A FORMER railway station in the Wee County has been recreated with miniature models to help transport people back through the decades.

The miniature mock-up is steaming ahead in an exhibition at Dollar Museum, thanks to the efforts of enthusiasts.

With a working locomotive for demonstration, the display features Dollar Railway Station and its line to the coal mine nearby.

Modelling enthusiast Mick Rice, a retired Mercedes design engineer, has lovingly created the scale model of the station, its associated buildings as well as the burn and the branch line leading to the coal mine over the past few months.

Supporting the work was a superb collection of artefacts by railway enthusiast Peter Wilson, who had taken more than 700 photographs illustrating all aspects of the line.

Many of these are also on display with a working locomotive and carriages, which can be demonstrated at visits.

The museum's Leslie Barker told the Advertiser: "Mick is a retired design engineer and put a lot of time into the project.

"He has recreated the station master's house, waiting room and goods/engineer's yard exactly as they were, the burn features and the branch line goes past the chicken farm which was on the site where the Lovers Loan housing development is now."

Locomotives first arrived at Dollar in 1869 as part of the Devon Valley Railway, linking the Rover Clyde to the River Tay by joining the Stirling and Dunfermline line with the Fife and Kinross Railway.

The line, which also supplied coal to the power station at Kincardine, closed to passengers in 1964 – a year after the queen travelled on it during her visit.

In 1973, the line was dismantled and serves as a popular walking and cycling route at the present day.

On top of the hundreds of photographs, Peter Wilson has collected several other interesting items over the decades, including a token which train drivers required to allow the use of the single track.

This was handed into the signal box as the passed through.

Peter also supplied for the exhibition the last ticket issued to a passenger in 1964, which included permission to take a bike.

There is also a photo from the queen's visit as she leaves the station in 1963.

The exhibition has already conjured up memories for some townsfolk who have visited.

Leslie added: "A gentleman who worked at the mine recalled that the train actually delivered coal to the mine to enable the mine engines to work.

"The Dollar coal was apparently of lower quality but good enough to work the Kincardine Power Station.

"A retired teacher from [Dollar] Academy remembered being responsible for the flowers at the time of the queen's visit."

Dollar Museum is open for visitors between 11am and 1pm as well as between 2pm and 4.30pm on Saturday.

It is also open between 2pm and 4.30pm on Sunday with current Covid-19 restrictions in place.