its hold on the West Fife coalfield. The bulk of the coal went to Burntisland for export and coastal transport to market. Burntisland had been developed as a ferry port but was increasingly used for export, and had become the most important harbour in Fife. The eastern area of Fife had developed railways early on in response to fishing and agriculture: mineral development was to follow later, and became hugely significant. The independent St Andrews Railway had opened in 1852 from a junction at Leuchars. The Leven and East of Fife Railway was formed from two earlier railways and ran from Thornton to Leven and Anstruther, but for some time without satisfactory connections to the harbours. Both railways were engineered very cheaply, and while this had facilitated acquiring the funds for construction, it left the lines unable to renew worn-out track, and they both agreed absorption by the NBR in 1877. The agricultural area between the two lines was crossed by the Anstruther and St Andrews Railway, but it too was unable to continue alone and the Company agreed to join the NBR in 1883. As the coal extraction in eastern Fife increased in volume, new pits were opened in areas not previously served by rail, and the NBR was not responsive to the requirements of the coal masters. This dissatisfaction led to the opening in 1881 of the Wemyss and Buckhaven Railway, built independently by the Wemyss family, owners of the land in the area. The Wemyss and Buckhaven line connected to the NBR at Thornton. There were harbours at Leven and Methil immediately adjacent to the East Fife collieries, but the NBR was content to haul the coal to Burntisland, causing further ill feeling, and there was a move to develop Methil Harbour independently. The NBR reluctantly acquiesced and in 1889 took over the Wemyss and Buckhaven line and developed Methil Harbour. Proposed amalgamation with the Caledonian Relations with the Caledonian Railway were better again, and in the latter half of 1871 the idea of amalgamation took hold. The idea became concrete when the two Companies' Boards agreed on the merger on 29 November 1871. However, the NBR shareholders received this with scepticism; the earlier proposal had been rejected because the NBR share would only be 45.5% of the group revenue; now the Board were supporting a scheme that would only give them 39%. It was suggested that