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Stenlake Publishing - The Wemyss Private Railway


The Wemyss Private Railway



Author : A. W. Brotchie
ISBN : 9780853615279
Cover : hardback
Price : £22.95

The definitive history of Fife’s most extensive industrial railway. It was developed against the wishes of the North British Railway, which held a monopoly in Fife, by the Wemyss Estate, to carry its considerable coal traffic. Development of the collieries and ports (Methil in particular) is also covered in detail in this book. Coal formed such an important factor in the total industrial history of this part of Fife that it is impossible to tell the story without reference to the wider implications of the social changes in the area. The Wemyss Coal Company was incorporated into the National Coal Board in 1947. The railway was not absorbed and so continued to be run by the estate, albeit with a management committee which included NCB representation. Coal mining still continues in Fife, but now it is only a shadow of its former self. A chapter on the Wemyss and Buckhaven Railway, contributed by Alan Simpson, is included along with numerous maps, contemporary material and many evocative photographs.

Alan Brotchie is a chartered civil engineer with a life-long interest in transport. A native of Edinburgh, but a Fife resident for many years, he has researched and written extensively on Scottish tramways. In 1976 he published his history of the Wemyss Tramway Company, and at that time met and recorded the memories of several of the estate railway officials. This work on the Wemyss Private Railway is made particularly detailed following privileged access tot he private records of the Wemyss Estate.

A5 format, 272 pages, more than 230 photographs,plans, etc.

The Wemyss Private Railway
£22.95