The Grosmont Railway was an early horse-drawn railway line in

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, with ...

completed in 1819.

History

Grosmont Railway embankment at Werngifford

The Grosmont Railway was constructed as an extension of the

Llanvihangel Railway The Llanvihangel Railway was an early horse-drawn railway line in Monmouthshire which operated over a 6.25 mile route between the Brecknock and Abergavenny Canal and Llanvihangel Crucorney from 1814 until 1846. The Act of Parliament for the railway ...

from its terminus at Llanvihangel Crucorney to Monmouth Cap on the border with

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthshire ...

. With a length of approximately seven miles (11 km), it was engineered by John Hodgkinson as a

gauge Gauge ( or ) may refer to: Measurement * Gauge (instrument), any of a variety of measuring instruments * Gauge (firearms) * Wire gauge, a measure of the size of a wire ** American wire gauge, a common measure of nonferrous wire diameter, es ...

plateway, and was horse drawn throughout. The

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

for the railway received

royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...

on 20 May 1812, construction started in 1817 and the line opened in 1819. In 1829 the Hereford Railway was completed with an end-on connection with the Grosmont Railway at Monmouth Cap and extending the line to Wye Bridge at

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

. The Grosmont Railway was sold in 1846 to the

Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway The Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway was a railway company formed to connect the places in its name. When it sought Parliamentary authorisation, it was denied the southern section, and obliged to use the Monmouthshire Railway between Po ...

Company for £16,250, along with the Llanvihangel Railway for £21,750 and the Hereford Railway for £19,460. The new company replaced the combined tramroads with a standard-gauge steam railway.

Remnants

The replacement railway was built to the north of the old line, while the tramroad became a road (now part of the main

A465 road The A465 is a trunk road that runs from Bromyard in Herefordshire, England to Llandarcy near Swansea in South Wales. The western half is known officially as the Neath to Abergavenny Trunk Road, but the section from Abergavenny to the Vale of Nea ...

between Abergavenny and Hereford). At Werngifford a major remnant survives in the form of a 360m length of tramroad embankment with stone sleepers in situ. It is designated a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

.Coflein: National Monuments Record of Wales database: Grosmont Railway
/ref>

References

{{Reflist Transport in Monmouthshire Railway lines opened in 1819 Horse-drawn railways Early British railway companies 3 ft 6 in gauge railways in Wales