The Monkland & Kirkintilloch Railway in the 1960s

The Monkland & Kirkintilloch Railway in the 1960s

The Monkland & Kirkintilloch Railway, opened in 1826, was the second public railway in Scotland. The Caledonian Railway used a short section of it for its main line to the north-east of Scotland, even after it became part of its rival, the North British Railway, as did the LMS between 1923 and 1947, when it was part of the LNER. Most of the northern section, between Garnqueen South Junction and Kirkintilloch, was closed between 1958 and 1966. It was during this period, between 1960 and 1962, that the author had a lineside pass and extensively photographed the Monkland & Kirkintilloch. This was at a time when most services and shunting duties on the line were steam-operated. Hence, there is only one photo of a diesel in the book, from a bit later, in 1966.

Don Martin’s excellent photos include scenes of Kirkintilloch Basin Branch, Whitegates Level Crossing, Garngaber, Craigenbay, Muckcroft, Bridgend Junction, Auchengeich Colliery, the Glenboig fire clay works, Bedlay Signal Box, the Gartverrie Branch and other similarly seldom heard of locations, as well as better known ones such as Whifflet and Gartsherrie.

Softback, 48 pages, 51 black & white photographs