Melton Constable was a
railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
on the
Midland and Great Northern Railway
The Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway (M&GNJR) was a railway network in England, in the area connecting southern Lincolnshire, the Isle of Ely and north Norfolk. It developed from several local independent concerns and was incorporated i ...
which served the
North Norfolk
North Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in Cromer. The population at the 2011 Census was 101,149.
History
The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972. It was a ...
village of
Melton Constable
Melton Constable is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of and had a population of 518 in 225 households at the 2001 census. The population had increased to 618 at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of ...
from 1882 to 1964. Notwithstanding its rural location, the station became an important railway centre with lines converging from all directions providing connections to key
East Anglian
East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy, kingdom of the Kingdom of East Anglia, East Angles, ...
towns such as
King's Lynn
King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...
,
Norwich
Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
,
Cromer
Cromer ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish on the north coast of the English county of Norfolk. It is north of Norwich, north-northeast of London and east of Sheringham on the North Sea coastline.
The local government authorities are Nor ...
,
Fakenham
Fakenham is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated on the River Wensum, about north west of Norwich. The town is the junction of several local roads, including the A148 from King's Lynn to Cromer, the A1067 to Norwic ...
,
Yarmouth
Yarmouth may refer to:
Places Canada
*Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia
**Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
**Municipality of the District of Yarmouth
**Yarmouth (provincial electoral district)
**Yarmouth (electoral district)
* Yarmouth Township, Ontario
*New ...
and
Lowestoft
Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...
. Although long since demolished, there is a possibility that the station may yet be resurrected as part of the proposed
Norfolk Orbital Railway
The Norfolk Orbital Railway — as the Holt, Melton Constable and Fakenham Railway Company — is a proposed rail project in Norfolk, England, which is proposed to look at bringing a new rail connection to North and Mid Norfolk.
The proposed l ...
.
History
Opening and early years
The Lynn & Fakenham Railway Act 1880 authorised the construction of a railway from
Fakenham
Fakenham is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated on the River Wensum, about north west of Norwich. The town is the junction of several local roads, including the A148 from King's Lynn to Cromer, the A1067 to Norwic ...
to
Norwich
Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
via Melton Constable, followed by a second line east from Melton to
North Walsham
North Walsham is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England, within the North Norfolk district.
Demography
The civil parish has an area of and in the 2011 census had a population of 12,634. For the purposes of local government, the pa ...
. The scheme had been born of a desire amongst
North Norfolk
North Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in Cromer. The population at the 2011 Census was 101,149.
History
The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972. It was a ...
landowners, including notably
Lord Hastings
Baron Hastings is a title that has been created three times. The first creation was in the Peerage of England in 1290, and is extant. The second creation was in the Peerage of England in 1299, and became extinct on the death of the first holder in ...
of
Melton Constable Hall
Melton Constable Hall is a large (Grade I listed) country house in the parish of Melton Constable, Norfolk, England designed in the Christopher Wren style and built between 1664 and 1670 for the Astley family who owned the estate from 1235 until 19 ...
, to break the
East Anglian
East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy, kingdom of the Kingdom of East Anglia, East Angles, ...
monopoly of the
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 ...
and to improve communications between the farming community and the outside world. The outcome was the incorporation of the Lynn & Fakenham Railway which began services from
King's Lynn
King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...
in January 1882, with the line to Norwich being opened to traffic in December. The connection to North Walsham was completed on 5 April 1883 thereby enabling through-running to
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...
over a line constructed by the Yarmouth & North Norfolk Light Railway, some three months after the Lynn & Fakenham Railway, the Yarmouth & North Norfolk and other small companies had merged to form the Eastern & Midlands Railway. The final line to reach Melton Constable was that of the Great Eastern from
Holt
Holt or holte may refer to:
Natural world
*Holt (den), an otter den
* Holt, an area of woodland
Places Australia
* Holt, Australian Capital Territory
* Division of Holt, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives in Vic ...
which opened on 1 October 1884, and was extended to
Cromer Beach in 1887.
Both the Lynn & Fakenham and the Yarmouth & North Norfolk lines were built by Messrs Wilkinson & Jarvis of
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
who had raised the necessary funds through a mixture of
bonds,
debenture
In corporate finance, a debenture is a medium- to long-term debt instrument used by large companies to borrow money, at a fixed rate of interest. The legal term "debenture" originally referred to a document that either creates a debt or acknowl ...
s and
mortgages
A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law jurisdicions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners to raise funds for any pu ...
, hoping that their speculative investment would pay off when a larger railway company would purchase the line. One of their employees was
William Marriott William Marriott may refer to:
*William Marriott (engineer) (1857–1943), engineer and locomotive superintendent
*William Marriott (baseball) (1893–1969), baseball player, 1917–1927
*William Marriott (magician) (ca. 1910), British magician and ...
who became engineer to the Eastern & Midlands Railway in 1883; he would later play a key role in the development of Melton Constable where he lived for some years. He kept his position when the Eastern was taken over in 1893 by the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway (M&GN).
Growth of Melton Constable
From a population of 118 in 1881, Melton Constable grew rapidly with the arrival of the railway to reach a figure of 1,157 in 1911. The construction of a railway junction and establishment of a railway works transformed a small parish of 19 houses into what became known as the "''
Crewe
Crewe () is a railway town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The Crewe built-up area had a total population of 75,556 in 2011, which also covers parts of the adjacent civil parishes of Willaston ...
of North Norfolk''". Due to its central location on the M&GN, Melton Constable became, after King's Lynn, one of the two main centres from which the M&GN was controlled; it was the line's engineering nerve centre from where an extensive
locomotive works operated over of track, building and repairing locomotives and catering for the
civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...
needs of the line. All M&GN traffic from and to the west had to pass through Melton Constable where trains were divided or made-up before proceeding west, where goods trains were shunted and assembled.
To attract and retain workers to such an isolated location, the railway company engaged a contractor to construct housing in the nearby parish of
Burgh Parva. The first street to be built in 1882 was ''Melton Street'' followed by ''Astley Terrace'' where poor-quality houses costing £150 each were built; later houses in ''Colville Road'' and ''Briston Road'' are of better quality and date from the M&GN's takeover of the line and the availability of more funds. Architecturally, the red-brick and slate-roofed terraced housing had more in common with an
East Midlands
The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Li ...
industrial town, with narrow streets and small front gardens which gave the area a particular character. The M&GN's
gasworks
A gasworks or gas house is an industrial plant for the production of flammable gas. Many of these have been made redundant in the developed world by the use of natural gas, though they are still used for storage space.
Early gasworks
Coal ...
at the bottom of Melton Street lit the establishment, with the coal needed for the plant being supplied by rail via a
siding
Siding may refer to:
* Siding (construction), the outer covering or cladding of a house
* Siding (rail)
A siding, in rail terminology, is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line, branch l ...
connection from the station's goods yard
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 ...
. Other amenities included a school, recreational facilities,
gasworks
A gasworks or gas house is an industrial plant for the production of flammable gas. Many of these have been made redundant in the developed world by the use of natural gas, though they are still used for storage space.
Early gasworks
Coal ...
and a
sewerage station.
Station buildings
The station buildings were located close to the
great hall
A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages, and continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great ...
at
Melton Constable Hall
Melton Constable Hall is a large (Grade I listed) country house in the parish of Melton Constable, Norfolk, England designed in the Christopher Wren style and built between 1664 and 1670 for the Astley family who owned the estate from 1235 until 19 ...
made famous by its use in the film ''
The Go Between''. The land on which the station was built on had been donated by Lord Hastings who was in return provided with a specially-appointed waiting room with an adjoining short platform. Other than this private platform, the station was equipped with a single
island platform
An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular on ...
with through tracks on either side.
Access to the platform was via a covered staircase which descended from an adjacent road overbridge to reach a long, single-storey station building containing the booking office and refreshment room. At the eastern end of the platform, there was a single-storey brick public waiting room and toilet block, which was subsequently rebuilt with an outer casing of concrete blocks. The main station building was constructed using yellow brickwork, with the exterior woodwork painted in a two-tone green and cream colour when the
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was the second largest (after LMS) of the " Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain. It operated from 1 January 1923 until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. At th ...
took over operation of the M&GN. The platform was largely covered by a long canopy supported by metal spandrels bearing the initials "CNR", a reference to the failed Central Norfolk Railway scheme. A trap door on the platform surface led to the station cellars.
The station and junctions were controlled by two
signal box
In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The ''IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing'' ...
es at each end of the station and known as "''Melton East''" and "''Melton West''" boxes. They controlled typical M&GN
somersault signals mounted on square posts, which were in some cases moulded from concrete.
Locomotive Works
The works were situated to the south of the main station buildings and opened in 1883. It was principally a locomotive repair establishment, with the stock accessing the works via a headshunt connection beside the Melton to Norwich line. William Marriott and his workforce carried out several major rebuilding operations at the works, including the reboilering of the M&GN's
4-4-0
4-4-0 is a locomotive type with a classification that uses the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement and represents the arrangement: four leading wheels on two axles (usually in a leading bogie), four po ...
and
0-6-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and no trailing wheels. This was the most common wheel arrangemen ...
engines, progressively enlarging them. Up to 12 engines could be housed in the works' three-road
engine shed
The motive power depot (MPD) or locomotive depot, or traction maintenance depot (TMD), is the place where locomotives are usually housed, repaired and maintained when not being used. They were originally known as "running sheds", "engine shed ...
which was situated between the passenger station and the works. Part of the works was dedicated to the large scale production of concrete mouldings which were innovatively used by Marriott in the construction of signals and building blocks. The works closed in 1936 resulting in a significant reduction of activity at Melton Constable.
Decline and closure
Operation of the M&GN was taken over by the London and North Eastern Railway on 1 October 1936 which transferred all locomotive operations to its
Stratford works
Stratford Works was the locomotive-building works of the Great Eastern Railway situated at Stratford, London, England. The original site of the works was located in the 'V' between the Great Eastern Main Line and the Stratford to Lea Bridge rou ...
as part of a move to rationalise functions of the Joint system. Melton Constable Works ceased to repair locomotives after this date, but the facilities continued to be used for wagon repairs and the scrapping of redundant rolling stock. Further rationalisation in 1945 left Melton Constable as a wagon sheet works, whilst declining traffic served to highlight the duplication of facilities between the M&GN and other Great Eastern lines. Most of the M&GN closed on 28 February 1959, leaving Melton Constable as the terminus of a branch from
Sheringham
Sheringham (; population 7,367) is an English seaside town within the county of Norfolk, United Kingdom.Ordnance Survey (2002). ''OS Explorer Map 252 - Norfolk Coast East''. . The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban Distr ...
until 4 April 1964 when it was closed to passengers.
Present and future
Melton Constable is today a rather smaller village with around 500 inhabitants. The station was demolished in 1971, to be replaced by a telephone exchange. Two of the ornamental spandrels that held up the station roof are incorporated into the bus shelter on the B1354 Briston Road. The land of the old railway works is now an industrial estate and the sidings an artisan bakery, but a number of the old buildings have been retained. A
water tower
A water tower is an elevated structure supporting a water tank constructed at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system, distribution system for potable water, and to provide emergency storage for fire protection. Water towe ...
still exists above the factory area and still bears the traces of repaired shrapnel holes sustained during a
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
air raid.
The
Norfolk Orbital Railway
The Norfolk Orbital Railway — as the Holt, Melton Constable and Fakenham Railway Company — is a proposed rail project in Norfolk, England, which is proposed to look at bringing a new rail connection to North and Mid Norfolk.
The proposed l ...
has long-term plans to restore the line to Melton Constable.
Full Steam Ahead
/ref>
References
Bibliography
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External links
* http://good-times.webshots.com/album/568383821UaWnym?vhost=good-times
{{coord, 52.856309, 1.032424, type:railwaystation_region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(TG042330), display=title
Disused railway stations in Norfolk
Former Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1882
Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1964
Beeching closures in England