Hardingham railway station is a railway station in the village of

Hardingham Hardingham is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of 4 square miles (9.78 km) with a population of 274 in 110 households at the 2001 census, decreasing to a population of 267 in 107 households at the 2011 Census. ...

in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

. The station is periodically served by heritage services operated by the

Mid-Norfolk Railway The Mid-Norfolk Railway (MNR) is a preserved standard gauge heritage railway, one of the longest in Great Britain. Preservation efforts began in 1974, but the line re-opened to passengers only in the mid-1990s as part of the "new generation" o ...

on the line from

East Dereham Dereham (), also known as East Dereham, is a town and civil parish in the Breckland District of the English county of Norfolk. It is situated on the A47 road, about 15 miles (25 km) west of the city of Norwich and 25 miles (40&nb ...

Wymondham Wymondham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the South Norfolk district of Norfolk, England, south-west of Norwich, England, Norwich off the A11 road (England), A11 road to London. The River Tiffey runs through ...

. The former yard is now used by an independent rolling stock company, Great Eastern Traction Ltd., specialising in trading in industrial locomotives. Other items of privately owned rolling stock have also been preserved in the former station yard.

History

The Wymondham-Dereham branch line was built by the Norfolk Railway and the line and stations were opened on 15 February 1847. The Tudoresque main station building was built on the down side of the line, and was of a similar style to the other stations on the line. The station included a two-storey station master's house and a single storey waiting room. The platform was protected by two canopies, one of which was possibly an original Norfolk Railway structure. The up platform buildings were more basic, comprising a simple waiting room. The GER signal cabin, with a 21 lever frame, was located at the north end of the up platform. The goods yard was located on the down side, providing two sidings, each with a

headshunt A headshunt (or escape track in the United States) is a short length of track provided to release locomotives at terminal platforms, or to allow shunting to take place clear of main lines. Terminal headshunt A 'terminal headshunt' is a short ...

. A wagon turntable gave access to three short spurs. An additional siding was provided north of the station. Facilities included cattle pens, a loading dock, and a rail connected

granary A granary is a storehouse or room in a barn for threshed grain or animal feed. Ancient or primitive granaries are most often made of pottery. Granaries are often built above the ground to keep the stored food away from mice and other animal ...

. When the branch was singled in June 1968, Hardingham was retained as a

passing loop A passing loop (UK usage) or passing siding (North America) (also called a crossing loop, crossing place, refuge loop or, colloquially, a hole) is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at or near a station, where trains or ...

until passenger services ended in October 1969.

Signal box

The original signal box was located to the north of the station's up platform, but it was demolished after passenger closure with parts of it used to construct a number of sheds and shelters in the Stationmaster's garden. The non-operational replacement is located on a new site to the south of the down platform. The signal box is private property and does not constitute an operational structure on the railway. The eight year restoration of the box was recognised through a ''FirstGroup Craft Skills Award''. The cabin is an original

Great Eastern Railway The Great Eastern Railway (GER) was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia. The company was grouped into the London and North Eastern R ...

structure, recovered from

Snettisham Snettisham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is located near the west coast of Norfolk, some south of the seaside resort of Hunstanton, north of the town of King's Lynn and northwest of the city of Norwic ...

and restored by the owner of the private station site.

Engineering projects

Double track and storage sidings

A £3,000,000 project to relay the lifted up formation and restore the second platform at this station, in order to provide a storage siding for new

Abellio Greater Anglia Greater Anglia (legal name Abellio East Anglia Limited) is a train operating company in Great Britain owned as a joint venture by Abellio (transport company), Abellio, the international arm of the state-owned Dutch national rail operator Neder ...

trains running between Hardingham and Kimberley, was conducted in 2018 and 2019. This involved the partial relaying of the lifted sections of the double line southwards towards

Kimberley Park railway station Kimberley Park railway station is a railway station in the village of Kimberley, Norfolk, Kimberley in the England, English county of Norfolk. History The Wymondham-Dereham branch line was built by the Norfolk Railway and the line and st ...

, provision of a storage yard on the site of an original ballast quarry and erection of signalling - controlled from the signal box at

Thuxton railway station Thuxton is a railway station in the village of Thuxton in the English county of Norfolk. The station is served by heritage services operated by the Mid-Norfolk Railway on the line from Dereham to Wymondham. When re-opened by the Mid-Norfolk ...

. Track works were conducted by

Sonic Rail Services Sonic or Sonics may refer to: Companies * Sonic Drive-In, an American drive-in fast-food restaurant chain *Sonic (ISP), an Internet provider and CLEC, serving more than 100 California communities *Sonic Foundry, a computer software company whi ...

.Mid Norfolk railway sign £3m deal to store new Greater Anglia trains
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Rolling stock

Diesel locomotives * GET 2, Bagnall 0-4-0 diesel hydraulic 8368, formerly "Horsa" at the

Nene Valley Railway The Nene Valley Railway (NVR) is a preserved railway in Cambridgeshire, England, running between Peterborough Nene Valley and Yarwell Junction. The line is in length. There are stations at each terminus, and three stops en route: Orton Mere, ...

, built 1962 * GET 8, Rolls-Royce 0-6-0 diesel 10272, formerly LT DL82 on the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...

, built 1967 * GET 11, Brush Traction 0-6-0 Diesel Electric 804, built for the

Tyne & Wear Metro The Tyne and Wear Metro is an overground and underground light rail rapid transit system serving Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, and the City of Sunderland (together forming Tyne and Wear). The network opened in ...

and use in the

Channel Tunnel The Channel Tunnel (french: Tunnel sous la Manche), also known as the Chunnel, is a railway tunnel that connects Folkestone (Kent, England, UK) with Coquelles ( Hauts-de-France, France) beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. ...

, built 1978 Carriages * BR 1984 Mk 1 Unclassified Restaurant Car, built 1960 * BR 14021 Mk 1 Brake Corridor First, built 1962 (to

North Norfolk Railway The North Norfolk Railway (NNR) – also known as the "Poppy Line" – is a heritage steam railway in Norfolk, England, running between the towns of Sheringham and Holt. The North Norfolk Railway is owned and operated as a public limite ...

, July 2022) * BR 87616 Blue Spot Four wheel Fish Van, built 1959 * BR 889018 Four-wheel Continental Ferry Van, built 1961 * BR 87602 Blue Spot Four wheel Fish Van, built 1960

References

{{Norfolk Railway Stations Heritage railway stations in Norfolk Disused railway stations in Norfolk Former Great Eastern Railway stations Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1847 Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1969 1847 establishments in England 1969 disestablishments in England