St Leonards railway station (Scotland) explained

St Leonards
Status:Disused
Borough:Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh
Country:Scotland
Coordinates:55.9426°N -3.1757°W
Map Type:Edinburgh
Original:Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway
Pregroup:North British Railway
Postgroup:London and North Eastern Railway
Years:2 June 1832
Events:Opened
Years1:1846
Events1:Closed
Years2:1 June 1860
Events2:Reopened
Years3:30 September 1860
Events3:Closed to passengers - site reused as a goods depot
Years4:1968
Events4:Goods depot closed

St. Leonards railway station is a closed railway station in St Leonard's, Edinburgh, on the Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway. It was Edinburgh's first railway station. The railway was built in 1831 to transport coal from the mining towns south of the city; and the following year opened passenger services. St. Leonards was the terminus for the south of the city and was named after the nearby region.

Passenger services ceased in 1846, when the North British Railway opened a station at North Bridge which later developed into Waverley station. Services from Dalkeith were re-routed via Portobello. The station reopened briefly between 1 June 1860 and 30 September 1860 when a service was temporarily re-introduced from St. Leonard's to Dalkeith, Portobello and Leith, but it closed again within a few months. The railhead continued to see heavy use in its original intended role as a coal yard until 1968.[1]

Both the coal depot and part of the railway line have been redeveloped as housing. The goods shed is the only surviving building; it has been designated a Category B listed building by Historic Environment Scotland.[2] In 2019 it was converted into a whisky and gin distillery, operated by Holyrood Distillery.[3] The remaining trackbed is now a footpath and cycle path, forming part of the National Cycle Network Route 1.[4]

See also

References

  1. Web site: Edinburgh and Dalkeith Railway, St Leonard's Station | Canmore.
  2. Web site: St Leonard's Lane, St Leonard's Station Including Outbuilding at Gate and Gatepiers . Historic Scotland . 17 March 2019.
  3. News: Andy Gemmell . Andy . Drink with Andy Gemmell: Holyrood Distillery . 2 December 2022 . The Herald . 7 July 2019 . Glasgow.
  4. Web site: Lewis . Mike . Edinburgh Bike Paths: A Cyclist's Guide . Cycling Edinburgh . 2 December 2022 . August 2020.

External links