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John Urpeth Rastrick
John Urpeth Rastrick (26 January 1780 – 1 November 1856) was one of the first English steam locomotive builders. In partnership with James Foster, he formed Foster, Rastrick and Company, the locomotive construction company that built the ''Stourbridge Lion'' in 1829 for export to the Delaware and Hudson Railroad in America. From the 1830s he concentrated on civil engineering with his major project from 1838 being the construction of the London and Brighton Railway. Early years Rastrick was born in Morpeth, Northumberland, to John Rastrick and Mary (Urpeth). He attended local public schools; at age 15, in 1795 he was apprenticed in his father's engineering practice. In 1802 he was hired by the Ketley Ironworks in Shropshire. Hazeldine & Rastrick After five years at Ketley, Rastrick partnered with John Hazledine, in Bridgnorth, Shropshire. While at Bridgnorth, Rastrick helped Richard Trevithick develop his ideas for the high pressure steam engine and locomotive, and he l ...
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Morpeth, Northumberland
Morpeth is a historic market town in Northumberland, North East England, lying on the River Wansbeck. Nearby towns include Ashington, Northumberland, Ashington and Bedlington, Northumberland, Bedlington. In the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census, the population of Morpeth was given as 14,017, up from 13,833 in the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 census. The earliest evidence of settlement is believed to be from the Neolithic period, and some Roman artifacts have also been found. The first written mention of the town is from 1080, when the de Merlay family was granted the barony of Morpeth. The meaning of the town's name is uncertain, but it may refer to its position on the road to Scotland and a murder which occurred on that road. The de Merlay family built two castles in the town in the late 11th century and the 13th century. The town was granted its coat of arms in 1552. By the mid 1700s it had become one of the main markets in England, having been granted a market charte ...
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Chepstow
Chepstow ( cy, Cas-gwent) is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the tidal River Wye, about above its confluence with the River Severn, and adjoining the western end of the Severn Bridge. It is the easternmost settlement in Wales, situated east of Newport, east-northeast of Cardiff, northwest of Bristol and west of London. Chepstow Castle, situated on a clifftop above the Wye and its bridge, is often cited as the oldest surviving stone castle in Britain. The castle was established by William FitzOsbern immediately after the Norman conquest, and was extended in later centuries before becoming ruined after the Civil War. A Benedictine priory was also established within the walled town, which was the centre of the Marcher lordship of Striguil. The port of Chepstow became noted in the Middle Ages for its imports of wine, and also became a major centre for the export of timber and bark, from ...
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Patcham Tunnel
Patcham Tunnel (or Compulsory Tunnel) is a railway tunnel on the Brighton Main Line through the South Downs between Preston Park and Hassocks in East Sussex, England. It is 446 metres (488 yards) long. Its construction was neither necessitated by the local geography nor originally intended but, following the objections of a local landowner, the tunnel's creation was specifically stipulated by Parliament in the authorising Act. Accordingly, the London and Brighton Railway had their line directed through a purpose-built tunnel instead of a cutting. Patcham Tunnel was constructed between 1840 and 1841; the work was beset by a collapse part-way through. Entering service as intended, the tunnel has demonstrated a tendency to flood and has been repeatedly attributed for causing sporadic cancellations of services on the Brighton Main Line. History Patcham Tunnel was constructed by the London and Brighton Railway as one element of the first line between London and Brighton. The origina ...
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Clayton Tunnel
Clayton Tunnel is a railway tunnel located near the villages of Clayton and Pyecombe in West Sussex, between Hassocks and Preston Park railway stations on the Brighton Main Line. This tunnel is notable for its turreted and castellated north portal with a single-storey cottage on the top, as well as for being the site of a serious accident in 1861 which was influential in the adoption of a robust signalling system in the UK and elsewhere. At the Sussex Clayton Tunnel is the longest tunnel on the route. Construction of the tunnel commenced during 1839, although aspects of its design weren't approved until 1 October 1840. The accomplished tunnel builder William Hoof was the prime contractor on its construction; Clayton Tunnel was completed in 1841 after three years of work. Construction During the 1830s, the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway set about constructing the start of its railway network in the Southern region of Great Britain. One particular engineering chall ...
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Balcombe Tunnel
Balcombe tunnel is a railway tunnel on the Brighton Main Line through the Sussex Weald between Three Bridges and Balcombe. It is long. The track is electrified with a 750 V DC third-rail. History The tunnel was constructed by the London and Brighton Railway between 1838 and 1841, through Grinstead Clay, with five ventilation shafts. The engineer for the line was John Urpeth Rastrick; the contractor responsible for the brick-lined tunnel is not known. Ingress of water from the ground above was experienced during the construction of the tunnel, and this has remained a problem throughout its history. Rastrick described the tunnelling as very treacherous, requiring great caution on the part of the miners working it, as "it swells and effloresces as soon as exposed to the air." Between 1907 and 1909 the tunnel was partially relined with engineering brick. Galvanised iron sheets were fitted to prevent the water falling on passengers in open carriages, but the blast from the steam ...
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Merstham Tunnels
The Merstham and Quarry tunnels are two neighbouring railway tunnels on the Brighton Main Line between Merstham and Coulsdon (formerly Stoats Nest) in Surrey, Great Britain. The Merstham Tunnel was the first to be built, with construction commencing in 1838 and being opened on 12 July 1841. Built by the London and Brighton Railway (L&BR), it formed a key element of the original route between London and Brighton. Nearly sixty years after the Merstham Tunnel's completion, the Quarry Tunnel was built amid tensions between the South Eastern Railway (SER) and the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR). The Quarry Tunnel bypasses the SER stations of Coulsdon South, Merstham and Redhill, and thus has been mostly used by fast trains, while the Merstham Tunnel is used by stopping services instead. On 24 September 1905, the Merstham Tunnel was the location of the first murder on Britain's railways, that being of Mary Sophia Money. Both tunnels were electrified via the installa ...
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John Rennie The Younger
Sir John Rennie FRSA (30 August 1794 – 3 September 1874) was the second son of engineer John Rennie the Elder, and brother of George Rennie. Early life John Rennie was born at 27 Stamford Street, Blackfriars Road, London, on 30 August 1794. He was educated by Dr. Greenlaw at Isleworth, and afterwards by Dr. Charles Burney at Greenwich. He subsequently entered his father's manufactory in Holland Street, Blackfriars Road, where he acquired a practical knowledge of his profession, and in 1813 he was placed under Mr. Hollingsworth, resident engineer of Waterloo Bridge, the foundations of which he personally superintended. In 1815 he assisted his father in the erection of Southwark Bridge, and in 1819 he went abroad for the purpose of studying the great engineering works on the continent. J. & G. Rennie On the death of his father in 1821, John remained in partnership with his brother George, the civil engineering portion of the business being carried on by him, whereas the ...
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Stephenson's Rocket
Stephenson's ''Rocket'' is an early steam locomotive of 0-2-2 wheel arrangement. It was built for and won the Rainhill Trials of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR), held in October 1829 to show that improved locomotives would be more efficient than stationary steam engines. ''Rocket'' was designed and built by Robert Stephenson in 1829, and built at the Forth Street Works of his company in Newcastle upon Tyne. Though ''Rocket'' was by no means the first steam locomotive, it was the first to bring together several innovations to produce the most advanced locomotive of its day. It is the most famous example of an evolving design of locomotives by Stephenson that became the template for most steam engines in the following 150 years. The locomotive was preserved and displayed in the Science Museum in London until 2018, after which it was displayed at the National Railway Museum in York. Design Overall layout The locomotive had a tall smokestack chimney at the ...
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Liverpool And Manchester Railway
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the first inter-city railway in the world. It opened on 15 September 1830 between the Lancashire towns of Liverpool and Manchester in England. It was also the first railway to rely exclusively on locomotives driven by steam power, with no horse-drawn traffic permitted at any time; the first to be entirely double track throughout its length; the first to have a true signalling system; the first to be fully timetabled; and the first to carry mail. Trains were hauled by company steam locomotives between the two towns, though private wagons and carriages were allowed. Cable haulage of freight trains was down the steeply-graded Wapping Tunnel to Liverpool Docks from Edge Hill junction. The railway was primarily built to provide faster transport of raw materials, finished goods and passengers between the Port of Liverpool and the cotton mills and factories of Manchester and surrounding towns. Designed and built by George Stephen ...
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Delaware And Hudson Canal Company
The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) is a railroad that operates in the Northeastern United States. In 1991, after more than 150 years as an independent railroad, the D&H was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). CP operates D&H under its subsidiary Soo Line Corporation which also operates Soo Line Railroad. D&H's name originates from the 1823 New York state corporation charter listing "The President, Managers and Company of the Delaware & Hudson Canal Co." authorizing an establishment of "water communication" between the Delaware River and the Hudson River. Nicknamed "The Bridge Line to New England and Canada," D&H connected New York with Montreal, Quebec and New England. D&H has also been known as "North America's oldest continually operated transportation company." On September 19, 2015, the Norfolk Southern Railway completed acquisition of the D&H South Line from CP. The D&H South Line is 282 miles (454 kilometers) long and connects Schenectady, New York, to ...
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Stratford And Moreton Tramway
The Stratford and Moreton Tramway was a 16-mile (25-km) long horse-drawn wagonway which ran from the canal basin at Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire to Moreton-in-Marsh in Gloucestershire, with a branch to Shipston-on-Stour. The main line opened in 1826, whilst the branch to Shipston opened in 1836 The tramway was used to carry Black Country coal to the rural districts of southern Warwickshire via the Stratford-on-Avon Canal, and limestone and agricultural produce northwards. The northern part of the tramway had fallen into disuse by the early 1900s and was dismantled in 1918. The southern section between Moreton-in-Marsh and Shipston-on-Stour was converted into a steam railway in 1889, and continued in use as a minor branch line until 1960. Background The parliamentary act for the line was passed in 1821 and construction was completed in 1826, the route having been surveyed by the railway promoter William James and engineered by John Urpeth Rastrick. The tramway was built ...
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