Huntly: Looking south at the old station building at Huntly one evening in 1997.
Ewan Crawford //1997

Huntly

Location type

Station

Name and dates

Huntly (1854-)

Station code: HNT National Rail ScotRail
Where: Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Opened on the Great North of Scotland Railway.
Open on the Aberdeen to Inverness.

Description

This is a two platform station. There is a modern station building on the westbound platform. On the east side of the line is an extensive goods yard, served from the south. Latterly the yard dealt with timber traffic but in the past it saw potato traffic.

The station once had a timber trainshed. This was cut back and then removed.

This was the first terminus of the line from Aberdeen Kittybrewster. In the early days there was a locomotive shed at the south end of the station.

North and south boxes opened at the station in 1890. The south box was at the south end of the loop on the west side, alongside a level crossing and 'Gate House'. The north box was on the east side of the line on the southbound platform and to the north of the station's trainshed.

The line from Insch, to the east, was doubled in 1896.

To the west it was doubled in 1898 as far as Avochie Signal Box.

In 1901 the north box was closed - it was no longer necessary as there was no north end of a loop to control.
The south box was reduced to a gate box, no longer controlling the south end of the loop.
A new Huntly box opened. This was located south of the station on the west side. This was opposite the goods yard, specifically the cattle pens loading bank and the turn outs for the main loading banks and goods shed.

In 1905 the Great North of Scotland Railway introduced a connecting bus service from the station to Aberchirder. This extended on to Banff using routes via Alvah or Cornhill.

In 1970 the line west to Keith and east to Kennethmont was singled. This led to the closure of Huntly box, however Huntly South, which had been relegated to being a gate box, was converted back to a full box.

The signal box has been separated from the station by the A96 Huntly by-pass. 'Gate House' was demolished.

Local

Huntly Castle

Tags

Station terminus

External links

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




Chronology Dates

  /09/1854Great North of Scotland Railway
Huntly to Aberdeen Kittybrewster inspected.
12/09/1854Great North of Scotland Railway
Huntly to Aberdeen Kittybrewster opened to freight. Passing places at: Aberdeen Kittybrewster, Kintore [1st], Inverurie, Insch and Huntly.
19/09/1854Great North of Scotland Railway
Huntly to Aberdeen Kittybrewster official opening.
20/09/1854Great North of Scotland Railway
Huntly to Aberdeen Kittybrewster opened to passengers. Stations at: Aberdeen Kittybrewster, Buxsburn, Dyce [1st], Kintore [1st], Inverurie [1st], Pitcaple, Oyne, Insch, Kennethmont, Gartly, Huntly.
25/05/1855Great North of Scotland Railway
Keith to Huntly authorised.
10/10/1856Great North of Scotland Railway
Huntly to Keith opened. Stations at: Huntly, Rothiemay, Grange and Keith.
30/11/1896Great North of Scotland Railway
Doubled Gartly to Huntly opened.
  /  /1898Great North of Scotland Railway
Cairnie Junction station opened to save dividing trains for portions for the Banff, Portsoy and Strathisla Railway at Huntly.
19/01/1898Great North of Scotland Railway
Doubled Huntly to Avochie Signal Box (near Rothiemay) opened.
06/12/1970Great North of Scotland Railway
Huntly to Gartly to Kennethmont singled.
13/12/1970Great North of Scotland Railway
Keith to Rothiemay to Huntly singled.
  /  /1999Great North of Scotland Railway
Listed, but decrepit, station buildings at Huntly demolished and replaced with new building.

News items

30/08/2023Disruption on Aberdeen to Inverness trains due to tree on line [Press and Journal]
08/08/2023Aberdeen to Inverness trains cancelled after car crashes on to line [Press and Journal]
18/05/2023Aberdeenshire Council projects shortlisted in coveted Scottish Transport Awards [The Scotsman]
08/12/2022Heavy snow sparks train cancellations, ScotRail warns [Inverness Courier]
25/01/2022ScotRail release plans for changes to ticket office opening hours in the north and north-east [Press and Journal]
27/11/2021Storm Arwen: Passengers spent 17 hours on stranded train at Huntly station as staff bring pies and water [Press and Journal]
07/07/2021Aberdeen to Inverness railway line reopens after fallen tree on tracks caused temporary closure [Press and Journal]
18/02/2021Train snowplough in action near Huntly [BBC News]
16/02/2021Snow drifts continue to bring railway misery on Highland routes [Inverness Courier]
15/02/2021Snow drifts up to 50 metres long bury railway lines [Inverness Courier]

Books

150 Years of the Great North: Tales of the Little But Good
A History of the Great North of Scotland Railway

Banff, Moray and Nairn's Lost Railways

Great North Memories: Aberdeen No. 2: Scenes of the North East's Own Railway

Great North Memories: LNER Era, 1923-47

Great North of Scotland Railway (History of the Railways of the Scottish Highlands, vol. 3)

Great North of Scotland Railway Album

Great North of Scotland Railway Album

Great North of Scotland Railway Carriages

Great North of Scotland Railway Locomotives

History of the Railways of the Scottish Highlands: Great North of Scotland Railway v. 3
LNER Wagons: Volume 3: Scottish Area: Ex North British and Ex-Great North of Scotland Railway Wagons
Modelling the Great North of Scotland Railway
Moray Coast Railways
Scotland’s Lost Branch Lines: Where Beeching Got It Wrong

Signalling and Signal Boxes along the North British Railway, Great North of Scotland Railway and the CLC Routes

Speyside Railways: Exploring the Remains of the Great North of Scotland Railways and Its Environs

The Great North of Scotland Railway - A New History

The Travellers Joy: The Story of the Morayshire Railway