Killin Railway

The Killin Railway was a locally promoted railway line built to connect the town of Killin to the Callander and Oban Railway main line nearby. It opened in 1886, and carried tourist traffic for steamers on Loch Tay as well as local business. The directors and the majority of the shareholders were local people, and the little company retained its independence until 1923.

When the adjacent main line closed in 1965, the Killin line closed too.

History

A local company

On 1 June 1870, the Callander and Oban Railway opened the first portion of its line. Shortage of cash meant that the original intention of linking Oban to the railway network was to be deferred for now. The line opened from the former Dunblane, Doune and Callander Railway at Callander to a station named Killin, but it was at Glenoglehead, high above the town and three miles (5 km) distant down a steep and rugged track.

The difficult local terrain prevented any question of the line to Oban passing through Killin, and local people were for the time being happy enough that they had a railway connection of a sort; indeed tourist trade was brought in to the town. The Callander and Oban Railway had in fact been absorbed by the Caledonian Railway but continued to be managed semi-autonomously. The Caledonian was a far larger concern that had money problems, and priorities, elsewhere. Nevertheless, as time went on, extension of the first line to Oban was resumed in stages, and finally completed on 30 June 1880.

Killin

Coordinates: 56°27′58″N 4°19′05″W / 56.466°N 4.318°W / 56.466; -4.318

Killin (/ˌkɪlˈɪn/; from Cill Fhinn 'the White [or Fair] Church' in Gaelic) is a village situated at the western head of Loch Tay in Stirling (formerly Perthshire), Scotland.

The west end of the village is magnificently sited around the scenic Falls of Dochart, the main street leading down towards the Loch at the confluence of the rivers Dochart and Lochay. The falls are crossed by a narrow, multi-arched stone bridge carrying the main A827 road into Killin.

Killin railway station was on the Killin Railway. The railway station was officially closed on 1 November 1965.

Killin has a small primary school with 56 pupils. For secondary education the children have to travel to Callander, 21 miles to the south. The nearest Gaelic medium primary is in Stirling, 37 miles to the south.

History

The MacNab Clan were once dominant here, and have long been associated with Killin. Their ancient burial ground is on Inchbuie in the River Dochart, just below the falls, and is visible from the bridge.