The early years of the 19th Century witnessed a rapid growth in the construction of the railways throughout the country and Derby was perfectly placed to take full advantage of this. So it was that between 1838 and 1840 three separate railway companies constructed lines that merged at Derby. Whilst the companies each proposed to build their own stations somewhere in the historic town centre, including one near to the Market Place, a compromise was reached that resulted in the sharing of a single station that would be built on part of the Castlefields Estate at Litchurch. The first train arrived in the town at 1:18pm on the 30th May 1839, where it stopped at a temporary wooden platform and the first 500 passengers disembarked having made a 48 minute journey from Nottingham
Construction of the first permanent station which became known as the Trijunct Station began the following year, however this was demolished in the 1980s. Fortunately, though, the development that occurred in the surrounding area does survive and is now of national importance.
The largest of the three railway companies was the North Midland Railway and it was they who were responsible for the construction of the current Railway Cottages. These formed a triangular block of three streets North Street (now Calvert Street), Midland Place and Railway Terrace. The initial letter from the three streets results in NMR, standing for North Midland Railway. Also included were two small squares, Sheffield place and Leeds Place. This development is considered to be the first development of its kind in the country and was created to provide accommodation for Midland Railway staff. 
The whole development was designed by renowned railway architect Francis Thompson and constructed by Thomas Jackson of Pimlico who also constructed the Midland Hotel for the use of 1st class passengers as well as the Brunswick Railway and Commercial Inn for the use of 2nd class passengers and railway workers. These were conveniently situated at opposite ends of the development with the 1st class accommodation nearer to the station. Of the original 92 houses that were built 57 still remain. A number were cleared in 1894 to create the Railway Institute building. 
This had developed from a Reading Society that had been established in 1850 by a number of railway employees. Its growth over the following decades resulted in the need for a permanent structure, the building we see today 
Opened on 16 February 1894, as a cultural centre for railway workers, at its peak it contained a library of 18,000 books, a concert hall with a stage and seating for 500 people. There were also a number of other rooms for dining, meetings and games 
Despite its historic importance by the 1970's the area was derelict and there were plans to clear it to build a new road. Fortunately a major campaign was launched by the recently established Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust to save it and this resulted it being designated a Conservation Area in the early 1980's with many of the buildings being Listed as Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. The road was subsequently rerouted through what is now Pride Park and today the houses are much sought after