Back in October 1970 you could have been forgiven for thinking that
was the end of Sutton on Sea's place on the railway map
of the UK - but: not quite. Even when the demolition trains had
taken up the rails of the Mablethorpe loop to Willoughby and the
Alford
to
Sutton 2' 6" gauge tramway (closed 85 years earlier) had faded into
the mists, one significant railway "interest" remained.
The resort is home to three remarkable homes built from old Great
Eastern Railway carriages - in one case, the house is of two storeys
with the carriages forming the upper level. This sadly was badly
damaged by fire recently (July 2012) .
These grade-two listed buildings were built as holiday homes before
WW1 and two are now said to be lived in all the time.
The third two storey example appears unfit for habitation at present
due to the fire damage.
At one time, it's worth adding, houses built from old carriages were
common feature of the coastline and countryside, both as residential
homes for working class families or as holiday cottages for the
slightly more affluent.
Their importance has been recognised by the Heritage Lottery Fund
who have grant aided the restoration of a Great Eastern
carriage, which is very similar to those at Sutton. This is to be
found at the Holt terminus of the North Norfolk Railway,
seen above, where it can be visited when trains are running.
Photos and words by Chris Bates - August 2012