Beattock
Location type
StationName and dates
Beattock (1847-1972)Station code: National Rail
Opened on the Caledonian Railway.
Opened on the Moffat Railway.
Description
Beattock is a village but it had a fine station with superior buildings. This was a three platform station on the Glasgow-Carlisle main line. There were two main line platforms and a bay at the north end, on the east side, for the Moffat Railway. Going north from Beattock is the climb to Beattock Summit.
The main station building was on the southbound platform. It was not dissimilar to that which survives at Lockerbie. There was a waiting room on the northbound platform.
Access to the northbound platform was by covered footbridge from the southbound as a goods bypass line ran down its west side, making it an island (although with only one face, on the main line).
The nearby 'B' listed stationmaster's house is of a similar design to the former main building.
The architect for the main building, stationmaster's house and a nearby gatehouse was probably William Tite.
There was a large water tank at the north end of the northbound platform.
The goods loop split and rejoined the main at the north end of the northbound platform and passed round the west side of a locomotive shed to rejoin even further north. The locomotive shed (Beattock Shed) was double ended and two road. The shed provided banking engines for the climb to Beattock Summit and a locomotive for the branch to Moffat.
The goods yard was on the east side of the line, north of the passenger platforms. It was approached by reversal from the station to reversing spurs at the north end of the site.
The Moffat branch (1883) started from the bay, joined the goods yard lines and passed round the west side of the reversing spurs before striking off north east to Moffat.
There were two signal boxes. Beattock South was at the south end of the station and on the west side, where the goods bypass took off from the main line. The north box was north of the station with the main line on its east side and loco shed and goods bypass line behind on its west side.
The Moffat branch closed to passengers in 1954 and completely in 1964 (or 66, sources vary).
The platforms were removed quickly after closure to passengers in 1972. The station buildings were demolished afterwards. However the stationmaster's house, of a similar design, remains albeit in poor condition.
The boxes closed in 1972, replaced with a temporary panel box which in turn was replaced by the Motherwell Signalling Centre in 1973.
The lines were remodelled for electrification. Sidings on the west side of the station, the former shed area, are used for goods traffic (occasionally timber). The goods bypass line, relaid, is now a down (northbound) goods loop. There is an equivalent up (southbound) goods loop on the east side, it extends further north than the original sidings.
It was described in the Ordnance Survey Name Book thus
A first class station on the Caledonian Railway with refreshment rooms attached.
Tags
StationExternal links
Canmore site recordNLS Collection OS map of 1892-1914
NLS Collection OS map of 1944-67
NLS Map
| Nearby stations Auchencastle Moffat Ruttonside [Private] Wamphray Dinwoodie Nethercleugh Shieldhill Lochmaben Elvanfoot Thornhill Carronbridge Closeburn Victoria Lodge Amisfield Lockerbie | Beattock Shed Beattock Bank Ballast Quarry Harthope Viaduct Sidings Cottage Corncockle Bridge Beattock Summit Corncockle Quarry Start of River Clyde Lockerbie Sawmills Bodsberry Hill Tourist/other Murthat Signal Box Greskine Signal Box Harthope Signal Box Gray Mare^s Tail Waterfalls Bodsberry Level Crossing |
| Location names in dark blue are on the same original line. | |
A welcome to ScotlandThe dozing traveller on the journey north in a night train from Euston up the West Coast to Scotland felt almost remote from the country he travelled through. From time to time the accents of the various station announcers would break into his sleepy head. There were the Midland accents of Rugby, Stafford and Crewe, the Northern accent of Preston and Lancaster, and the refinement with which 'Carlisle Station, Carlisle' was always announced. Suddenly bursting through the window with the early light of a summer's dawn would come a broad Scots tongue as the platform staff at Beattock greeted each other. There now could be no doubt about it - like some promised Mecca the traveller had at last arrived in Scotland. A thrill of excitement would run down the spine of the returning exile; in double measure for the railway enthusiast as the banking engine nudged on to the rear of the train. The engine would hoot the starting code and, before the answering hoots from the banking engine had died from the surrounding hills, both engines would be roaring their way out of the Station on the five mile climb up Beattock Bank. The opening paragraph of the introduction to 'Steam in Scotland - 1' by W.J.V. and Derek Cross. |
Chronology Dates
| 26/08/1847 | Caledonian Railway Locomotive runs all the way from Carlisle to Beattock before opening. |
| 04/09/1847 | Caledonian Railway Captain Simmonds of the Board of Trade inspects the line from Carlisle to Beattock. |
| 10/09/1847 | Caledonian Railway Carlisle to Beattock opened. |
| 15/02/1848 | Caledonian Railway Beattock to Glasgow (Townhead) (via the Wishaw and Coltness Railway and the Glasgow, Garnkirk and Coatbridge Railway) and Edinburgh (Lothian Road) branch opened. The stations at Abington and Elvanfoot, on its main line, are used by the lead mines and villages at Leadhills and Wanlockhead. |
| / /1882 | Moffat Railway Line leased to the Caledonian Railway. Deviation at Beattock authorised. |
| / /1913 | Caledonian Railway New wider bridge to be installed north of Beattock station crossing main line, Moffat Branch and siding. |
| 08/06/1950 | Caledonian Railway Train fire at Beattock results in 5 deaths. |
| 06/12/1954 | Moffat Railway Moffat to Beattock (excluded) closed to passengers. |
| 07/10/1965 | Dumfries, Lochmaben and Lockerbie Railway Highland 103 covers the line and then runs north via Beattock. |
| 06/10/1971 | Caledonian Railway Brake failure at Beattock leads to a collision resulting in a death. |
| 03/01/1972 | Caledonian Railway Beattock closed |
| 21/12/1998 | Caledonian Railway Derailment at Beattock. |
