1960s Auchinraith Junction
Alex Rochead recently showed me this photo allegedly of Auchinraith junction. Wanting to double check its location, one evening, on the way back from work today, i did a scout-about for 5 minutes. The buildings on the right are Springwells. They are numbers 45 and 47 Springwells Crescent and match the appearance of them exactly today, from the chimney stacks to the design of the roof and chimneys themselves.
The gardens and houses to the left of the railway line are no longer there, demolished along the bottom of Auchinratih Road to make way for the East Kilbride Expressway. The exact location today is now at the top of the slip road coming from Lidl back ON to the A725 heading to EK. All this I’m sure will narrow a timeframe down for the photo’s actual date.
1936 map doesn’t show Springwells as built yet, so must be after 1937. The Railway line ceased operating on 1st June 1960 and the line looks disused and weed ridden, the signal box is derelict, so after 1960. That stretch of EK expressway opened in 1983. As such, the picture definitely is before then and must date from the 1960s or 1970s.
1960s Auchinraith Junction, near Springwells Crescent
1960s Auchinraith Junction, near Auchinraith Road
1960s Auchinraith Junction, near Springwells Crescent
1936 Auchinraith Junction map
Just to be absolutely certain. The 1936 map, shows one of the few signal boxes, being at Auchinraith Junction. The steps are at the other side, hence we can’t see them in the photo. A crossing over the railway is also indicated on the map at the spot it should be. The signal post is in the correct location as are the houses and sweep of the railway line itself. Its Auchinraith.
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Henry Hambley Great pictures. I lived in Auchinraith terrace from mid 50s until 1963. I remember the old signal box at Auchinraith. I remember that there used to be one train per day hauling empty coal wagons up to Dixon’s pit and returning with full wagons later in the day. It was possible to see this from one or two of the classrooms of Auchinraith Primary school.