Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
March 4, 1937 After five weeks of crew training at a depot in the Scottish city of Glasgow, the prototype of the Class K4 locomotive of the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) made its public debut as a self-propelled vehicle for passenger trains. This prototype constituted what became a new class of 2-6-0 steam... Continue Reading →
February 19, 1966 It was the end of an era in train history when the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad’s steam locomotive No. 4960 departed from Union Station in St. Louis, Missouri, for a trip to the city of Hannibal in the Show-Me State. This steam locomotive was a coal burner dating back to 1923. (The... Continue Reading →
April 22, 1833 The Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad (E&KRR) was chartered in the then-Territory of Michigan, which became a state in 1837. This railroad ultimately ran from what was at that time Port Lawrence, Michigan (now Toledo, Ohio) near Lake Erie to the village of Adrian, Michigan, on the River Raisin to the northwest. E&KRR was... Continue Reading →
January 8, 1838 One of the first railroads to be built in New York -- and the entire northeastern United States, for that matter -- first went into service. The Auburn and Syracuse Railroad (A&S) was constructed to provide easy access for the village (present-day city) of Auburn and the factories in that area to the... Continue Reading →
January 9, 1843 Industrial engineer and coal-mining official William Hedley died at the age of 63 near the English village of Lanchester. He was instrumental in harnessing the untapped potential and practical applications of railways. Hedley’s greatest contribution in this regard took place when, as a manager at a coal-mining facility near the city of Newcastle... Continue Reading →
July 27, 1888 In Argentina’s province of Buenos Aires, a 32.9-mile (53-kilometer) extension of the horse-drawn Buenos Aires Central Railway between the cities of Pilar and Zárate was completed. This took place less than four months after the opening of the railway line’s first segment. That initial segment of 29.2 miles (47 kilometers) was built... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 