FAIRMUIR JUNCTION TO MARYFIELD GOOD LINE


Fair Muir Junction was to the north of Lochee on the north side of Cleppington Road, which the goods branch
paralleled to  Maryfield Goods Yard. Dundee's two main goods yards were high above and to the eastern edge
of the City. You can just make out the tracery of the incline railway, passing west of King's Cross Fever Hospital 
and running northwards to Balgray Road.


A Flash Earth view of Fairmuir Junction during clearance for the new shopping precinct. The Cleppington Road bridge is at
bottom center, The Kingsway overbridge where the old & new lines met is at top right. The Crossroads station site
 (on the old line) is on the far right, with Fairmuir Goods yard and the Fairfield goods line extension going off top right.

CINE FILM (Video) SCREEN GRABS

 
Left: Strathmore Road/Harefield Road bridge. This is now a footpath from Lochee.  Today there is a gate at the right hand side of the bridge, leading
down to the track bed. Right: Clepington Road Bridge. End of the footpath from Harefield Road. On this side of the bridge the track bed has been
partly in filled and a gentle graded path allows you to gain access to the foot path. However, the view through the bridge is now impossible as
it has been filled in and the Fairmuir Junction area on the northern side of the bridge is under a massive industrial estate.

 
From Cleppington Road bridge. Left: The telegraph pole on the left still stands today. An 08 Shunting loco is approaching Fairmuir Junction with a
trip to Muirfield and/or Maryfield yards. This is part of the present day footpath. Right: Passing the Ex junction points for the Newtyle branch at
Fairmuir Junction. The train is taking the Maryfield line and about to run  into Fairmuir Goods yard. The Newtyle section can just be seen going
off to the left hand side of the signal box. The brick building on the right was the Co-op Bakery.

 
Two views from the north side of the Cleppington Road bridge and Fairmuir Junction, with the old track bed heading northwards to Newtyle. Only the
goods line to Muirfield and Fairfield goods sidings remained at this time.

 
Left: Fairmuir Junction Signal box. The old incline track bed came in around this point, from the northern portal of the Law Tunnel.
Right: Brown & Tawse stood to the  right of the signal box, with the incline track bed behind that .


Having passed under Cleppington Road bridge the train curves off past the signal box. on a right hand curve and onto the Maryfield branch
 proper, with Fairmuir Yard just around the corner.  The yard backs up to the tenement houses in the background on Strathmartin Road. 
The track on the right is the Up exit line from the yard. The incline railway came in from just behind the house on the right,
crossing the present track site, to the left and onto Newtyle.

 
 Left: Site Of Fairmuir Goods Yard from Strathmartin Road bridge. Right: Ditto. From the backfilled track bed and bridge over Strathmartin
Road. The large building stands on what was the Co-op Cold Store. This is also a good indictor as to how much backfilling has been
carried out over the length from here to Maryfield Goods Yard.


Strathmartin Road railway over bridge (Google Street View)


Fairmuir Goods Yard Site. The north corner of the large building on the right is seen above (left) from Strathmartin Road. This building stands on the site of the
Co-op Cold Store. You can follow the track bed east to west and see the Ex under bridge crossing leading past Fair Muir Park and onto Maryfield. Goods Yard.

FAIRMUIR YARD. FROM CINE FILM SCREEN GRABS

 
The 08 is shunting in Fairmuir Yard (Left), while the Class 24 loco is parked up at the western end of the yard waiting it's next turn of duty (Right).

 
Left: A Clayton Type Diesel loco shunting in the yard. Right: The southern side of the yard. This backs up to the Cleppington Road. Note the wagon
loading gauge over the track on the left.

 
The 08 shunting in the yard, with the houses of Cleppington Road in the background


The Class 24 departing from the yard with a train of coal empties, passing Fairmuir Junction Signalbox
and heading south to Lochee and onto Dundee via Ninewells Junction. This whole area is now under
a large Industrial estate. The incline railway had crossed from left to right virtually at this spot. The
large building in the background is now the car park in front of the Kingsway Shopping Center.


The house seen above is still there. This is pretty close to the same scene above.
You can see the Kingsway Shopping Center in the background.


StrathmartinRoad(D&NBridge)Southwards.jpg
Ex Fairfield Branch over brdge on Strathmartin Road (Looking south)

 
Leaving Fairmuir yard for Maryfield. Passing the Co-op Cold Store and about to go under the Strathmartin Road bridge.
Compare this scene with the present day one below and the photo of the large modern building on the site of the Co-op Cold Store.
You can see what drastic changes have taken place since the branch closed. Again ,demonstrating the vast amount of backfilling that
has taken place between Fairmuir and Maryfield. Above, there is a clear way right up to the next under bridge at Old Glamis Road. 
Note the signal. It is either the 'fixed' distant signal for Fairmuir Junction or stopping trains for shunting back into Fairmuir sidings.

 
The Strathmartin road bridge where the extension carried on from Fairmuir Yard to Maryfield Goods Yard. The line ran in a deep cutting , which
has been backfilled from here to Maryfield.

 
Left: The track bed to Maryfield from Strathmartin Road is backfilled and forms part of Fair Muir Park. Right: The track bed is fenced off by Fairmuir Street.
A point of interest is that modern railway fencing has been used, which suggests that Rail track is still responsible for such work.

 
Left: The track bed from Fairmuir is behind this worksite. Right: Old Glamis Road. There is no sign that the railway ran in a deep cutting
with an over bridge at this point. The track bed runs left to right through the entrance of the car sales yard, towards Maryfield.

 
Two views from Balgray Place. Left: The telephone post is central to the track bed looking towards Maryfield Goods Yard. Right: The track bed is
central to the photograph looking towards Fairmuir Junction. These two photos show how much backfilling has been done.
The back gardens have been extended over part of the cutting.

 
Two views from Graham Street. Left: Looking towards Fairmuir Jctn, with Dundee College buildings on the left. There has been much backfilling.
Right: On the east side of  Graham Street, standing on the backfilled track bed looking towards Fairmuir Jctn.

 
Left: Also from Graham Street. The track bed ran in line with the new 'white' house up ahead, where it entered Maryfield Goods Yard.
The houses on the right are built upon the site of the the Douglas Foundry. Right: the yard looking towards the Clepington Road.
On the far left is a heap of soil used for the backfill. The original cutting spoil was used in the building of  Riverside Drive.


The track bed between Fairmuir Goods and Maryfield Goods yard. You can make out the widening of the railway as it formed Maryfield Goods
Yard on the right


Layout of Maryfield Goods yard. The Douglas Foundry, which is now a housing estate, which is steadily
creeping towards Maryfield yard.

 
A diagonal view looking across the yard towards Clepington Road. Right: Roughly centre of the Yard looking towards the branch,
which is on the far right.

 
Left: The yard looking westwards up to the present day fencing. Right: On the entrance road from Clepington Road and
entering the goods yard. The branch ran in from the 'white' house beyond and to the right of the parked lorry.

 
Left: This old building on Clepington Road near the entrance to the goods yard may have been railway property!
Right: Rear of the building within the goods yard site.


Maryfield Goods Yard paremeter. From the Clepington Road

VIDEO SCREEN GRABS OF SHUNTING AT MARYFIELD

 
Left: From the back of a brake van, between Muirfield and Maryfield as the train approached Muirfield Goods yard. In the distance you can see the over bridge on Old Glamis
Road. Right: As close as you are ever likely to get to the same view as on the left. The brake van was in the shadow of the north side of the Strathmartin Road bridge,
which, would have been almost directly below the paving slabs in the 2009 photo.


Reverse view of Strathmartin Road bridge. The brake van would have been roughly
where the Daffodils up ahead are. 

 
Left: Shunting at Maryfield. This is at the lead-in off the branch. A train is being marshaled ready for returning to Dundee. Left: Note the depth of the cutting
and the high road bridge at Graham Street. You can also see the next bridge back at Balgray Place. The backfill  is now level with the road bridge. The shunters
are standing pretty much at the spot of the new 'white' house mentioned above
. The shunter on the left is pinning down wagon brakes, while his colleague is
back onto near siding to pick up more wagons, before setting out of the yard and back onto the wagons on the left to form the completed train. The wagon brakes
will assure a firm buffer-up, ready for the coupling of the front portion on to the rear portion. Right: The completed train waiting for departure.  In both photos
the background is filled with the Douglas Foundry, which is now a housing estate, as indeed is this part of the yard.

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Links & Reading:

The Dundee & Newtyle Railway by Niall Ferguson.  Still available from some books shops and on the Internet.

The Dundee & Newtyle (A history by Elliot Simpson)

http://www.auchterhouse.com/history/railway.htm  (Includes and excellent map of the railway)

http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=7762615   Excellent 'remains' photos including the Law Tunnel, Balbeuchley Incline and Dronley

http://www.hows.org.uk/personal/rail/incline/dund.htm Explains the inclines but sketches are very poor quality and almost useless.

Video Screen grabs from the The Railways Of Scotland Volume 8 "Dundee". An excellent video available on DVD, from Cinerail at: http://www.cinerail.com/cinerail/railways-of-scotland.html  There are many great archive scenes of almost every Scottish route you can think of. Well worth a look.

The Cromford & High Peak Incline railway in Derbyshire has been luckier in having much of it's buildings, including an Engine House preserved. This is what could have happened, indeed, should have happened with at least one of the D&N inclines. However, the C&H gives an excellent comparison of what the D&N would have looked like. 

http://www.hows.org.uk/personal/rail/incline/hop.htm

Boddam To Ellon Branch (Walks)   By Bill Reid.

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