2017 marks the 150th anniversary of the main railway station in Aberdeen. One of our treasures this month is a plan which shows the siting of the original joint railway station and the beginning of the Denburn Valley Line.

This plan was published as a supplement to the Aberdeen Free Press and is dated May 29th 1863. The plan shows the proposed station and the surrounding area. The station and areas around it which require alteration are tinted in dark and light red. We can see that the plans involved the extension of Guild Street and the creation of access roads to the station so that it could be easily reached via a variety of approaches. Other features of note are the proposed tunnel earmarked for the Woolmanhill area and also the Scottish North Eastern Railway Station on Guild Street which indicates that the joint station was not the first station to be built in Aberdeen.

Aberdeen Joint Station was opened on the 4th November 1867 and a glowing report and detailed description of the new building can be found in the Aberdeen Journal: "it is truly a magnificent building; and its proportions are such as few stations in the three kingdoms will surpass in point of elegance." William Smith, city architect at the time, was the architect of the joint station and John Willet the engineer.

Learn more about the other stations of Aberdeen, now vanished, in the Treasures from our Collections digital exhibition on the touch screens.

Document Type

Plan

Document Reference

TR15_01

Keyword

Collection

Aberdeen Local Studies

Magnifier?

Yes

Public Access

Yes

For Sale?