Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway
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Stations in bold are still open Junctions in italics
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The Edinburgh and Dalkieth Railway received the royal assent on 26 May 1826 as a horse-drawn tramway to the Scotch gauge, of 4 ft 6 in (1371 mm), to link various coal mines to the south east of Edinburgh.[1][2]
Due to the success of the enterprise, the North British Railway had to pay £113,000 (Pound Sterling) for the line, with the sale being completed in October 1845.[2] It was subsequently converted to standard gauge, reopening in July 1847.[2]
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[edit] Formation
The original Act of Parliament authorised £10,125 of joint stock capital, and the main line was opened in part for traffic in July 1831.[1][2] Further parts were opened in October, with passengers first being carried in July 1832.
Two further Acts were obtained; the first Act on 4 June 1829, raising £8,053, sanctioned the Leith Branch, running from Niddrie to Leith.[1][3] The second Act, in 1834, raised £54,875, authorising further branches to Fisherrow and Musselburgh; and allowing a certain amount of passenger traffic by horse-drawn railway coaches.[1][3]
[edit] The route
[edit] The main line
The railway line started life as a horse-drawn, coal carrying, tramway linking a number of collieries to Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth. It initially ran between South Esk and St Leonards; some 8¼ miles (13 km) in length.[1] It opened on 4 July 1831 and was laid as a double track.[2][4]
The final St Leonards section included a gravity-operated incline, which passed through a 572 yard (515 m) tunnel lit by gas lamps.[1][2] The incline had a gradient of 1 in 30 and was worked by a stationery a steam winding engine. [3]
The branch to Fisherrow Harbour, Musselburgh, on the Firth of Forth, opened in October 1831.[1][4]
[edit] Leith branch
The Leith branch was partially opened in March 1835 and fully brought into use in July 1838.[3][4]
[edit] Dalkeith branch
To be added
[edit] Expansion
To be added
[edit] Connections to other Lines
- Edinburgh Suburban and Southside Junction Railway at Duddingston Junction
- North British Railway at Niddrie South Junction
- Edinburgh, Loanhead and Roslin Railway at Millerhill
- Edinburgh and Hawick Railway (including Marquis of Lothian's waggonway) at Dalhousie
[edit] Innocent Railway
- Further information is provided in the article Innocent Railway
The line acquired the name Innocent Railway because of its safety record, despite carrying up to 400,000 passengers per year, no-one was ever killed.
[edit] References
[edit] Further reading
- Awdry, Christopher, (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. London: Guild Publishing.
- Jowett, Alan (1993). Jowett's Railway Centres. Volume 1. Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Limited. ISBN 1-85260-420-4.
- Lewin, Henry Grote (1925). Early British Railways. A short history of their origin & development: 1801-1844. London: The Locomotive Publishing Co Ltd.
- Thomas, John (1971). A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain. Volume VI Scotland: The Lowlands and the Borders. Newton Abbott: David & Charles. ISBN 0-7153-5408-6.
- Popplewell, Lawrence (1989). A Gazetteer of the Railway Contractors and Engineers of Scotland 1831 - 1870. (Vol. 1: 1831 - 1870 and Vol. 2: 1871 - 1914). Bournmouth: Melledgen Press. ISBN 0-906637-14-7.
- Whishaw, Francis (1842). The Railways of Great Britain and Ireland practically described and illustrated. Second Edition. London: John Weale. Reprinted and republished 1969, Newton Abbott: David & Charles. ISBN 0-7153-4786-1.
[edit] Links
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