Kirkpatrick railway station

Kirkpatrick
General information
LocationKirkpatrick Fleming, Dumfries and Galloway
Scotland
Coordinates55°01′23″N 3°08′09″W / 55.0231°N 3.1358°W / 55.0231; -3.1358
Grid referenceNY2748170431
Platforms2
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyCaledonian Railway
Pre-groupingCaledonian Railway
Post-groupingLondon Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
10 September 1847Station opened[1]
13 June 1960Station closed[1]

Kirkpatrick railway station was a station which served the rural area around Kirkpatrick Fleming, north of Gretna in the Scottish county of Dumfries and Galloway. It was served by local trains on what is now known as the West Coast Main Line. The nearest station for Kirkpatrick Fleming is now at Gretna Green.

History

Opened by the Caledonian Railway,[1] it became part of the London Midland and Scottish Railway during the Grouping of 1923 and was then closed by British Railways in 1960.

The station had a number of sidings, a signal box on the western side controlling the level crossing, a pedestrian overbridge, weighing machine, and goods yard.[2][3]

Accident

A rail crash that took place near Kirkpatrick at the Quintinshill Loops on 22 May 1915. Quintinshill was an intermediate signal box with loops on each side on the Caledonian Railway Main Line. The crash involved five trains, killed a probable 230[nb 1] and injured 246 and remains the worst rail crash in the United Kingdom in terms of loss of life. The cause of the accident was poor working practices on the part of the two signalmen involved which resulted in their imprisonment for culpable homicide.

Preceding station Historical railways Following station
Gretna
Line open; Station closed
  Caledonian Railway
Main Line
  Kirtlebridge
Line open; Station closed

The site today

Trains pass at speed on the electrified West Coast Main Line. The station platforms have been demolished, the pedestrian overbridge is still present and the main station buildings survive as private dwellings. The Station Inn still stands nearby.

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b c Butt (1995), page 136
  2. ^ NLS Maps Retrieved : 2012-11-07
  3. ^ Disused Stations Retrieved : 2012-11-08

Sources

  • Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199. OL 11956311M.
  • Jowett, Alan (March 1989). Jowett's Railway Atlas of Great Britain and Ireland: From Pre-Grouping to the Present Day (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-086-0. OCLC 22311137.
  • Jowett, Alan (2000). Jowett's Nationalised Railway Atlas (1st ed.). Penryn, Cornwall: Atlantic Transport Publishers. ISBN 978-0-906899-99-1. OCLC 228266687.