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Fife Area Rail Lines

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subway156

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Without much luck, I have been searching the net for info re:the National Railway system that once ran through Leven, Kennoway and surrounding areas of Fife in Scotland. The data and pix on the net is so limited and I think I may have found one book that might give insights. Does anyone have anything the can add or a direction into which I may turn? My wife used to live in Kennoway and her daughter lives in Leven. The snooping goes on.
 
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subway156

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Valuable and interesting, but not as in-depth as I'd like to see. Will go shopping on Amazon for books. My target is all of Fife, but especially the areas mentioned. I know there has been discussion, but there has been no action taken. My main reason for knowing is that I am planning to live there in several years. Probably Leven.
 

robertclark125

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As a native Fifer, may I suggest you search at Amazon, or a reputable nookseller, for Fife's Lost Railways. I've a copy here at home! There also used to be a second line through Dunfermline, going to Stirling via Dunfermline Upper and Oakley. Upper is now a retail park!
 

43106

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I have a book of old PASSENGER lines of the UK, and there appears to have never been a passenger line to Kennoway.
There were 2 passenger lines to Leven from Kirkcaldy and Thornton Junction...
1) A triangle of lines south of Thornton Junction went via West Wemyss (pronounced Weemz), which closed in 1949, Wemyss Castle (closed 1955), Buckhaven (1955), Methil (1955) and Leven (1969).
2) A line from north of Thornton Junction through Cameron Bridge (closed 1969) to Leven.
From Leven, the line went via Lundin Links (1965), Largo (1965), Kilconquhar (1965), Elie (1965), St. Monans (1965), Pittenweem (1965), Anstruther (1883) which was replaced by another station with the same name (1965), Crail (1965), Lindores (1951), Boarhills (1930), Stravithie (1930), Mount Melville (1930), St. Andrews (1969) and Guard Bridge (1965). The line then joined the present Edinburgh - Dundee line a mile or so south of Leuchars at a station called Milton Junction (closure date unknown).
The only other line in the area I'm aware of is the Lochty Railway, of which I know nothing. Sorry!

ADDENDUM - there was a freight-only line, called the East Fife Central Railway, from East Fife Central Junction (midway between Leven and Cameron Bridge) via goods depots at Kennoway, Montrave, Largoward to Lochty. The line was about 15 miles long. There were farm sidings at Letham and Knightsward and a short line to a colliery about 1/4 mile north of Largoward. Some of this line was used up to 1972- I've seen a photo of A4 60009 in steam on it at that time. However, I believe the line closed about 20 years ago.
 
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me123

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There are better places in Scotland to live. There are even less worse places in Fife to live!

Fife does get a bad name; north of Kirkcaldy is actually quite nice!

Sorry for going a bit OT, but I felt I should stick up for Fife! Can't find much about Fife's railways, though, that's not already there.
 
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