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The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 11, Issue 1 (April 1, 1936.)

One Hundred Years Ago

One Hundred Years Ago.

Railway centenaries have become quite common of late. Germany, Belgium, and our own Great Western Railway, have been in the limelight in this connection. Now, there is to be recorded the fact that just one hundred years have passed since discussion was first begun of the possibility of a railway connecting Manchester with Birmingham. The success of the Liverpool and Manchester line led to the formation of the Manchester and Birmingham Railway Company, and work was commenced on construction in 1839. The first 5 1/2 miles of line was opened for traffic in June, 1840, from Manchester to Heaton Norris, and thus one of our most vital transport links had its birth.

Actually, the Manchester and Birmingham line never reached the latter point. What happened was that, towards the end of 1840, construction expenses proved so high, that the original plan was dropped. Instead of building a new line to Birmingham, the Company constructed its tracks from Manchester to Crewe, at which point connection was effected with the already, existing Grand Junction Railway, linking Crewe with Birmingham. In 1846 the Manchester and Birmingham Railway was absorbed by the Grand Junction Company (which had by that time absorbed the Liverpool and Manchester system) and the London and Birmingham Railways, under the title of the “London & North Western Railway.” The L. & N.W. was one of Britain's most important lines in pre-grouping days. It was one of the principal components of the present L. M. & S. group, and, incidentally, boasted of possessing the finest running tracks of any railway in the world—a claim which, I believe, was never challenged.