Kirkintilloch Basin

Location type

Station

Names and dates

Kirkintilloch Basin (1828-1828)
Kirkintilloch Basin (1839-1840)
Kirkintilloch Basin (1844-1846)

Opened on the Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway.

Description

This was the northern terminus of the Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway at 90 degrees to the Forth and Clyde Canal. It was a goods depot and briefly a passenger station. It was located in the west of Kirkintilloch. Also known as Middlemuir Basin.

Coal from the Monklands could be shipped by the canal east to Edinburgh (and west to Glasgow although this was in competition with the existing Monkland Canal with a similar mileage by canal).

Initially, in 1826, the line ran to a wharf on the south bank of the canal.

From 1828 a horse drawn coach met passenger boats. The coach ran to Airdrie Leaend. How long this service operated it difficult to discern. It is unlikely there was a passenger station as such.

In 1835 the canal company opened a basin alongside on railway land. The basin was on the west side of the railway which opened a fan of rails to serve it on both sides.

Another horse operated service to Airdrie operated around 1839/40. Finally a horse service to the Bothlin Viaduct, interconnecting with the then new Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway, operated from 1844 to 1846.

A second basin was opened and further sidings served this. The second basin was to the west of the original and connected to it rather than the canal directly.

A proper station opened at Kirkintilloch [2nd] in 1848 on the Campsie Branch (Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway).

A large loading bank was built in the yard to the east of the east basin. This was largely a coal depot.

Arrival of the railway also brought industry. These were served by the railway and laid out from west to east:
Kirkintilloch Nickel Works (1882)
Basin Iron Foundry (1872) (west side of basin)
McGregors Shipyard (1902) (on central pier of basin, a timber yard prior to 1902)
Coal staith (south end of east basin)
Coal yard (the original terminus east of the basins)
Star Foundry (1861)
J and J Hay Shipyard (1867) (a ship building and repair yard)

At the station throat were offices ('Basin Station' on the west side of the line), a further building (ruined by the 1960s) and a water tank.

The canal basin was filled in, in the 1960s.

The canal closed in 1963 and the railway survived to serve the Star Foundry, coal depot and cement works. It closed in 1966.

The canal re-opened to through traffic in August 2001. The basin has been partly dug out again, now Southbank Marina .

To the south is Whitegates, an area named for the former level crossing over the Lenzie Road.

Tags

Station terminus sidings goods

Aliases

Middlemuir Basin

External links

Canmore site record
NLS Collection OS map of 1892-1914
NLS Collection OS map of 1944-67
NLS Map
NLS Map
NLS Map
NLS Map
NLS Map


Chronology Dates

08/07/1828Ballochney Railway
Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
A passenger service from Airdrie to Glasgow advertised (before opening, or when partly opened?). A horse drawn spring-less coach ran over the Ballochney Railway from Airdrie Leaend to Kipps, the Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway from Kipps to Kirkintilloch Basin and, after connecting with track boats on the Forth and Clyde Canal, passengers reached Glasgow.
31/05/1831Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
Coach service between Kirkintilloch Basin and Leaend ceased. This was due to the opening of the Garnkirk and Glasgow Railway in May and the commencing of a through coach service to Leaend from Glasgow Townhead.
  /  /1835Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
Basin and further sidings opened at Kirkintilloch Basin.
  /  /1839Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
Carriage service from Kirkintilloch Basin to Gargill/Gartsherrie to connect with Glasgow Townhead to Leaend service commenced.
  /  /1841Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
Second basin and further sidings opened at Kirkintilloch Basin on the Forth and Clyde Canal.
26/12/1844Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
Carriage service from Kirkintilloch Basin to Gargill to connect with Glasgow to Leaend service ceases.
26/12/1844Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway's Horse-drawn service between Kirkintilloch Basin station and new Kirkintilloch station commences.
23/03/1846Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
Service between Kirkintilloch Basin and new Kirkintilloch station withdrawn.

Books

The Monkland & Kirkintilloch and associated railways