Castle Howard Station’s fascinating history is the subject of a brand new website that makes archive material collected over the past thirty years available to the public for the first time. Click here for the full story.

The station dates back to 1845 when the York to Scarborough line opened to fare paying passengers and served the famous country seat nearby from which the station derived its name. This ‘grand’ little country station saw the arrival and departure of many noble passengers. None more so than Queen Victoria and Prince Albert who arrived by train in August 1850 when they stayed at Castle Howard as guests of the Earl of Carlisle.

Scheduled passenger trains stopped calling at Castle Howard Station in 1930 when it became more financially rewarding to the railway company to run non-stop excursion express trains to the coast.

The station continued to be staffed until the 1950’s, handling modest amounts of freight and parcels before falling into disuse and neglect.

Fortunately, a succession of private owners have repaired and restored the building to its former glory. Over the years many people, some with a past connection to the station, have come forward with articles, documents and photographs relating to its history. These items, which have been gratefully received and kept safe by the current owner Edmund Collins, have now been scanned or transcribed into a digital format that can viewed at: www.castlehowardstation.com

The website features a timeline, image bank and a page of personal memories which will be expanded as more information becomes available. The website coordinator, Anne Bosanquet, said: “I would be delighted to hear from anyone who has more information to add to the site. We are particularly keen to hear about - and record - personal stories relating to the station that will help us build a picture of local social history.”

Whilst the station is a private residence and not open to the public, the former waiting rooms have recently been renovated into very luxurious self-catering holiday accommodation for guests wanting to stay somewhere unique in this popular tourist area.