History
In 1846, the North British Railway (NBR) obtained an Act of Parliament (the North Berwick Railway Act) authorising the construction of a branch line from Drem Junction to North Berwick Harbour. The final half mile line of the approved line would have involved substantial embankments carrying the line down to and along the foreshore in order to reach the harbour, and it was soon decided that this expense was not justified. The branch opened as far as a temporary terminus at Williamstown (East Lothian) on 13 August 1849, and the permanent terminus at North Berwick opened on 17 June 1850. The temporary Williamstown station closed as soon as North Berwick opened, and a small intermediate station at Dirleton opened on the same day.
When completed the branch line was 4.7 miles long, and although all earthworks and structures were built to accommodate double tracks, only one line of rails was ever laid. Initially the line was not a success, and in 1856 the NBR attempted to cut costs by converting most of the branch passenger trains to horse traction. A small horse-drawn carriage was transferred from the Portobello to Leith line, but this lasted only a year before being withdrawn. The carriage was known as the 'Dandy Car', and was later sold to the Silloth Railway for use on their Port Carlisle branch. It is now preserved at the National Railway Museum in York.
Read more about this topic: North Berwick Branch
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