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M. E. Quick
THE WRONG SORT OF FISH
OIL
THE TRIALS, TRIBULATIONS (AND TRIUMPHS) OF THE EARLY
RAILWAY PASSENGER
2
Copyright M. E. Quick
The right of M. E. Quick in to be identified as author of this work has been asserted
by him in accordance with section 77 and 7 of the Copyright! "esigns and #atents
$ct 1%.
$&& rights reser'ed. (o part of this pub&ication may be reproduced! stored in a
retrie'a& system! or transmitted in any form or by any means! e&ectronic! mechanica&!
photocopying! recording! or otherwise! without the prior permission of the
pub&ishers.
$ny person who commits any unauthori)ed act in re&ation to this pub&ication may be
&iab&e to crimina& prosecution and ci'i& c&aims for damages.
"isc&aimer* $ny 'iews e+pressed in items ,uoted from pub&ications of the period
co'ered shou&d be regarded e+c&usi'e&y as the opinions of those ,uoted! not those of
the present author.
$ C-# cata&ogue record for this tit&e is a'ai&ab&e from the .ritish /ibrary.
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www.austinmacau&ey.com
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1
Illustrations
Those from Punch come from these compi&ations*
Later Pencillings from Punch! <ohn /eech! .radbury 8 E'ans! undated =
mid>&ate 196s?
Pictures from Punch! pub&ished by Punch! undated = @o&ume - about 1%2!
@o&ume --- about 1%66.
Punch Library of Humour: The Railway Book, Educationa& #ress! 1%16.
-n the first two cases the books ga'e the year of the origina& cartoon. The &ast
did not! but on&y cartoons whose content i&&ustrates issues raised in the te+t ha'e
been used.
The rest come from ear&y materia& owned by the writer! scanned in by Mai&
.o+es of .ridge 0treet! Taunton.
9
INTRODUCTION
Most rai&way history tends to concentrate on companies and their maAor figures or to
approach it geographica&&y. This book is intended to gi'e the wormBs eye 'iew = that
of the passengers! in the first ha&f of Queen @ictoriaCs reign. -t is an offDshoot of an
ear&ier one which sought to gi'e an e+act factua& record of the opening and c&osing
dates of stationsE initia&&y! odd bits and pieces were co&&ected for their own sake and
the re&ief they ga'e from a pure diet of dates and somehow this gradua&&y de'e&oped
a &ife of its own. The idea throughout is to pro'ide some idea of what matters were
&ike for a rai&way tra'e&&erE it is not intended to be a comprehensi'e sur'ey since that
wou&d re,uire a far &onger work. -t a&so inc&udes materia& that sheds some &ight on
@ictorian attitudes in genera&E at many points information about wider e'ents has
been inc&uded in order to show that fau&ts described were not &imited to rai&way
companies.
Much information has been taken from The Times which then saw itse&f as the
scourge of incompetent go'ernment of a&& types! not as a semiDofficia& organ of the
powersDthatDwere = thus its attacks on the #oor /aw and &ack of proper pro'ision for
Crimean wounded. -t pro'ided editoria&s! artic&es! ad'ertisements and &etters of
comp&aint. The &ast are particu&ar&y usefu& for pro'iding detai&s of e'eryday tra'e&!
though a 'ery oneDsided oneE &etters of praise and appro'a& were rare = a constant of
human nature? :here materia& has been ,uoted in the origina& words the reader wi&&
find some spe&&ing 'ariations! such as breaks and brakes! and in the use of capita&
&etters and hyphensE p&ease assume that odd spe&&ings in ,uotations represent what
was found = repetition of FGsicHC wou&d be wearisome. -nteresting snippets from
other papers a&so found their way in = perhaps 'ia se'era& intermediaries! though the
origin was not a&ways acknow&edged.
/oca& newspapers ha'e a&so pro'ided materia&. This writer suspects that many
editors of F&oca&C papers spent many working hours condensing nationa& news from
The Times and copying from othersE. This pro'ided much he&p since The Taunton
Courier often contained information tota&&y irre&e'ant to its &oca&ityE the hope is that
Aourna&ists genera&&y cribbed reasonab&y accurate&y.
The returns regu&ar&y made to #ar&iament by the .oard of Trade 5brief&y
rep&aced at one stage by the Iai&way Commissioners7 are another pro&ific source of
information. -mportant in themse&'es they a&so incidenta&&y ga'e information about
the habits of the time* Mr Jind! principa& in a firm of si&kDfringe manufacturers!
&i'ing at "a&ston! went for a wa&k on a 0aturday afternoon in <u&y 112 and as he
was passing 0horeditch station he saw a train about to start so he sudden&y decided
to take a ride to -&ford and back. :e on&y know of this particu&ar impu&se to samp&e
the new form of tra'e& because his trip ended fata&&y in a crash at 0tratford.
Most materia& comes from contemporary sources but some has had to be taken
from works in modern print to fi&& gaps. $&so! some that wi&& be fami&iar to regu&ar
2
readers of rai&way history has had to be inc&uded in order to pro'ide a coherent
picture for anyone not so ac,uainted.
The approach is thematic! gi'ing e+amp&es of particu&ar issues. Thus some
items used under F"e&aysC cou&d e,ua&&y ha'e been put under F$ccidentsCE a few
ha'e of necessity had to be mentioned more than once but e'ery effort has been
made to a'oid repeating detai&.
4or detai&ed co'erage of standard rai&way history and &ocomoti'e technica&ities
the reader is referred to the many books a&ready a'ai&ab&e.
$bbre'iations ha'e been a'oided as far as possib&eE howe'er! to gi'e the fu&&
names of a&& companies wou&d take up much space so those of most maAor
companies are abbre'iated but those that disappeared ear&y by ama&gamation and
those content with one word names are gi'en more fu&&y! though in somewhat
shortened form = e.g. Fthe Ca&edonianC rather than Fthe Ca&edonian Iai&wayC.
Company $bbre'iations KsedE in a&& cases FIai&way CompanyC needs to be
added*
;E L ;reat Eastern
;( L ;reat (orthern
;: L ;reat :estern
/.0C L /ondon! .righton 8 0outh Coast
/C" L /ondon! Chatham 8 "o'er
/(: L /ondon and (orth :estern
/0: L /ondon 8 0outh :estern
/M L /ancashire 8 Morkshire
M08/ L Manchester! 0heffie&d 8 /inco&nshire 5&ater ;reat Centra&7
(E L (orth Eastern
0E L 0outh Eastern.
(o attempt is made to con'ert @ictorian prices. The goods then regarded as
essentia& and the range a'ai&ab&e were so different that to app&y the inde+es
sometimes used is nonsensica&. :hat needs to be remembered is that a steady N1 per
week kept many fami&ies going ,uite secure&yE when incomeDta+ was introduced in
112 it was on&y intended to be paid by the betterDoff and the starting point for
payment was N196 per year. 4urthermore! prices then were much steadier in the &ong
term but cou&d! especia&&y before 196! f&uctuate o'er short periods as a resu&t of! for
e+amp&e! poor har'ests. The currency of the day is thus a&ways ,uoted*
12 Go&dH pence 512d7 L 1 shi&&ingE 26 shi&&ings 526s7 LN1.
0imi&ar&y contemporary measurements are used*
22 yards L 1 chainE 16 chains L 1 fur&ongE fur&ongs L 1 mi&e.
7
4or an e+p&anation of the tit&e! p&ease see the end of the chapter on F"isruptionC.
4ina&&y! the most spectacu&ar error of a&&* ear&y in October 191! The Times
proc&aimed FTJE 4$// O4 0E.$0TO#O/C. This Aoyfu& news was copied by
pro'incia& papers across the country. $&as! the $&&ied troops did not capture the city
unti& 0eptember 199.
13
Chapter 2: CHANGE OR CONTINUIT!
-t was the custom about a century and a ha&f ago for persons intending to
make a Aourney from /ondon to Mork to arrange a&& their wor&d&y affairs
before starting on so dangerous and tedious an e+peditionE and now what
wou&d be the surprise and de&ight of our ancestors! cou&d they but be
permitted to g&ide &u+urious&y in cushioned 'ehic&es o'er the smooth
surface of the rai&s between the metropo&is and the ancient city of Mork
in &ess than oneDse'enth part of the time former&y occupied by them in
the Aourney. (rancis .hishaw, 0123"
Though the ear&y tra'e&&er might grumb&e about the ser'ice pro'ided by
rai&ways! it was far superior to what had gone before. #eop&e cou&d now tra'e&
further! faster and more safe&y! for business! ho&idays and &eisure.
$n e+amp&e of humb&er new opportunities pro'ided 5and of contemporary
Aourna&istsC sty&e7 is pro'ided by this e+tract from a &oca& paper of 117*
The towns on the &ine of the .risto& and E+eter Iai&way are so
fa'ourab&y p&aced for the purpose! that a 'ast number of persons ha'e
arranged for a trip to hear the wondrous @oca&ist! <E((M /-("! on
Monday ne+t at .risto&! and on the fo&&owing night at .ath. The cost of a
return ticket! the short time re,uired for the Aourney! and the opportunity
of hearing this de&ightfu& singer at an e+pence! the aggregate of which
wou&d be &itt&e more than that of a cabDhire in waiting at the QueenCs
Opera Jouse! combined with the great ad'antage of &istening within the
con'enient sphere of a pro'incia& theatre to the finest 'oice that e'er won
un,ua&ified and uni'ersa& admiration! wi&& no doubt create an
irrepressib&e desire among many of this neighbourhood to profit by the
opportunity thus presentedE the conc&uding enAoyment of which wi&&
probab&y be further enhanced by the sp&endour of a moonD&it Aourney
home.
1
The 0cots were not immune from this sort of writing. The opening of the &ine
from 0trathmig&o to Mi&nathort in 19 prompted the &oca& paper to write! Fas this is
the day of the ec&ipse of the sun! we suggest a ha&fDho&iday to the working c&asses!
as inaugurating an ec&ipse or e+tinguisher of the o&d modes of con'eyance in this
county.C
2
Ieaders wi&& note that some @ictorian comp&aints are echoed today. Jowe'er! it
shou&d soon become c&ear that in most respects rai&way tra'e& has a&tered out of a&&
recognition* it is far faster! trains are more fre,uent and more comfortab&e!
information is much more readi&y a'ai&ab&e and the staff are far more po&ite and
he&pfu& than they appear to ha'e been then.
11
0ome odd ancient habits do resurface occasiona&&y* The %aily Telegra!h of 12
"ecember 2662 mentioned a drunk who had chosen a &ine through Epsom station as
a s&eeping p&ace and sur'i'ed! i&&ustrating one repetiti'e prob&em! othersC misuse of
rai&ways. This did not usua&&y direct&y affect passengers but cou&d cause accidents
and de&ays and shows that rai&waymen were not responsib&e for e'erything that went
wrong. $t first many regarded rai&ways as a straighter and &ess muddy route for
pedestrians. The 0tockton 8 "ar&ington had so much troub&e that it e'en offered
specia& ser'ices to try and e&iminate this prob&em and the re&ated one of unauthorised
riding on coa& wagons! particu&ar&y on the Midd&esbrough &ine* in 132 they
pro'ided what was effecti'e&y an annua& season ticket for use on coa& trains at 2s 2d
and in 137 a &ocomoti'eDhau&ed wagon that ran an as re,uired ser'ice at 2d for the
who&e way and e'en cheap rides on engines were pro'ided.
3
Iai&way companies
were acti'e in their efforts to cure this prob&em* one .oard of Trade fi&e at Pew
records many prosecutions for trespass of 'arious sorts. The Mid&and Counties
pro'ided se'era& e+amp&es* in &ate <u&y and ear&y $ugust Mary #ainter was sent to
prison for 11 days when she cou&d not pay her 16>D fine for trespassing on the &ine
near /oughborough! Thomas Tebbutt was fined N2 5with an option of one month7
for being drunk on the &ine near $ttenborough and Thomas 0i&'ester 5who had
obstructed the 1.16 p.m. from (ottingham to "erby7 was ordered to be taken care of
in the workhouse. -n (o'ember <ohn /aw e'en dro'e his sheep a&ong the &ine near
.eestonE he was on&y fined 26>D p&us costs. /ess &ucky was :i&&iam :inter! ki&&ed
on 16 0eptember 112 whi&e dri'ing his horse and cart the shortest way home a&ong
the #ontop and 0outh 0hie&ds despite ha'ing been turned back and warned se'era&
times pre'ious&yE he had been to 0under&and market and was described as Fin
&i,uorC. The 0tockton 8 "ar&ington c&ear&y had not so&'ed its prob&em* as we&& as
pedestrians it had to cope with <ames <ohnson who rode his horse a&ong the &ine 52d
fine p&us 2>2 costs7 and :i&&iam Iobson his mu&e 51>D fine p&us 7>2 costs7. The
returns made by the :ishaw 8 Co&tness show 0cottish &ines facing the same
prob&em.
1
-t persists today* The %aily Telegra!h of <u&y 266 reported that figures
re&eased by the .ritish Transport #o&ice showed more than 1!666 peop&e had been
ki&&ed on the countryCs rai&ways in the pre'ious four years! &e'e& crossings especia&&y
tending to be treated with contempt by many road users.
The one apparent&y backward step is that many p&aces with a station in 176
now &ack one. :hen a 'i&&age was first ser'ed! its station! perhaps a mi&e or more
away and ser'ed on&y by two or three trains each way per day! wou&d ha'e been
regarded as a great ad'anceE once a bus ser'ice direct to the 'i&&age was started! the
rai&way &ost much of its attraction and what remained was destroyed by the ad'ent of
widespread pri'ate transport. The casua&ties ha'e main&y been branch and wayside
stations* the main &ines that e+isted in 176 are sti&& most&y with us since a fair
proportion of the big c&osures that occurred from about 1%36 on were of &ines bui&t
after 176. $&& progress is &iab&e to in'o&'e casua&ties. $s ear&y as 13 The
.ol4erham!ton Chronicle reported that the income from its &oca& turnpike roads had
19
decreased by more than N266 per year and the 0tafford roads at N1!666 since the
opening of the ;rand <unction.
9
(e+t year the opening of the $rbroath 8 4orfar
Iai&way caused the &ease on the turnpike between the two to be knocked down at a
muchDreduced price.
2
The bankruptcy of 0arah Jayter! an e&der&y woman who had
run a farriery business at .agshot! was put down to the fact that the 19 coaches
which had used to go through the town had been reduced to four.
7
-n 117 it was
$ndo'erCs turn* the opening of rai&way from 0a&isbury to .ishopstoke 5East&eigh7
caused the withdrawa& of the on&y three coaches which ran through $ndo'er out of
at &east 16 a few years pre'ious&y.
The first
fareDpaying passengers were carried on :ednesday! 1 October 131"
%
$ note in the
.oard of Trade return for 116D111 said* FThere is not any separate passenger
trainE the stap&e traffic is sand! and to the train is attached a sing&e carriage. On
market and fair days there is one or more carriages attached to the train for
passengersC and in 111 it reso&'ed to run steam trains on&y on 0aturdays! 4air "ays!
.odmin $ssi)e "ays and other pub&ic occasions p&us occasions when a specia&
goods cargo warranted it.
16
On&y in 0eptember 12% did it appear in Bradshaw! no
intermediate stops being shownE the ser'ice was meagre = one train each way
Mondays! :ednesdays and 4ridays! two on 0aturdays 5.odmin market day7E in
176 they on&y carried 1!2% passengers! 37 of them firstDc&ass.
0ome primiti'e characteristics persisted on &ines c&ear&y bui&t to higher
standards. The &imited power of ear&y &ocomoti'es meant that hau&age by stationary
engine and rope was used on inc&ines such as the &ines up from /i'erpoo& to Edge
Ji&&! Euston to Camden and ;&asgow to Cow&airs. 0ometimes progress was undone!
at &east temporari&y* The Times reported on 21 <anuary 196 that the Tewkesbury
branch had re'erted to horseDpower! which had origina&&y run the &ine! owing to the
need for economy. -t referred to Fthe now a&most strange apparition of a rai&way
train 51
st
! 2
nd
and 3
rd
c&asses in one carriage7 drawn by a sing&e horseC.
$nother form of primiti'e tra'e& occurred on &ines before they had recei'ed
.oard of Trade appro'a&E this was not i&&ega& as &ong as no charge was made but
1%
sometimes the &aw was broken = without! as far as this writer knows! any pena&ty
being inf&icted. On 2 0eptember 122 an e+cursion train &eft F#ort MadocC for a
great re&igious gathering at FCarnar'onCE those running the &ine had at first demurred
but ga'e into pressure! charging 3s each for the tripE about 66 went and on the way
back the engine derai&ed at points! fi'e being ki&&ed and a si+th dying &ater. There
were no proper carriages! on&y ba&&ast waggons! and one FpassengerC rode on the
tender.
11
The officia& report &isted occasions when the &ine had pre'ious&y carried
passengers free and safe&y. These inc&uded taking the #ortmadoc and #w&&he&i
companies of @o&unteers to Carnar'on in ba&&ast waggons with p&ank seats!
e+cursionists from Carnar'on to .armouth! a party of chi&dren from #ortmadoc to
Criccieth for confirmation! 0ir :atkin and /ady :ynn and a &arge party from
.armouth to Carnar'on and se'era& picnic parties at different times.
12
#assengers cou&d enAoy a spectacu&ar free ride on the :est 0omerset Minera&
Iai&way in the &ate 126s! comp&ete with 'iews across the .risto& Channe&. This
consisted of a Fnorma&C rai&way from :atchet to Combe Iow! at the foot of the
.rendon Ji&&sE from there an inc&ine! 1!166 feet &ong with a 'ertica& rise of 66 feet!
simi&ar in many respects to a c&iff rai&way! &inked it with the upper section. The
company cou&d not afford the safety measures necessary to satisfy the .oard of
Trade so passengers! most&y iron miners and their fami&ies! were taken free of
charge.
13
0ome mature rai&ways stopped for passengers between stations. The Maryport
8 Car&is&eCs timetab&e for 22 0eptember 112 inc&uded a note that F#assengers set
down between any two Q 0tations wi&& be charged the same as if they were taken to
the ne+t 0tationC.
11
4rancis :ors&ey comp&ained in 19 that he had gone from
.uckingham to .edford and arri'ed ha&fDanDhour &ate ha'ing stopped about a mi&e
before the station! opposite the racecourse! to &et off passengers who! men and
women! were &eft to Fstride! stradd&e and &eapC from the high step of the carriage
down to the rai&s and cross these.
19
$n ear&y practice companies found it difficu&t to stop was that of taking free
rides on goods wagons. $bout 366 yards beyond :ethera& there were coa& staiths
be&onging to the Ear& of Car&is&eE a train derai&ed there on 3 "ecember 132 and on
c&earing the debris they found the bodies of two brothers who had secreted
themse&'es under the co'er of a grain wagon.
12
The :ishaw 8 Co&tness! a primari&y
minera& &ine! c&ear&y did its best since in 0eptember 111 it had one offender fined
N9 under its $ct of #ar&iament.
17
Jowe'er! a few months &ater two wagonDdri'ers
took a coup&e of re&ati'es on their wagons which were returning empty in <anuary
112. $t a passingDp&ace on the sing&e &ine four wagons went one way! the fo&&owing
four anotherE the passengers were thrown off the first four and run o'er and ki&&ed by
the others. The company then put forward byeD&aws to prohibit! on pain of fine of
N9! any dri'er from taking others = the 111 prosecutions had been for trespass!
26
which cou&d not be pro'ed against peop&e in'ited onto the &ine by its ser'ants. The
officia& accident reports carried a stream of simi&ar e'ents throughout this period.
4or e+amp&e! in 191 a trespasser was ki&&ed in <une trying to get onto a mo'ing
goods near 0impasture <unction on the 0tockton 8 "ar&ington and in 0eptember a
man who had secreted himse&f on top of a carriage on the Mid&and was inAured when
his head hit a bridge. $ passenger without a ticket was ki&&ed trying to get onto a
Mid&and wagon in motion at Jo&beck in 12%.
0ome primiti'e tra'e&&ers went &awfu&&y! accompanying anima&s. The Traffic
Committee of the /(: recommended in 111 that a groom in charge of Fan entire
horseC shou&d tra'e& free.
1
$nother group were dro'ers accompanying &i'estock!
who tra'e&&ed in guardsC 'ans or FcarriagesC 5usua&&y 'ery f&imsy7 attached specia&&y
for their use and suffered more than their fair share of casua&ties since goods trains
had an unfortunate record of being hit in the rear. -n 191 one was ki&&ed and three
inAured near :hitmore on the /(: when an engine ran into the back of their catt&e
train. On % 0eptember 127 a Mid&and catt&e train ran into a ba&&ast train and broke
in two! the rear part running back and co&&iding with an oncoming passenger trainE
four catt&e dro'ers were ki&&ed and fi'e inAured. Three were ki&&ed when a hea'y
passenger engine ran into the back of their catt&e train near .u&&o #i&&! on the ;:Cs
0outh :a&es &ine in (o'ember 12" -n 0eptember 192 one had been ki&&ed when
his head hit a bridge whi&e he was riding on top of a catt&e truck.
A net,or- .e*elops
The success of the /i'erpoo& 8 Manchester! opened in 136! and usua&&y
regarded as the first FmodernC &ine stimu&ated others! though deciding on a route!
raising the &arge capita& sums! gaining #ar&iamentary appro'a& and bui&ding the &ine!
meant that at the end of 139 rai&way tra'e& was sti&& &imited to a few wide&y
separated short &ines. Jowe'er! by the end of 116 /ondon! .irmingham! /i'erpoo&
and Manchester were &inked and the :est Coast route had been e+tended to
/ancasterE Mork had been reached! 'ia "erby and (ottingham! and 0outhampton
had its route from /ondon. Thereafter progress was rapid and has been described in
many books now in print. .y the end of 176 the northern &imit of continuous tra'e&
had reached ;o&spieE beyond there was an iso&ated stretch from "unrobin to :est
Je&msda&e! bui&t pri'ate&y by the "uke of 0uther&and which wou&d soon be
incorporated into the &ine to :ick and Thurso. -mportant crossDcountry &ines had
been comp&eted from Car&is&e to (ewcast&e in 13% and Manchester to /eeds in
111.
Many separate companies were in'o&'ed! each bui&ding a re&ati'e&y short
&engthE howe'er! many were p&anned from the outset to comp&ement one another and
soon were ama&gamated into &arger concerns. The /(: emerged in 111 to run the
:est Coast Ioute! and the Mid&and in 112 from &ines centred on "erby.
21
Dela/e. openin+s
Knsurprising&y not a&& de'e&oped smooth&y so there were often de&ays in
opening. 0hortages of money and materia&s were often to b&ame! the former too
common&y to warrant gi'ing detai&s. -n the &atter case! the /ondon 8 ;reenwich
ga'e a shortage of iron as its reason. -t had initia&&y opened from 0pa Ioad to
"eptford and then ad'ertised that its trains wou&d start from /ondon .ridge on 16
October 132 but had to de&ay unti& 1 "ecemberE e'en then passengers had to buy
their tickets at /ondon .ridge and wa&k a&ong the &ine to .ermondsey Ioad! where
they boarded from ground &e'e&. The $berdeen &ine to a temporary terminus at
/impet Mi&&! south of the city! was supposed to open on 36 October 196 but was
de&ayed! though on&y by one day! because the contractors and na''ies refused to
gi'e up possession unti& their bi&&s were paid.
#hysica& prob&ems were often underestimated when &ines were p&anned = there
was! for e+amp&e! &itt&e re&iab&e geo&ogica& information. Ear&y on the Pi&sby and .o+
tunne&s he&d up progress on the &ines to .irmingham and .risto& and there were
many simi&ar e+amp&es &ater. :hen the 0outhampton 8 "orchester opened on 1
<une 117 they had hurried&y to pro'ide a temporary terminus Aust west of the tunne&
at 0outhampton because the &atter had been found to be defecti'eE for the first few
days a restricted ser'ice was operated by an engine and carriages that had been
horseDdrawn through the tunne& and an omnibus was used to ferry passengers o'er
the gap from the main station.
4a&&s of earth! usua&&y caused by hea'y rain fa&&ing on ground not yet
conso&idated were another cause of de&ay. The &ine between (orwich and .randon
had been ad'ertised to open on % <u&y 119 but a s&ip caused a de&ay to the 36
th
.
1%
The :hiteha'en 8 4urness suffered a more spectacu&ar &oss when it p&anned to open
between .oot&e and Ia'eng&ass on 1 <u&y 196! and had issued notices to this effect.
$t the end of <une part of the 'iaduct across the Ii'er Esk was burned down 5arson
was suspected7E it was rebui&t during the fo&&owing week at a cost of N266 and they
were ab&e to open on <u&y.
26
.y far the commonest cause of disappointment was the o'erDoptimism
fre,uent&y disp&ayed by directors. The Times of 2 <anuary 123 said of the
Metropo&itan* F-t appears that arrangements ha'e been made for the opening of this
&ine on the 16
th
inst.! but as the 1
st
October! 1
st
(o'ember! the midd&e of "ecember
and the 1
st
inst. ha'e been announced from time to time as the probab&e date of
opening! it is presumed that no one wi&& fee& disappointed if a further postponement
shou&d take p&aceC. -t did actua&&y open that day. The opening of the Tewkesbury to
Ma&'ern &ine on 12 May 121 &ed the &oca& paper to say that a&though it had
announced the opening in its pre'ious issue! Fmany persons! after so much
disappointment! refused to be&ie'e that such wou&d be the caseC. E'en so the resited
Tewkesbury station was not ,uite finished! ha'ing neither refreshment room nor a
22
good approach road.
21
/inked to this was a tendency to put &ines forward for
go'ernment inspection before they were rea&&y ready so they were ordered to de&ay
opening unti& deficiencies had been rectified.
Outsiders cou&d cause de&ay. $ dispute o'er the crossing of (ortham Ioad by
the rai&way meant that 0outhampton had initia&&y to make do with a temporary
station short of the road when the &ine from :inchester opened on 16 <une 13% 5the
&ine from /ondon to .asingstoke opened the same day! with a connecting road
ser'ice7.
22
On 19 <u&y The Ham!shire Chronicle confident&y predicted that the
permanent station wou&d be open by the end of the month but on 12 0eptember it
said the directors had decided to &ea'e the opening to ne+t springE e'entua&&y! it and
the missing midd&e section were opened on 11 May 116 and e'en then workmen
were in action unti& the &ast moment because of &ega& wrang&es with the turnpike
authorities.
The most spectacu&ar de&ays resu&ted from disputes where those directing
companies insisted on pursuing their own arguments and 'endettas with comp&ete
disregard for the interests of wou&dDbe tra'e&&ers. This is in marked contrast to pub&ic
announcements often couched in such terms as Fthe "irectors of R humb&y beg to
inform the pub&ic thatQC These disputes! which were usua&&y &ega&&y 'ery in'o&'ed!
are fu&&y co'ered in e+isting works so on&y a few e+amp&es are gi'en here! without
much detai&.
.oth #ar&iamentCs re&uctance to inter'ene on the passengersC beha&f and the
difficu&ties the ;: created by its adoption of the broad gauge were shown when the
/0: was ab&e to e+p&oit this to de&ay the opening of the E+eter 8 Crediton &ine! in
which it had gained a contro&&ing interest by underhand means and a &ine ready for
opening in 11 was &eft mou&dering for three years. E&sewhere the O+ford!
:orcester 8 :o&'erhampton infuriated its &oca&ity unti& it fina&&y opened throughout
in 191E here! the dictatoria& ambitions of &oca& directors seem to ha'e been at the
root of its fai&ure to coDoperate with the ;:.
23
The &ongestDrunning series of disputes resu&ted from the /(:Cs attempts at
keeping others out of the area north of .irminghamE these centred on &ines from
0hrewsbury to Chester and .irmingham. Captain Juish was an effecti'e dri'ing
force as 0ecretary of the /(: but at times his beha'iour was better suited to the
running of an East End protection racket than a rai&way company. $ bookingDc&erk
was forcib&y thrown out of Chester station in 11%! connections were made as
incon'enient as possib&e so that tra'e&&ers wanting to go to /i'erpoo& 'ia .irkenhead
and the ferry had to go a &onger way round by /(: trains! and the 0tour @a&&ey &ine
was &eft unopened for some months after it had been passed for opening. E'en when
it did open! the /(: de&iberate&y made connections as awkward as possib&e.
21
$ pro&ific cause of friction was at Aunctions where two companies met before
sharing a stretch of &ine into a maAor station! as happened at Ja'ant. The first
tra'e&&ers from /ondon to #ortsmouth had to use the /.0C &ine to .righton and then
23
go west a&ong the coast. :hen a direct &ine! from ;ui&dford to Ja'ant! was bui&t the
/0: gained contro& of it! though they needed to use the .rightonCs &ine to run on
from Ja'ant to #ortsmouth. This wou&d di'ert traffic from the .righton &ine and the
&atterCs owners decided to use its contro& o'er the 'ita& stretch to e+tort compensation
for its &ossesE the usua& p&oys of remo'ing rai&s! and bringing up gangs of men and
b&ocking engines fo&&owed and it was impossib&e for the /0:Cs trains to get through
so when the &ine opened on 1 <anuary 19% the /0: created a temporary terminus
of its own at Ja'ant! north of the Aunction! and carried passengers on in omnibuses.
On 21 <anuary through traffic began but was suspended again from % <une to
$ugust as a resu&t of temporari&y successfu& &ega& action by the .righton company.
E'entua&&y the ri'a& warriors reached a compromise which in'o&'ed poo&ing and
sharing certain re'enues.
29
The bruta& approach sometimes worked* the /(: successfu&&y ki&&ed off a
ser'ice intended to pro'ide a &ink between the ;( 5another of the /(:Cs enemies7!
Chester and /ondon! using the :arrington 8 0tockport. $fter si+ months of hass&e
on 36 $ugust 19 the :arrington 8 0tockport to&d the pub&ic that because of the
obstructions and fa&se information constant&y gi'en to passengers! it had decided to
suspend the ser'ice between :arrington and ChesterE it ne'er resumed.
22
So)e teethin+ pro0le)s
Many &ines were opened in insta&ments! sometimes starting at both ends at
once! and road coaches were pro'ided to comp&ete Aourneys. The /ondon 8
.irmingham initia&&y opened from Euston to .o+moor 5now Jeme& Jempstead7 on
26 <u&y 137! e+tending to Tring on 12 October. On % $pri& 13 it opened to
"enbigh Ja&& and from Iugby to .irmingham! and on 17 0eptember 13 right
through. .y the standards of many &ines! this was rapid progress* the ;: took from
1 <une 13 to 36 <une 111 to open fu&&y from #addington to .risto&! the short &ine
from Maryport to Car&is&e was opened in si+ portions 5116D197! in'o&'ing the use of
two temporary termini! and the Edinburgh 8 (orthern used three of these in its
progress from .urntis&and to #erth 5117D7. $ :e&sh e+amp&e of insta&ments was
the Taff @a&e! which opened from Cardiff to (a'igation Jouse 5$berdare7 in 116!
pro'iding a coach &ink to Merthyr unti& the &ine opened through ne+t year.
0ome of these openings in insta&ments resu&ted from the physica& impossibi&ity
of opening a comp&ete &ine in one go. Tunne&s ob'ious&y took &onger to bui&d than
surface &ines* Pi&sby Tunne& was the &ast section to be opened on the /ondon 8
.irmingham! .o+ Tunne& the ;:Cs &ast section and the 0ummit Tunne& that of the
Manchester 8 /eeds. .ridges a&so caused de&ay* on 1 $ugust 11 the Chester 8
Jo&yhead! a&ready open to .angor! was opened across $ng&esey but the Menai
.ridge was not yet ready and omnibuses took passengers across the road bridge unti&
the rai&way one was opened on 1 March 196. The &ine from E&gin to Peith opened
on 1 $ugust 19 with temporary p&atforms on either side of the ri'er at 0pey
21
.ridge! between Mu&ben and Orton! pending comp&etion of a permanent bridge ear&y
19%.
The use of omnibuses meant passengers and &uggage had to be transferred from
train to coach! sometimes either side of a gap. C&ear&y a&& was not fu&&y prepared
when the /ondon 8 .irmingham opened* it was reported in 13 that at Iugby the
road was so Bunsett&edB and the omnibus so burdened with &uggage that e'en with si+
horses it took ha&f an hour to reach the highway from the station.
27
The fo&&owing
year FT</C comp&ained about an ear&y connecting ser'ice* 23 going from 0&ough to
:indsor were crammed onto a bus &icensed for 12.
2
-n 111 F$ .agmanC &eft
/ondon by the 9 oCc&ock for 0te'enton! then the terminus! assured that he wou&d be
immediate&y con'eyed on to O+ford. They arri'ed at 0te'enton at 2.99 where there
was no porter to carry his &uggage and when he reached :adde&&Cs coach! it was
a&ready occupied by 11 outside and four inside and unsafe from the ,uantity of
&uggage and merchandise on its roof. Je was to&d there was no p&ace! but there was a
second behind so he entered this with two others but they remained there one and a
ha&f hours! waiting for another trainE coaching in O+ford was :adde&&Cs monopo&y
and he chose to pro'ide insufficient accommodation.
2%
Ear&ier that year there had
been a comp&aint that at 4aringdon Ioad on&y coaches be&onging to certain
proprietors were a&&owed within station &imits to co&&ect passengers! others being
turned away by a po&iceman! e'en if the passenger had made prior arrangements for
the coach concerned.
36
The on&y transport pro'ided for the connection between .irmingham and
Cofton! then the northern terminus of the .irmingham 8 ;&oucester! consisted of
two coaches and an omnibus. One day these were fu&& &ong before they were due to
&ea'e .irmingham at 2 p.m. so many of the highest respectabi&ity! some of them
&adies in a de&icate state of hea&th on the way to Che&tenham! were forced to tra'e&
on the tops of the coaches in the rain and others had to wait in .irmingham.
31
-n
112 a :orcester correspondent comp&ained that the nearest station was then
0petch&ey! four mi&es of hi&&y road awayE howe'er many passengers and howe'er
much &uggage! there was on&y one omnibus for the connection. One day he was one
of 11 inside! four outside p&us near&y a ton of &uggage! drawn by two horses. $fter
se'era& attempts at the first hi&&! a&& had to a&ight into the snow and wa&k ha&fDway up!
where they were rescued by the empty omnibus from another train. On the
;&oucester &ine there were so few porters that passengers had to mo'e their own
&uggage or &ea'e it to fate whi&e they grabbed a p&ace in the omnibus! whose dri'er
was often too eager to start before the &oad became too much for two horses.
32
$rrangements cou&d a&so be dangerous. On 11 0eptember 111 when the 1 p.m.
train from .risto& arri'ed at .ridgwater! then the terminus! and the passengers had
a&ighted! the engine was used to mo'e the train from one &ine to the other! ready for
its returnE it had to mo'e the carriages 196 yards beyond the station! o'er a road
crossing. -t had a&ready mo'ed some and was coming back! tender first! for the rest
29
when the &56uisite coach from E+eter tried to cross the &ine. The engine hit the front
of this and wrecked itE passengers were scattered in a&& directions! si+ being
inAured.
33
22
So)e re1ine)ents
-nitia&&y many wanting to tra'e& from /ondon went a &ongish way round! but
any sort of &ink was a we&come no'e&ty. -mmediate&y before the opening of the &ast
section in 111! The Times said Fthe entire distance between /ondon and (ewcast&e!
upwards of 366 mi&es! Gwou&dH be accomp&ished! it GwasH ca&cu&ated! in 12 hours!
inc&uding a&& stoppagesC. The route consisted of*
3 mi&es a&ong the /ondon 8 .irmingham from EustonDs,uare to IugbyE
1%S mi&es a&ong the Mid&and Counties to "erbyE
23S mi&es a&ong the (orth Mid&and to (ormantonE
23T mi&es a&ong the Mork 8 (orth Mid&and to MorkE
19 mi&es a&ong the ;reat (orth of Eng&and to "ar&ingtonE
27S mi&es a&ong the (ewcast&e! "ar&ington 8 "urham <unction to :orhington
GL :ashingtonHE
9S mi&es a&ong the #ontop 8 0outh 0hie&ds 5former&y 0tanhope 8 Tyne7 to
.rock&ey :hinsE
2S mi&es a&ong the .rand&ing <unction to ;ateshead on the south bank of the
Tyne.
4or a few years it wou&d sti&& be necessary to catch a ferry across to (ewcast&e.
;radua&&y shorter routes were de'e&oped. -n 117 the /(:Cs Trent @a&&ey &ine
a&&owed some trains to /i'erpoo& and Manchester to bypass .irmingham! so
a&&owing businessmen wanting to go to /i'erpoo& or Manchester! to transact
business there and come home the same day. The ;(Cs opening to Ietford in 192
cut the distance from /ondon to Mork by 26 mi&es" The Mid&and origina&&y depended
on others to get its passengers to /ondon* the ear&iest arrangement in'o&'ed tra'e&
'ia Iugby but in 197 it pro'ided a shorter route 'ia .edford and fina&&y it opened
its own /ondon terminus at 0t #ancras in 12. The ;: was the poorest pro'ider of
such impro'ements! though the Aourney between .risto& and 0outh :a&es was
shortened in 123 by pro'iding a ferry connection between short &ines to (ew
#assage south of the 0e'ern and #ortskewett on the north.
More con'enient&y sited stations were another de'e&opment. -n 111 the &ines
from /i'erpoo& and /eeds were &inked through ManchesterCs new @ictoria station.
The sideDbyDside termini at .irmingham Cur)on 0treet were rep&aced by the through
(ew 0treet in 191. EdinburghCs first &ine from /eith ran to a station of its own but
on 22 May 12 it was di'erted to :a'er&ey! pro'iding a much more con'enient
arrangement for passengers needing to change. $ Aoint &ine and through station
rep&aced the ear&ier termini and gap at $berdeen in 127. Origina&&y Car&is&e had
three stations in use at any one time but by 176 a&& its ser'ices had been
concentrated on one! to the great benefit of those who had to change there as we&& as
27
the &oca&s. Jowe'er! Mork was sti&& a terminus which re,uired re'ersa& for through
trains and "undee had separate termini to the east and west.
/ondon was ser'ed by termini scattered around outside the centra& areaE some
progress was made by e+tending &ines towards the centre but &inks across the midd&e
were then out of the ,uestion. The /0: origina&&y terminated at (ine E&ms and was
e+tended to :ater&oo in 11! @ictoria rep&aced an ear&ier terminus at #im&ico in
126 and Charing Cross was added in 121E Cannon 0treet and .road 0treet had
been added by 176 for the benefit of tra'e&&ers to the City. $t the eastern end
ser'ices were gradua&&y e+tended! e'entua&&y reaching 4enchurch 0treet in 111E
howe'er! /i'erpoo& 0treet was yet to be added = the terminus was sti&& at
.ishopsgate. @arious ser'ices were pro'ided to try and o'ercome the prob&em. One
success was the (orth /ondon whose &inks enab&ed peop&e from northern suburbs to
reach many destinations west and east of centra& /ondon. Jowe'er! a ser'ice which
initia&&y ran from Euston 'ia :i&&esden! Pensington! and a through p&atform at
:ater&oo to Cannon 0treet began in 121 but suffered 'arious reductions before
e+piring at the end of 127E it was too indirect to be an impro'ement on crossing
/ondon by road and was handicapped by interDcompany s,uabb&es.
Too )an/ 2oo-s
$t first passengers often had to buy separate tickets for each part of a AourneyE
this was gradua&&y reduced! by the ama&gamations which simp&ified the network and
by arrangements between companies. .y 0eptember 13% the /ondon 8
.irmingham and ;rand <unction trains were going into each othersC stations at
Cur)onDstreet to make interchange easier.
31
$ report of an accident 13 <anuary 111
showed that the .irmingham night mai& train genera&&y took two carriages for the
Mid&and Counties which were handed o'er at Iugby. "etai&s gi'en of an accident at
Jarrow on 22 (o'ember 176 concerned 1% carriages drawn by two enginesE they
were &isted in order as &uggage 'an! composite! firstDc&ass carriage and guardCs break
'an for ManchesterE one composite for Iochda&eE one &uggage 'an! three composites
and a guardCs break 'an for /i'erpoo&E one composite for .irkenheadE two
composites and a break 'an for Jo&yheadE one composite for 0hrewsburyE one
composite for /eamingtonE one composite! one firstDc&ass and one break 'an for
.irmingham.
39
Jowe'er! many shortcomings were not remedied for some time and
comp&aints about the arrangements for through booking arose from time to time.
:here companies in the course of their power strugg&es set out to be
de&iberate&y awkward! suffering cou&d be far worse. -t wou&d ha'e been of great
benefit to the pub&ic if #ar&iament had been far more wi&&ing to knock a few heads
together occasiona&&y. Those who created the system were undoubted&y men of
dri'e! ab&e to achie'e progress despite great difficu&ties but they often be&ie'ed they
cou&d not possib&y &earn anything from anyone e&se. They fai&ed to rea&ise that
2
usua&&y it wou&d ha'e been more sensib&e to work together to pro'ide a smooth&yD
functioning network to encourage e'en more tra'e& and pro'ide a greater re'enue
that cou&d be shared amongst companiesE this! after a&&! was essentia&&y what $dam
0mith ad'ocated in his treatise supporting free trade. $uthority was remarkab&y
supine! preferring to stand by and &et ri'a&s fight it out. The resu&t cou&d be infanti&e
beha'iour that caused prob&ems for passengers. -ronica&&y! many s,uabb&es occurred
between companies that &ater ama&gamated. -n many cases! re&ati'e&y sma&& amounts
of money spent on connecting &ines wou&d ha'e sa'ed &arge amounts spent on
competing ones! admitted&y much of it after 176! and &eft rai&ways somewhat &ess
'u&nerab&e in the midDtwentieth century.
4ew wou&d deny that in at &east some respects .rune& was technica&&y a great
engineer but his mu&eDheaded arrogance! combined with the fai&ure of the ;:
directors to contro& him and #ar&iamentCs re&uctance to put an ear&y end to the .road
;auge farce meant that tra'e&&ers to the west from the Mid&ands and the (orth faced
prob&ems at .risto& for many years = at times de&iberate&y e+aggerated by other
companies. :hate'er technica& ad'antages might ha'e been c&aimed for the broad
gauge! it was c&ear that noDone e&se was going to use it and persisting with it was
thus absurd.
32
F$chi'usC comp&ained on 12 <une 119 about the feud between the
;: and .risto& 8 ;&oucester 5e'entua&&y to Aoin the Mid&and7. Je had arri'ed the
pre'ious Tuesday from .irmingham at 12.99! on time but there was no train to
E+eter unti& 2.19. $ friend came by the train due at %.96! the E+eter train being
supposed to &ea'e at 16.16! but found the &atter had gone. -n addition! the .risto& 8
.irmingham kept .risto& time 5though they did not announce this7! the ;: /ondon
time.
$n ear&y northern e+amp&e of &ack of coDoperation in'o&'ed passengers wanting
to go from /eeds to (ewcast&e. $t first they had to tra'e& 'ia Mork but in 11 the
/eeds 8 Thirsk pro'ided a FcutDoffC gi'ing a route 1% mi&es shorter. This company
had its own FTownC station at Thirsk but on the way there its trains ran into and out
of the East Coast station of the Mork! (ewcast&e 8 .erwick. The &atter made &ife as
difficu&t as possib&e for the newcomer! which sent a dossier of &etters of comp&aint to
the Iai&way Commissioners in 196* there was no she&ter for passengers on the east
side of the main &ine! carpet bags were dumped on the wet p&atform despite re,uests
to protect them from the damp! the staff were e+treme&y rude and unwi&&ing to he&p!
passengers bound for /eeds were pre'ented from changing here because the guard
s&ammed the door and sent the train on as soon as he heard their destination and!
un&ess specifica&&y asked! bookingDc&erks issued tickets by the &onger route. The
Commissioners refused to inter'eneE in due course a&& did work together! both using
the main &ine station at Thirsk and becoming part of the (E. -n more recent times
the cutDoff has been c&osed and passengers again tra'e& 'ia Mork.
The south east suffered its share of company spats. The Caterham company
opened its branch from #ur&ey to the main &ine used by 0E and /.0C in 192. .oth
2%
maAor companies were uncoDoperati'e! fearing that the new &ine might be e+tended
in some way that wou&d siphon off some of their trade. Trains ran but both
companies made difficu&tiesE connections were poor! fares high and no she&ter was
pro'ided at #ur&ey. Things brief&y impro'ed somewhat in 19%! when the &ine was
so&d to the 0E but troub&e was resumed in 122 when the /.0C made connections
de&iberate&y difficu&t. One tra'e&&er to Caterham found the branch train had &eft three
minutes before his train from Jaywards Jeath arri'ed at the AunctionE he wa&ked si+
mi&es rather than wait four hours. On his return he cou&d on&y obtain a ticket from
Caterham to the Aunction and there found there was no train to Jaywards Jeath for
fi'e hours. Je then decided to go north to East Croydon and catch a train home from
there but was to&d that the ne+t train! twenty minutes &ater! was not a'ai&ab&e to him
because passengers from the Aunction cou&d not be booked by it. -n desperation he
forced his way onto the train he wanted! despite the attempts of officia&s to stop himE
one accompanied him to East Croydon! where his offer to pay the fare was refused
and his name and address taken with a 'iew to prosecution! though no further action
seems to ha'e resu&ted.
37
12% saw some re&ief in this area. -n <anuary both the 0E
and /.0C issued notices that from and after 1 4ebruary return and season tickets
wou&d be issued that wou&d be a'ai&ab&e by both companiesC trains between any of
their /ondon stations! Croydon and 'arious other p&aces such as Iedhi&&! Tunbridge
:e&&s! and Jastings whose residents had made simi&ar comp&aints.
0cot&and did not escape the madness. -n 19% an argument between the 0cottish
(orth Eastern and the 0cottish Centra& about how much the former shou&d pay for
using the &atterCs station came to a headE it was comp&icated by the fact that the
Centra& owned the section of track north of the station. On $ugust trains stopped at
the boundary! 326 yards north of #erth ;enera&! co&&ecting and dropping passengers
at ;&asgow Ioad. Emergency arrangements were made by other companies to
pro'ide a ser'ice o'er the disputed stretch but! meanwhi&e! hap&ess passengers had
to make their way! with their &uggage! between the two points! entai&ing a Aourney
through the streets of about ha&fDaDmi&e.
3
E'entua&&y a&& became part of the
Ca&edonian.
%ro0le)s that persiste.
0ome awkward arrangements sti&& e+isted in 176* the ;: continued to send
passengers for 0outh :a&es 'ia 0windon and those to the southDwest 'ia .risto&.
(ewport in 0outh :a&es was a mu&tip&e suffererE there were sti&& three stations in
176! a&though the ;: now contro&&ed a&& the &ines in'o&'ed! and on&y in 16
wou&d rationa&isation occur.
0ome idiocies wou&d ne'er be cured. To reach :eymouth the ;: opened a
&ine from Chippenham 5&ater di'erted a&ong a shorter route 'ia :estbury7 and the
/0: one a&ong the south coast. They agreed to reach :eymouth a&ong a Aoint &ine
from "orchester but bui&t separate stations there e'en though it wou&d ha'e been
36
easy to pro'ide a Aoint one. -n 19 F$ fre,uent tra'e&&erC comp&ained that on 1
0eptember he went from #oo&e to Taunton by train. 0ince it was impossib&e to do the
Aourney in one day by ordinary trains he tra'e&&ed by the &uggage train! to which on&y
one passenger carriage was attached! from #oo&e at %.16 a.m.! to "orchester which
he reached at 16.36 and &eft at 12.19 p.m.! arri'ing at Meo'i& at 1.29E he &eft there at
3.69 for "urston! where he was detained one hour and reached Taunton at 1.96!
o'era&& 27 mi&es in 7 hours 16 mins. Je fe&t there was a conspiracy between
companies to make &ife difficu&t for passengers. The /0: train arri'ed at "orchester
from 0outhampton at 1.16E one ;: train &eft "orchester at 12.19! the ne+t 9.29
3%
4or anyone wanting to go from E+eter to :eymouth arrangements were e'en worse*
Meo'i& had three stations and wou&dDbe passengers had to change at a&& of them.
OthersC actions cou&d a&so harm passengersC interests. Iai&way $cts of
-ncorporation ga'e powers of compu&sory purchase but wea&thy &andowners cou&d
be obstructi'e! conducting &engthy hagg&ing o'er price and demanding features such
as cuttings and tunne&s to preser'e their 'iews. /ord JarboroughCs opposition to the
Mid&andCs &ine through 0tamford caused the company to inc&ude an unwanted sharp
cur'e at 0a+by. The $dmira&ty disp&ayed its customary refusa& to agree with anyone
e&se about anything. ;reenwich was sti&& a terminus in 176! passengers for
:oo&wich and further east ha'ing to make a detour 'ia .&ackheath owing to its
refusa& to agree to passage a&ong the ob'ious route. -t a&so insisted on keeping the
Ii'er $run na'igab&e and the resu&t was a sing&eD&ine drawbridge near 4ord! where a
co&&ision occurred on 13 <anuary 121 when a pointsman sent a passenger train onto
the wrong &ine as it &eft the bridge! sending it headDon into a waiting catt&e train.
-ronica&&y! the /.0C! after much difficu&ty and opposition! had Aust gained power to
rep&ace with a fi+ed bridge and doub&e &ine.
16
Co3operation ,ith other 1or)s o1 transport
Iai&ways did ki&& off stageDcoach and some seaDborne ser'ices as the network
spread but this was a gradua& business and in compensation many new opportunities
were created. 0ome of these were on&y shortD&i'ed as further rai& openings made
them uncompetiti'e but o'era&& there was a 'ast&y increased demand for road
ser'ices for tra'e& to stations from 'i&&ages sti&& not on the rai&way map and from
peop&e within towns and cities who needed to reach the nearest station. 4rom the
outset rai&ways pub&icised &inks by sea and road* the /i'erpoo& 8 Manchester
timetab&e for March 131 issued from the /i'erpoo& office disposed of the rai&way
ser'ice in one page but de'oted two pages to steam packets from /i'erpoo& and fi'e
to road coaches from the two termini.
11
$t first some stage coaches were carried by train! on f&at trucks at the backE the
passengers mo'ed to the train but the guards and their &uggage stayed with them. $
coup&e of weeks after the opening of the ;:Cs first stretch some of the .ath! .risto&
31
and Ieading stageDcoaches were taken from /ondon to Maidenhead! then on by
train and by the end of 13% 0troud and ;&oucester were a&so so ser'ed. -n
(o'ember a train in'o&'ed in an accident near Maidenhead was made up of four
rai&way carriages! two stage coaches and a pri'ate carriage. .y then! further south!
E+eter coaches were being taken to :inchester and 0a&isbury ones to :oking by
rai&.
12
$ guard was ki&&ed in 13% when his head hit against a bridge as he sought to
secure &uggage which had shifted on the roof of the #ubscri!tion! being carried on
the centra& .asingstoke to :inchester part of its Aourney from 0outhampton.
13
:hen the .risto& 8 E+eter reached .ridgwater in 111 a F(ew /ight CoachC
was ad'ertised in connection! running from /yme 'ia $+minster! Chard! -&minster
and TauntonE this took passengers to catch the noon train to /ondon and co&&ected
them from the train arri'ing from /ondon at 2.36 p.m. E'en a short &ine such as that
from Iedruth to Jay&e was pro'ided with connections* from the outset in 113!
Crotch! the contractor running the passenger ser'ice for the company! ad'ertised
that coaches to and from #en)ance! Truro and 4a&mouth wou&d connect with his
trains Fat a &ow rate of chargeC.
11
/ate in 111 there were scuff&es when a pirate
coach firm tried to capture some of the passengersE ne+t day the &oca&s turned out to
see a repeat of the fun but were disappointed because the forces of &aw and order
were present to pre'ent this. -n at &east one case a coach ser'ice seems to ha'e acted
as a feeder to trains by ser'ing intermediate p&aces &acking stationsE in 193 a threeD
dayDaDweek coach ser'ice was ad'ertised from "oncaster to Iotherham! where it
connected with trains to 0heffie&dE amongst other p&aces this ca&&ed at Thrybergh and
Jooton Ioberts.
19
Coaches cou&d e'en connect different &ines* :hitmarsh 8 Co
ad'ertised that their Prince 'lbert Coach wou&d pro'ide a &ink between Taunton
5;:7 and "orchester 5/0:7! ser'ing -&minster! Crewkerne and Maiden (ewton on
the way! then running on to :eymouth! which wou&d enab&e passengers from
Taunton to go on to 0outhampton and #ortsmouth. -t ran from Taunton to
:eymouth on Tuesdays! Thursdays and 0aturdays and returned the fo&&owing days.
There were direct &inks to tra'e& by water a&so. The #ais&ey 8 Ienfrew! opened
in 137! ran its trains onto the wharf at Ienfrew so passengers cou&d board C&yde
steamers. $t opening in 116 the #reston 8 :yre ad'ertised that the &5!ress
steamer wou&d p&y dai&y between 4&eetwood! and the opposite side of Morecambe
.ay near K&'erston! in connection with the rai&way.
12
That same year the opening of
the 0&amannanCs &ine to Causewayend! near /in&ithgow! connected with cana&
barges! a&&owing passengers from ;&asgow a comp&ete route to EdinburghE road
coaches &ater rep&aced the barges but that pro'ided no defence against competition
when a fu&& rai&way route opened. On the west coast a route to /ondon was pro'ided
by train from ;&asgow to Troon! steamer on to 4&eetwood and rai& on from thereE
this was made redundant when the ;&asgow 8 0outh :estern opened its &ine right
through to Car&is&e. The 0heffie&d! $shtonDunderD/yne 8 Manchester offered a 4&y
.oat connection between 0ta&ybridge and $shton in 113 5firstDc&ass 2d! second
32
1d7.
17
-n <une 12 the 4urness opened a route to :indermere 'ia Morecambe .ay
and its /e'en @a&&ey &ineE trains ran onto the steamboat pier so passengers cou&d
wa&k on board direct from rai&way carriages"
1
Many ferries worked in conAunction with rai&ways! some actua&&y being owned
by them. The Thames was crossed by the :oo&wich and ;ra'esend=Ti&bury
ser'ices! the Jumber cou&d be crossed from ;rimsby to Ju&& and neither the 4orth
nor the Tay was yet bridged. On the western side tra'e&&ers between .irkenhead and
/i'erpoo& sti&& had to re&y on the ferry. $ F0team #acketC waited in 111 at 0t
;eorgeCs #ier /i'erpoo& and MonkCs 4erry! .irkenhead to carry passengers and
produce across the ri'erE since the rai&way had not yet reached MonkCs 4erry an
omnibus was pro'ided from the station in ;range /ane. Jere c&ass distinctions took
o'er = the fares ,uoted inc&uded this for first and secondDc&ass passengers on&yE
whether thirdDc&ass passengers cou&d use it on e+tra payment or were &eft to wa&k is
not known.
1%
/ater many businessmen &i'ing in the :irra&& tra'e&&ed to work in
/i'erpoo& by train to .irkenhead and thence to the ferry by omnibus. The &ast was
known to be inade,uate but! despite comp&aints! no action had been taken so as the
train due at .39 a.m. arri'ed many regu&ar&y Aumped out before it had stopped in
order to get seatsE on <u&y 12 Mr Kr,uhart! son of the senior partner in a cabinetD
making firm! fe&& between p&atform and train as he tried to Aoin the rush and was
inAured! one of his &egs ha'ing to be amputated.
96
The 'arious .ritish is&ands were we&& ser'ed. The /0: pro'ided a new route to
Iyde from 0tokes .ay in 121! ad'ertising that rai&way carriages wou&d arri'e and
depart from the pier.
91
-n 0cot&and steamers to #ortree and 0tornoway were a'ai&ab&e
from 1% $ugust 176 when the "ingwa&& 8 0kye opened to 0trome 4erry.
92
-n 11
the Chester 8 Jo&yhead ran FThe $dmira&tyCs and the CompanyCs sp&endid steam
packets! 276 tons! 376 horse powerC! from Jo&yhead to Pingstown in connection
with certain of its trains. The ;: ad'ertised arrangements in 192 inc&uding use of
the .risto& 8 E+eter and 0outh "e'on to a&&ow passengers to book through from
/ondon to Cork 'ia #&ymouthE it impro'ed its connection on 1 <une 12 with a new
e+press at 1.96 p.m. running to (ew Mi&ford! arri'ing at 1.16 a.m.
93
Meanwhi&e! the
year before! the Mid&and had sought to impro'e its prospects by transferring its
.e&fast steamboat ser'ice from Morecambe to .arrowDinD4urness.
91
Jowe'er! not
a&& were successfu&* the #ortpatrickCs shortD&i'ed ser'ices from 0tranraer to /arne
made a &oss and ceased at the end of "ecember 123.
O'erseas &inks were a&so pro'ided. (ewha'enCs Jarbour station opened in
117! 4o&kestoneCs in 11%! JarwichCs in 191 and "o'erCs $dmira&ty #ier in 126.
4urther north the M08/ ad'ertised the opening of a new dock at ;rimsby for
steamers on 27 May 192* the rai&way had been e+tended to the edge of a &andingD
stage where a passenger station had been bui&t. .y midD$ugust steam packets were
running to Jamburg! Iotterdam and $ntwerp.
99
33
In1or)ation
The ear&iest information was usua&&y pro'ided in sheet form! pub&ished by the
company concernedE ad'ertisement in The Times and the &oca& press was a&so
norma&. 0pecia&ist timetab&es soon fo&&owed. ;eorge .radshaw gained an ear&y
o'era&& dominance though 0cot&and had its own timetab&e! pub&ished by $urray! and
there were other &oca& issues. $n ear&y prob&em .radshaw faced was that of getting
accurate information from companiesE then he repeated the &atest known times with
some such warning as F$ccuracy uncertain! no recent information recei'edC or &eft
the spaces for times b&ank. $t first some tab&es were on&y out&ines! showing times at
the termini and maAor points in between! with other stations in fare tab&es or notes
on&yE others did not e'en &ist intermediate stations. Jowe'er! the standard format
which continues in use today was e'o&'ed fair&y rapid&y.
$&terations in times were ine'itab&y made fre,uent&y as new &ines and
e+tensions were opened. #romises were often made that changes wou&d on&y be
made on the first of a month! but these cou&d not a&ways be kept* from time to time
companies put apo&ogetic notices in The Times gi'ing detai&s of changes ordered by
the #ost Office. Jowe'er! that cou&d not be b&amed for a&& midDmonth changes. F$
0uffererC wrote in (o'ember 11% to comp&ain that changes had been made to the
Eastern Counties timetab&e on 1 October! 19 October and again on that dayE c&erks
often did not ha'e copies unti& days after a&teration and c&ocks a&ong the &ine were
not kept to the same time by 16 minutes.
92
On ;ood 4riday 113 Fa 'ast numberC of passengers on the Eastern Counties
arri'ed at 0horeditch to find that! without notice! trains ran to 0unday time! so there
was no 11 a.m. to Co&chester 5the ne+t at 3 p.m.7. They inc&uded Mr .abington
Macau&ay M#! who c&aimed to ha'e sent a ser'ant the day before to ask if times
wou&d be a&tered and had been to&d they wou&d not.
97
The Times e+p&ained on <anuary 112 that not a&& timetab&ed trains ran* one
was ad'ertised to &ea'e Iugby for /ondon at 1 p.m.! taking passengers assemb&ed
from /inco&n! (ottingham! etc! booked through to /ondon but it on&y ran if it suited
those in charge at Iugby = if there were on&y a few passengers! they had to wait
unti& 9 p.m.
31
Ti)e
#re'ious&y peop&e set their c&ocks by the &oca& noonday sun. This did not matter
when tra'e& was &eisure&y* anyone going from .risto& to /ondon wou&d reset his
watch to the capita&Cs time when arri'ing or make the necessary menta& adAustment.
$ ;rand <unction notice in $ugust 111 warned that c&ocks at stations were set
according to the &ongitude of each.
9
Ear&y short &ines from Manchester ad'ertised
that they wou&d take their time from the Manchester -nfirmary C&ock.
:hen the /(: di'erted its traffic o'er the shorter Trent @a&&ey &ine in 117! it
warned that c&ocks wou&d be set to ;reenwich time which was*
.efore .irmingham c&ocks 7 minutes
/i'erpoo& c&ocks 12
Manchester c&ocks 16
#reston c&ocks 16
Chester c&ocks 12
The $anchester Courier appro'ed! suggesting that the .oard of Trade cou&d
usefu&&y recommend the pub&ic authorities of e'ery town to adopt uniform time. F-n
Manchester the change wou&d be perfect and ,uite imperceptib&e! if! on the e'ening
of the 36
th
inst. G(o'emberH! e'ery correct timepiece were put forward nine minutes.
The on&y incon'enience wou&d be the &oss! for one night! of nine minutesC s&eepC.
9%
/(: and paper were apparent&y not agreed on e+act Manchester time.
Other p&aces tended to come into &ine when their first rai&way arri'ed! though
not a&ways immediate&y. The rai&way reached Taunton in 112 but it was ear&y 11
before those responsib&e set the market c&ock at ;reenwich Mean Time! Fat the
re,uest of many inf&uentia& residentsC.
26
.risto& had had its own pecu&iar so&ution in
111! when the authorities arranged for an e+tra minute hand on the E+change
c&ock! but many church c&ocks persisted with &oca& time and on&y on 11 0eptember
192 did the counci& reso&'e to regu&ate them by ;reenwich timeE by then the spread
of the te&egraph had made uniformity e'en more desirab&e since messages from
/ondon were apparent&y reaching .risto& ten minutes before they had been sent.
21
#eop&e at /angport were e'en &ess &ucky* their station opened on 1 October 193 but
some months &ater it was reported that the o&d town c&ock was Fdetermined to set its
face against inno'ationC so many tra'e&&ers were to been seen Frushing upon the
#arrett bridge out of breath! Aust in time to see the train off! and to recei'e the
congratu&ations of the boatmen who &oiter thereC.
22
Jowe'er! some acted more
prompt&y* the ;: pro'ided Ta'istock with its first station on 22 <une 19% and a
coup&e of days &ater The Ta4istock a7ette reported that a 'estry meeting had passed
a reso&ution to keep the Church C&ock by Iai&way time.
39
Su))ar/ o1 pro+ress: $ilea+e open an. passen+ers 2arrie.
$&& from .oard of Trade>Iai&way CommissionersC Ieports. #resentation 'aried
o'er time so e+act comparisons are not possib&e. -nitia&&y no separate figures were
gi'en for the constituent parts of the Knited Pingdom! so 116 and 119 figures
inc&ude -re&and. 4rom 119 &ines carrying goods on&y were inc&uded in the mi&eage
tota&! no separate figure being gi'en.
$iles open at the en. o1 the /ear %assen+ers 2arrie. 4)illions5 6
116 1!336 2 5&ast 9 months on&y7
119 2!932 335for year ending 36 <une 1197
$iles %assen+ers
En+lan. S2otlan. En+lan. S2otlan.
7'ales 7 'ales
196 9!136 %92 9
199 2!217 1!6%1 %% 12
126 7!93 1!222 132 12
129 %!291 2!266 212 21
176 11!613U 2!91%U 2 27
U L mi&es constructedE not a&& yet open
V L e+c&uding season ticket ho&dersE in 176 there were 11!116 of these in
Eng&and 8 :a&es! 23!122 in 0cot&and.
32