Schoolchildren Bring Aberdeen Tram History Back to Life at Hazlehead
Pupils researched the city’s transport past and chose what visitors now see.
A forgotten piece of Aberdeen’s transport history has been brought back to life in Hazlehead Park, and it’s local schoolchildren who did much of the work.
The tram terminus building at the end of the Avenue running track has been given a complete makeover. Granite walls have been repointed, the wooden structure repaired, and the roof re-slated and painted. New information panels now tell the story of Aberdeen’s tram network to anyone who stops by.
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Pupils shaped the story
Hazlehead Primary School children researched Aberdeen’s tram history themselves, chose which historic photographs should feature on the panels, and helped write the content. Their interpretation of local history is what visitors now see.
The panels trace how horse-drawn trams first appeared in Aberdeen in 1874 and proved immediately popular. More than 1.1 million people used them in that first year alone.
Built for the park crowds
The Hazlehead extension came about in 1924 because the newly opened park was drawing such crowds. The tram’s large seating capacity made it the best option for weekend visitors, so track was laid from the Rubislaw terminus to the park entrance. Lord Provost Sir William Meff drove the first tram to Hazlehead on 16 July that year.
This shelter marked the end of the line. For decades it served passengers, then fell into disrepair once buses replaced trams across the city.
What’s left of the network
Only two other tram buildings survive in Aberdeen. The Beach Depot on Constitution Street now houses Aberdeen Science Centre, while the old Torry Tram Depot is occupied by Petrofac.
The restored shelter sits beside one of the main car parks, yet many regular visitors had no idea about its history. Friends of Hazlehead raised the funds for the restoration, and chairman Donald Shaw said people have been stopping to read the panels and discovering a bit of Aberdeen they didn’t know existed.
For anyone walking or running along the Avenue track, there’s a shelter full of stories about the trams that once stopped at this exact spot.
