Duke of Sutherland's Railway

     Duke of Sutherland's Railway
Locale Scotland
Dates of operation 1 November 1870 – 28 July 1884
Successor line Highland Railway
Track gauge 4 ft 8 12 in (1,435 mm)
Up arrow Sutherland and Caithness Railway
Helmsdale
West Helmsdale
Loth
Brora
Dunrobin Castle
Golspie
Down arrow Sutherland Railway

The Duke of Sutherland's Railway was a railway built by the Duke of Sutherland. The Sutherland Railway, which opened in 1868, stopped at Golspie. The Duke paid for the continuation of the line to Brora, thus ensuring a service for his home, Dunrobin Castle.[1] The Duke also built another 11 miles to West Helmsdale, also known as Gartymore.

History

The Duke ran the line from opening on 1 November 1870 until the following year when (with the extension to Helmsdale), the Highland Railway took over the running of the line. When the line was extended to Helmsdale on 9 November 1871, West Helmsdale closed with Loth opening. The Highland Railway absorbed the line into their own network on 31 July 1884. Loth closed on 13 June 1960. Dunrobin Castle having opened with the line, has closed, reopened and closed, with the most recent reopening was in 30 June 1985.

Connections of other lines

The line today

The line is still open, being part of the Far North Line.

Regrets

The Duke of Sutherland expressed regrets that he hadn't known about the narrow gauge Festiniog Railway six years sooner, as he could have saved a lot of money. [2]

References

Notes

  1. The duke and his successors kept a carriage at Dunrobin."Archived copy". Archived from the original on 14 December 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  2. "THE RAILWAYS OF THE FUTURE". Illawarra Mercury (Wollongong, NSW : 1856 - 1950). Wollongong, NSW: National Library of Australia. 11 October 1872. p. 4. Retrieved 5 October 2015. SearchString = "Wished"

Sources

  • Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-8526-0049-7. OCLC 19514063. CN 8983.
  • Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
  • RAILSCOT article on Duke of Sutherland's Railway


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