The London and Greenwich Railway (L&GR) was opened in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

between 1836 and 1838. It was the first

steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizatio ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a p ...

in the capital, the first to be built specifically for passengers, and the first entirely

elevated railway An elevated railway or elevated train (also known as an el train for short) is a rapid transit railway with the tracks above street level on a viaduct or other elevated structure (usually constructed from steel, cast iron, concrete, or bricks ...

Origins

The idea for the line came from Colonel George Thomas Landmann, until 1824 a

Royal Engineer The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is head ...

, and

George Walter Sir George Herbert Walter, KNH (8 September 1928 – 4 March 2008) was an Antiguan politician of the Progressive Labour Movement and Premier of Antigua and Barbuda from 14 February 1971 to 1 February 1976. Political career Born 1928, Walter ...

, and the company was floated at a meeting on 25 November 1831. It would run from close to London Bridge, convenient for journeys to the City. It would be some long, on a

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...

of 878 brick arches, some of them skew (see London Bridge-Greenwich Railway Viaduct), to avoid

level crossings A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an overpass or tunnel. The term als ...

over the many streets which were already appearing in the south of London. Landmann planned to rent the arches out as workshops. The intention had been to descend to ground level after the Grand Surrey Canal but this was opposed by Parliament. S E London railways 1840

The first Act of Parliament was obtained in 1833 for a line from Tooley Street (now

London Bridge Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It re ...

) to London Street,

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

. The ultimate intention was to reach Dover and there was much talk of a London to

Gravesend Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the south bank of the River Thames and opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Rochester, it is ...

extension from Greenwich. A scheme was presented to Parliament in 1836 but five others were competing and the bill failed on its second reading.

Construction

The line ran parallel with Tooley Street, crossing Blue Anchor Road, Corbetts Lane and the

Grand Surrey Canal The Grand Surrey Canal was a canal constructed in south London, England during the early 19th century. It opened to the Old Kent Road in 1807, to Camberwell in 1810, and to Peckham in 1826. Its main purpose was to transport cargo, primarily ...

. From there it curved towards the first station, at

Deptford High Street Deptford High Street is a street in the Deptford area of the London Borough of Lewisham in south east London. It runs northwards from its southern junction with New Cross Road/Deptford Broadway ( A2) for approximately to Evelyn Street/Creek Road ...

, and thence to Greenwich. The contractor was Hugh McIntosh. The subsoil was a blackish peat, which gave considerable problems, and Landmann pioneered the use of concrete to reinforce the foundations. Even so, several of the piers near to Corbetts Lane moved four or five inches (100 - 125 mm) out of the perpendicular and on 18 January 1836 two arches close to Tooley Street collapsed. Elsewhere, iron ties were used to prevent lateral spread in the brickwork. In 1840 many of the arches were improved by laying of concrete above them, with a layer of asphalt. Between Deptford and Greenwich the

River Ravensbourne The River Ravensbourne is a tributary of the River Thames in south London, England. It flows into the tidal River Thames at Deptford, where its tidal reach is known as Deptford Creek. Geography The Ravensbourne is 11 miles (17 km) ...

was crossed at

Deptford Creek Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, within the London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century to the late 19th it was home to Deptford Doc ...

by a balanced bridge to allow masted vessels to pass. Eight men operated it, but possibly because of trouble with the foundations it was unreliable. It was replaced in 1884 and again in 1963. Originally the line had single parallel tracks of Stephenson gauge , fixed to stone blocks or sleepers. By 1840 there was a mixture of bridge rails, single parallel and double parallel rails (see Rail profile). The original rails caused excessive noise, and damage to structure and rolling stock. Bridge rails were used on the viaduct between Deptford and Greenwich initially, laid on longitudinal timbers with cross sleepers at four-foot intervals. At this time, new double parallel rails of 78 lb. to the yard were laid for a quarter of mile (400 m) at Deptford on timber sleepers, presumably as an experiment. The concrete underlay was replaced with gravel ballast of thickness.

Opening

The first section, between Spa Road and Deptford, opened on 8 February 1836: demonstration trains had been running from mid-1835 including Corbett's Lane Temp Station. These were suspended for a while after a derailment in November, but resumed the following year, with rumours circulating that trains had reached . On the Whit Monday following the official opening, the line carried around 13,000 passengers. There was a fatal accident on 7 March, when Daniel Holmes was run over and a train collided with some carriages. In 1837, ''

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'' celebrated the railway project saying: The line reached Bermondsey Street in October, and London Bridge on 14 December 1836 (Spa Road was no longer used as a stop at this time). At the other end, the line reached a temporary station at Church Row in Greenwich on 24 December 1838, having been delayed by problems with the Deptford Creek lift bridge. The present Greenwich station opened on 12 April 1840.

Rolling stock

The first locomotives were one

2-2-0 Under Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-2-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, two powered driving wheels on one axle, and no trailing wheels. This configuration, which became ...

built by

Charles Tayleur and Company The Vulcan Foundry Limited was an English locomotive builder sited at Newton-le-Willows, Lancashire (now Merseyside). History The Vulcan Foundry opened in 1832, as Charles Tayleur and Company to produce girders for bridges, switches, cross ...

and three by William Marshall of Gravesend, of which one was

2-2-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-2-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, two powered driving wheels on one axle, and two trailing wheels on one axle. The wheel arrangemen ...

. All would appear to be of the Stephenson "Planet" type. These were supplemented by two from Bury, subcontracted to George Forrester and Company. For the first time horizontal cylinders were mounted at the front of the locomotive outside the frame. While extremely successful for their time, they swayed so much they were referred to as "Boxers" and a trailing axle was added. In the next four years three more locos followed, one each by

R and W Hawthorn R and W Hawthorn Ltd was a locomotive manufacturer in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, from 1817 until 1885. Locomotive building Robert Hawthorn first began business at Forth Bank Works in 1817, building marine and stationary steam engines. In 182 ...

and

Robert Stephenson and Company Robert Stephenson and Company was a locomotive manufacturing company founded in 1823 in Forth Street, Newcastle upon Tyne in England. It was the first company in the world created specifically to build railway engines. Famous early locomoti ...

, with three axles, and one by

Day, Summers and Company Day, Summers and Company was a British steam locomotive manufacturer and shipbuilder in the Southampton area. The company's history is complex and involves five men: , John Thomas Groves, Charles Arthur Day, William Baldock and Nathaniel Ogle. F ...

. This latter one was modified with a trailing axle soon after delivery. Of the four locomotives built by Marshall, the first was named ''Royal William''. One of the other three was numbered 4 and carried the name ''Twells'', after John Twells, a director of the London and Greenwich Railway. Built in 1836, it was rated at . In 1845, it was sold to the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

and was installed in , which was lost in 1848 during the search for the

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the ...

. First and second class coaches were unusual in that the sole bars and headstocks were below the axles. The line being for much of its length on a viaduct, this was a safety measure, since in a derailment the coaches would drop only a few inches onto the rails.

Later history

Between 1836 and 1840 the line carried more than 1.25 million passengers a year, benefiting it is thought from a developing tourist trade. On 5 June 1839 the

London and Croydon Railway The London and Croydon Railway (L&CR) was an early railway in England. It opened in 1839 and in February 1846 merged with other railways to form the London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR). Origins The Croydon line and other railways Th ...

(L&CR) opened. It shared the line between Tooley Street and Corbetts Lane (close to what is now Rotherhithe Road) and its station was built between the L&GR station and Tooley Street. It is not clear when the station became known as London Bridge. It is believed that at Corbetts Lane there was installed the first fixed signal used to control a junction, a white disc operated by the

pointsman A switchman (North America) or pointsman (British Isles) is a rail transport worker whose original job was to operate various railway switches or points on a railroad. It also refers to a person who assists in moving cars in a railway yard o ...

. This, or at night a red light, showed that the route was set for Croydon. If the disc was edge on or a white light showed, the junction was set for Greenwich. In 1840 two further acts were obtained, for laying additional lines as far as the junction at Corbetts Lane and for improvements and extensions to the stations at London Bridge. These were watched closely by a committee formed by the L&CR, the London and Brighton Railway (L&BR) and the proposed South Eastern Railway. At this time the L&GR and the L&CR exchanged stations to avoid crossing each other at Corbetts Lane. A resited station at Spa Road opened in 1842. S england railways 1840

By 1843 annual passenger numbers had risen to more than 1.5 million, with an average fare per head of 6½d. In 1844 numbers had risen to more than two million although the average fare had dropped to 5s 2d. Greenwich trains ran every 15 minutes, Croydon trains hourly. The company was never financially successful, however, owing to the need to repay the very high capital expenditure in building the line. The increasing congestion of the lines approaching London Bridge and dissatisfaction with the high tolls charged by the L&GR caused the SER and the L&CR to build a new terminus at

Bricklayers Arms Bricklayers Arms is the road intersection of the A2 and the London Inner Ring Road where Bermondsey meets Walworth and Elephant & Castle in south London. It is the junction of Tower Bridge Road, Old Kent Road, New Kent Road and Great Dover ...

. It opened in 1844, transferring most of their services and reducing their fares accordingly. This reduction in toll revenues brought the company to the brink of bankruptcy. Prior to the opening of Bricklayers Arms it had approached the SER with a suggestion that they should either buy or lease the L&GR. The SER took some time to respond and in the meanwhile the company received a similar offer from the L&BR and also negotiated reduced tolls with the

L&CR The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway was a main line railway opened between those cities in 1846. With its Scottish counterpart, the Caledonian Railway, the Company launched the first continuous railway connection between the English railway networ ...

. Eventually the SER agreed to lease the L&GR from 1 January 1845. The L&GR continued in existence until January 1923 but its activities were restricted to receiving the annual rent from the SER and distributing it to shareholders.Turner, (1977) p.203.

Greenwich

Greenwich was the terminus until 1878, when the

cut-and-cover A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...

tunnel A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...

to Maze Hill was opened by the SER, linking it to the

North Kent Line The North Kent Line is a railway line which branches off the South East Main Line at St Johns junction west of Lewisham station in Greater London and runs to Rochester Bridge Junction near Strood, Medway where it links to the Chatham Main Line ...

just west of Charlton. This ran beneath the grounds of the Queen's House and Greenwich Hospital, where the graveyard was excavated, remains being reinterred in East Greenwich Pleasaunce approximately to the east. The section between Charlton and Maze Hill opened in 1873, with Maze Hill the terminus until 1878. Westcombe Park railway station opened in 1879. The layout of Greenwich station still partly shows that fact. The line from London, on a continuous viaduct, was almost straight, but after Greenwich it makes a sharp turn and dips into a tunnel. A space between the two tracks, for the locomotive 'escape route' to reverse the trains, disappeared in the 1990s when the station was altered to accommodate an extension to the

Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated light metro system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London, England and provides a direct connection between London's two major financial districts, Canary Wharf and the City of Lo ...

References

*Ransom, P.J. G., (1990) ''The Victorian Railway and How It Evolved,'' London: Heinemann *Simmons, J., (1995 ppb ed) ''The Victorian Railways,'' London: Thames and Hudson * Whishaw, F., (1840) ''The Railways of Great Britain and Ireland: Practically described and illustrated'' London: Simpkin, Marshall and Co. * Gray, A, (1990) ''South Eastern Railway,'' Midhurst, Sussex:Middleton Press. * Lowe, J.W., (1989) ''British Steam Locomotive Builders,'' Guild Publishing