National Railway Museum in York reopens station hall

The National Railway Museum (NRM) has reopened its Station Hall building ahead of its 50th anniversary weekend.

The Grade II-listed structure was built in the 1870s as York’s main goods station and was operational right up until the 1960s.

Since 1990, the building has been home to the NRM’s six Royal Train carriages.

It closed to visitors in 2023 to enable a £10.5m restoration project, funded by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), to begin.

The building has undergone major architectural and structural improvements during the project.

Craig Bentley, director of the NRM, said the work had been “comprehensive”.

“The whole roof has been replaced, we’ve got new photovoltaic panels up there generating electricity, we’ve done work to the listed elevations, the externals.

“We’ve really sort of safeguarded and protected the building for future generations.”

Andrew McLean, assistant director and head curator at the NRM, said the work on the building also reflected what it had originally been.

“We’ve opened the historic doors but we’ve put glazing in which brings the light back in.

“Historically this was a goods shed where those doors would have been open during the day so we are bringing that sense of light back in.”

The restoration work has been supported with an additional £577,000 refresh of the exhibitions in the Station Hall, supported by the Friends of the National Railway Museum.

It includes new acquisitions such as the wreath placed on the locomotive which transported Queen Victoria’s funeral train from Paddington to Windsor in 1901.

“This is the first time people will be able to see that wreath since that time. It’s been meticulously restored and it’s a stunning object,” explained Mr McLean.

Another new item is a WH Smith bookstall which was installed at London’s Waterloo Station in 1921.

Curators have also installed audio and images showcasing the stories of the people who have used and worked on the railways over the past 200 years.

It includes photographs depicting Windrush migrants freshly arrived in the UK as they set out on train journeys from Waterloo Station across the country.

Mr McLean said refreshing the exhibitions meant they were able to tell more of the stories of the people who worked and travelled on the railways.

“Everybody loves the Flying Scotsman and Thomas the Tank Engine, but they were dangerous places to work.

“We have here on display for the first time a prosthetic leg from a chap challed Howard Jarvis, who lost his leg in 1940 while working on the Great Western Railway.”

Mr Jarvis had bequeathed the leg to the museum.

The National Railway Museum opened in York in 1975 and was the first national museum outside London. It was a controversial decision, according to Mr Bentley.

“We’ve seen some fabulous stories, real debate in Parliament about whether the people of York, maybe the people of the north would appreciate a museum.”

Forty million people have visited the NRM since it opened.

“I think its absolutely correct that you can come and see this and that you can do so in York.

“It is a real demonstration of what a national museum outside of London can do.”

According to the NRM, which is part of the Science Museum Group, it has the largest collection of railway objects in the world and is the most visited free attraction in the region.

“We really pride ourselves in being open for all,” Mr Bentley said.

“I can’t think of any other industry or form of transport that has had such an impact on society.”