On the 4th July 1837, Britain’s first trunk railway opened. 

The Grand Junction Railway linked Liverpool and Manchester with Birmingham, and paved the way for all 3 to be connected to the capital by rail when the London & Birmingham line was fully opened a year later.  

The Grand Junction also launched the national reputation of Joseph Locke, and led to yet another falling out with George Stephenson.

Oddly, the GJR doesn’t get a lot of attention in history books, so today’s episode dives into the story of the beginning of that railway, and the fight for control between two titans of early railway history, to see what we’ve been missing.

 

Chapter Notes:

00:00 Start

01:59 Last episode’s trivia answer

02:45 Intro

04:20 Getting their Act together 

08:42 The new railway gets a name

10:02 The Warrington & Newton Railway

12:29 Joseph Locke and George Stephenson initial friction

18:02 Buying the Warrington & Newton Railway

21:45 Solving their Engineer problem

27:21 Locke appointed Chief Engineer

29:10 Trivia question

 

History of the Railways is a podcast for anyone interested in railroad history. Come and join Michael Lancashire as he gets distracted, fascinated ... and yes, even sidetracked ... by stories from the railways (or railroads if you're American).

 

Find show notes and more at https://historyoftherailways.com

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