opened through to Keith on 18 August 1858. The Nairn company's line was effectively part of the through route between Inverness and Aberdeen.[8]
On 17 May 1861, the Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway amalgamated with the Inverness and Nairn Railway.[14]
Passengers and goods between Inverness and the south were still subject to the great deviation through Aberdeen, and a more direct route southward was needed. This was eventually provided when the Inverness and Perth Junction Railway opened for traffic, on 9 September 1863. This started from Forres, cutting south over a summit at Dava, through wild and sparsely populated terrain before reaching Aviemore, and then onwards via Blair Atholl, Pitlochry and Dunkeld. For the time being therefore, the original Inverness and Nairn Railway section was part of the main line from Inverness to the south.[15]
On 1 February 1865, the Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway and the Inverness and Perth Junction Railway companies merged; the merger was authorised on 29 June 1865, and from that date the company was named the Highland Railway.[16]
The route to the south from Inverness was of prime importance to the company, but the long route round through Forres was increasingly disadvantageous. In 1898 the Highland Railway opened a new direct line from Inverness to Aviemore via Carrbridge, shortening the route by 26 miles.[17]
The earlier Dava route continued in operation, and some Inverness trains continued to use it. It was closed in 1965, and the Inverness and Nairn stretch was now simply a short part of the route between Inverness and Aberdeen.[note 2][18][19]
Subsequent history
The line was an intrinsic part of the Highland Railway. That company was a constituent of the new London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) from 1923 on the "Grouping" of the railways of Great Britain pursuant to the Railways Act 1921. Further organisational change took the LMS into national ownership in 1948 as part of British Railways.
On the opening of the line, the company had two small 2-2-2 locomotives known as the Raigmore class. These were known as Raigmore and Aldourie. These were found to be not compatible with the line's needs and were rebuilt as 2-4-0s. They lasted until 1901, when the Highland Railway scrapped them.
The dimensions of these locomotives in their original 2-2-2 form were:
cylinders:
15in ×20in (38cm ×51cm)
grate area:
12.25sqft (1.14m2)
wheel diameters:
leading:
3ft 6in (107cm)
driving:
6ft 0in (183cm)
trailing:
3ft 6in (107cm)
tender:
3ft 6in (107cm)
wheelbase:
engine:
6ft 10in (208cm) + 7ft 4in (224cm)
tender
8ft 0in (244cm)
water capacity:
1,100 imperial gallons (5,000L)
coal capacity
2.5 long tons (2.5t)
There is not much known about the Inverness and Nairn Railway stock, but it is clear that the coaches were four wheeled and from Marshall and Brown in Birmingham. These would have been similar to early GNSR types. It is also known that the company had a number of wagons and a brake van, all four wheel.
Inverness Harbour (goods siding); referred to for passenger use in Bradshaw's Guide between October 1863 and June 1867; (NB after absorption by the Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway and the opening of the Inverness and Ross-shire Railway);
Inverness; opened 7 November 1855; still open;
Culloden; opened 7 November 1855; renamed Allanfearn 1 November 1898; closed 3 May 1965;
Dalcross; opened 7 November 1855; closed 3 May 1965;
Fort George; opened 7 November 1855; renamed Gollanfield Junction 1 July 1899; renamed Gollanfield 1959; closed 3 May 1965;
Cawdor; opened 1 December 1855; renamed Kildrummie 1 January 1857; closed 1 January 1858; continued as private Platform for Earl of Cawdor; disused about 1880;
↑ The alignment as far as the bank of the River Ness was later used for the extension towards Clachnaharry.
↑ Except for the very short section on the immediate approach to Inverness station.
Related Research Articles
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.
The Great North of Scotland Railway (GNSR) was one of the two smallest of the five major Scottish railway companies prior to the 1923 Grouping, operating in the north-east of the country. Formed in 1845, it carried its first passengers the 39 miles (63 km) from Kittybrewster, in Aberdeen, to Huntly on 20 September 1854. By 1867 it owned 226+1⁄4 route miles (364.1 km) of line and operated over a further 61 miles (98 km).
The Highland Main Line is a railway line in Scotland. It is 118 mi (190 km) long and runs through the Scottish Highlands 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 services on the Kyle of Lochalsh Line. All trains are diesel-powered.
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Dalcross was a railway station located at Dalcross, to the east of Inverness, Scotland. It opened in 1855 and closed in 1965. A new station in Dalcross was proposed in the early 21st century, and was projected to open in 2019, but has been set back to the 2020s. The station is currently under construction and is projected to open in 2022.
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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.
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Broomhill railway station or Broomhill for Nethy Bridge railway station is a reconstructed railway station on the former Highland Railway main line which was originally built to serve the small villages of Nethy Bridge and Dulnain Bridge in Strathspey. It is at present the eastern terminus of the Strathspey Steam Railway.
The Banff, Portsoy and Strathisla Railway was a Scottish railway company that connected the Aberdeenshire ports of Banff and Portsoy with the main line of the Great North of Scotland Railway (GNoSR) main line at Grange, a place some distance east of Keith. The railway opened in 1859, and was renamed the Banffshire Railway in 1863 when the GNoSR began running services.
The Dava Way is a 38-kilometre (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-kilometre (95 mi) circular route known as the Moray Way. About 3,000 people use the path every year, of whom about 400 complete the entire route.
References
↑ John Thomas and David Turnock, A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: volume 15: North of Scotland, David St John Thomas (publisher), Newton Abbot, 1989, ISBN0946537-03-8, page 154
1 2 David Ross, The Highland Railway, Tempus Publishing, Stroud, 2005, ISBN0-7524-3479-9, pages 19 to 22
↑ M E Quick, Railway Passenger Stations in England, Wales and Scotland: A Chronology, version 5.03, September 2021, Railway and Canal Historical Society, electronic download, page 519
Keith Fenwick, The Inverness and Nairn Railway: Celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the Opening of the First Part of the Highland Railway, Highland Railway Society, 2005, ISBN978-0954548513 (51 pages).
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