Over the past year I have been working on a web site dedicated to the Dundee & Newtyle Railway (D&N). Initially I used a lot of screen grabs from Google Street views and was very pleased at how many places I managed to get to. They were really good photographs. However, this April I carried out a very successful series of walk over much of the route and have replaced most of the Google views.
The D&N was the first passenger railway in the north of Scotland, opening in 1831 and in 1833 had the very first steam locomotives in Scotland. The first route contained three inclines, where trains were pulled up the gradients by stationary steam engines. A tunnel was built through the Dundee Law Hill at over 300 feet on the eastern flank. The Law Hill is very promonant to Dundee and seen from miles around. There is a large memorial at the summit. However, the D&N decided to build their railway straight over the top and through a tunnel, creating quite a unique railway for it's time.
By the mid 1860's the three gradients were gradually replaced by longer but faster diverging lines. The first at Ninewells Junction on the Perth line and going via Lochee. The second was from Rosemill Junction to Auchterhouse via a new station at Dronley and the third divergance between Auchterhouse and Newtyle. At both these places new stations were built but the original stations being kept as Goods yards and depots, on short branches, until the total closure of the line in the 60's.
The D&N joined the direct Perth to Aberdeen mainline at Alyth Junction and had a branch continuing to Alyth Town. A western junction allowed trains to run direct to Perth and included the Blairgowrie branch.
The three inclines were quite something on their own and it was interesting searching out the Summits to see what still remained after 140 years since their closure. The Law Tunnel has been blanked off at both ends and lie under new housing schemes. It was used as an air raid shelter during the two wars, to store dangerous items from nearby Kings Cross Hospital and to grow mushrooms. A section of narrow guage track still exists in the tunnel, which was used by the latter users.
To the north of the tunnel was Fairmuir Junction, where a goods branch went onto Muirfield Goods yard, with an extension to Maryfield Goods Yard. Both were high above the eastern side of Dundee. It was planned to extend the branch to join the Aberdeen mainline near Broughty Ferry but that never came to be.
Whatever. I hope that some of you will find this quite historical railway of some interst and enjoy browsing the hundreds of photographs that I have collected. There are some old photographs which others have kindly allowed me to use and where possible I have tried to form a number of Now & Then shots to show how things used to be, and what remains today.
http://theatreorgans.com/hammond/ke...yle Railway/Dundee & Newtyle Rlwy (Index).htm
The D&N was the first passenger railway in the north of Scotland, opening in 1831 and in 1833 had the very first steam locomotives in Scotland. The first route contained three inclines, where trains were pulled up the gradients by stationary steam engines. A tunnel was built through the Dundee Law Hill at over 300 feet on the eastern flank. The Law Hill is very promonant to Dundee and seen from miles around. There is a large memorial at the summit. However, the D&N decided to build their railway straight over the top and through a tunnel, creating quite a unique railway for it's time.
By the mid 1860's the three gradients were gradually replaced by longer but faster diverging lines. The first at Ninewells Junction on the Perth line and going via Lochee. The second was from Rosemill Junction to Auchterhouse via a new station at Dronley and the third divergance between Auchterhouse and Newtyle. At both these places new stations were built but the original stations being kept as Goods yards and depots, on short branches, until the total closure of the line in the 60's.
The D&N joined the direct Perth to Aberdeen mainline at Alyth Junction and had a branch continuing to Alyth Town. A western junction allowed trains to run direct to Perth and included the Blairgowrie branch.
The three inclines were quite something on their own and it was interesting searching out the Summits to see what still remained after 140 years since their closure. The Law Tunnel has been blanked off at both ends and lie under new housing schemes. It was used as an air raid shelter during the two wars, to store dangerous items from nearby Kings Cross Hospital and to grow mushrooms. A section of narrow guage track still exists in the tunnel, which was used by the latter users.
To the north of the tunnel was Fairmuir Junction, where a goods branch went onto Muirfield Goods yard, with an extension to Maryfield Goods Yard. Both were high above the eastern side of Dundee. It was planned to extend the branch to join the Aberdeen mainline near Broughty Ferry but that never came to be.
Whatever. I hope that some of you will find this quite historical railway of some interst and enjoy browsing the hundreds of photographs that I have collected. There are some old photographs which others have kindly allowed me to use and where possible I have tried to form a number of Now & Then shots to show how things used to be, and what remains today.
http://theatreorgans.com/hammond/ke...yle Railway/Dundee & Newtyle Rlwy (Index).htm