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The Wells & Walsingham Light Railway (WWLR) is a 10¼
inch gauge miniature steam
railway in North Norfolk running between its named towns. The line, which is
4 miles (6.44 km) long, once formed part of the Great Eastern Railway and is
now the longest 10¼ inch (260 mm) gauge railway in the world. It runs from
the coastal town of Wells-next-the-Sea to the pilgrimage centre at
Walsingham. It is the northern section of the former Wymondham, Dereham,
Fakenham and Wells-next-the-Sea line which was closed to passengers in
stages from 1964 to 1969 as part of the Beeching cuts. The railway operates
from a new station located on the A149 approximately half a mile south of
the original terminus at Wells. The terminus at Walsingham is situated a
short distance north of the original GER station (which is now a Russian
Orthodox Church). Trains run daily between April and October.
The Wells & Walsingham Light Railway was born out of one man's passionate
dream, hard work and sheer determination. Lt. Cmdr. Roy Francis had already
built the mile long 10¼ inch gauge Beach railway at Wells. In 1979 he
started to construct the WWLR on the four miles of old Great Eastern track
bed from Wells to Walsingham. Work was completed in 1982 and on 6th April
services began on schedule. Pilgrim, an 0-6-0 side tank engine,
hauled the train until 1987 when the new and unique 2-6-0+0-6-2 Garratt
locomotive Norfolk Hero came into service. Two extra coaches were
added to the train increasing the seating capacity to 76. A redundant signal
box was moved from Swainsthorpe to Wells, where the ground floor was
converted to provide a shop and tearoom. A sister loco to Norfolk Hero,
named Norfolk Heroine after Edith Cavell, arrived in 2011.
Previous History of the Trackbed
The Lynn and Dereham Railway and the Norfolk Railway both obtained
Parliament's permission to build lines to Dereham in 1845, at the height of
Railway Mania, when railways were being frantically built across the whole
country. The Norfolk Railway, building its line from Wymondham, reached
Dereham first, and opened its railway to passengers on 15th February 1847;
with the line being extended to Fakenham and Wells-next-the-Sea by 1st
December 1857. Whilst the line between Wymondham and East Dereham was later
provided with double track, the line north of there remained single line. A
branch to Heacham, and a short spur to the harbour, also ran from Wells.
As part of the Great Eastern Railway, the branch became part of the Southern
Area of the London and North Eastern Railway at The Grouping in 1923. At
this time the coaches used on the Wells line were still ex-GER 6-wheelers,
although these were gradually replaced with bogie stock. Arguably the most
evident change was that the GER Royal blue locomotives and crimson coaches
were replaced by LNER black locomotives and varnished brown carriages.
The line was heavily used during World War I and World War II, with extra
Air Ministry sidings provided at Dereham in 1943. The line was also defended
by an armoured train, reporting as Train G, based at Heacham and using F4
2-4-2 tank locomotive 7189 as motive power. The armoured train was
frequently used on the Wells line, and once collided with some empty coaches
at Wells
Following the war, the 1947 Transport Act which nationalised the railways,
the branch line became part of the Eastern Region of British Railways on 1
January 1948. The 1955 Modernisation Plan resulted in the line's last steam
passenger services. The final regular steam journey ran on 17 September
1955. Diesel units took over next day, with faster trains and a more
frequent service. Steam-hauled freight continued into the early 1960s.
By 1960 there was an hourly passenger service to Norwich taking between 32
and 40 minutes. Despite this, increased use of road transport led to a
decline in passengers, causing the service to became one of many threatened
by the Beeching Report in 1963. The passenger service between Dereham and
Wells ended on 5 October 1964, with the branch to Heacham having closed on 5
October 1954. (ref. www.wikipedia.com)
Website:-
www.wellswalsinghamrailway.co.uk
Phone:-
+44 (0) 1328 711630
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