34-579: The Cairn Valley Light Railway was a rural railway line built to connect Moniaive and other communities in the Cairn Valley with the main railway network at Dumfries . It opened in 1905 but usage was disappointing, and declined further when bus companies started competing. It was closed to passengers in 1943, and completely closed in 1949. The Glasgow and South Western Railway (G&SWR) fully opened its main line between Glasgow and Carlisle via Dumfries in 1850, revolutionising transport facilities at
68-752: A GeoDial was commissioned by the Geological Society of Dumfries and Galloway for the people of Moniaive to celebrate the geodiversity of the area. It stands next to the Dalwhat water in the John Corrie Wildlife Garden and riverside walk. The GeoDial has an interpretation board that identifies the rock types of the GeoDial and of the rocks that make up the stone circle that surrounds it. Dunscore Dunscore ( ['dʌnskər] / 'DUN-skur', less commonly ['dunskɔ:r] / 'DUN-score')
102-418: A Provisional Parliamentary Order authorised an extension for two years, and this had to be repeated for a further extension on 1 August 1904. The contractor successfully claimed compensation for unforeseen difficult ground conditions and was awarded £40,000 (over a contract price of £100,000) at arbitration. The Directors planned an official opening of the line for 31 December 1904, but this proved impossible as
136-412: A simple wooden platform and small shelter for passengers. There was originally planned to have been a station at Drumpark near Newtonairds, but the requirement was removed during the construction period. The connection with the main line was at Cairn Valley Junction, a little over a mile north of Dumfries. The line fell all the way from Moniaive to the main line; the ruling gradient for ascending trains
170-424: A wine importing business, a chocolatier , computer repairs, garden and landscaping services, plant nursery, and child care. There is a large general store including a post office counter, a garage, a cafe, a chocolatier, an Italian restaurant, several artist studios, a primary school, a guest house and two hotels with bars and restaurants, one with accommodation, and two village halls. A bi-monthly newspaper, called
204-424: A working partnership with its owner Forestry and Land Scotland . There are four arches by artist Andy Goldsworthy in the area; the first is built into the byre at Cairnhead while three more can be found on Bail Hill, Benbrack and Colt Hill. Each arch stands just under four metres high, with a span of about seven metres, and consists of 31 blocks of hand-dressed red sandstone weighing approximately 27 tons. In 2009
238-850: Is a small village which lies 9 miles (14 km) northwest of Dumfries on the B729, in Dumfriesshire , in the District Council Region of Dumfries and Galloway , southwest Scotland . The village consists of about 150 people and has a church, a community run pub, and a hosted post office three times a week. The village hosts a gala event every August. It is the birthplace of the Church of Scotland missionary Jane Haining , one of only ten Holocaust victims from Scotland. The Dunscore railway station opened in 1905, and closed to passengers in 1943 and to goods in 1949. The station
272-722: Is a village in the Parish of Glencairn , in Dumfries and Galloway , southwest Scotland. It stands on the Cairn and Dalwhat Waters, 16 miles (26 km) north-west of the town of Dumfries . Moniaive has been named best overall small village in the Nithsdale in Bloom competition five times in a row, from 2006 to 2011. The village streetscape was featured in the 2002 Peter Mullan film The Magdalene Sisters . In 2004, The Times described
306-399: Is shown at Dumfries in a photograph following page 56 of Smith's Tales . These units were not mechanically successful, and after an unsuccessful experiment in which the steam engine of the railmotor was decoupled, operating as an ordinary steam engine, the railmotor operation was discontinued, from 1909, and conventional locomotive operation instituted. An 0-4-4T no 269 became the mainstay on
340-743: The Glencairn Gazette , is produced by volunteers and distributed free to residents. In 2015 Moniaive reinvented itself as Moniaive Festival Village and went on to win a Creative Place Award from Creative Scotland. The village is home to a number of festivals that are held every year including; the Moniaive Folk Festival, the Moniaive Michaelmas Bluegrass Festival, Moniaive Comic Festival, the Scottish Autoharp Weekend,
374-543: The Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum . A James Paterson museum existed within the village until 2005 displaying photographs and memorabilia from the collection of his granddaughter, Anne Paterson-Wallace. The Cairn Valley Light Railway was opened from Dumfries in 1905 as a subsidiary company of the Glasgow and South Western Railway. Plans initially had involved developing Moniaive into a resort due to
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#1732802245100408-508: The Board of Trade Inspecting Officer was unable to schedule his visit to approve the opening; a celebratory dinner took place nonetheless. In fact the ceremonial opening took place on 28 February 1905 and the full public opening of the line followed the next day, 1 March 1905. There were three passenger trains each way daily, four on Wednesdays an Saturdays, and none on the Sabbath. At this time
442-452: The Board resolved to apply for a Light Railway Order (LRO) for the originally determined route, on 4 October 1898; the budget was reduced to £123,857. The official process of approving the LRO was not swift, and it was finally ratified on 29 December 1899. If the authorisation process had been slow, the construction was little better, and the permitted construction period expired on 6 August 1902;
476-690: The G&;SWR with a request to subscribe the difference, but the G&SWR took the view that any advantages would come to the inhabitants themselves, and it was for them to put up the money. The scheme came to nothing. A further scheme was proposed in 1872, the Glencairn Railway from Auldgirth to Moniaive; this scheme obtained an act of Parliament authorising it, but was unable to raise the needed capital. Another unsuccessful proposal followed in 1879. In 1896 two proposed lines were put forward; they planned different routes. One would strike east following
510-839: The Moniaive Horse Show, the Moniaive and District Arts Association annual exhibition, the Glencairn and Tynron Horticultural Society show and the Moniaive Gala. In 2016 the Moniaive Comic Book Festival was resurrected as part of the Creative Place award programme, it successfully held its second comic festival in 2017. Cairnhead Community Forest is a Scottish charity formed in 1998 to encourage and enable community participation through
544-659: The advantage of reaching close to the County Burgh. This time the G&SWR was persuaded of the advantage of having the railway constructed, and it adopted the Holywood scheme. The GS&WR Act of 6 August 1897 authorised the construction (along with several other G&SWR proposals): the line was named the Cairn Valley Railway , and its estimated cost was £165,840. The Light Railways Act 1896 ( 59 & 60 Vict. c. 48) had been enacted in order to permit
578-486: The construction of local railways with some of the requirements for main line routes somewhat relaxed, to allow cheaper construction, and the G&SWR belatedly considered that the Cairn Valley line was well suited to the arrangement. Some changes to the route were suggested by them at this stage, but they were advised that the Act authorising the line could not be varied without a further Act of Parliament. Inaction followed until
612-429: The countryside being very scenic and peaceful. Passenger services were suspended as a wartime economy on 3 May 1943 and to all traffic on 4 August 1947. The local economy is dominated by sheep and some cattle farming as well as forestry. The area has a large self-employed community including writers, artists, graphic designers, historical interpretation services, clothing designers, aromatherapists, stained glass workers,
646-567: The line from Dunscore to Moniaive was operated under the One Engine in Steam arrangement, with a train staff. The line was 17.5 miles (28.2 km) long and there were stations at Irongray, Newtonairds, Stepford, Dunscore , Crossford and Kirkland. Irongray, Newtonairds, Dunscore and Moniaive were considered to be "stations" and had passing facilities (until 1936), while Crossford, Kirkland and Stepford were designated "stopping places", and had
680-435: The line. The passenger carryings on the line did not live up to early expectation, and in fact declined from 4,800 journeys in 1906 to 3,600 in 1913, 2,500 in 1918 and dropping to 1,000 in 1923. There was little goods traffic on the rural line. In 1921 the passenger operation was losing £1,600 annually, and from that time local bus operators started operating bus services which were more convenient, further worsening custom on
714-408: The main line railways were introducing railmotors , light vehicles in which a small steam engine is closely coupled to a passenger coach with through driving controls, as an economic means of operating lightly used lines. The G&SWR decided to operate the Cairn Valley line with such a vehicle, and one was built at Kilmarnock Works for the purpose. Two more followed from November 1905. Railmotor no. 3
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#1732802245100748-436: The other stations are intact as private houses. The graceful brick built three-arch Dunscore Viaduct survives but is partly hidden by trees. Part of the old trackbed is used as a farm track in places though much has been ploughed up. Near Dunscore a deep cutting has been filled in with stone waste. Moniaive Moniaive ( / m ɒ n i ˈ aɪ v / 'monny-IVE'; Scottish Gaelic : Am Moine Naomh , "The Holy Moor" )
782-451: The passage of trains and interlocked signals for conflicting moves; if a train operated the treadle at the entrance to the line to the next block post, it had to proceed, there being no method of cancelling the movement. The system was somewhat complicated, and it was removed in 1936, being then replaced by a conventional key token system between Cairn Valley Junction (on the main line) and Dunscore. The other passing places were abolished, and
816-460: The places served. Communities that were by-passed began to feel disadvantages of not having a railway connection. As early as 1865 a branch railway to Moniaive was proposed: the G&SWR paid two-thirds of the cost of a survey. In 1867 a determined effort was made to start construction. The cost of a line connecting Moniaive to the G&SWR was estimated at £66,000, but local promoters only got commitment to £20,150 in subscriptions. They approached
850-511: The railway. During the Second World War the need for economy was extreme and continuation of the passenger service was considered to be unviable; the last passenger train ran on 1 May 1943, with closure being reckoned from 3 May 1943. The sparse goods service continued, but it too was closed, on 4 July 1949. The following winter saw long stretches of the formation washed away during winter storms, and any realistic hope of reinstatement
884-640: The valley of the Shinnel Water to connect with the G&SWR main line at Thornhill; this was the shortest path to the main line, but would involve challenging gradients. The second proposed to descend south-south-east with the Cairn Water and the Cluden Water to join the G&SWR a short distance north of Dumfries, near Holywood. While also having significant gradients this route would be more moderate, and involved easier civil engineering, and had
918-478: The village as one of the 'coolest' in Britain. Moniaive has existed as a village as far back as the 10th century. On 4 July 1636 King Charles I granted a charter in favour of William, Earl of Dumfries, making Moniaive a 'free Burgh of Barony'. With this charter came the rights to set up a market cross and tolbooth , to hold a weekly market on Tuesday and two annual fairs each of three days duration. Midsummer Fair
952-407: Was 1 in 80. The vertical interval was 270 feet (82 m). There was a seven-span viaduct over the Cluden Water. The line is closed and lifted. There was little left of the railway in 2011. The wood and brick station building at Moniaive survives in use as a farm shed but is slowly disintegrating. The Moniaive station goods shed, used as a farm store, was badly damaged by fire in 2012. Most of
986-588: Was done away with. There was a serious accident on 6 January 1911 at Irongray; a passenger train and a goods train were to cross at the station; the signalman (also the Station Master) operated the loop entry points prematurely as the goods train approached, and it collided with the other train. When constructed, the line had a novel signalling system, consisting of a modification of Sykes Lock and Block system for single lines, obviating train staffs, and elevated disc fixed signals. Treadles at stations verified
1020-611: Was from 16 June and Michaelmas Fair on the last day of September. In the 17th century, Moniaive became the refuge for the Covenanters , a group of Presbyterian nonconformists who rebelled at having the Episcopalian religion forced on them by the last three Stuart kings, Charles I , Charles II and James VII . There is a monument off the Ayr Road to James Renwick , a Covenanter leader born in Moniaive, and who aged 26
1054-467: Was located near Fardingwell Farm, between Robert Burns ' Ellisland Farm and Robert Ferguson's "Isle Tower". In Thompson's 1832 map, Ellisland was spelt "Elliesland" and was next to Isle Tower. The ' Laird of Lag's Tomb ' is located at the surviving "Dunscore Old Kirk" burial ground, as is the grave of Captain Robert Riddell of Glenriddell , a close associate of Robert Burns . The church
Cairn Valley Light Railway - Misplaced Pages Continue
1088-479: Was on the Cairn Valley Railway which ran to Moniaive from Dumfries . Craigenputtock Estate is within the Civil Parish of Dunscore. The name Dunscore is of Cumbric origin, formed of the elements dīn 'fort' and *ïsgor 'fortification, rampart'. William J. Watson proposes the meaning "fort of the bulwark or rampart". There is a parish church of Dunscore. The long abandoned Dunscore Old Kirk
1122-620: Was rebuilt into a heritage centre in 2017, and features information on the Dunscore-born Jane Haining. Lag (or Lagg) Tower is a ruinous fortification lying on high ground north-east of Dunscore, north of the Laggan Burn. The structure dates from the 15th or 16th century and was originally four storeys high with a walled courtyard at its base. From the 14th Century, the site was the home of the Grierson family , which
1156-520: Was the last Covenanter to be executed in Edinburgh . The Scottish artist James Paterson , a founder member of 'The Glasgow Boys' , settled in Moniaive in 1884 and stayed for 22 years. He painted many local scenes including "The Last Turning" – a view of a woman approaching the village on the lane on the western side of the old millpond (now drained) in the Dalwhat Valley – now displayed in
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