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Border Counties Railway
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Border Counties Railway
The Border Counties Railway was a railway line connecting Hexham in Northumberland, with Riccarton Junction on the Waverley Route in Roxburghshire.
Its promoter had hopes of exploiting mineral resources in the area, and it was taken up by the North British Railway, which hoped to develop it as a through main line between Edinburgh and Newcastle upon Tyne.
The railway opened in stages between 1858 and 1862, but the anticipated level of commercial traffic did not materialise, and the sparse population produced very little local passenger traffic. The line closed to passengers in 1956 and completely in 1963.
When the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was under construction between 1838 and 1842, thoughts turned to the construction of longer distance railways in Scotland, and in particular to connecting central Scotland to the developing English network. For some time it was assumed that only one route was commercially viable, and vast controversy took place over what that should be, with a large number of candidate routes being put forward. The Southern Uplands and the Cheviot Hills presented a considerable topographical obstacle to many of the options, especially because at that date the power of steam locomotives, and their ability to climb steep and lengthy gradients was very limited.
Many of the proposals were motivated by sectional interests. The Newcastle and Carlisle Railway (N&CR) had opened the main part of its route in 1836, and a line running north from Hexham, following the River North Tyne, appeared to some to suggest a convenient approach from the south.
The Tyne, Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway proposed in 1836 by Stephen Reed of Newcastle would have left the N&CR at Hexham and run north through Carter Bar; altitude 1,370 ft (420 m). to reach Melrose and thence Edinburgh and Glasgow, but this was modified in 1838 as the proposed Hexham and Edinburgh Railway to run from Hexham via Kielder and Note o' the Gate to Melrose. This scheme was encouraged by the N&CR (to which it would bring traffic) and the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, which would acquire commercial advantage from being on the main line.
As the debate about an Anglo-Scottish route continued over some years, the capabilities of steam locomotives improved, and the increasing availability of money moved the issue away from a single route determined by political considerations, to simple economics. In 1844 the North British Railway (NBR) was authorised to build a line from Edinburgh to Berwick to join an English line there. The NBR line ran close to the coast avoiding most high ground and opened in 1846. In 1845 the Caledonian Railway was authorised to construct a line from both Glasgow and Edinburgh to Carlisle, crossing the Southern Uplands at Beattock Summit, 1,033 ft (315 m) above sea level.
The notion of the only Anglo-Scottish main line running through Hexham was now finished. If the area north of Hexham was not to be on a main line, then the sparse population and meagre mineral resources made it difficult to justify a railway line, and for some years none was proposed. In 1853 a scheme was put forward on the unproven assumption that a known four-feet coal seam was widespread in the region, based on Plashetts. A meeting at Bellingham in March 1854 attracted considerable support, and Robert Nicholson was engaged to survey a route. His line was to run from Hexham (on the N&CR) through Reedsmouth to Bellingham, and on to the coal deposits at Falstone. His work was remarkably quickly done, for a bill for the Border Counties Railway was submitted to Parliament for the 1854 session. The proposal was attacked on the grounds of the doubts about the mineral reserves, and also Nicholson's proposed laminated timber bridges, but in fact the scheme was authorised when the Border Counties Railway (North Tyne Section) Act 1854 (17 & 18 Vict. c. ccxii) was given royal assent on 31 July 1854. The capital was to be £250,000.
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Border Counties Railway
The Border Counties Railway was a railway line connecting Hexham in Northumberland, with Riccarton Junction on the Waverley Route in Roxburghshire.
Its promoter had hopes of exploiting mineral resources in the area, and it was taken up by the North British Railway, which hoped to develop it as a through main line between Edinburgh and Newcastle upon Tyne.
The railway opened in stages between 1858 and 1862, but the anticipated level of commercial traffic did not materialise, and the sparse population produced very little local passenger traffic. The line closed to passengers in 1956 and completely in 1963.
When the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was under construction between 1838 and 1842, thoughts turned to the construction of longer distance railways in Scotland, and in particular to connecting central Scotland to the developing English network. For some time it was assumed that only one route was commercially viable, and vast controversy took place over what that should be, with a large number of candidate routes being put forward. The Southern Uplands and the Cheviot Hills presented a considerable topographical obstacle to many of the options, especially because at that date the power of steam locomotives, and their ability to climb steep and lengthy gradients was very limited.
Many of the proposals were motivated by sectional interests. The Newcastle and Carlisle Railway (N&CR) had opened the main part of its route in 1836, and a line running north from Hexham, following the River North Tyne, appeared to some to suggest a convenient approach from the south.
The Tyne, Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway proposed in 1836 by Stephen Reed of Newcastle would have left the N&CR at Hexham and run north through Carter Bar; altitude 1,370 ft (420 m). to reach Melrose and thence Edinburgh and Glasgow, but this was modified in 1838 as the proposed Hexham and Edinburgh Railway to run from Hexham via Kielder and Note o' the Gate to Melrose. This scheme was encouraged by the N&CR (to which it would bring traffic) and the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, which would acquire commercial advantage from being on the main line.
As the debate about an Anglo-Scottish route continued over some years, the capabilities of steam locomotives improved, and the increasing availability of money moved the issue away from a single route determined by political considerations, to simple economics. In 1844 the North British Railway (NBR) was authorised to build a line from Edinburgh to Berwick to join an English line there. The NBR line ran close to the coast avoiding most high ground and opened in 1846. In 1845 the Caledonian Railway was authorised to construct a line from both Glasgow and Edinburgh to Carlisle, crossing the Southern Uplands at Beattock Summit, 1,033 ft (315 m) above sea level.
The notion of the only Anglo-Scottish main line running through Hexham was now finished. If the area north of Hexham was not to be on a main line, then the sparse population and meagre mineral resources made it difficult to justify a railway line, and for some years none was proposed. In 1853 a scheme was put forward on the unproven assumption that a known four-feet coal seam was widespread in the region, based on Plashetts. A meeting at Bellingham in March 1854 attracted considerable support, and Robert Nicholson was engaged to survey a route. His line was to run from Hexham (on the N&CR) through Reedsmouth to Bellingham, and on to the coal deposits at Falstone. His work was remarkably quickly done, for a bill for the Border Counties Railway was submitted to Parliament for the 1854 session. The proposal was attacked on the grounds of the doubts about the mineral reserves, and also Nicholson's proposed laminated timber bridges, but in fact the scheme was authorised when the Border Counties Railway (North Tyne Section) Act 1854 (17 & 18 Vict. c. ccxii) was given royal assent on 31 July 1854. The capital was to be £250,000.