Grantown, which was on the proposed line to Perth. This was to be the Strathspey Railway. Face was saved by emphasising that this was primarily for the timber and mineral traffic that might be generated on that route. The GNoSR was now "taking the Keith and Dufftown Railway in hand, after the years of uncertainty" as Ross puts it. It was agreed to extend the line across the River Fiddich to Balvenie, as the original terminus was "quite unsuitable for Dufftown and district", for an additional £12,723. The planned terminus had been on the east side of that river, but the new proposed location was also some considerable distance from the centre of the town. The new location was determined by the fact that the extension was to link with the proposed Strathspey Railway. To enable progress on completing the line, vital to the GNoSR, a shareholders' meeting of the GNoSR approved a subscription of £1,000 for the Keith and Dufftown Railway under its original Act of 1857, and £25,000 under the 1860 Act. Ordinary shareholders were still failing to take an interest in the K&DR line, and the weak financial status of the company made it impossible for it to get a loan from a financial institution in the ordinary way. The Balvenie extension required a crossing of the River Fiddich, and during the work, the uncompleted viaduct collapsed. on 9 July 1861, killing a workman and his daughter, who had brought him his lunch. The cause was found to be the premature removal of the arch centres before the structure had consolidated. Opening The contractor was quickly able to complete the viaduct, and Captain Rich was able to approve the line for the Board of Trade on 19 February 1861; it opened on 21 February 1861. There were intermediate stations at Earlsmill, Botriphnie and Drummuir. Botriphnie was renamed Auchindachy in 1862; and Earlsmill was renamed Keith Town in 1897. The train service consisted of four trains each way every weekday, later reduced to three. Connecting railways The strategic value of the Keith and Dufftown Railway went beyond connecting Dufftown to the GNoSR main line. Two other railways gave useful onward connectivity that was keenly sought by the GNoSR. The Morayshire Railway The Morayshire Railway had established itself to the north of Elgin, at Lossiemouth, and now in 1858 it was building a branch line from Orton, on the