The Newport, Wormit & Forgan Archive

The Newport Railways, 1865, 1866 and 1869

Blog article in course of preparation

                Newport Railway 1, planned November 1865.

                Newport Railway 2, planned November 1865.

                Newport Railway 3, planned November 1865.

                Newport Railway Deviation, planned November 1866.

                Newport Railway, planned 1869, opened 1879.

 

                  North British (Tay Bridge) Railway (N B (T B)), planned November 1865.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The map is best viewed by having the pink Newport Railway 1869/79 line switched off until that point in the story is reached.

 

The November 1865 version

Initially 3 railways were planned to run from Tayport through Newport to join up with the North British (Tay Bridge) Railway at 2 points¹. Engineers: George Cadell Bruce & George Cunningham.

• Railway 1 was to run from Tayport station to Victoria Street in Newport. This used the same route as the Tay Bridge & Dundee Union Railway planned in 1864.
• Railway 2 was to run from the end of Railway 1 at Victoria Street, through West Newport and then round to terminate south of Wormit Farm where it would join up with the North British (Tay Bridge) Railway to form a route to Leuchars and beyond. The route from Victoria Street to Castle Brae was the same as the TB & DU route.
• Railway 3 was to break away from Railway 2 at a point south of Woodhaven Farm and was to run to join with the NB (TB) on the bridge near its south end, thus providing a link to Dundee.

This all depended on the building of a Tay Bridge and the North British (Tay Bridge) Railway, which had been planned in November 1865².

 

The November 1866 version

However, just as the Newport Railway Bill was passing through the House of Lords, the North British abandoned their plan for a Tay Bridge and railway on 26 July 1866³. The Newport Railway Act received the Royal assent on August 6th⁴, but wthout the North British (Tay Bridge) railway, the Newport Railway had no reason to exist.

The Newport Railway Company revised their plans and proposed a Newport Deviation Railway⁵, to run from Tayport station along the coast to terminate at Craighead (nowadays more or less underneath the Tay Road Bridge). Engineer: George Cadell Bruce. This Act received the Royal assent on 25 July 1867⁶.

There was no more progress on the Newport Railway until the North British Railway published their next proposals for a Tay Bridge and supporting railways in 1869⁷.

 

The (final) 1869 version

Except for the first quarter of a mile from its beginning at Tayport station (which remained from the original 1865 plans and the TB & DU plans of 1864), a new route⁸ [now you should display it on the map] was surveyed for the 1869 line which was to run from Tayport station through Newport to connect to the (first) Tay Bridge. Like the bridge, its engineer was Thomas Bouch. The Newport Railway Company intended the line to open at the same time as the Tay Bridge⁹ but construction of the line only began in June 1877¹⁰ and it opened for passenger traffic on 12 May 1879¹¹ (the Tay Bridge officially opened on 31 May 1878).

Following the collapse of the first Tay Bridge and the construction of the new Tay Bridge, the Wormit end of the Newport Railway was moved a little to the west which necessitated a new tunnel at Wormit.

The line from Newport-on-Tay East to Tayport was closed on 22 May 1966, a replacement bus service running to Tayport until 18 December 1967. The rest of the line closed on 3 May 1969. Much of the line is now a nature trail.

 

Articles about the stations and the line in operation are on the Newport History Group's website.

 

References:
1. Fifeshire Journal, 16 November 1865, p3; Plans - at National Records of Scotland, ref. RHP45903; Edinburgh Gazette, 28 Nov 1865, p1597
2. Plans - at National Records of Scotland, ref. RHP24554; Edinburgh Gazette, 24 Nov 1865, p1522
3. Caledonian Mercury, 27 July 1866, p3
4. The Newport Railway Act, 1866 [not available on legislation.gov.uk], but available here
5. Dundee Advertiser, 6 November 1866, p5; 16 November 1866, p1; 17 November 1866, p2; Plans - at National Records of Scotland, ref. RHP45904; Edinburgh Gazette, 20 Nov 1866, p1372
6. The Newport Railway Act, 1867
7. Plans - at National Records of Scotland, ref. RHP24560; Edinburgh Gazette, 23 Nov 1869, p1465
8. The Newport Railway Act, 1870; Plans - at National Records of Scotland, ref. RHP45905; Edinburgh Gazette, 26 Nov 1869, p1510
9. An extension of the time limit on building the line had been required - The Newport Railway Act, 1873; Dundee Courier, 17 February 1876, p2
10. Dundee Courier, 25 June 1877, p2
11. Dundee Courier, 13 May 1879, p4

Additional reading:
The High Girders, John Prebble, 1956
Forgotten Railways - Scotland, John Thomas, 1976
The Railways of Fife, William Scott Bruce, 1980
The North British Railway - a History, David Ross, 2014

 

Return to:    Railway Plans

 

These are the entries in the Books of Reference which accompany the various railway plans held at the National Records of Scotland, but not online. The full plans are not on this site.

     There are 335 records.

Co.	Year	Plan	Ref	Description	Owner or reputed owner	Occupier	[Comments]	Location
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	12	Approach to Tayfield House	John Berry	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	13	Arable ground	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); Robert & John Arthur (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	14	Clump of trees	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); Robert & John Arthur and the owner (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	15	Arable ground	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); Robert & John Arthur (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	16	Plantation	John Berry	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	17	Occupation road to Tayfield House, & steading	John Berry	Robert & John Arthur and the owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	19	Clump of trees	John Berry	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	20, 20/1	Plantation with walks	John Berry	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	21	Occupation road	John Berry	The owner, Robert & John Arthur
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	22	Plantation with walks	John Berry	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	23	Stream & banks	John Berry	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	24	Arable ground	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); Robert & John Arthur (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	25	Footpath	John Berry	Robert & John Arthur , John McIntosh, John Ritchie
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	26	Clump of plantation	John Berry	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	27	Garden ground	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); John McIntosh & John Ritchie (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	28	Dwelling house, outhouses, walks & waste ground	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); John McIntosh & John Ritchie (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	29	Garden ground	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); John McIntosh & John Ritchie (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	30	Arable ground	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); Robert & John Arthur (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	31	Occupation road & footpath	Henry Stewart, David Just, Helen, Ann & Elizabeth Whittet, James Shepherd	The owners, George Just, Mrs John Just, Edward Parker
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	32	Garden grounds	David Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	33	Dwelling house	David Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	34, 35	Wright's shop, wood yard & outhouses	David Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	35/1	Occupation road	Henry Stewart, David Just	The owners
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	36	Outhouses	David Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	37	Arable ground	Henry Stewart	George Just (lessee & occupier)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	38	Occupation road	Henry Stewart, Helen, Ann & Elizabeth Whittet, Mrs John Just, George Just, David Just	The owners
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	39	Garden ground & outhouses	Mrs John Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	40	Garden ground	George Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	41	Bleaching green	George Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	42	Stable, byre & outhouses	George Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	43	Vacant ground	George Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	44	Occupation road	Henry Stewart	George Just
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	45	Arable ground	Henry Stewart	George Just (lessee & occupier)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	46	Footpath	Henry Stewart	George Just
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	47	Quarry	Rev. Thomas Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	48	Arable ground	Rev. Thomas Just	John Just (lessee & occupier)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	49, 50	Garden grounds	Thomas Harris	Robert Kinnear (lessee & occupier)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	51	Dwelling house & garden ground	Rev. Thomas Just	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	52, 53	Dwelling house, outhouses & garden	James Petrie, John Geekie & Andrew Wilson (Trustees of late Alexander Gibb), John Skinner	Peter Ramsay (lessee & occupier)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	55	Stripe of ground	James Petrie, John Geekie & Andrew Wilson (Trustees of late Alexander Gibb), John Skinner, Thomas Cleghorn	The owners, Peter Ramsay
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	54, 56	Dwelling house, outhouses & garden	Thomas Cleghorn	[blank] [The owner]
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	57	Occupation road	John Berry	The owner, Joseph Garland, Robert Arthur, John Arthur, John Just, the public
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	58	Pasture bank	John Berry	Robert Arthur, John Arthur, John Just
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	59	Arable ground	John Berry	John Just (lessee & occupier)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	60	Metal depot	Turnpike Road Trustees for St Andrews District of the County of Fife (Stuart Grace, clerk)	The owners
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	61	Arable ground with trees	John Berry	Robert Arthur (lessee); Robert & John Arthur (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	62	Arable ground	Henry Stewart	Henry Rhind (lessee & occupier)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	63	Occupation road & stream	Henry Stewart	Henry Rhind (lessee); Henry Rhind & the owner (occupiers)
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	64	Plantation	Henry Stewart	The owner
Newport 2	1865	RHP45903	65	Arable ground	Henry Stewart	Henry Rhind (lessee & occupier)

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