. . . singular village in North Norfolk. With its terraced streets it is more reminiscent of the railway towns of the industrial north of England and the midlands, than a small village in deepest rural Norfolk.

In the mid-nineteenth century Melton Constable was a parish with 19 houses and a small population of around 100, mainly working for Lord Hastings at the Hall and on his estate. The arrival of the railway in the 1880s changed this. The railway company was to build a station and engineering works, so it required homes for its employees. The village, as we know it today, was built in the neighbouring parish of Burgh Parva. The first street to be built, in 1882, was Melton Street. Work began on the station and the works in May 1881, on 11 acres of land given over by Lord Hastings. The company named its new station Melton Constable.

As the railway was extended the village grew and at the turn of the century the population stood at around one thousand. The engineering works were extensive, 16 engines were built there and many more repaired. A Gas Works was errected to supply the railway works and the houses. >>

The Melton Constable village sign --- Click here for WIDER view >>