Huntly: Looking south at the old station building at Huntly one evening in 1997.
Ewan Crawford //1997
This is a two platform station. There is a modern station building on the westbound platform. On the east side of the line is an extensive goods yard, served from the south. Latterly the yard dealt with timber traffic but in the past it saw potato traffic.
The station once had a timber trainshed. This was cut back and then removed.
This was the first terminus of the line from Aberdeen Kittybrewster. In the early days there was a locomotive shed at the south end of the station.
North and south boxes opened at the station in 1890. The south box was at the south end of the loop on the west side, alongside a level crossing and 'Gate House'. The north box was on the east side of the line on the southbound platform and to the north of the station's trainshed.
The line from Insch, to the east, was doubled in 1896.
To the west it was doubled in 1898 as far as Avochie Signal Box.
In 1901 the north box was closed - it was no longer necessary as there was no north end of a loop to control.
The south box was reduced to a gate box, no longer controlling the south end of the loop.
A new Huntly box opened. This was located south of the station on the west side. This was opposite the goods yard, specifically the cattle pens loading bank and the turn outs for the main loading banks and goods shed.
In 1905 the Great North of Scotland Railway introduced a connecting bus service from the station to Aberchirder. This extended on to Banff using routes via Alvah or Cornhill.
In 1970 the line west to Keith and east to Kennethmont was singled. This led to the closure of Huntly box, however Huntly South, which had been relegated to being a gate box, was converted back to a full box.
The signal box has been separated from the station by the A96 Huntly by-pass. 'Gate House' was demolished.
Nearby stations Rothiemay Gartly Cairnie Junction Kennethmont Wardhouse Millegan Grange Knock Auchindachy Glenbarry Insch Towiemore Halt Keith Town Strathisla Mills Platform Keith | Mungo Timber Siding Deveron Viaduct Howets of Kennethmont Bridge Wardhouse Drive Bridge Kennethmont Summit Leith Hall East Drive Bridge Grange North Junction Tourist/other Huntly Castle Avochie Signal Box Gartly Castle Wardhouse [House] Leith Hall Glendronach Distillery Ardmore Distillery Picardy Symbol Stone |
Location names in dark blue are on the same original line. |