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Interesting news · 17 October 2025

Deeside railway enthusiasts restore derelict saloon carriage once fit for Queen Victoria

Aberdeenshire · from pressandjournal.co.uk

Photograph · pressandjournal.co.uk

A Victorian railway picnic saloon, once used by wealthy families and Queen Victoria’s servants travelling to Balmoral, has been restored on Royal Deeside.

After serving as a post-war home in Nottinghamshire, the carriage was donated to the Royal Deeside Railway Preservation Society in 2004. Volunteers began restoring it in 2016, working to return it to its 1894 condition.

The saloon, to be named Hannah after its former resident, will be used for weddings and events once complete. The project marks a milestone in preserving north-east Scotland’s railway heritage, six decades after the last train ran between Aberdeen and Ballater.

Read it at the sourcepressandjournal.co.uk

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