North British Railway
Encyclopedia
The North British Railway was a Scottish
railway
company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway
at the Grouping
in 1923.
to Berwick-upon-Tweed
, with a branch to Haddington
, in 1846.
, the oldest in Scotland. Other amalgamations followed, altogether over 50 small lines being made part of the North British system, which ultimately totalled 2,739 miles.
through Dundee
to Edinburgh, whence it forked to Carlisle
and Berwick to meet the main English routes (the London and North Western Railway
(also the Midland Railway
) and the North Eastern Railway
respectively). Fife
was covered with a network of lines, and the pleasure resorts on the east and west coasts were also served. The company owned the Tay Bridge
and its services also used the Forth Bridge
, for whose construction it was responsible as part of the Route to the North in the 19th century.
, reaching to Hexham
, Morpeth
and Rothbury
, as well as the main line into Berwick. Its lines also reached into northern Cumberland
as far as Silloth
, Port Carlisle
, Gretna and Carlisle.
, Edinburgh
and Queen Street station
in Glasgow
, Edinburgh and Carlisle (via Galashiels
and Hawick
– the Waverley Route) and between Newcastle upon Tyne
and Aberdeen
. The North British was a partner (with the North Eastern Railway
and the Great Northern Railway
) in the East Coast Joint Stock operation from 1860.
, Glasgow. Its capital in 1921 was £67 million. Besides its railway, the company also operated steamers
on the River Clyde
serving Arran
and points west and acquired a 49% stake in the road haulage firm Mutter Howey.
The North British Hotel
at the east end of Princes Street in Edinburgh city centre forms a prominent landmark with its high tower displaying large clocks. It was renamed the Balmoral Hotel in the 1980s, though the old name is still shown in the stonework. Since the building opened, the clock on the hotel has run three minutes ahead of real time to encourage tardy travellers to get to the station on time.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
railway
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
at the Grouping
Railways Act 1921
The Railways Act 1921, also known as the Grouping Act, was an enactment by the British government of David Lloyd George intended to stem the losses being made by many of the country's 120 railway companies, move the railways away from internal competition, and to retain some of the benefits which...
in 1923.
History
The North British Railway Company was established in 1844 and opened its first line, from EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
to Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed or simply Berwick is a town in the county of Northumberland and is the northernmost town in England, on the east coast at the mouth of the River Tweed. It is situated 2.5 miles south of the Scottish border....
, with a branch to Haddington
Haddington, East Lothian
The Royal Burgh of Haddington is a town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is the main administrative, cultural and geographical centre for East Lothian, which was known officially as Haddingtonshire before 1921. It lies about east of Edinburgh. The name Haddington is Anglo-Saxon, dating from the 6th...
, in 1846.
Acquisitions
In 1865 it took over the Monkland and Kirkintilloch RailwayMonkland and Kirkintilloch Railway
The Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway was an early mineral railway running from a colliery at Monklands to the Forth and Clyde Canal at Kirkintilloch, Scotland....
, the oldest in Scotland. Other amalgamations followed, altogether over 50 small lines being made part of the North British system, which ultimately totalled 2,739 miles.
Main line
The main line was from AberdeenAberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
through Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
to Edinburgh, whence it forked to Carlisle
Carlisle railway station
Carlisle railway station, also known as Carlisle Citadel station, is a railway station whichserves the Cumbrian City of Carlisle, England, and is a major station on the West Coast Main Line, lying south of Glasgow Central, and north of London Euston...
and Berwick to meet the main English routes (the London and North Western Railway
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
(also the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
) and the North Eastern Railway
North Eastern Railway (UK)
The North Eastern Railway , was an English railway company. It was incorporated in 1854, when four existing companies were combined, and was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923...
respectively). Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
was covered with a network of lines, and the pleasure resorts on the east and west coasts were also served. The company owned the Tay Bridge
Tay Rail Bridge
The Tay Bridge is a railway bridge approximately two and a quarter miles long that spans the Firth of Tay in Scotland, between the city of Dundee and the suburb of Wormit in Fife ....
and its services also used the Forth Bridge
Forth Bridge (railway)
The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge over the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, to the east of the Forth Road Bridge, and 14 kilometres west of central Edinburgh. It was opened on 4 March 1890, and spans a total length of...
, for whose construction it was responsible as part of the Route to the North in the 19th century.
English lines
Although primarily a Scottish railway, the NBR also had an extensive branch network in northern NorthumberlandNorthumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
, reaching to Hexham
Hexham
Hexham is a market town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, located south of the River Tyne, and was the administrative centre for the Tynedale district from 1974 to 2009. The three major towns in Tynedale were Hexham, Prudhoe and Haltwhistle, although in terms of population, Prudhoe was...
, Morpeth
Morpeth, Northumberland
Morpeth is the county town of Northumberland, England. It is situated on the River Wansbeck which flows east through the town. The town is from the A1, which bypasses it. Since 1981, it has been the administrative centre of the County of Northumberland. In the 2001 census the town had a population...
and Rothbury
Rothbury
Rothbury is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England. It is located on the River Coquet, northwest of Morpeth and north-northwest of Newcastle upon Tyne...
, as well as the main line into Berwick. Its lines also reached into northern Cumberland
Cumberland
Cumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
as far as Silloth
Silloth
Silloth is a port town and civil parish in Cumbria, England. It sits on the shoreline of the Solway Firth, west of Carlisle. It has a population of 2,932....
, Port Carlisle
Port Carlisle
Port Carlisle is a fishing village at Carlisle, Cumbria, England, one mile from Bowness-on-Solway—.Historically within Cumberland, its original name was Fishers Cross, and the port was built in 1819. Four years later, a canal link was added to take goods to Carlisle Basin. The canal was...
, Gretna and Carlisle.
Train services
The NBR operated services between Waverley stationEdinburgh Waverley railway station
Edinburgh Waverley railway station is the main railway station in the Scottish capital Edinburgh. Covering an area of over 25 acres in the centre of the city, it is the second-largest main line railway station in the United Kingdom in terms of area, the largest being...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and Queen Street station
Glasgow Queen Street railway station
Glasgow Queen Street is a railway station in Glasgow, Scotland, the smaller of the city's two main line railway termini and the third-busiest station in Scotland. It is between George Street to the south and Cathedral Street Bridge to the north, at the northern end of Queen Street adjacent to...
in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Edinburgh and Carlisle (via Galashiels
Galashiels
Galashiels is a burgh in the Scottish Borders, on the Gala Water river. The name is often shortened to "Gala" .Galashiels is a major commercial centre for the Scottish Borders...
and Hawick
Hawick
Hawick is a town in the Scottish Borders of south east Scotland. It is south-west of Jedburgh and south-southeast of Selkirk. It is one of the farthest towns from the sea in Scotland, in the heart of Teviotdale, and the biggest town in the former county of Roxburghshire. Hawick's architecture is...
– the Waverley Route) and between Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
and Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
. The North British was a partner (with the North Eastern Railway
North Eastern Railway (UK)
The North Eastern Railway , was an English railway company. It was incorporated in 1854, when four existing companies were combined, and was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923...
and the Great Northern Railway
Great Northern Railway (Great Britain)
The Great Northern Railway was a British railway company established by the Great Northern Railway Act of 1846. On 1 January 1923 the company lost its identity as a constituent of the newly formed London and North Eastern Railway....
) in the East Coast Joint Stock operation from 1860.
Business activities
The company’s headquarters were at 23 Waterloo Place, Edinburgh and its works at CowlairsCowlairs railway works
Cowlairs Locomotive, Carriage and Wagon Works , at Cowlairs in Springburn, an area in the north-east of Glasgow, Scotland, was built in 1841 for the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway and was taken over by the North British Railway in 1865. It was named after the nearby mansion of Cowlairs, with both...
, Glasgow. Its capital in 1921 was £67 million. Besides its railway, the company also operated steamers
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
on the River Clyde
River Clyde
The River Clyde is a major river in Scotland. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow, it was an important river for shipbuilding and trade in the British Empire....
serving Arran
Isle of Arran
Arran or the Isle of Arran is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and with an area of is the seventh largest Scottish island. It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire and the 2001 census had a resident population of 5,058...
and points west and acquired a 49% stake in the road haulage firm Mutter Howey.
The North British Hotel
Balmoral Hotel
The Balmoral is a luxury five-star hotel and landmark in Edinburgh, Scotland, known as the North British Hotel until the late 1980s. It is located in the heart of the city at the east end of Princes Street, the main shopping street beneath the Edinburgh Castle rock, and the southern edge of the New...
at the east end of Princes Street in Edinburgh city centre forms a prominent landmark with its high tower displaying large clocks. It was renamed the Balmoral Hotel in the 1980s, though the old name is still shown in the stonework. Since the building opened, the clock on the hotel has run three minutes ahead of real time to encourage tardy travellers to get to the station on time.
Component companies
During its existence the NBR absorbed the following companies:- Monkland and Kirkintilloch RailwayMonkland and Kirkintilloch RailwayThe Monkland and Kirkintilloch Railway was an early mineral railway running from a colliery at Monklands to the Forth and Clyde Canal at Kirkintilloch, Scotland....
- first public railway in Scotland - Slamannan RailwaySlamannan RailwayThe Slamannan Railway was an early mineral railway built near Slamannan, Falkirk, Scotland, where it had coal and iron ore.The railway was Incorporated on 3 July 1835 and was opened on 31 August 1840. Its main function was intended to be the transportation of coal and passengers, but iron ore was...
- Ballochney RailwayBallochney RailwayThe Ballochney Railway was an early mineral railway built near Airdrie, in the Monklands District of Scotland.The railway was Incorporated on 19 May 1826 and was opened on 8 May 1828. Its main function was intended to be the transportation of coal, but iron ore and passengers were also carried. It...
- Dundee and Arbroath RailwayDundee and Arbroath RailwayThe Dundee and Arbroath Railway was a railway link between those two towns in Scotland.-History:The railway company received its Parliamentary Act on 19 May 1836. It was planned as a gauge railway, because, at that time, it was expected to be a purely local railway with no connection to the...
- Edinburgh and Dalkeith RailwayEdinburgh and Dalkeith RailwayThe Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway, also called the Innocent Railway, was Edinburgh's first railway. It carried coal from the mines in Lothian to its city centre terminus at St Leonards...
- Edinburgh and Glasgow RailwayEdinburgh and Glasgow RailwayThe Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was a railway built to link Glasgow and Edinburgh. The Act of Parliament for building the railway received its Royal Assent in 1838 which was open on 28 July 1863. Services started between Glasgow Queen Street and Haymarket on 21 February 1842. The line was...
- Edinburgh, Perth and Dundee Railway
- Edinburgh Suburban and Southside Junction RailwayEdinburgh Suburban and Southside Junction RailwayThe Edinburgh Suburban and South Side Junction Railway is a freight and former commuter railway which runs in a loop across the southern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It opened in 1884 for both freight and passenger services...
- Glasgow and Milngavie Junction RailwayGlasgow and Milngavie Junction RailwayThe Glasgow and Milngavie Junction Railway was a Scottish railway. It extended the Glasgow, Dumbarton and Helensburgh Railway from Westerton to Milngavie, Glasgow.- History :...
- Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank RailwayGlasgow, Yoker and Clydebank RailwayThe Glasgow, Yoker and Clydebank Railway is a Scottish railway, authorised in 1878, and absorbed into the North British Railway in 1897. It runs from Whiteinch to Clydebank.-Sources:*...
- Invergarry and Fort Augustus RailwayInvergarry and Fort Augustus RailwayThe Invergarry and Fort Augustus Railway was a branch-line railway built in Scotland, and served by the Highland Railway, the North British Railway and later the London & North Eastern Railway- Beginnings :...
- Kirkcaldy and District Railway
- West Highland RailwayWest Highland RailwayThe West Highland Railway was one of the last main lines to be built in Scotland. It is one of the most scenic railway lines in Britain, linking Fort William on the west coast to Glasgow. It was originally operated by the North British Railway.- History :...
Chief Mechanical Engineers
- Thomas WheatleyThomas Wheatley (locomotive engineer)Thomas Wheatley was born in Micklefield, Leeds in 1821. He became an apprentice with the Leeds and Selby Railway and later worked for the Midland Railway and the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway. Subsequently, he was Locomotive Superintendent for the Southern Division of the London...
1867-1874 - Dugald DrummondDugald DrummondDugald Drummond was a Scottish steam locomotive engineer. He had a career with the North British Railway, LB&SCR, Caledonian Railway and London and South Western Railway...
1875-1882 - Matthew HolmesMatthew HolmesMatthew Holmes was Chief Mechanical Engineer of the North British Railway from 1882 to 1903..-Locomotives:Locomotives designed by M. Holmes include:* NBR Class C, later LNER Class J36, 0-6-0...
1882-1903 - William P. ReidWilliam P. ReidWilliam Paton Reid was apprenticed to the Cowlairs railway works of the North British Railway in 1879 and was Locomotive Superintendent from 1903-1919. He was awarded a CBE in 1920. He was born, and died, in Glasgow, Scotland...
1903-1919 - Walter ChalmersWalter ChalmersWalter Chalmers followed his father into the North British Railway, starting as an apprentice at Cowlairs railway works. In 1904 he became Chief Draughtsman and, from 1920–1922, he was Chief Mechanical Engineer.-Locomotives:...
1919-1922
See also
- Locomotives of the North British Railway