In
1801 Parliament passed an Act authorizing the Surrey Iron Railway
Company to build a nine-mile (15 km) line between Croydon and the
River Thames at Wandsworth. The line followed closely the River Wandle
along whose banks many factories had been built. The owners of these
factories were strong supporters of the decision to build the railway.
William Jessop was appointed chief engineer
of the project.
The line was opened on 26th July, 1803. It was therefore the first
horse railway for public transport which was independent of a canal.
The railway was fairly level and a horse could pull five or six loaded
wagons carry over 20 tons of coal at just under 3 mph.
The line was a great success and the company successfully obtained
a further Act of Parliament that gave permission to extend the line
southwards to Godstone. This line was opened in 1805 and was mainly
used to transport material from the quarries in the neighbourhood
to the River Thames. The original intention was to extend the line
to Portsmouth
but the company ran out of money and the idea was abandoned.
Poster for the Surrey Iron Railway
Available from Amazon Books
(order below)
