91-619: The North Berwick Branch is a short railway branch line built by the North British Railway to connect North Berwick , in East Lothian, Scotland to the East Coast Main Line (at Drem ). It was built as a tactical means of excluding competitors from the area, and when it opened in 1850 it was loss making. The later development of North Berwick as a resort and a golfing centre transformed the branch line. Goods train operation on
182-562: A fresh bill for the Carlisle line in the 1859 session. Hodgson had agreed a takeover arrangement with the moribund Port Carlisle Dock and Railway Company and the Carlisle and Silloth Bay Railway and Dock Company . These lines had a Carlisle station, a connecting line to the Caledonian Railway at Carlisle Citadel station, and a west coast port, at Silloth. On 21 July 1859 the act of Parliament,
273-485: A government commission was established to determine the approved route. It was assumed for some time that only a single route was commercially viable. The commission, the Smith-Barlow Commission, deliberated for some time and presented an ambiguous report, and public opinion had moved on: numerous schemes for railways were proposed, not all of them practicable. During this frenzy, a group of businesspeople formed
364-623: A greater prize was acquired: the Edinburgh and Northern Railway had expanded from its origins and now, as the Edinburgh, Perth And Dundee Railway, it connected the places in its title, albeit with a ferry crossing of the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay . The EP&DR also had a branch from Stirling to Dunfermline, through highly productive coalfields, and it had already absorbed the Fife and Kinross Railway and
455-511: A large payment at the beginning. In early 1852, a new preference share issue failed, and at the Shareholders' meeting in March two directors resigned, and Learmonth was forced to declare that he too would go in due course. This was hardly a tenable position and on 13 May 1852 he resigned. James Balfour took over, but Balfour was not well suited to the role and he had little influence on the course of
546-678: A little over 12 + 1 ⁄ 2 hours; the East Coast journey included the two transshipments, at the Tweed and the Tyne. and the cheaper steamship service between Leith and London still took the bulk of the passenger traffic. Mineral traffic, in particular coal from the Lothian coalfield, was the largest source of revenue, although delivery to the West Coast harbours and the developing iron smelting industry in
637-427: A mile to North Berwick. The branch is four miles and seven chains in length. North British Railway The North British Railway was a British railway company, based in Edinburgh , Scotland. It was established in 1844, with the intention of linking with English railways at Berwick. The line opened in 1846, and from the outset the company followed a policy of expanding its geographical area, and competing with
728-478: A notice, stating the intention to make a 5.5% preference share issue in the amount of £1,875,625 (equivalent to £219,477,900 in 2023), covering all the financial liabilities of the company. On 22 December the Glasgow Herald carried an eight-line report that the interim chairman had stood down, and that John Stirling of Kippendavie had been appointed chairman. Amid the fireworks of railway management, in 1866
819-479: A popular resort, and many well-to-do families took houses there for the summer season; the breadwinner of the family travelled daily to a place of business in Edinburgh or Glasgow and the family remained in the resort. In the late Victorian and Edwardian era, golf also became increasingly popular, and the practice of travelling some distance for a game became established. The station facilities at North Berwick were upgraded in March 1894. The North British Railway put on
910-655: A race against competing railways: the main competitor was the Caledonian Railway , which planned to build from both Edinburgh and Glasgow to Carlisle, there linking with English railways that were building northwards. However the Caledonian was unable to secure enough subscriptions to present a bill to Parliament in 1844 and held over to the following year. The chairman of the North British Railway, John Learmonth, saw that capturing as much territory as possible for
1001-474: A refreshment car. The return service left Dunbar in the morning and picked up the North Berwick and Gullane portions at Drem and Longniddry, and it served breakfast. The train was said to have been the first British named train to carry a headboard with the train name. The Lothian Coast Express was suspended during World War I but it was reinstated in 1919. In 1923 the North British Railway was "grouped" under
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#17328517317381092-432: A separate line was provided for the branch to run independently to the station. The signalling system on the single line branch was by telegraph order. Traffic on the branch was not heavy, and the line made a loss. The Directors had promoted numerous lines at the time with the object of keeping other railways out of the area. This was the so-called "protection" policy, but a later shareholders' committee expressed regret that
1183-426: A single file) have two shafts that attach either side of the rearmost animal (the wheel animal or wheeler ). Two animals in single file are referred to as a tandem arrangement, and three as a randem . Vehicles that are pulled by a pair (or by a team of several pairs) have a pole that attaches between the wheel pair. Other arrangements are also possible, for example, three or more abreast (a troika ),
1274-413: A train service named The Lothian Coast Express . It ran from 12 June 1912 to August of that year. It ran in the afternoon from Glasgow to Dunbar, via Edinburgh Waverley. Ross states that the train ran through Waverley without stopping there, the only scheduled passenger train to do so. The train conveyed a Gullane portion, detached at Longniddry and a North Berwick portion, detached at Drem, and it conveyed
1365-443: A wheel pair with a single lead animal (a "unicorn"), or a wheel pair with three lead animals abreast (a "pickaxe"). Very heavy loads sometimes had an additional team behind to slow the vehicle down steep hills. Sometimes at a steep hill with frequent traffic, such a team would be hired to passing wagons to help them up or down the hill. Horse-drawn carriages have been in use for at least 3,500 years. Two-wheeled vehicles are balanced by
1456-453: A wide variety of arrangements of horses and vehicles have been used, from chariot racing , which involved a small vehicle and four horses abreast, to horsecars or trollies, which used two horses to pull a car that was used in cities before electric trams were developed. A two-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle is a cart (see various types below, both for carrying people and for goods). Four-wheeled vehicles have many names – one for heavy loads
1547-482: Is most commonly called a wagon . Very light carts and wagons can also be pulled by donkeys (much smaller than horses ), ponies or mules . Other smaller animals are occasionally used, such as large dogs , llamas and goats (see draught animals ). Heavy wagons, carts and agricultural implements can also be pulled by other large draught animals such as oxen , water buffalo , yaks or even camels and elephants . Vehicles pulled by one animal (or by animals in
1638-643: The Border Union (North British) Railways Act 1859 ( 22 & 23 Vict. c. xxiv), for the Carlisle Extension (now labelled the Border Union Railway ) and the act of Parliament permitting the acquisition of the Carlisle minor railways received royal assent. On the same day the Border Counties Railway was authorised; it had been supported by Hodgson, who saw access to Newcastle independently of
1729-462: The Caledonian Railway in particular. In doing so it committed huge sums of money, and incurred shareholder disapproval that resulted in two chairmen leaving the company. Nonetheless, the company successfully reached Carlisle, where it later made a partnership with the Midland Railway . It also linked from Edinburgh to Perth and Dundee, but for many years the journey involved a ferry crossing of
1820-611: The City of Glasgow Union Railway were eased. (At one time there had been thoughts of the NBR using a considerably expanded terminus on the line in alliance with the Glasgow and South Western Railway , but the cost would have been huge and it was not now possible to proceed. The Shareholders' Meeting of 12 September 1867 was told that arrangements had been made to deal with the £1,875,625 (equivalent to £209,777,300 in 2023) of debt already identified; but
1911-505: The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway (E&GR) in 1842 showed that a longer distance general purpose railway could be commercially successful. During the construction of the E&;GR, the money market had eased somewhat and a rapid development of long-distance railways took place in England. Scottish promoters began to consider how central Scotland could be connected to the growing English network, and
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#17328517317382002-402: The Edinburgh and Hawick Railway , a line criticised as being nearly as long as the main line, and running through relatively sparsely populated terrain; and a number of other expensive schemes were straining the NBR's finances. The North Berwick branch was now to be completed only when money became available. The Town Council of North Berwick were demanding a high price for the land required for
2093-741: The Kinross-shire Railway . In the same year the North British absorbed the West of Fife Railway and Harbour Company , giving further access to mineral-bearing areas and to Charlestown Harbour. Since the full opening of the Border Union Railway, passenger trains had terminated at the Canal station of the Port Carlisle Railway. By 1864 the line was double track throughout and from 1 July 1864
2184-579: The Monkland Railways , would join the NBR. The Edinburgh and Glasgow had a considerable system, including the Stirling to Dunfermline line and the Bathgate and Morningside line; moreover it was working the Glasgow, Dumbarton and Helensburgh Railway . The Monkland Railways had been formed in 1848 by the merging of several of the old "coal railways" operating around Airdrie and Coatbridge . Their main business
2275-584: The Newcastle and Berwick Railway and onwards to the growing English railway network. A Scottish network was forming too, and the competition between the promoters of proposed lines, and the directors of authorised lines, became intense. The first main line was to run east from Edinburgh, where there was to be a terminal station at the North Bridge, to East Linton, Dunbar and Berwick. The geographical position of North Berwick, and its lack of commercial significance at
2366-608: The Newcastle and Carlisle Railway (N&CR) at Hexham. The North Eastern Railway wished to absorb the N&;CR, and the NBR agreed to withdraw its opposition in an exchange of running powers. The NBR acquired the powers over the BCR line into Newcastle. This seemed a hugely important goal, although the route over the two Borders lines was long and arduous. The exchange was that the NER got running powers from Berwick to Edinburgh. If Hodgson believed that this
2457-480: The Newcastle and Carlisle Railway , striking north into presumed mineral-rich areas. It was authorised in 1854, and opened as far as Chollerford in 1858; its significance was the potential to enter the area between Carlisle and Hawick: in 1857 it presented a bill to Parliament to join the Hawick line. That was not successful, but Hodgson caused the NBR shareholders to vote £450,000 (equivalent to £54,224,300 in 2023) for
2548-478: The North Eastern Railway . It was absorbed by the NBR in 1860. The construction of the Border Union Railway was slow; goods operation from Carlisle to Scotch Dyke, not far from Longtown, started on 11 October 1861, and the entire line was opened for goods trains on 23 June 1862 and for passengers on 1 July 1862. The Border Counties Railway opened throughout on the same dates. The Border Counties joined
2639-466: The Railways Act 1921 , becoming a constituent of the new London and North Eastern Railway (LNER). From 1923 road competition started; at first it was limited but by the 1930s it was a serious alternative to the railway branch line. From 1924 a through sleeping car ran from London to North Berwick, detached from the main (Edinburgh) train at Drem. It ran in the summer season only, and in later years it
2730-455: The Waverley Route opened in stages from 1861, opening throughout on 1 August 1862. There was limited intermediate population, and the Caledonian Railway frustrated attempts to arrange through workings, or even through bookings, for passengers, and goods traffic was diverted away from the NBR. The NBR made use of its fortuitous connection to Silloth to ship goods onwards, but for the time being
2821-472: The Board decided to open the line as far as Williamston, The location was just short of the cutting. The Board of Trade inspection, required for passenger train opening, took place on 4 August and the line opened as far as Williamston on 13 August 1849. A temporary wooden platform was provided there, and horse conveyances took passengers on to North Berwick; there were four trains daily (except Sundays). Completion of
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2912-409: The Caledonian Railway, out. For some time shareholder opinion was with him, but over time disquiet took hold when the scale of the commitments was disclosed. In 1851, North British Railway £25 shares were trading at £6 (equivalent to £830 in 2023). At a shareholders meeting in 1851 it was pointed out that when the company's network had been 89 miles in extent revenue had been £39,304. Now the network
3003-665: The Caledonian were doing what they could to make the Waverley Route the source of the difficulties. By late 1869 the revenue sharing agreement was a dead letter. Horse-drawn vehicle A horse-drawn vehicle is a piece of equipment pulled by one or more horses. These vehicles typically have two or four wheels and were used to carry passengers or a load. They were once common worldwide, but they have mostly been replaced by automobiles and other forms of self-propelled transport but are still in use today. Horses were domesticated circa 3500 BCE. Before that oxen were used. Historically,
3094-462: The Carlisle extension from Hawick; such was his power of persuasion. However the bill presented to Parliament in the 1858 session was rejected, as was a competing Caledonian Railway Bill. Hodgson used the mutual rebuff to try to form an alliance with the Caledonian, building and operating the line jointly. His objective was obviously to achieve access through Carlisle southwards, but the Caledonian saw through that and turned him down. The NBR presented
3185-571: The Directors had undertaken the building of the line. Efforts were made to encourage the high class residential traffic that had been originally contemplated, by offering very attractive season ticket rates to the first occupiers of new houses near the line. Cost savings were attempted when a vehicle built for horse traction on the Leith branch of the Dalkeith line was tried on the North Berwick line. A pathway in
3276-431: The Edinburgh area, and diesel multiple unit trains were introduced on the branch passenger services from 23 July 1956, when a demonstration run took place, and from 3 February 1958 a recast diesel operated service ran on a regular interval basis, with all trains running to Edinburgh Waverley and some continuing to Corstorphine. Some steam working continued for the time being. Meanwhile, the goods business had collapsed, and it
3367-463: The English portion of a route from London to Edinburgh. Hudson made an offer to purchase the North British Railway (through the medium of his own companies) for 8% on the NBR capital. Hudson's offer placed a high value on the NBR, but it was rejected by the North British Railway shareholders on the advice of their chairman. Parliament had declined to authorised the NBR line throughout to Carlisle, and for
3458-623: The Forth and the Tay. Eventually the North British built the Tay Bridge , but the structure collapsed as a train was crossing in high wind. The company survived the setback and opened a second Tay Bridge, followed soon by the Forth Bridge , which together transformed the railway network north of Edinburgh. Early on, mineral traffic became dominant and brought in much more revenue than the passenger services. At
3549-452: The Hawick line. Not all of these were built, but in addition to the Haddington branch, which had opened contemporaneously with the main line, several were opened in the period to 1855. These were: The Caledonian Railway had been able to offer a through rail service without change of train via Carstairs since March 1848. The fastest trains between Edinburgh and London on both routes then took
3640-486: The Monklands was problematical. The Chairman of the North British Railway was John Learmonth. From the outset he had seen that expansion of the North British Railway was the way forward, and with allies on the Board he had invested heavily, both personally and through the company, in subscriptions to other railways. In some cases this was to extend the system profitably, but in many it was simply to keep rival lines, especially
3731-419: The NBR had formally purchased the Edinburgh and Hawick Railway, first openings took place in 1847 but it was not until 1 November 1849 that the line was open throughout to Hawick. For the time being Learmonth's objective of a line reaching Carlisle, which was later to become the Waverley Route , was on hold. The NBR obtained Parliamentary authority in 1846 to build numerous branches off its main line and off
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3822-465: The NBR. The Selkirk line was absorbed by the NBR in 1859, and the Jedburgh Railway in 1860. Hodgson reiterated Learmonth's statement that extending from Hawick to Carlisle was a priority. The water was muddied by the Caledonian Railway's stated intention to build its own branch from Carlisle to Hawick, and then by the independent Border Counties Railway . This was a speculative line from Hexham, on
3913-560: The North British Railway Company to build a line from Edinburgh to Berwick (later named Berwick-on-Tweed with a branch to Haddington . They got their authorising act of Parliament, the North British Railway Act 1844 ( 7 & 8 Vict. c. lxvi). The Newcastle and Berwick Railway was building its line, and in time they would form part of a through chain of railways between Edinburgh and London. This had been
4004-449: The North British was essential in the competitive struggle. He prepared plans to build a second main line from Edinburgh to Carlisle through Hawick , and also attempted to gain control of the Edinburgh and Perth Railway company, which was itself preparing plans for its line. In the 1845 session of Parliament Learmonth secured authorising acts of Parliament for numerous branch lines, mostly to forestall incursion by competitors. In addition,
4095-562: The North British. He too left the company, and in 1855 Richard Hodgson took over. His task was formidable; no dividend was paid to ordinary shareholders for some time. By September 1856, Hodgson had routed an opposing faction on the board, and operating expenses were down to 44%. At a special shareholders' meeting on 15 July 1856 he announced that the company's money bill, the North British Railway (Finance and Bridge) Act 1856 ( 19 & 20 Vict. c. lxiii), had been passed, enabling
4186-418: The accommodation of particular districts, so that it will in a great measure rest with the local interests, whether or not such works shall be immediately proceeded with. Building on the improved relations with the Caledonian, Kippendavie reached a revenue sharing arrangement with that company on 16 January 1868; the agreement included refrain from opposing time extension on NBR projects that had been delayed by
4277-445: The accounts from year to year so as to show to the shareholders and divide among them a revenue which was not in existence and was known not to have been earned; but it was a careful and most ingenious fabrication of imaginary accounts, begun and carried on from time to time for the purpose of supporting the falsified half yearly statements of revenue and the general misrepresentation of affairs The board resigned, only four remaining for
4368-406: The branch ceased in 1968, but the line was electrified at 25 kV AC overhead in 1991 and now enjoys a regular ScotRail passenger service to Edinburgh. The North British Railway obtained its authorising Act of Parliament in the 1844 session, to build a line from Edinburgh to Berwick (later known as Berwick-upon-Tweed ). From the outset this was to be a trunk railway, connecting at Berwick with
4459-474: The branch was substantially reduced during World War II and not much enhanced after 1945. Dirleton station was always isolated, and its use by a few passengers declined too, and on 1 February 1954 the station was closed to passengers. The LNER had been nationalised in 1948, and British Railways Scottish Region was the organisational unit in control. The branch was loss-making, and in attempt to revive it, British Railways implemented some modernisation schemes in
4550-510: The centre of the track had to be made for the horse, at a cost of £65. The passenger service was reduced to two return trips daily by the horse-drawn vehicle (referred to as "the Dandy"), and the new arrangement started on 1 November 1856, as the winter traffic was light. The goods traffic on the branch was handled by the main line pick-up goods train, which now travelled up and down the branch as well; this disrupted and extended onward goods transits on
4641-573: The company are under obligations to construct new lines, involving a further amount of £2,600,000. It s essential to limit this liability... but [the Directors] do not consider an indiscriminate abandonment of works to be desirable. Accordingly provision is made in the Finance Act for constituting certain of the unexpected works into separate undertakings... It is to local parties that the Directors look for subscriptions to construct branch lines, required for
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#17328517317384732-527: The company to issue shares and to pay down debt with the money raised: he announced, somewhat prematurely, that the company was free from debt. The Ordinary Shareholders would get a dividend of 2.5%. In April 1856, the independent Selkirk and Galashiels Railway opened its line, to be worked by the NBR; this was followed in July 1856 by the Jedburgh Railway , connecting with the NBR at Roxburgh and also worked by
4823-468: The continuation of the line through the town, and the NBR reviewed its plan to extend to the harbour, eventually (in November 1848) deciding to abandon that part of the branch line plan. In fact the land acquisition for the shortened line as actually built cost £18,949 compared with £7,083 estimated. Remarkably, the branch was being constructed as a double line; "a mistake" according to Thomas. In early 1849 it
4914-524: The cost of electrifying the North Berwick branch, at a cost of £1.3 million. The overhead line equipment was energised on 18 May 1991. Finding rolling stock for the service was not easy, and after some research five units of class 305/2, built in 1960 and employed up until then in the London commuter area, were obtained. Internal layout changes were made and through corridor connections fitted. The full electric train service started operation on 8 July 1991. Although
5005-417: The distribution of weight of the load (driver, passengers, and goods) over the axle, and then held level by the animal – this means that the shafts (or sometimes a pole for two animals) must be fixed rigidly to the vehicle's body. Four-wheeled vehicles remain level on their own, and so the shafts or pole are hinged vertically, allowing them to rise and fall with the movement of the animals. A four-wheeled vehicle
5096-454: The finance committee to the true state of the NBR's finances. A new preference share issue had flopped, and it proved impossible to pay debenture interest and preference share guaranteed dividends. Evidently it was intended to pay the dividend out of new capital; North British ordinary shares fell overnight by 8% after this revelation. Widespread financial impropriety and falsification of accounts were disclosed, all laid at Hodgson's door, and this
5187-470: The financial turmoil. By 1869, the Caledonian and the NBR were once again at loggerheads; the main issue now was the Waverley Route, and the proportion of traffic attributable to it. It emerged that the Caledonian had secretly concluded a pact with the London and North Western Railway in 1867; the arrangement excluded the North British from nearly all goods traffic, and its revelation damaged good feeling: indeed
5278-400: The first part of the line to Carlisle, the Edinburgh and Hawick Railway, was authorised: it was nominally independent, but in fact the shares were all owned by Learmonth and other NBR directors. Also in the 1845 session, the Caledonian Railway was authorised. The Caledonian was to prove a bitter rival. The Edinburgh and Perth Railway failed to get parliamentary authorisation. The line to Hawick
5369-562: The grouping of the railways in 1923, the North British Railway was the largest railway company in Scotland, and the fifth largest in the United Kingdom. In that year it became a constituent of the new London and North Eastern Railway . Early railways in Scotland had been mainly involved with conveyance of minerals, chiefly coal and limestone in the earliest times, a short distance to a river or coastal harbour for onward transport. The opening of
5460-421: The line took longer than expected, and it was not until 17 June 1850 that the line opened throughout, with an intermediate station at Dirleton; Williamston was closed on the same day. The line joined the main line some distance east of Drem station; the station itself had two platforms, with no separate bay for the branch trains that terminated there. The construction of the line had cost £116,766. At some later date
5551-516: The line was of doubtful value considering its expense. It was not until the Midland Railway completed the Settle and Carlisle line in 1875 (for goods: passenger traffic started in 1876), that the North British had a willing English partner at Carlisle. After two years of construction, the Berwickshire Railway opened part of its line from St Boswells to Dunse (later spelt Duns) in 1865. The line
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#17328517317385642-406: The main line. John Scott, an Edinburgh solicitor raised a case against the North British Railway that he had been induced to take up residence in North Berwick and that the discontinuance of the steam-operated service was prejudicial to his rights. He claimed £5,000 in damages from the NBR. His case was eventually thrown out, but protracted legal proceedings provided much entertainment for readers of
5733-600: The matter. As well as the railways mentioned, the merger gave the North British a share of the City of Glasgow Union Railway which was then under construction. When complete, that line would give the North British access shipping berths on the Clyde at General Terminus over the General Terminus and Glasgow Harbour Railway . The NBR grew to have, by the summer of 1865, about 450 mi (720 km) of route, almost equally divided between double- and single-track. In addition it
5824-420: The merged company was absorbed by the North British. Although some commentators had expected that the E&GR might have absorbed the NBR, the reality was that the new board consisted of 13 former NBR directors and two E&G men. The NBR habitually ran trains on Sundays and started doing so on the E&GR main line, which had not. This ignited fresh protests from Sabbatarians but the NBR stuck to its position on
5915-593: The new line from Monktonhall to Dalkeith via Smeaton opened, as did the Blane Valley Railway . Passenger services on the latter did not start until 1867, in common with the opening of the Esk Valle Railway . The company now sought to grow revenues on the existing network. A rapprochement was reached with the Caledonian Railway—Kippendavie came from that railway's Board—and commitments to
6006-598: The newspapers of the area. The horse operated service evidently did not achieve the savings the company had hoped for, and from 1 May 1857 a steam operated service of four daily mixed trains was resumed. The Dandy car was never used on the branch again, and about 1859 it was sold to the Carlisle and Silloth Bay Railway who used it on the Silloth branch. It is now preserved at the National Railway Museum in York . About 1860
6097-443: The old electric multiple unit trains suffered reliability problems, and lacked air conditioning, their high-density seating layout abolished the overcrowding that had been experienced at peak times, and they proved surprisingly popular. Leaving Drem Junction, the line falls at 1 in 110 for nearly half a mile, then becoming level. Next it climbs at 1 in 93 for a mile, then falling at 1 in 2348 for 1½ miles, finally falling at 1 in 66 for
6188-442: The passenger service, running through from North Berwick to Edinburgh, until the late 1930s. The Lothian Coast Express continued running, but changing business patterns meant that fewer business people wished to use the train, and 1934 was the last season in which it ran. Goods traffic declined substantially in the period to 1939 as road transport became the normal means of transport for agricultural produce. The passenger service on
6279-509: The passenger trains were diverted over the Caledonian Railway connecting line, to terminate in Citadel station. The financial position was somewhat better and a 2% dividend on ordinary shares was announced in August. There was more excitement to come: the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway had for years seemed to be on the point of joining in with the Caledonian Railway, but now it seemed that it, together with
6370-498: The public. There were five trains daily, with an additional ten short journeys between Edinburgh and Musselburgh . A Sunday service was operated, in the face of considerable opposition from those of a religious point of view. At first the Newcastle and Berwick Railway was not ready, and passengers and goods to London had to be conveyed by road from Berwick to Newcastle. From 1 July 1847 it was open between Tweedmouth (opposite Berwick on
6461-457: The sake of continuity, and the previous statement of accounts and the declared dividend were reversed. No dividend was paid and warrants bearing 4% interest "until paid" were issued in their place, The meeting was naturally lengthy and at times stormy; a verbatim report occupied two and a half pages of the Glasgow Herald the next day. On 12 December 1866, the interim Chairman of the Company published
6552-633: The south side of the River Tweed ) and Newcastle upon Tyne. The North British Railway was able to advertise a train service from Edinburgh to London, although passengers and goods needed to be conveyed by road across the Tweed at Berwick, and across the River Tyne at Newcastle: the two river bridges were still under construction. It was not until 1850 that the permanent bridges were inaugurated, by Queen Victoria , although some working over temporary structures had already taken place. The station at Edinburgh
6643-499: The time being Hawick was to be the southern terminus, although the plan to construct to Carlisle later was made manifest. As the Edinburgh end was to use the old Edinburgh and Dalkeith alignment, some connections between the NBR and that line had to be made, as well as the upgrading of the E&DR line, doubling the single line section beyond Dalkeith , and construction of a new viaduct over the River South Esk and Dalhousie. After
6734-435: The time, meant that it was not to be on the main line, although it was a Royal Burgh with a population of 1,600. However, in the frenzied atmosphere of competition, the Directors became alarmed at the possibility of rival railways entering the area, and at this early date, abstracting traffic. A line from Dalkeith to East Linton was being proposed, and it was suspected that the railway financier George Hudson , earlier an ally,
6825-455: The train staff and ticket system of signalling control was introduced on the branch. On the North Berwick branch subsequently a small 0-4-2 well-tank locomotive, no 20, was the regular motive power. From about 1875 golf became of considerable popularity and began to bring traffic to the line, and in the season regular through trains from Edinburgh were put on. A ticket platform was erected just short of North Berwick station. North Berwick became
6916-436: Was 146 miles and revenue was £39,967 (equivalent to £5,527,460 in 2023). Huge sums were being written off in failed ventures, while equally huge sums were being sought for new ones. Some shareholders remembered George Hudson's offer of 8% for the company in 1847, which had been refused. It was noted that the Caledonian Railway was equally determined to enlarge its system, but was doing so by leasing smaller companies, avoiding
7007-476: Was an equitable exchange, he was soon rid of the belief, for the NER was now able to run through line goods and passenger trains right in to Edinburgh on the main line. Hodgson's faith in the Carlisle connection was equally ill-founded; facilities for through bookings and working south of Carlisle were refused. The capital commitment again swamped the financial resources of the company and the dividend sank to 1%. The Border Union Line, which soon became known as
7098-732: Was behind a move to make this part of the main route from Edinburgh in place of their own (as yet unbuilt) line. To head off this threat, the Directors of the North British Railway set about getting authorisation for branch lines to several places adjacent to their main line, to pre-empt the rival incursion. In addition, North Berwick was judged to have the potential for the construction of superior residential districts for Edinburgh merchants, who might travel daily to their place of business, by train. A special shareholders' meeting held on 9 February 1846 approved four Bills to go to Parliament for branch lines; one of these swept up branches to Duns, North Berwick, Tranent and Cockenzie; estimated capital required
7189-468: Was discontinued from 1 January 1968, and the line was reduced to a single line without siding or loop facilities. In 1968 British Railways proposed complete closure of the branch on the ground that it was loss-making, but the Minister of Transport refused consent, and the line continued in use. However further economies had to be made, and this included a substantial reduction in the train service pattern; this
7280-544: Was introduced from 4 January 1970. In January 1985 the traditional station buildings were demolished, having become unsafe, and a new simple shelter was erected. The single platform was shortened by 50 yards. In October 1990 the Scottish section of the East Coast Main Line was electrified, and shortly before the day of switching on the power, agreement was reached between British Rail and Lothian Regional Council to share
7371-583: Was limited to funding the Parliamentary deposits of prospective friendly branch line companies, with provisional agreements to work their lines. Some changes to the Dalkeith line connections around Edinburgh were made, including feeding the Leith line and the Musselburgh line directly from the main line at Portobello and Wanton Walls respectively. From July 1861, the Peebles Railway line was leased. In 1862,
7462-512: Was located in a depression between the Old and New Towns; this had early been a disreputable and insanitary swamp called the Nor' Loch, although steps had been taken to provide ornamental gardens on part of the area. The North British Railway obtained a cramped site close to the North Bridge, and the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway extended their line from their terminus at Haymarket to meet the NBR. The new station
7553-456: Was operated jointly, and was simply called "the Edinburgh station" or "the North Bridge station". It also came to be referred to as "the General station", and much later it was named " Waverley station ". The English railway entrepreneur George Hudson was expanding his portfolio of railways and in 1847 his York and Newcastle Railway and the Newcastle and Berwick Railway were close to completing
7644-460: Was reduced to Friday northwards and Sunday southwards. A single first class sleeping car vehicle was used. The service ceased in 1939. In an attempt to reduce costs, the LNER introduced Sentinel steam railcars on the North Berwick branch. Trials were carried out in 1928 and from 1930 the railcars regularly appeared on the branch. They were not an unqualified success, but they continued operating part of
7735-454: Was reported that the earthworks for the line were substantially complete but that the permanent way was only partly laid, and the decision was taken to lift one of the (incomplete) tracks so as to finish a single line. At this stage it emerged that the remaining earthwork was a deep cutting approaching North Berwick, and in August 1849 the Directors ordered that the cutting should be formed for a single line only. In order to generate some income,
7826-403: Was reported to a Special General Meeting on 14 November 1866. Hodgson did not attend; instead he sent a letter of resignation, and blamed bad headaches for preventing him from being present. John Balfour, the former chairman, took the chair for the meeting. The Committee of enquiry submitted a lengthy report, which included the statement that there had been not merely deliberate falsification of
7917-462: Was still mineral traffic, and although their operating costs were high, they made a comfortable profit. On 4 July 1865, an act of Parliament, the Edinburgh and Glasgow and Monkland Railways Amalgamation Act 1865 ( 28 & 29 Vict. c. ccxvii) was passed authorising the merger and it took place on 31 July between the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway and the Monkland Railways, and the following day
8008-410: Was to use the route of the obsolescent Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway , a horse-operated line with a non-standard gauge of sleeper-block track, and a large sum had to be allocated to converting that line to main line standards. All these plans for expansion were committing huge sums of money even before the main line was ready. At last on 22 June 1846 the line to Berwick and Haddington was open to
8099-441: Was worked by the NBR and formed a continuous route with the earlier Dunse branch. The Berwickshire Railway was heavily supported by the NBR, probably as a strategic measure to keep the Caledonian Railway out of the district. The NBR absorbed it in 1876. Due to Hodgson's improved management in the period to 1862, the financial position was greatly improved. Dividends on ordinary shares up to 3% became regular. Geographical expansion
8190-465: Was working another 40 mi (64 km) of single track for independent companies. In 1866, comparison with the Caledonian Railway showed that company to be in better shape: In the spring of 1866, Hodgson declared a 3% dividend on ordinary shares, but the share price continued to decline. In the Autumn of 1866 Hodgson was again proposing a dividend of 3% but a new company secretary, John Walker, alerted
8281-479: Was £170,000. On 16 June 1846 the Royal Assent was granted to a North British Railway Act for the branch lines, including one to North Berwick from Drem. At North Berwick the line was to extend through the town a far as the harbour. Contracts for construction were let in early 1847, but financial problems for the North British began to set in. Although the main line had been built, the Company had committed to building
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