Poppy Line to mark 60th closure anniversary
THE North Norfolk Railway is to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the closure of its route with special steam and diesel services on April 6/7.
It was on April 6, 1964, that BR closed the line from Melton Constable to Sheringham.
When the majority of the rest of former Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway network was closed in 1959, the section from Melton Constable to Sheringham survived, with modern diesel railcars providing the service.
Despite these being more economical to run than steam trains, passenger numbers continued to fall, and the occasional goods trains contributed very little revenue. When the Beeching Report was published in 1963, the line was one of those that faced the axe. By the time the final services ran on, enthusiasts had begun to try to reopen a portion of the old M&GN, eventually saving the present-day heritage railway from Sheringham to Holt.
Special timetable
The anniversary weekend has been designed to give visitors the chance to experience trains similar to those that ran just prior to closure and will recall some of the earliest activities of the revivalisists. The special timetable will feature a railcar made up of Class 104 and 101 vehicles dating from the 1950s, both types having been regular performers in East Anglia prior to preservation and very similar to the trains which ran in the years immediately prior to the closure of the line.
Visitors will also be able to follow a special trail throughout the weekend, exploring the last six decades through six important objects located across the line.
Class 31 D5631, which was built in 1961 and was once based at Norwich working goods trains throughout East Anglia, including rare trips to Melton Constable and possibly Sheringham, will be in service. It was also used to run the occasional passenger train, sometimes deputising for steam engines which by the 1960s were in the twilight of their careers.
Other Class 31s worked over the line in the early 1960s, and D5631 will head both passenger and goods trains each day, recreating the Class 31s’ duties.
Steam on show
Two steam locomotives will also be in action, including GER Y14 0-6-0 No. 564, which was built at Stratford in 1912 and spent most of its working life in East Anglia prior to withdrawal from in 1962 and purchase by the M&GN Society. The locomotive was towed to Sheringham in 1967 in the same train as the unique Quad-Art train of teak-bodied carriages, which are 100 years old this year and will be paired with No. 564 for this event.
Full details and timetables can be found at www.nnrailway.co.uk/ opening-dates/ and passengers booking online in advance receive a generous discount.