Balerno
Posted: Tue Jan 01, 2013 5:48 pm
Some of you may remember that I joined the modelling e-mail group just before the Forum came along and I am considering a model of the Balerno Branch and in particular of Balerno Station and its nearby goods yard. I thought I’d start a thread here to share my research as it is undertaken and ask some questions as I come across them. Many of you may be familiar with the line and I hope you can add to the research, and for those of you who are not I hope you enjoy learning about this short but interesting branch.
Why Balerno? – simply because I grew up there and the “old railway” was home to many cycle trips and adventures as I was growing up. I moved there in 1969 so never saw the line in place but the route is now the Water of Leith Walkway and is generally well preserved in terms of bridges, cuttings and the (now somewhat leaky) tunnel. The Goods shed at Currie remains although has recently been bought privately and the planning submission to turn it into a design studio includes lifting the roof by 12” to allow addition of a row of windows. The Balerno Station Master’s house is still there, albeit with alterations and extensions. Other areas have not survived – Balerno station site is now a private garden, the realignment and widening of the Lanark Road at Balerno has covered the site of the original Goods junction and Signal box and the Goods Yard has been home to Balerno High School since 1983.
I have read Donald Shaw’s book about the branch several times and had a couple of trips to the National Archives – with mixed results so far. Some great stuff from the files of Blyth and Blyth (the Engineers who designed the line and oversaw its construction) which included the Inspector’s Report and some false starts on the plans and diagrams. Most of these now have to be assessed and digitally scanned before they can be viewed and the first set selected turned out to be tracings from another plan with no useful detail or even a scale marked on them. I've left them with a list of others.....
By way of introduction to the Branch I've included below the Inspector’s Report to Railway Department, Board of Trade for the opening of the line which includes some great detail. A map of the planned area for the model can be seen here. As you can see – there will be a challenge converting the Y shape into a practicable layout. Perhaps a topic for modelling Q&A in due course!
Sinclair
Why Balerno? – simply because I grew up there and the “old railway” was home to many cycle trips and adventures as I was growing up. I moved there in 1969 so never saw the line in place but the route is now the Water of Leith Walkway and is generally well preserved in terms of bridges, cuttings and the (now somewhat leaky) tunnel. The Goods shed at Currie remains although has recently been bought privately and the planning submission to turn it into a design studio includes lifting the roof by 12” to allow addition of a row of windows. The Balerno Station Master’s house is still there, albeit with alterations and extensions. Other areas have not survived – Balerno station site is now a private garden, the realignment and widening of the Lanark Road at Balerno has covered the site of the original Goods junction and Signal box and the Goods Yard has been home to Balerno High School since 1983.
I have read Donald Shaw’s book about the branch several times and had a couple of trips to the National Archives – with mixed results so far. Some great stuff from the files of Blyth and Blyth (the Engineers who designed the line and oversaw its construction) which included the Inspector’s Report and some false starts on the plans and diagrams. Most of these now have to be assessed and digitally scanned before they can be viewed and the first set selected turned out to be tracings from another plan with no useful detail or even a scale marked on them. I've left them with a list of others.....
By way of introduction to the Branch I've included below the Inspector’s Report to Railway Department, Board of Trade for the opening of the line which includes some great detail. A map of the planned area for the model can be seen here. As you can see – there will be a challenge converting the Y shape into a practicable layout. Perhaps a topic for modelling Q&A in due course!
Sinclair