In 1845 the North Eastern Railway - NER authorised the building of a branch line from Tweedmouth on the east coast of Northumberland to St Boswells near Kelso in the Scottish Borders.  In just 4 years the first section to Sprouston opened in the summer of 1849.  2 years later the final section of this popular commercial and passenger line opened to Kelso and St Boswells in 1851 and so Norham Station was born!

The Station was originally intended to serve the rural communitites of the Tweed valley and transport coal, limestone and other minerals into Tweedmouth for distribution along the main East coast.

The line also proved a very useful detour route for the main East coast line in times of landslides and flooding, particularily in the summer of 1948 when the branch line hosted the likes of The Flying Scotsman for 3 months due to track damage north of Tweedmouth.

Time rolled on, Norham continued as a busy, productive and important station but like thousands of other stations around the country there was a hidden agenda being formulated that would ultimately consign this and so many other stations to the history books (but that's another story!).

Thankfully the last Station Master, Peter Short and his family had the foresight and dedication to save Norham from the scrap heap and preserve the buildings for future generations to enjoy - we just need to add some track, a steam engine, a few carriages and we will have a heaven on earth for any train enthusiast!

1845

The Board of Directors of the Newcastle and Berwick Railway are granted an Act of Parliament to build a Main line and several Branch lines from Newcastle northwards.

Meanwhile in other news......

The Great Potato famine begins in Ireland.

Baker, Henry Jones invents Self Raising flour in Bristol.

Inventor, Stephen Perry patents the Rubber Band

1849

The Tweedmouth to Sprouston line is opened and includes four impressive viaducts.

Meanwhile in other news......

The original Goldrush starts in California

The Great Hall in Euston Station in London is opened to the public.

Austria launch the first recorded Air Raid, against Italy over Venice.

1911

The early 1900's are a popular and busy time for Norham Station with records showing 14,277 tickets sold.

Meanwhile in other news......

Explorer, Captain Robert Scott is beaten to the South Pole by Roald Amundsen.

President and Actor Ronald Reagan is born in USA.

Leonardo di Vinci's  Mona Lisa painting is stolen from the Louvre in Paris.

1939

The increasing popularity and convenience of motor vehicles through the 1930's results in a rapid decline of ticket sales for Norham.

Meanwhile in other news......

The last public Guillotining takes place in Versailles, France.

The Wizard of Oz film is premiered in Hollywood, USA.

World War 2 is started by Germany invading Poland.

1964

The Passenger service for the Tweedmouth to Sprouston branch line is withdrawn, leaving only a freight service operating.

Meanwhile in other news.....

The Beatles perform their first USA concert on Television viewed by over 73 million people.

Boxing legend Cassius Clay changes his name to Muhummad Ali.

Mary Poppins has it's premier in Los Angeles.

1969

Final sections of the tracks are lifted for scrap, bringing to an end 120 years of faithful service.

Meanwhile in other news......

Monty Pythons Flying Circus has it's first showing on BBC 2.

Over in the USA, the cartoon series Scooby Doo appears on CBS.

Astronauts, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to land on the moon. 

1988

Norham station and the surrounding main buildings become English Grade 2 listed to ensure the long term survival of a unique rural Victorian time capsule.

Meanwhile in other news......

Pan Am Flight 103 is blown up by a terrorist bomb over the small Scottish town of  Lockerbie, killing 259 onboard and 11 on the ground.

The Liberal Party and SDP merge to form the Liberal Democrats.

Bruce Willis introduces John Maclaine to the Big Screen in Die Hard.

1847

Approval is granted to build a two line branch from Tweedmouth to Kelso, although objections raised by the Duke of Roxburghe forces the line to terminate 4 miles short of Kelso at Sprouston.

Meanwhile in other news......

Authoress, Charlotte Bronte finishes writing her novel Jane Eyre

Musician, Stephen  Foster performs 'Oh, Susanna' for the first time.

Surgeon, Sir James Young Simpson performs the first use of chloroform as an anaesthetic.

1851

The final section to Kelso completes the 23 mile branch from the East Coast Main Line at Tweedmouth to the North British Waverley Line at St Boswells in the West.

Meanwhile in other news......

The first Public Flushing Toilets unveiled at the Great Exhibition in the Crystal Palace.

Linus Yale patents his new lock mechanism.

The Window Tax is abolished in Great Britain.

1913

Business is still booming at Norham station with records showing 1407 tons of Barley and 485 Livestock wagons passing through the station.

Meanwhile in other news......

Leonardo di Vinci's Mona Lisa painting is recovered from a hotel room in Florence, Italy.

The Ford Motor Company introduces the worlds first moving assembly line to produce the Model T motor car.

Actor and Comedian, Sid James is born in South Africa.

1948

Serious Flooding on the East Coast main line makes the Tweedmouth to Sprouston branch line a very useful detour route.

Meanwhile in other news.....

Musician, Alice Cooper is born

The Empire Windrush set sail for England with Commonwealth citizens to boost our war ravaged working population.

Aviation pioneer, Orville Wright dies aged 76.

1965

The Tweedmouth to Sprouston branch line is permanently closed to all services.

Meanwhile in other news.....

The state funeral of Sir Winston Churchill takes place in St Paul's Cathedral, London.

5 times Oscar winner The Sound of Music opens in the USA

Authoress, J.K.Rowling is born.

1970

The last Station Master, Peter Short and his family purchase the complete Station complex from British Rail for £800.00

Meanwhile in other news......

The Beatles announce they are officially splitting up.

The Royal Navy end the traditional daily issue of a Tot of Rum to

Sailors.

Melania Trump is born in Slovenia.

2016

New owners, Annette and Neil Harris take on the responsibility to continue and enhance the preservation of Norham Station....May God have mercy on their souls!

Meanwhile in other news......

The UK votes to leave the EU, Brexit begins.

Donald Trump becomes 45th President of the United States.

Musical legend David Bowie dies at the age of  69.