One man who knew the station is its heyday, and who helped it to look its best, is someone that I have written about before - James Hope Young. He was one of the former station masters at Largo, and recently his granddaughter contacted me and shared the photo below of her grandfather in his LNER uniform. He was station master for nine years in the 1920s and during his tenure the station won several prizes for being 'best kept'. After 36 years services with the railways, Mr Young retired to Lundin Links. I would like to put together a list of station masters at both Largo and Lundin Links - if you have any details of the names and dates of the holders of the jobs, please comment.
After writing about the withdrawal of service and the railway line closure, time for a more upbeat post about Largo Station in happier and busier times. Above is an image of two trains passing at the station in the late 1950s. The one facing the camera is the 62418, named 'The Pirate'. Note the tidiness of the station and the freshly painted white building to the left. There is a wagon parked in the siding to the left beyond this. At the time of this scene, the railway was a century old. I wonder how many people at that time would have imagined that it would be gone within a decade.
One man who knew the station is its heyday, and who helped it to look its best, is someone that I have written about before - James Hope Young. He was one of the former station masters at Largo, and recently his granddaughter contacted me and shared the photo below of her grandfather in his LNER uniform. He was station master for nine years in the 1920s and during his tenure the station won several prizes for being 'best kept'. After 36 years services with the railways, Mr Young retired to Lundin Links. I would like to put together a list of station masters at both Largo and Lundin Links - if you have any details of the names and dates of the holders of the jobs, please comment.
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After the closure of the railway through Largo and Lundin Links to passenger traffic on 5 September 1965, the line remained accessible to the occasional freight service. The above image clearly dates from after the 1965 suspension of passenger services, as can be seen from the condition of the track and the station itself. Note the weeds on the line and on the platform, as well as the worn paintwork of the building and peeling posters. The book "The Leven & East of Fife Railway" by Hajducki, Jodeluk and Simpson mentions this period in the history of the line. It says: "On 26th February 1966 the Crail to Leven section was reduced to 'one engine in steam' status*. The goods service continued to operate in a sporadic fashion between Crail and Leven but it was obvious that it was being run down pending total closure.....The end was, however, not long in coming and closure notices were posted in May 1966 informing the public, who still cared, that goods services were to be withdrawn with effect from 18th July 1966 and the stations at Crail, Pittenweem, St Monance, Kilconquhar and Largo were to be closed to all traffic. Thereafter all remaining wagons and moveables were collected and the line was officially closed with effect from 18th December 1966, the grass-grown track was now left to await its fate at the hands of the demolition gangs." There was a footnote in this passage of the book stating that the last train to cross the line was in fact in April 1967. This was a locomotive which would normally have not been permitted on the line - the 'Union of South Africa', which you can read more about here. * 'one engine in steam' refers to the working of just one train over the whole length of a branch line The same book also notes that...
"By 1969 the demolition gangs had removed most of the rails by lorry* and those structures which remained but were thought to have any real scrap value, such as girders and footbridges, were cut up on site and removed within the next year or so." * A BR 350 hp diesel locomotive had been hired out to the demolition contractors and was used for a time when the line was being lifted Lundin Links station was purchased by the golf club and the building demolished in 1971. Largo station disappeared around the same time and the site converted into a car park. If you recall the post-closure goods services, the track removal, the demolition of the stations and such like - please comment! Here is the official notice of the planned withdrawal of rail passenger services between Leven and St Andrews. This appeared in the East Fife Mail of 24 February 1965 and was followed by a long letter from the Ministry of Transport. This spoke of how other rail and bus services would be adjusted and improved such that "any remaining hardship would be insufficient to justify the retention of the service". The final service ran on 5th September 1965, in spite of a campaign to have the decision reversed.
The iconic railway posters of the early to mid twentieth century remain popular to this day. Some of the most recognisable ones were created by Frank Henry Mason (1875-1965). Mason was an artist who specialised in marine, coastal, shipping and harbour scenes. It was fitting then that he painted the above image of Largo Harbour and coastline to advertise the Fife coast. Judging by the style of the cars and the train in the poster, this is probably a 1950s scene. Recruited by the London and North East Railway because of his reputation as a maritime artist, Frank Mason was a versatile painter who was one of a handful of artists that created the bold and memorable images used to promote the destinations reachable by rail. This Largo scene really captures the area as a post-war holiday resort and of course highlights the village as the birthplace of Alexander Selkirk. I wonder how many people saw this poster and decided to come and visit.
To read more about Frank Henry Mason, see more of his work and an image of the man himself, follow link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tees-32495451 It's 50 years ago this month that the last passenger train ran on the East Neuk line. On Sunday 5th September 1965 hundreds of people caught the final scheduled service - the 18:20 from Crail to Leven. The East Fife Mail of 8 September, under the headline "No Tickets Left for Last East Neuk Train to Leven Station" reported that such were the numbers of people who travelled to Crail, that... "...the booking office there ran out of tickets. And crowds greeted the train at every station along the line, with more passengers boarding at practically every stop. Cameras clicked and whirred as the diesel made its way round the coast with visitors, locals, enthusiasts and ex-railwaymen taking their last look at the East Neuk countryside from inside a British Rail train." Provost James Braid captured the sentiment of the day in his comment that "This closure is a tragedy. Every single person here feels it is a tragedy." He had spear-headed the fight to try to keep the line open and even at this point clung to the hope that the line may resume as a private enterprise. This would prove not to be, however, making the 18:20 service, driven by Jimmy Dobson, the last passenger train after all. Two ladies from Lundin LInks were on board for the final journey (which was their first) and were quoted as saying "we had never been on it before, so we thought we had better take the chance now". Despite the sadness of the occasion, the crowds that waited at Crail, Anstruther, St Monance, Pittenweem, Elie, Kilconquhar, Largo, Lundin Links and Leven were upbeat. There were balloons and even detonators on the track to ensure the day went with a bang! But festivities were short-lived and the day ended on a melancholy note:
"As the train made its last run into Leven station, the clouds opened and the rain came down, as if weeping in sympathy....And then it was all over and the only sound left was the splattering of rain on the lines which had carried the last train from the East Neuk...." If you recall the closure of the line and have memories or images of its final days - please do comment or get in touch using the 'contact' link. The above representation of Viewforth, which lies to the east of the Temple at Largo, is based upon the 1854 OS map. The buildings have evolved over the years - with bits added or taken away - but this is how it was captured in the earliest detailed map widely available. The 1825 advert for the sale of these grounds described the two-storey dwelling house named 'Viewforth' (the largest building in red at the centre) with its dining-room, parlour, kitchen and three bedrooms, plus adjoining stable. The advert also mentioned four small one storey houses, which can all be seen in the illustration. I imagine the whole settlement would have been quite self-sufficient, with vegetables grown, livestock kept and fish caught. There was a well to the east side.
The period when Viewforth (or Largo Pans) was a salt works is well-documented in the book 'Largo - An Illustrated History' by Eunson and Band. It places the origins of the works at 1759. The household account book of Lady Janet Anstruther lists 'salt from Largo' among the items purchased for the household between 1763 and 1770 (alongside such other items as a barrel of herrings, pint of gin, oysters from St Monans and hard biscuit from Leven). Other references to early Viewforth are hard to find but it seems that later in the 18th century salt production ceased and the site become more residential. The construction and arrival of the railway must have been hugely disruptive to inhabitants of Viewforth as the line cut the original site in two. Presumably compensation would have been paid for the loss of ground. Just to the east of Viewforth was the 'Strathairly siding' and the 'Viewforth level crossing'. The photograph below was taken from the beach at the south west corner of the Viewforth site, looking up towards the main dwelling house. The ruined building in the foreground always was incredibly close to the high water mark, and must have witnessed some spectacular storms over the decades, but eventually coastal erosion rendered the houses closest to the sea uninhabitable. By the late 1940s they were abandoned. The image at the foot of this post shows the remains of the main dwelling house. It is easy to distinguish the original elements of the building from the later brick addition. Remnants of doors, windows, walls, and a chimney can also be seen. This busy beach scene at Lundin Links, looking towards Drummochy, dates from the 1920s. These people are determined to be by the sea in spite of cool weather - plenty of coats, hats and jumpers are in evidence! Popular activities seem to be sandcastle building and digging deep holes. The group of four children in the foreground are enjoying being captured on camera and have some very sturdy looking spades with them. There are some four-legged friends around too. The railway line, that perhaps brought many of these people to Lundin Links, is noticeable in the top left corner, as is the bridge that took the road over the line. This area of the beach has much more vegetation these days.
Following on from the previous post, this image is looking at the same street but facing in the opposite direction c1930s. This time we are on Station Road (now Links Road) looking towards Golf Road, with the Lundin Golf Club House on the far right. A lone figure is walking away from the station, which is out of shot. Zooming in on the buildings, we can see the recently built 'Corner House' is looking brighter and newer than its neighbour to the right - which pre-dates it by a few decades and contains the home, shop and workshop of golf club maker D.M. Patrick. In the mid-background are houses Manderlea and Westhall and to the far left is the building that is now Peacehaven. The Putting Green was right in the corner of the present golf course ground, at the junction of Golf Road and Station Road. The little white flags are just visible in the photograph below.
I've just noticed today that the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) have added two new images of Lundin Links to their 'Britain from Above' website. These are the first images to be added from the Lundin Links and Largo area (although there are several views of neighbouring Leven). Use of the images on blogs is permitted provided they are not altered and the attribution is displayed. Both images were taken in 1954 and are centred on what is now the Old Manor Hotel, but then was the Beach Hotel.
The above image is a wider angle shot, including the railway station and its sidings to the lower right corner and Woodielea Road and the first hole of the Ladies Golf Course to the top right corner. Both images show the Standing Stanes in the centre of the golf course and the terraced garden of the hotel. Note the intensive cultivation of the ground to the left of the hotel and the very new looking houses on Links Road (then Station Road). Also noticeable are the gap sites on both sides of Leven Road, where more houses would later be built. Hopefully more images of the local area might be added to the Britain from Above website over time - I'll keep an eye out. Helpfully the name 'Lundin Links' is painted on the bench at the railway station in this photo, otherwise it might have been hard to identify which station this was. There are many unknowns regarding this scene - when the photo was taken, who these two ladies are and where they were going. I'd hazard a guess that this might have been around 1910, that the ladies were sisters and that they were visitors rather than residents of the area. Both are carrying cameras, so perhaps are off on a day trip to one of the East Neuk villages - with the dog and whoever might have been behind the camera lens. If you have an alternative theory, please comment.
On the station building walls hang posters advertising an 'Express Service' to Yorkshire and evening services to Aberdour - another popular destination for day trippers. Another insight into special services around this time is given in the book "The Leven & East of Fife Railway" by Hajducki, Jodeluk and Simpson, which states that: "In the summer of 1910 the only named train to operate over the East Fife line was inaugurated when the 'Fifeshire Coast Express' began to run as a Fridays-only...service.....In the following year the service became a daily one and continued to run every season until the outbreak of the war." |
AboutThis blog is about the history of the villages of Lundin Links, Lower Largo and Upper Largo in Fife, Scotland. Comments and contributions from readers are very welcome!
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