1 Before the advent of restaurant cars stops were made forrefreshment. Swindon, Preston and York were among the biggerestablishments. Passengers only had 10 or 20 minutes to eat anduse the lavatories. In 1879 the Great Northern Railway was thefirst to run a dining car on the route between Kings Cross andLeeds. [Richard Doyle’s “Manners and Customs of the English” Punch cartoon

of Swindon from 1849.]

Carriages were constructed of wood and usuallyhad 4 wheels. A railway safety culture wasdeveloped and inventions such as a passengercommunication cord, door locks, carriagelighting and improved braking systems wereintroduced. The arrival of the railways ledinevitably to the fearful prospect of seriousaccidents.

There was no mass movement of people over

land before the railways. Land transport was

horse drawn and often over very poor roads

and tracks.

From the 1820s mass movement of labour for

developing industry was made possible by the

growing network of newly built railways.

From the start there were three classes of

travel that equated to the Victorian social

class system: First class was sumptuously

upholstered, second class offered padded

seats for the middle classes, and third class

was very basic with wooden benches and bare

floors. Very early 3rd class carriages had no

roofs and were open

to the elements.

1 From top: 1st, 2nd and 3rd class Great Northern

Railway carriages c1860. [ Jenkinson ]

1820s-1880sEARLY DAYS

5 Below: Brighton Works c. 1871

All trains to Brighton stopped for ticket

collection at the long wooden platform

alongside the works before continuing the

short distance into the station. This was a great

cause of delay and annoyance to passengers.

Typical carriages of the period fill the sidings in

the foreground. [Lens of Sutton]

5 The first passenger carriage

‘Experiment’, 1825. . [Illustrated

London News]

2 The rigours of travelling Third class[Brighton Reference Library ]

7 Songbook cover c1845[ British Railways ]

1 Accident on the North London Railway[Elton Collection, Ironbridge]

The first railwaycarriage was horsedrawn on theStockton andDarlington Railway

The first passenger railwayopened between Canterbury toWhitstable, a line known as theThe Crab & Winkle.

On 13 June, Queen Victoria made her firstjourney by train, travelling from Slough toPaddington, in a special royal carriage providedby the Great Western Railway. The Queen andthe Prince Consort, both complained that at20 mph the train was going far too fast.

Gladstone’s act forced the railways to providecarriages with seats and roofs.

Railway Mania reached its zenith,when no fewer than 272 Acts ofParliament setting up new railwaycompanies were passed.

The oldest named train in the world is “TheIrish Mail” running between London andHolyhead. It began running on 31 July 1848.

1825

1830

1842

1844

1846

1848

EARLY DAYS

By late 1890s the UK railway network was

its greatest geographic spread. There were

sixteen major and dozens of minor

companies. Many towns were served by

at least two competing lines and this

rivalry led to huge developments in new

standards of speed, comfort and safety.

Demands for new amenities resulted in

the introduction of dining and sleeping

cars, lavatories and corridors between

carriages and superior levels of interior

decoration.

The First World War took its

toll o the system and in 1923

the grouping resulted in the

formation of the “Big Four”

companies: LMS, LNER, GWR

and Southern.

The growth of the private car, bus

and lorry through the late 1920s

meant the railways had to find new

ways to challenge these new rivals

in the 1930s.

5 London Bridge c. 1925. [British Rail]

5 South East and Chatham Railway brake 3rd carriage [D Jenkinson, NRM]

VICTORIAN LEGACY

1 Female passengers in a LNWR dining

carriage, c 1905. [National Railway Museum]

7 Then and Now?, LNER poster. The

elegant couple in contemporary dressrelaxing in a spacious compartment isset against a chaotic scene of flusteredpassengers in Victorian dress on a

crowded platform.[National Railway Museum]

1880s-1930sVICTORIAN LEGACY

5 Interior of a drawing room car, early 19th century [NRM]

The first railwaycarriage washorse drawn onthe Stocktonand DarlingtonRailway

Gladstone’s act forced the railways to providecarriages with seats and roofs.

On 13 June, Queen Victoria made her firstjourney by train, travelling from Slough toPaddington, in a special royal carriage providedby the Great Western Railway. The Queen andthe Prince Consort, both complained that at20 mph the train was going far too fast.

Railway Mania reached its zenith, when nofewer than 272 Acts of Parliament setting upnew railway companies were passed.

The Railway Centenary celebrations werecelebrated at Stockton-on-Tees

1888

1904

1900

1913

1925

5 Thirty years of carriage developement on the Great North of Scotland Railway, [NRM]

From 1930 until the beginning of thesecond world war speed and stylecharacterised the luxury trains of Britain.Cocktail bars and observation cars – evenonboard cinemas – and record breakingruns. Much of this development bypassedthe ordinary train although wood wasslowly replaced by the use of steel inconstruction and design.

Worked virtually to breaking point duringwartime the network was nationalised in1948. British Railways boughtstandardisation and the construction in1951 of the Mk1 coach - built entirely ofsteel, large numbers of these vehiclesserved the UK railways for the next 50 years.

1 The Coronation, 1937London to Newcastle in fourhours an average speed of67mph [National Railway Museum]

5Over one million evacuees left London by train from1st September 1939. [National Railway Museum]

5 Bar scene in the Bulleid Taverncar.This novel and controversial designoriginated on the Southern Railwaybefore nationalisation. The exterior waspainted to resemble brickwork withpseudo-half timbering and stucco.Incorporating a painted ‘traditional’ pubsign. [National Railway Museum]

5Mass movement: Summerholidays, moving the milliary Therailways had to cater for hugevariations in passenger numbers.[National Railway Museum]

3 'Perhaps this'll teach you tostay at 'ome next 'oliday', poster,1944. [National Railway Museum]

Marshalling yards were a primary target for theGerman bombers. By damaging London’srailway facilities the enemy hoped to paralysethe commercial life of the capital.

Electrification of theSouthern Railway expandedthrough the 1930s bringingclean and modern rollingstock to the ever expandingcommuter belt.

With petrol rationing trains took the strain.Railways were used to their full capacity. Therun up to D-Day 2,000 trains carried 150,000troops to the south coast.

The Southern Railwayexperimented withDouble decker trains,cramped and stuffy theywere not a success butran until 1971

The Standard coach, designed by the newlynationalised British Railways.

1935

1940

1944

1948

1951

1930s-1950s20TH CENTURY MODERN

20TH CENTURY MODERN