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The Inverness and Nairn Railway was a railway worked by, and later absorbed by the Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway.
Contents
History
The line was opened in 1855 and connected the towns of Inverness and Nairn. Opening had been delayed from 1 August 1855 due to delays in the contractor's equipment arriving due to weather delays affecting the seaborne delivery. The line opened on 5 November 1855.
There were stations at Inverness, Culloden (later Allanfearn), Dalcross, Fort George (later Gollanfield Junction), Cawdor (later Kildrummie Platform) and Nairn. Kildrummie Platform was closed to the public in 1858 but retained as a private station for the Earl of Cawdor. On 17 May 1861 it became part of the Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway. The line was later absorbed by the Highland Railway, which in turn became part of the LMS in 1923.
Locomotives and stock
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:
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.
On the formation of the Inverness and Aberdeen Junction Railway, all of the stock passed into their hands.
British Railways and after
British Railways took control of the line at nationalisation in 1948, with the route becoming part of the Scottish Region. Subsequent economies saw all of the intermediate stations closed to passenger traffic, with most of them succumbing to the Beeching Axe in 1965. The only surviving stations on this line were Inverness and Nairn. Goods facilities stayed for a further three years but were also eventually stopped.
Connections to other lines
Current operations
The line is still open as part of the Aberdeen to Inverness service operated by Abellio ScotRail. None of the intermediate stations remain in use, though a new station for Inverness Airport has been proposed.