Dereham railway station 2.91

Dereham railway station is a railway station in the town of Dereham in the English county of Norfolk. The station is served by heritage services on the Mid-Norfolk Railway from Dereham to Wymondham.HistoryThe Lynn and Dereham Railway and the Norfolk Railway both obtained Parliament's permission to build lines to Dereham in 1845, at the height of the so-called "Railway Mania", when railways were being built across the whole country. The Norfolk Railway, building its line from Wymondham, reached Dereham first, and opened its railway to passengers on 15 February 1847. The first station south of Dereham was Yaxham. The line from King's Lynn had to wait until 11 September 1848.The King's Lynn line was originally operated by the Lynn & Dereham Railway, but in 1848 the Eastern Counties Railway leased the Norfolk Railway the line was absorbed. In 1857 the line between Dereham and Wells opened. The entire line became part of the Great Eastern Railway in 1862.The station was built in stages, being expanded over several decades. It is provided with four platforms, with platforms 2 and 3 being set back to back. Platform 4 is a short bay platform and was originally dedicated for trains heading towards King's Lynn.Beeching's report intended to retain the King's Lynn - Dereham - Norwich line for express trains and freight:. Despite Beeching's intentions, the line from King's Lynn was closed in 1968, leaving a Dereham - Norwich service. After withdrawal of this remaining service in 1969 the station building was gutted and used as a showroom.