Rail 150: Stockton and Darlington Railway and What Followed
This book commemorates the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton & Darlington Railway: the first public railway, anywhere in the world, that employed locomotives to haul the greater part of its traffic, and the prototype in many respects of the railway as we know it today.
It comprises four chapters, by different authors. In the first Mr Hoole gives an account of the Stockton & Darlington Railway itself, of the conditions in which it was planned and built, of its operation throughout its history as an independent company, until it was amalgamated with the North Eastern Railway in 1863. Professor Simmons then provides a general survey of the development of the British railway system as a whole, under private ownership, from 1825 to 1947. The third chapter, by Dr Bonavia, looks at the railways since nationalisation, their problems and achievements; and in the last Mr Waller considers the railways as a whole as they are today, and as they are moving forward into the future.
The book ranges widely in its scope. Though it is concerned with technology, with locomotives and rolling stock and operation, it also presents the railway in its setting, as part of the social and political life of Britain in the 19th century and in our own time. It is generously illustrated, with 4 colour pictures and 95 pictures in black and white (many of them reproduced here for the first time), as well as 5 maps.
This great anniversary is being widely celebrated. Here we can see why. The book shows us what the great event of 1825 led to, the contribution that these pioneers of north-eastern England made to the life of Britain and the modern world.
Softback, 19x25cm, 198 pages, black & white photographs
Condition: Good/Very Good
ISBN: 9780413323101
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Updated: 2 January 2025