Location type

Station

Name and dates

Aviemore (1863-)

Opened on the Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway (Highland Railway).

Open on the Highland Main Line.
Open on the Strathspey Railway [Preserved].

Note: text in square brackets is added for clarity and was not part of the location's name.

Description

This is a three platform station, formerly with a bay at the north end on the west side. The station was rebuilt and enlarged when Aviemore became a junction on the opening of the Direct Line to Inverness via Carrbridge. The name Aviemore is from Gaelic, 'An Aghaidh Mhòr' - The big (mountain) face.

Original station of 1863

When the railway opened Aviemore itself consisted of virtually nothing, just a post office and one or two houses, almost all for the railway staff! Some of the houses were converted navvy bothies, built from railway materials such as sleepers.

The original station had a loop and two platforms. In 1885 north and south boxes opened for the loop.

Direct line and reconstruction of 1898

In 1898 the new Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway (Highland Railway) opened throughout to Inverness and Aviemore became a junction station. The new line greatly reduced the length of the main line from Perth to Inverness. The station was rebuilt.

The architect for the rebuild was William Roberts. The new station was slightly incongruous for its location; a large well appointed station set in the midst of a sparsely populated, albeit beautiful, area.

The north and south boxes were replaced in 1892 and again in 1898 with the complete opening of the new direct route. The north box was on the west side north of the station. The south box was south of the station on the east side. In 1898 a new 'Aviemore Platform' box was added - at the north end of the island platform.

The station now had four platforms, a northbound, southbound and the opposite face of the southbound island platform along with a bay platform at the north end, west side. The buildings had large canopies.

There were sidings and loading banks on the east side of the station, approached from the south.

North of the station was Aviemore Yard on the west side of the line, sidings approached from the north. On the east side was Aviemore Shed, approached from the station.

Run down and resurgence

Aviemore Platform box closed in 1914.

Aviemore was scaled back over some time. With the opening of Perth New Yard, in 1962, Aviemore Yard was closed.

The original main line via Boat of Garten closed to passengers in 1965 and outright in 1968. Aviemore Shed closed.

Aviemore South box closed in 1971 and was taken over by the North box, now renamed simply 'Aviemore'.

The Boat of Garten route was to re-open as the Strathspey Railway (Preserved), the line being conveyed to the preservation group in 1978.

In 1979 a panel was installed in the signal box to control several locations where the boxes were replaced: Carrbridge.

Initially the preservation group were allowed a connection through the goods sidings but were blocked from the station so established their own Aviemore Speyside to the north. It closed in 2000 when the group were given access to the east side of the island platform. This was modified to no longer be served from the north by the main line.

Today

The station remains open and has a long loop.

The signal box at the north end and on the west side of the line was 'C' listed. The box, the former north box opened in 1898, closed with the extension of the loop in 2019 and the signalling was taken over by Inverness Signalling Centre.

The line is supported and promoted by the Highland Main Line Community Partnership .

Local

The town very much owes its existence to the railway. Before the railway opened there were very few houses here. It became a town to support the needs of the junction between the lines to Forres and Inverness when the direct route to Inverness opened throughout in 1897.

Strathspey Railway

Visit Aviemore

Cairngorm Mountain

Cairngorm Mountain - Funicular Railway

03/09/2019

Tags

Station junction preservation heritage

External links

Canmore site record
NLS Collection OS map of 1892-1914
NLS Collection OS map of 1944-67
NLS Map
NLS Map

Facilities

Gaelic name: An Aghaidh Mhor