Date: 13/07/2005

First ScotRail Press release of 13/07/2005


'Last Saturday (July 9), a number of distinguished guests, including members of the Association Francaise des Amis des Chemin de Fer [Railscot note: the AFAC attended the reception in Inverness the previous evening but moved on to Dufftown on the 9th] and Mary Dickson, Managing Director of First ScotRail, attended a double ceremony to mark the 150 year anniversary of the Inverness and Nairn railway. The ceremony was be an exact recreation of that which took place 150 years ago.


The commemoration was organised by Highland Rail Heritage and the Highland Rail Partnership, alongside First ScotRail and other industry partners to celebrate the history, success and future of the line.


The event was an auspicious occasion that began with a breakfast, courtesy of GNER at the Royal Highland Hotel in Inverness. At 10.25, guests were led by a piper and the Florian Players, all dressed in full Victorian costume, to platform 2 at Inverness Station where the train naming ceremony took place at 10.30. The name plate at the front of the 158720 unit, which read Inverness and Nairn Railway 150 Years was unveiled by Mrs Christine Davis, a senior member of the Rail Passengers Committee for Scotland.


Mrs Davis and invited guests then boarded the newly named train, which formed the 10.44 from Inverness to Nairn. At Nairn, Provost A. S Parks and the Area Committee of Nairn hosted a plaque unveiling ceremony on the concourse, carried out by Her Grace the Countess of Seafield. It was an earlier Countess of Seafield who cut the first sod for the new line in 1854 and was amongst the first passengers on the line when it opened in 1855. Tom Coombs, Nairn event organiser and acting station master for the day, then introduced Mary Dickson and Ron McAulay, Route Director of Network Rail who both said a few words commemorating the occasion.


To complete the event, an extensive buffet was hosted at Nairn Museum, where photographs and a time path through the life of the Inverness and Nairn railway were on display.


Mary Dickson commented, Its was real honour to be involved in an event such as this, which illustrated not only the history in the Highland railway but peoples pride in and support for it. This was the first link in Scotlands railway as we see it today and this was a great opportunity to highlight how it has developed since then, as well as witness the enthusiasm that people have to commemorate it.

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Related images

The westbound platform waiting room at Nairn is now a Men^s Shed.
Location: Nairn
Company: Inverness and Nairn Railway
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The restored westbound platform building at Nairn is a ^Man^s Shed^. Men^s Shed Association
Location: Nairn
Company: Inverness and Nairn Railway
03/12/2018 John Yellowlees

Nairn station^s 19th century Highland waiting room is being restored with the help of a grant from the Railway Heritage Trust. Viewed from the opposite platform in August 2018.
Location: Nairn
Company: Inverness and Nairn Railway
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