Knaresborough Heritage Centre Exhibition - Knaresborough On The Tracks - Knaresborough Heritage Centre

The Story of Knaresborough Railway and How Not to Build a Viaduct

It is just over 200 years since the first commercial railway opened from Stockton to Darlington. Surprisingly the story could have been so much different as the first discussions to build a railway in Knaresborough predate that! Knaresborough Museum Association (KMA) is opening a new exhibition at Knaresborough Heritage Centre which tells the fascinating story of our local railway, with many twists and turns along the way.
We explore the problems facing the company constructing the railway and the viaduct, how and why the first viaduct failed, and the social impact the railway had on the local community. Knaresborough station has been rebuilt three times, the viaduct twice and many staff have come and gone. The line served the community well in both wars but faced closure in the 1960s. We explore how the local railway was saved and how it was and still is being transformed.
A major highlight of the exhibition will be the return of a very special object to Knaresborough after a 179-year absence. The silver commemorative trowel presented to Railway Chairman John Dent at the laying of the viaduct’s foundation stone in 1847 has been found in the archives at York Minster by one of KMA’s tenacious volunteers Sarah Threlfall. The stunning trowel will take pride of place in the exhibition along with a static miniature steam engine whose bigger brother would have worked the line, and memorabilia and posters from the golden age of steam.