Melton Constable History

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Outside the Carriage & Wagon works - c.1935	M&GN J40 0-6-0 facing an M&GN Class C 4-4-0 - 14th March 1939

On the south side of the station there was the small Up marshalling yard, its two roads following the Norwich line. Here was also the locomotive yard, with a three-road engine shed for nine locomotives, a water tank on a brick base housing the pumping engine, a coal stage with hand crane and a 47 foot hand-operated turntable. There were several water columns for the use of engines, on the platforms and around the loco area.
Nigel Digby


Original engine shed - August 1932	Original engine shed - 1936

Locos l-r - No. 34, No. 31, No. 12, No. 26 and No. 32 - c.1934

The three road shed accommodates nine locos (tender), each road having a pit along its whole length. There is a fitter's shop, boiler-maker's room, tool stores and shear legs capable of lifting thirty tons. There is a recently laid out machine shop equipped with lathes, drilling, boring and shaping machines, also a blacksmith's forge, all electrically driven. Yard equipment comprises two stand pipes and one wall type water crane, three engine disposal pits, a hand operated coaling crane and a 47 ft. turn table. All loco water is supplied from a deep bore well by an electric pump and this tank also provides domestic supplies for the village which has about 2,000 inhabitants. Twenty two or twenty five locomotives are allocated to Melton Constable for winter working but two locos are always at the subsidiary sheds at Norwich City and Cromer Beach. Running repairs and maintenance of these out-station locos is carried out at Melton and for this purpose they are frequently interchanged.
E. W. Beckett - March 1940
M&GN Circle

Eastern Evening News - Tuesday 3rd December 1946

The roof of Melton Constable's original wooden engine shed, collapsed on Tuesday 3rd December 1946. British Rail replaced it with a new concrete and brick engine shed in 1951.

Snow in the winter of 1947


New engine shed - 1955	D16 Super Claude 4-4-0 outside the new shed

Despite the closure of the Works in October 1936, the railway business continued unabated and after the Second World War, summer Saturdays were just as busy as ever. There were some alterations in the post-war period. The roof of the loco shed collapsed in December 1946, so a new shed was built in a very austere style in brick and concrete. The old 46ft turntable was replaced with a 70ft turntable in order to cope with the larger engines being used. The coal stage, once open to the elements, received a roof. From 1950, Melton Constable came under the Norwich District, being numbered 32G.
Nigel Digby


Two views of Claud Hamilton D16 no. 62578 standing in front of the engine shed - 19th September 1953

Above photos
Claud Hamilton D16 no. 62578 was built in December 1909 and after moving around several times during its working life, it was finally based at Melton Constable's shed 32G, before being withdrawn in October 1957.


Engine shed - 1958	Claud Hamilton D16/3 no. 62597 standing beside the engine shed - c.1958


M&GN mobile crane - 28th May 1937	Breakdown & recovery train - c.1950

Above left photo
M&GN's mobile crane no. 491 built in 1904, was attached to a six wheeled wagon with a four wheeled wagon holding the jib.
Above right photo
Breakdown & recovery train with the moblie crane standing at the up platform c.1950

Very quiet railway yard - c.1955


(War Department) WD 2-8-0 with concrete freight from Lenwade - Sept 1960	Cattle wagons in the foreground and the gasworks upper left


M&GN 4-4-0 no. 20A - c.1928	Melton Yard with ex contractor loco Vici 0-4-0T shunting carriages

Melton Constable scrap siding - 1934
Restored newspaper photo

Above photo
Rebuilt Beyer Peacock 4-4-0 nos. 22, 24 and 25 parked in the scrap siding. No. 22 never ran again but the frames of no. 24 were later fitted with no. 25's boiler and the new no. 25 ran until 1941.


Carriage & wagon sheds with the M&GN offices to their right	LNER no. 41 undergoing repairs & no. 09 beside the engine shed - March 1939

Above right photo
LNER Class C17 4-4-2T No. 09 - Marriott M&GN Class A, built 1909 at Melton Constable Works as M&GN No. 9. In 1933 the tank tops were cut down to improve visibility. Withdrawn from Melton Constable in July 1944. Seen with sister No. 041 having wheelsets changed in March 1939.


J17 no.65551 in front of the engine shed - c.1958	M&GN no.016 - LNER no.8489 beside a new workshop extension - 16th April 1947


M&GN Offices	M&GN Offices

GER J17 0-6-0 standing outside the M&GN offices - 1957


M&GN Offices - c.1967	William Marriott's mobile office - 1922

Left Photo
M&GN offices in the railway yard after closure. The offices on the far left belonged to William Marriott and Head Clerk Edgar Palmer.
Right Photo
William Marriott used a converted carriage as a mobile office while overseeing various offsite projects on the network and was known by the staff as the Old Gentleman's Saloon. William Marriott and other senior members of the M&GN at Melton Constable would use the saloon to inspect all the lines under their care, twice every year. The names that are known are Jesse Brown, Mr. Langley, William Marriott, B. Newman and the guard standing in the carriage, A. Fuller.


Claude Hamilton D16 no. 62617 coaling	Coaling & watering area - 1959


Coaling & watering area - 1960	Coaling & watering area - c.1960

The roof covering was a recent addition to the coaling platform and the old wooden crane had been replaced by the metal version. The E&M lifting arm water column was in addition to the swing out hose from the water tanks. The small coal stove was there to help prevent freezing in cold weather.

Map of northern railway yard area - 6th December 1913

Map of southern railway yard area - 6th December 1913

Goods shed construction - 1881

The goods yard was on the north side of the station, having a Down goods reception road and a small two-road marshalling yard, later expanded to three roads. For local traffic, three more sidings served a Wilkinson & Jarvis 'large' goods shed, three cattle pens and a coal yard. The long headshunt divided into two, running alongside the Yarmouth line, one road serving the permanent way department. Shunting by use of the tow rope was permitted if absolutely necessary for towing wagons into the Yarmouth road siding but permission was revoked in November 1904.
Nigel Digby

Goods shed - c.1938


Goods shed - c.1958	Goods shed - Thursday 28th August 1958

Above right photo
Class J39 0-6-0 no. 64726 parked in the goods yard during the summer of 1958. The siding on the south side of the Goods Shed was protected by a GNR designed stop signal on a Melton concrete post.

Somewhat unusually, the Goods Shed at Melton Constable was protected by a Stop Signal, placed just outside the rail entrance: this was a safely precaution, whilst unloading was going on inside. It is a CBT on a concrete post, with a lamp mounted half-way down the post, at a Shunting Driver's eye-level. The Shed itself is in the rear and the end windows appear to have been replaced - these originally seem to have had rounded tops.
M&GN Circle

The cattle dock on the north side of the yard


Remains of the stores unloading dock - 24th March 2025	Stores unloading dock with freight wagons Photo - HJ Jackson


Track lifted to the 15 ton weighbridge with the gasworks behind - 4th May 1961	Weighbridge sign

M&GN Closure map - 29th May 1959


Melton East yard - 4th May 1961	Melton East yard, platform and goods shed - 4th May 1961

Above left photo
A view from the Norwich line facing points towards the station. On the left are various wagons in the Works sidings - Midfits and 16 ton Coal Minerals - the Platform and East Box are in the centre. The Starting signals are on either side of the Signalbox and in the right background is the Goods Yard. There is also, on the far right, a large Swan-neck Gas lamp, mounted on a post.
Above right photo
The long island Platform, seen from Melton East Box. On the left is the Locoshed, with the twin-roofed Water Tower in front of it. The Coaling Platform and Crane are in the centre. Along the length of the platform are the Station Buildings and on the right is the large Goods Shed, Warehouse and Yard Sidings, hosting Vans and Wagons. In the centre of the platform is the lowered jib of a Water Column and beyond that is the M&GN station nameboard.
M&GN Circle


The three sidings were once used for assembling trains heading east - c.1958	Some track removed and weeds growing in the sidings - c.1963


Some track removed - c.1963	Melton Constable yard - c.1963


Coaling area after closure - c.1964	Station yard - 4th April 1964 Courtesy of M&GN Society

Above right photo
Left to right - Paint Shop, Fitting Shop, Offices & Stores, Engine Shed, Water Tanks, Coaling Station. The rails to the right were still in use until the day this photo was taken, as can be seen but those in the station yard had already rusted over..


Coaling area with M&GN offices behind - Thursday 12th August 1965	Carriage & wagon shop, with the engine shed to the right - Thursday 12th August 1965


Goods shed, remains of siding and thje platform - Thursday 12th August 1965	Platform, turntable foundations and engine shed - Thursday 12th August 1965


Railway yard - c.1965	Station and yard area - 1976


Engineering works - 1997	M&GN offices under demolition with the engineering shop and foundry behind - 1997


Overturned narrow gauge bogey - c.1972 Photo - HJ Jackson	M&GN offices under demolition with a falling chimney - c.1972 Photo - JA Jackson

View from the new road - November 1972

30th August 2025

If you have any memories, anecdotes or photos please let us know and we may be able to use them to update the site. By all means email or telephone 07836 675369.

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