Overview
Snettisham was a railway station on the King’s Lynn to Hunstanton line serving the village of Snettisham, located a few miles north of King’s Lynn in Norfolk, England. It opened in 1862 and the station closed along with the line in 1969.
“Although essentially a minor passing place on the King’s Lynn to Hunstanton line, when the proposal for a railway line between King’s Lynn and Hunstanton had been first mooted, the possibility of building a new harbour at Snettisham had been discussed. This, it was said, would provide a safe haven for trading and fishing vessels on the eastern side of The Wash, enabling the local mussels to be brought in there rather than King’s Lynn or Boston. However, the coming of the railway actually put paid to these ideas by eroding the local coasting trade which was hit by severe gales in the 1870s”.[2]
“Snettisham station was equipped with up and down platforms and its platform buildings were constructed out of the local carrstone. Four sidings diverged from the main line to the north of the main station, serving respectively a small goods yard, a goods shed, the local coal merchants and Messrs Vynne & Everitt’s granary. Goods traffic consisted of mainly coal and agricultural produce such as grain, bagged manure and vegetables.[3] On the up side of the line was an 18-lever standard Great Eastern signal box (this has now been relocated to Hardingham Station of on the Railway). Snettisham was initially considered important enough to boast its own stationmaster, but this post was later abolished leaving the station with a staff of 4/5 ” [4]
Sir John Betjeman
In 1962 Sir John Betjeman recorded a short 10 minutes film documenting his journey from Kings Lynn to Hunstanton. He stops off at two stations: Wolferton (the Royal station) and Snettisham which he describes with great enthusiasm.
He states:
“I can think of few pleasanter places to hang about in on a sunny afternoon like this than Snettisham Station”
Snettisham (the middle ‘i’ is silent)…., its got all the little characteristics that I like about a country station,……. full of quirky touches such as a topiary hedge spelling out its name, and the ironwork of the bench incorporating the initials of the Great Eastern Railway company.
“..and at the end of the platform where the line curves away to Lynn, . there’s a lilac bush in full bloom….”
He also describes the unusual Welcome to Bavaria poster and the lilac bush at the end of the platform both of which we still have in our possession.
You can watch the film here: Watch John Betjeman Goes by Train: King’s Lynn to Hunstanton online – BFI Player
Platform Topiary
Gerry Kendall, created a topiary on the up platform which marked out the station’s name along with other inspirational and highly skilled clipped hedges
Acknowledgements and references
Roger Bell, Nigel Teulon
Wikipedia
Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations, Patrick Stephens Ltd, Sparkford, ISBN 1-85260-508-1, p. 116.
^ Jenkins, S.C. (1987). The Lynn & Hunstanton Railway and the West Norfolk Branch. Headington, Oxford: Oakwood Press. p. 26. ISBN 0-85361-330-3.
^ Jenkins, S.C., op. cit. p. 93