National Railway Museum

The National Railway Museum is the largest railway museum in the world, attracting almost 1 million visitors per year.

If you are a fan of steam trains, this is the place for you! But you don’t have to be a trainspotter to appreciate the NRM York. It caters for all the family, with interactive displays, various exhibits, children’s sections and the centrepiece Great Hall which is stuffed full of magnificent locomotives from across the world.

Check out this great video on York’s Railway Museum:

Origins of the National Railway Museum

Opened in 1975, the York National Railway Museum brought together a massive collection of railway artefacts dispersed across the UK. Originally, before nationalisation of the railways in 1948, each private rail company had its own collection of trains & artefacts, the most prolific of which was the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER), which opened a public museum in York dedicated to railways in 1927.

Along with its strategic importance as a railway city, this was the reason why the National Railway Museum is now based in York. The huge former steam locomotive depot, only 700m from York Minster was an ideal site for the museum and, following its conversion and opening as the very first national museum outside London, the museum was an immediate success with the public.

Since then, the Museum has been extended on a number of occasions.  In 1990, the Station Hall opened across Leeman Road in York’s former railway goods depot, nearly doubling the size of the museum in the process. This development won the Museum of the Year Award in 1990.

The former diesel depot adjacent to the Great Hall was added as a store and in 1999 this was rebuilt to become ‘The Works’, providing public access to the Museum’s collections stores and workshops, as well as a viewing gallery overlooking York Station. The success of The Works led, in part, to the Railway Museum gaining the European Museum of the Year award in 2001.

The Collection

There are approximately 280 rail vehicles in the National Collection, with around 100 being at York at any one time and the remainder divided between Locomotion at Shildon and other museums and heritage railways.

Some of the most popular exhibits include:

• A replica of Robert Louis Stephenson’s Rocket – the original steam locomotive
• The Flying Scotsman
• The Mallard – the fastest steam locomotive in the world
• The Bullet Train
• The APT (Advanced Passenger Train)
• Queen Victoria’s Royal Carriage

Learn more about the world famous Mallard train by clicking on the video below. In 1938 the Mallard broke the World Record for the fastest steam train by clocking 126 mph.

The Story of Rail

The Railway Museum in York does not just exhibit locomotives. It tells the story of the railways, and the vital role it has played in our heritage and the development of nations throughout the world. The collection includes railway posters, art, signalling, telecommunications, furniture, timepieces, fixtures & fittings, tickets, models, postcards, photos, films and documentaries. It would be fair to say that you will struggle to see every exhibit in one day! The National Railway Museum is an excellent choice for a day’s entertainment, particularly when the weather is not so good.

Centre of Study on the Railways

The National Railway Museum is also a centre of academic study. In 1994 the ‘Institute of Railway Studies’ was launched as a joint venture between the Museum and the University of York. This and the Yorkshire Rail Academy has helped to develop education and research on the railways.

If you enjoyed the NRM in York, it might be worth trying its sister museum in County Durham. Opened in 2004 at Shildon, an hour or so north of York, it was the first National museum to be built in the North East of England.  Shildon has a significant place in history as the birthplace of the modern railway.

Read more about Shildon NRM here.

NRM Road Train from York Minster

Travel straight to the Museum’s door from Duncombe Place (next to York Minster). Trips leave the Museum on the hour and half hour from 11:00 to 16:00, and depart from Duncombe Place every 30 minutes from 11:15 to 16:15.

This service runs daily during peak season (April-October and school holidays).

For the rest of the year it is a weekend service only.

Prices – Adult: £2 one way; Children: £1 one way

Visitor Information for the National Railway Museum

Proximity to Minster – 900 metres; 12 minutes walk

Holiday In York | National Railway Museum

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