Great Britain's Railways (A New History)

Which was the first railway in Great Britain? Certainly not the one engineered by George Stephenson as one of the first was that laid down at Wollaton, near Nottingham, open by 1610, long before Stephenson's birth in 1781. In this comprehensive history, Colin Maggs, one of the country's foremost railway historians, tells the story of over 400 years of British railway history. He covers early horse and gravity-worked lines to those powered by steam, electricity, and diesel. The development of locomotives, rolling stock, signalling, and major accidents—often marking major changes in how the network is run—are all described in detail. Pivotal moments including the Amalgamation of 1923 when most railway companies became part of the GWR, LMSR, or LNER, nationalization and privatization are set in their historical context. Colin Maggs also ventures his views on where Britain's railways will go in the future including HS2 and beyond. Fabulously illustrated with almost 200 photographs and period ephemera.