WHILST the railway company (York and North Midland Co.) was laying its tracks, the infrastructure was under development and two important features were the station and accommodation for employees.

The earliest image of the station is a line drawing from The Illustrated London News of 1867.

Gazette & Herald: The line drawing from The Illustrated London News of 1867The line drawing from The Illustrated London News of 1867 (Image: Malton and Norton Heritage Centre)

Sadly, it gives a misleading and false impression of the surrounding area and is often dismissed as wrong'.

This was our first opinion but looking from somewhere on the riverside opposite Asda's car park exit, Nick Hatton has linked most of the nearby features with a contemporary (1850) map.

Gazette & Herald: 1850 map1850 map (Image: Malton and Norton Heritage Centre)

The hills and buildings in the background are very exaggerated and do detract from the overall scene.

Further away from the station, and for staff use, a terrace of houses known as North Midland Place was constructed (see map).

It is difficult to photograph the whole of it, but its two end portions are shown (1959 and 1931).

Gazette & Herald: The image from 1931The image from 1931 (Image: Malton and Norton Heritage Centre)

Gazette & Herald: The image from 1959The image from 1959 (Image: Malton and Norton Heritage Centre)

Hidden away near these houses is Majestic House, an Art Deco remnant of the (1920s) Majestic Cinema and the residence of its manager.

In the early days, when Norton residents needed to access the station, it must have been tempting to bypass the ticket office on the Malton side and enter the station (and train) from the rear (Norton) side.


READ MORE FROM HOWARD: Rails over the Derwent


Lots of complicated problems of access like this (see press cutting) led to the construction of a new private road (Norton Road or 'Black Boards) but it did not solve matters until its 'private' status was rescinded.

Gazette & Herald: Newspaper clippingNewspaper clipping (Image: Malton and Norton Heritage Centre)