page_title: Hamar Station
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Hamar Station / History
caption_attribution_description: English: NSB class 26c #412 on Hamar turntable Norsk bokmål: NSB type 26c nr.412, på svingskiva på Hamar stasjon i 1970. Original caption: "NSB 26c 412 pa Hamar 12.7.1970 Foto: Svein Sando"
context_page_description: Hamar Station is a railway station of the Dovre Line and the Røros Line located in downtown Hamar, Norway. Located 126.26 kilometers from Oslo Central Station, it is served by long-distance and regional trains on the Dovre Line, as the terminus for regional trains on the Røros Line. All trains are operated by SJ Norge, except the regional trains between Lillehammer and Oslo, which are operated by Vy. A side platform and an island platform are in regular use. The station handled 1,062,300 passengers in 2008.
  The station opened on 23 June 1862 as the western terminus of the narrow-gauge Hamar–Grundset Line, today the Røros Line. The first station building, in Swiss chalet style, was designed by Georg Andreas Bull. Increased traffic caused the construction of a second station building, designed by Balthazar Conrad Lange. It opened in 1880 with the first part of the Dovre Line, which connected Hamar to Oslo. The current station building is designed by Paul Due in historicism. It received major renovations in the 1970s and ahead of the 1994 Winter Olympics. The Dovre Line past Hamar will be upgraded to double track, and in conjunction with this moving the station is being considered.
context_section_description: Hamar was incorporated as a town in 1849 and by 1861 had a population of 1,700. Proposals for a railway from Hamar to Elverum were first launched in 1854. The goal was to provide train services across the valley ridge to Østerdalen, where Elverum acted as an important node. From Hamar, the a steam ship service was proposed across the lake of Mjøsa to Eidsvoll, where passengers and cargo could be hauled by train to the capital and coast. The plan was approved by Parliament on 3 September 1857. The necessity of transshipment to steam boat meant that the station had to be located on lakefront property. The place Gammelhusstranda was chosen, but gave the unusual result that the station was situated outside the city limits until a border change in 1878.
  Hamar received the railway's administration and became its operational center. The station was designed by Georg Andreas Bull and construction of the wooden buildings were subcontracted to Chr. Eriksen. The line opened on 23 June 1862. The station had limited facilities with shunting being done by horse. In its original configuration the station had three tracks, a main station building, a locomotive depot and a cargo building. Two tracks received a roof. All buildings were wooden, with the two-story main building a log house with paneling in Swiss chalet style. The upper story was used as housing. About forty people worked at the station from the opening.
  The water station was moved to the depot in 1863. Later a house adjacent to the station building was converted into a railway hotel. The docks received steam crane in 1864, followed by an extension three years later and a new crane in 1875. The traffic at Hamar increased little until 1880. Later known as the Røros Line, the railway was extended further up Østerdalen, eventually being connected with Trondheim in 1877. The main challenge was the inevitable break-of-gauge which would have to take place, as the Trunk Line had been built with standard gauge. The remaining link, the Eidsvoll–Hamar Line, later reclassified as the first part of the Dovre Line, was initially planned as narrow gauge. This was changed by Parliament in 1875, making Hamar the site of the break-of-gauge.
  The area and traffic generated by transshipment was so extensive that a new station building was needed. Balthazar Conrad Lange had become NSB's head architect, and was issued the task of designing a new main station building. The second station building was located east of the old, at roughly the location of the current bus station. Also built in wood, it received a roof which hung over the platform. The old station building was converted to railway offices. The track out of the station was moved further away from the lakeshore. The new station was taken into use in 1880.
  With a connection to the capital, plans surfaced for the standard gauge line to be extended northwards through Gudbrandsdalen. With the extension to Sel approved in 1890, three proposals surfaced for the route through Hamar. All three cut the town off from the lakeshore. One involved the line being carried across a swing bridge which would allow access to the port, while two proposed a line across Høiensalodden, either the chosen route or one along Skappelsgate. The second station building had been built further away from the market square and there was a desire to build a new station closer to the town center. The site of the first station was therefore chosen as a suitable site for a new terminal building. The initial station was moved across the street, where it remained until it was demolished in 1925.
  Design of the third station building was commissioned to Paul Due, who was working as NSB's head architect at the time. The contract for construction was awarded to Byggmester Schilling from Kristiania. It was completed after completion of the Sel Line, being taken into use on 8 November 1897. At the same time a separate restaurant building opened. The center section of the second station was moved to the deport area, where it served as an office. An expanded depot opened in 1898. The
caption: Class 26c steam locomotive on the turntable at Hamar in 1970
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