This little stor y begins in 1902 and concerns one of the UK’s smallest stations, sandwiched between Hatf ield and St Albans. It concludes 117 years later with what cou ld well be Britain’s most resourceful postman.
Oliver Robert Hawke Bur y, a resident of Wilkins Green Lane, Hatf ield, was an internationa lly esteemed engineer for the Great Northern Railway; his portrait hangs in the Nationa l Portrait Galler y. The f irst manager of the GNR in 1847 was his great-uncle.
It was Oliver’s desire to shor ten his own commute to work at King’s Cross station, which led to the creation of Nast Hyde Halt. Being somewhat inf luential to say the least, Oliver was instrumental in the establishment of the halt, which opened in 1910 by the Hatf ield & St Albans Railway Company. I say inf luential, because his company ow ned it, and Bury himself was on the board. However, by the 1930s it was clear that the whole line had become uneconomica l,
