1842 in rail transport
Encyclopedia
January events
- January 2 — Commencement of operation of the Railway Clearing HouseRailway Clearing HouseThe British Railway Clearing House was an organisation set up to manage the allocation of revenue collected by numerous pre-grouping railway companies...
in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, established to settle the division of payments for through traffic over different railways in BritainGreat BritainGreat Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. - January 24 — Frederick William IV of PrussiaFrederick William IV of Prussia|align=right|Upon his accession, he toned down the reactionary policies enacted by his father, easing press censorship and promising to enact a constitution at some point, but he refused to enact a popular legislative assembly, preferring to work with the aristocracy through "united committees" of...
makes the first train journey by a reigning monarch.
March events
- March 31 — The Middleton Junction and Oldham Branch RailwayMiddleton Junction and Oldham Branch RailwayThe Middleton Junction and Oldham Branch Railway was opened on 31 March 1842 by the Manchester and Leeds Railway, whose chief engineer was George Stephenson...
opens to Oldham Werneth railway stationOldham Werneth railway stationOldham Werneth railway station was situated on the Oldham Loop Line, 10 km north east of Manchester Victoria. The station was situated on Featherstall Road South, in the Werneth area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
in northwest EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
April events
- April 11 — The FrenchFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
government enacts the Loi relative à l'établissement des grandes lignes de chemins de fer which establishes the plan for French railroads' placement in a star pattern centered around ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
May events
- May 8 — A passenger train traveling between ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and VersaillesVersaillesVersailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
derails near MoudonMoudonMoudon is a municipality in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It was the seat of the district of Moudon and is now in the Broye-Vully district.-History:...
and catches fire, killing 55 people.
June events
- June 13 — Queen Victoria makes the first train journey by a reigning British monarch, on the Great Western RailwayGreat Western RailwayThe Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
of EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
(SloughSlough railway stationSlough railway station, in Slough, Berkshire, England, is served by local services operated by First Great Western from to and intercity services on the Great Western Main Line, the original line of the Great Western Railway...
to Paddington).
December events
- December — William Maxwell succeeds James Bowen as president of the Erie RailroadErie RailroadThe Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, originally connecting New York City with Lake Erie...
.
October births
- October 12 — Robert Gillespie ReidRobert Gillespie ReidSir Robert Gillespie Reid was a Scottish railway contractor most famous for building large railway bridges in Canada and the United States...
, builder of many CanadianCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
railway bridges as well as the Newfoundland RailwayNewfoundland RailwayThe Newfoundland Railway was a railway which operated on the island of Newfoundland from 1898 to 1988. With a total track length of , it was the longest narrow gauge railway system in North America.-Early construction:...
(d. 1908).
December births
- December 7 — George WhaleGeorge WhaleGeorge Whale was a British locomotive engineer who worked for the London and North Western Railway .Whale was born in Bocking, Essex. In 1858 he entered Wolverton Works under James Edward McConnell, and from 1862 under John Ramsbottom. In 1865 he entered the drawing office at Crewe Works, and in...
, Chief Mechanical EngineerChief Mechanical EngineerChief Mechanical Engineer and Locomotive Superintendent are titles applied by British, Australian, and New Zealand railway companies to the person ultimately responsible to the board of the company for the building and maintaining of the locomotives and rolling stock...
of the London and North Western RailwayLondon and North Western RailwayThe London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
1903–1909 (d. 1910).
Unknown date births
- George Frederick BaerGeorge Frederick BaerGeorge Frederick Baer was an American lawyer who was the President of the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad and spokesman for the owners during the Anthracite Coal Strike of 1902....
, president of Reading CompanyReading CompanyThe Reading Company , usually called the Reading Railroad, officially the Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road and then the Philadelphia and Reading Railway until 1924, operated in southeast Pennsylvania and neighboring states...
(d. 1914). - Melville E. IngallsMelville E. IngallsMelville Ezra Ingalls , commonly abbreviated M.E. Ingalls, was a Massachusetts state legislator who went on to become president of the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad .-Career:...
, president of the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (d. 1914).