Having already visited every railway station in Staffordshire, Nottinghamshire and all of the stations in Rutland, I completed all the stations in Leicestershire on Thursday 12th June by visiting Market Harborough, located just on the south east of the county, close to the border with Northamptonshire.
It took me two trains to get to Market Harborough from Burton on Trent; travelling northwards and changing at Beeston. I was surprised to see that a diversion is in place between the platforms at Beeston station. A project to install lifts for accessible access is happening, which means passengers for the southbound services must take a signposted diversion around the car park and back into the station via a new ramp onto the platform.
I soon arrived at Market Harborough railway station.
Normally, I would take about three or four pictures at a railway station, but I didn’t have time for any more than that one, because my train home arrived just as I got onto the platform.
The station was originally opened in May 1850 by the London and North Western Railway company, who shared it with the Midland Railway from 1857, when the MR opened their line from Leicester to Bedford and Hitchin. The present station building dates from 1884. Market Harborough used to be a larger junction station, but line closures in the 1960s and 1980s reduced the station to its present state. It was upgraded in 2019 with new lifts and new track alignment as part of a wider project to increase line speeds on the important Midland Main Line route to London.
After leaving the station, I walked around the corner to the ruins of St Mary in Arden Church.
The church was first mentioned in records in 1220. the present church building was constructed in 1693. It became derelict in the mid-20th century, and the roof was removed in 1950. The church is surrounded by a burial ground, with the last burial taking place in 1878. In 1786, one William Hubbard made a bequest of one guinea a year for the parish church choristers to sing The Easter Hymn over his grave every year on Easter Sunday, a tradition that still takes place today.
The centre of Market Harborough is a short walk from the railway station, and is full of history. One of the largest buildings is the parish church of St Dionysius. Dating back to the 13th century, the church is unusual because it has no churchyard, just the church building itself.
Next to the church is the historic Old Grammar School. Built in 1614, it was constructed on stilts to enable a butter market to take place underneath the building. It was used as a school until 1892, and has a bible verse inscribed around the edge of the base of the school.
Just down the road from the church and the school is the Town Square. The square is home to the local war memorial, installed to mark those who gave their lives in the First World War (1914 – 1918). Also within the town square is a building of interest to readers of the Adrian Mole books by Sue Townsend.
Adrian Mole often mentioned his precious savings account at the Market Harborough Building Society in the books.
Just beyond the home of Mole’s money is the entrance to the Memorial Gardens. Laid out in 1954 to remember those who died in World War II, the gardens form part of the Millennium Mile, a mile-long walking route created, unsurprisingly, in the year 2000.
Just over a footbridge over the River Welland is Welland Park. The largest public open space in Market Harborough is home to many facilities, including tennis courts, rugby posts and public fitness equipment. For those less active, there are some gardens to walk around, a cafe on site and public restrooms.
The last place I visited in Market Harborough was the Harborough Museum. The museum opened in 1983 in a building which used to be a corset factory. The building also houses the council offices and the town’s library.
Among the items on show in the museum are part of the Hallaton Treasure, a hoard of Iron Age coins discovered in nearby Hallaton in 2000.
After my visit to the museum, it was time to head home. This time, I had to change trains at Nottingham, which was the first time I had been in the city this year.
That’s it for this post, thanks for reading.
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