When the line between Carlisle and Edinburgh (The Waverley Line) opened in 1862, it was joined at Riccarton by the Border Counties railway from Hexham.
Riccarton Junction was in a remote upland area and developed into a railway village, with 37 cottages, a school and a mission hall. The railway facilities expanded into extensive sidings, 2 signal boxes and an island platform with a bay for the Haxham trains. Having no road access, everything had to come and go by train, from coffins to children. The Hawick Co-op even had a shop in the station.
Decline set in with the closure of the Hexham line in 1956 (goods in 1958). Electricity arrived in 1955, before which there was a gasworks. The Forestry Commission drove a road to the station in 1963, as part of their tree planting operations in the area, but families progressively moved out as the jobs disappeared. When the line closed in January 1969, the settlement was no more. The tracks were lifted by 1971, but some structures lingered until th 1980's. With the exception of the schoolmasters house, the whole area is now owned by the Forestry Commission, who use the trackbed as a logging road.
A group called the Friends of Riccarton Junction was set up to restore the Station. The filled in platforms were dug out and track laid, but this ended in tears and criminal charges in 2006. Since then it has just been left, although the arrival of equipment during my visit heralded the removal of the track.
It is a 3 mile walk to reach here from the nearest road!
As it was, pics from Disused Stations website
The only building left is the former Generator house. This was the headquarters of the Friends of Riccarton Junction and is empty!
A large culvert crosses the site.
Part of the site was built up with thousands of tons of ash. This was removed without planning permission and has dropped the ground level, so that this manhole looks like a chimney!
Old water main
Former Stationmasters house
Kitchen sink
Former Signalling cabinet
Chipping bin, used to pack under sleepers to level them
Riccarton Junction was in a remote upland area and developed into a railway village, with 37 cottages, a school and a mission hall. The railway facilities expanded into extensive sidings, 2 signal boxes and an island platform with a bay for the Haxham trains. Having no road access, everything had to come and go by train, from coffins to children. The Hawick Co-op even had a shop in the station.
Decline set in with the closure of the Hexham line in 1956 (goods in 1958). Electricity arrived in 1955, before which there was a gasworks. The Forestry Commission drove a road to the station in 1963, as part of their tree planting operations in the area, but families progressively moved out as the jobs disappeared. When the line closed in January 1969, the settlement was no more. The tracks were lifted by 1971, but some structures lingered until th 1980's. With the exception of the schoolmasters house, the whole area is now owned by the Forestry Commission, who use the trackbed as a logging road.
A group called the Friends of Riccarton Junction was set up to restore the Station. The filled in platforms were dug out and track laid, but this ended in tears and criminal charges in 2006. Since then it has just been left, although the arrival of equipment during my visit heralded the removal of the track.
It is a 3 mile walk to reach here from the nearest road!
As it was, pics from Disused Stations website
The only building left is the former Generator house. This was the headquarters of the Friends of Riccarton Junction and is empty!
A large culvert crosses the site.
Part of the site was built up with thousands of tons of ash. This was removed without planning permission and has dropped the ground level, so that this manhole looks like a chimney!
Old water main
Former Stationmasters house
Kitchen sink
Former Signalling cabinet
Chipping bin, used to pack under sleepers to level them