1865 in rail transport
Encyclopedia
January events
- January 5 - The Festiniog RailwayFfestiniog RailwayThe Ffestiniog Railway is a narrow gauge heritage railway, located in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a major tourist attraction located mainly within the Snowdonia National Park....
in North WalesNorth WalesNorth Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...
officially opens to passengers, the first narrow gauge railway in the British IslesBritish IslesThe British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
to do so. - January 10 - The California Pacific RailroadCalifornia Pacific RailroadThe California Pacific Railroad Company was incorporated in 1865 at San Francisco, California as the California Pacific Rail Road Company. It was renamed the California Pacific Railroad Extension Company in the spring of 1869, then renamed the California Pacific Railroad later that same year...
absorbs the Sacramento and San Francisco Rail Road Company and the San Francisco and Marysville Rail Road Company.
February events
- February - The Confederate States of AmericaConfederate States of AmericaThe Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
authorize military control of railroads for the American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. - February 4 - The assets of Dayton, Xenia and Belpre Railroad in OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
are sold in bankruptcy proceedings and split between the Little Miami RailroadLittle Miami RailroadThe Little Miami Railroad, now defunct, was a railway of southwestern Ohio, running from the eastern side of Cincinnati to Springfield, Ohio. By merging with the Columbus and Xenia Railroad it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state...
and Columbus and Xenia RailroadColumbus and Xenia RailroadThe Columbus and Xenia Railroad was the first railroad to operate in Columbus, Ohio. By merging with the Little Miami Railroad it created the first through rail route from the important manufacturing city of Cincinnati to the state capital, Columbus....
. - February 9 - The Colorado and Clear Creek Railroad, predecessor to the Colorado Central RailroadColorado Central RailroadThe Colorado Central Railroad was a U.S. railroad company that operated in Colorado and southeastern Wyoming in the late 19th century. Originally founded in the Colorado Territory in the wake of the Colorado Gold Rush to ship gold from the mountains, it eventually expanded from its initial...
, is chartered. - February 15 - The Chicago and North Western RailwayChicago and North Western RailwayThe Chicago and North Western Transportation Company was a Class I railroad in the Midwest United States. It was also known as the North Western. The railroad operated more than of track as of the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states before retrenchment in the late 1970s...
and Galena and Chicago Union RailroadGalena and Chicago Union RailroadThe Galena and Chicago Union Railroad was a railroad running west from Chicago to Clinton, Iowa and Freeport, Illinois, never reaching Galena, Illinois...
merge.
March events
- MarchThe Central Pacific RailroadCentral Pacific RailroadThe Central Pacific Railroad is the former name of the railroad network built between California and Utah, USA that formed part of the "First Transcontinental Railroad" in North America. It is now part of the Union Pacific Railroad. Many 19th century national proposals to build a transcontinental...
hires agents to recruit thousands of ChineseQing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
workers from GuangdongGuangdongGuangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
Province. - March 17 – The Jackson and Woodin Manufacturing CompanyJackson and Woodin Manufacturing CompanyJackson & Woodin Manufacturing Company, also called Jackson & Woodin Car Works, was an American railroad freight car manufacturing company of the late 19th century headquartered in Berwick, Pennsylvania. In 1899, Jackson and Woodin was merged with twelve other freight car manufacturing companies...
shops in Berwick, PennsylvaniaBerwick, PennsylvaniaBerwick is a borough in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, 22.6 miles southwest of Wilkes Barre. Berwick is one of two principal cities of the Bloomsburg–Berwick Micropolitan Statistical Area, a micropolitan area that covers Columbia and Montour counties and had a combined population of 82,387...
, are destroyed by fire.
April events
- April - The funeral train for Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
travels from Washington, DC to IllinoisIllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
May events
- May 25 - The first steelSteelSteel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
rails are rolled at a foundry in Chicago from Bessemer steelBessemer processThe Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten pig iron. The process is named after its inventor, Henry Bessemer, who took out a patent on the process in 1855. The process was independently discovered in 1851 by William Kelly...
made in blast furnaceBlast furnaceA blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
s in Wyandotte, MichiganWyandotte, MichiganWyandotte is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 25,883 at the 2010 census, a decrease of 7.6% from 2000. Wyandotte is located in southeastern Michigan, approximately south of Detroit on the Detroit River, and is part of the collection of communities known as...
.
June events
- June 7 - The Rednal rail crashRednal rail crashRednal rail crash was a rail accident that occurred near Rednal station in Shropshire.On 7 June 1865 a permanent way gang were lifting and packing the "up" line 600 yards north of Rednal station on a 1 in 132 gradient that falls from Whittington. A green flag had been set 1100 yards away at the...
in England, a derailment at a permanent way work site, kills thirteen. - June 9 - The Staplehurst rail crashStaplehurst rail crashThe Staplehurst rail crash was a railway accident at Staplehurst, Kent, England, which occurred on 9 June 1865 and in which ten passengers were killed and 40 injured...
in England, a derailment at a permanent way work site, kills ten and injures 49; Charles DickensCharles DickensCharles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
is amongst the survivors. - July 31 - Opening of the narrow gauge main line from IpswichIpswich, QueenslandIpswich is a city in South-East Queensland, Australia. Situated along the Bremer River Valley approximately 40 kilometres away from the state's capital Brisbane. The suburb by the same name forms the city's Central Business District and administrative centre...
to Grandchester, QueenslandGrandchester, QueenslandGrandchester is a town in the Lockyer Valley region in South East Queensland, Australia. It is located 76 km west of the Brisbane CBD and is situated on the border of the Ipswich and Laidley local government areas. The name comes from Grantchester, a village outside of Cambridge in England...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
August events
- August 7 - The Lawrence Railroad and Transportation Company, with tracks in PennsylvaniaPennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, is reorganized as the Lawrence Railroad Company.
September events
- September 1 - The EnglishEnglandEngland 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...
company John Trevor-Barkley begins construction on the BucharestBucharestBucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
-GiurgiuGiurgiuGiurgiu is the capital city of Giurgiu County, Romania, in the Greater Wallachia. It is situated amid mud-flats and marshes on the left bank of the Danube facing the Bulgarian city of Rousse on the opposite bank. Three small islands face the city, and a larger one shelters its port, Smarda...
line, the first railroad line built in the territory of RomaniaRomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. - September 13 - Algernon S. BufordAlgernon S. BufordAlgernon Sidney Buford of Chatham, Virginia is best known for his presidency of the Richmond and Danville Railroad during its massive post civil war expansion into the Southern Railway system ....
becomes president of the Richmond and Danville RailroadRichmond and Danville RailroadThe Richmond and Danville Railroad was chartered in Virginia in the United States in 1847. The portion between Richmond and Danville, Virginia was completed in 1856...
. - September 14 - The Brockville and Ottawa Railway begins operations between ArnpriorArnprior, OntarioArnprior is a town in Renfrew County, in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, Canada. It is located at the mouth of the Madawaska River, as it enters the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley...
and Sand Point, OntarioSand Point, OntarioSand Point is a community in the township of McNab/Braeside, Ontario, Canada, along the Ottawa River, roughly six miles to the west of Arnprior on the River Road...
, a distance of about 6 miles (10 km).
October events
- October 2 - First section of Sri Lanka RailwayRail transport in Sri LankaRail Transport in Sri Lanka consists of a heavy-rail intercity network connecting major population centres and commuter rail serving Colombo commuter traffic. State-run Sri Lanka Railways, originally known as Ceylon Government Railways, is the nation's railway owner and primary operator. The...
, then known as Ceylon Government Railways, officially opens from ColomboColomboColombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
to Ambepussa (54 km (33.6 mi)) on 5ft 6in (1676 mm) gaugeRail gaugeTrack gauge or rail gauge is the distance between the inner sides of the heads of the two load bearing rails that make up a single railway line. Sixty percent of the world's railways use a standard gauge of . Wider gauges are called broad gauge; smaller gauges, narrow gauge. Break-of-gauge refers...
. - October 18 - Almelo railway stationAlmelo railway stationAlmelo is a railway station in Almelo, the Netherlands. The station was opened on 18 October 1865 and is on the Deventer–Almelo railway, Almelo–Salzbergen railway, Zwolle–Almelo railway and Mariënberg–Almelo railway lines...
in the NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
is opened.
December events
- December 20 - Alkmaar railway stationAlkmaar railway stationAlkmaar is a railway station which lies in Alkmaar, in the Netherlands. It is located approximately 40 km northwest of Amsterdam. It is on the Den Helder–Amsterdam railway. The station is operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen and is an Intercity station, where all trains stop.-History:Alkmaar...
in the NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
is opened.
Unknown date events
- The United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Institution of Civil EngineersInstitution of Civil EngineersFounded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers is an independent professional association, based in central London, representing civil engineering. Like its early membership, the majority of its current members are British engineers, but it also has members in more than 150...
forms the Engineer and Railway Staff Corps. - The Union Pacific Railway, later to become the Missouri-Kansas-Texas RailroadMissouri-Kansas-Texas RailroadThe Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad was incorporated May 23, 1870. In its earliest days the MKT was commonly referred to as "the K-T", which was its stock exchange symbol; this common designation soon evolved into "the Katy"....
and not to be confused with the Union Pacific RailroadUnion Pacific RailroadThe Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
, begins operations. - A group of businessmen in San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, led by Timothy Guy PhelpsTimothy Guy PhelpsTimothy Guy Phelps was an American business executive and politician. He was the first president of the Southern Pacific Railroad from 1865 until 1868 when the railroad was purchased by members of The Big Four, and saw the railroad build its first tracks south of San Francisco, California.-Early...
, found the Southern Pacific RailroadSouthern Pacific RailroadThe Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
to build a rail connection between San Francisco and San Diego, CaliforniaSan Diego, CaliforniaSan Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. - Erastus CorningErastus CorningErastus Corning I , American businessman and politician, was born in Norwich, Connecticut. Corning moved to Troy, New York at the age of 13 to clerk in the hardware store of an uncle; six years later he moved to Albany, New York, where he joined the mercantile business under James Spencer...
resigns from his executive post for the New York Central. - The Canadian Engine and Machinery Company, predecessor of the Canadian Locomotive CompanyCanadian Locomotive CompanyThe Canadian Locomotive Company, commonly referred to as CLC, was a Canadian manufacturer of railway locomotives located in Kingston, Ontario. Its works were located on Ontario Street and Gore Street on Kingston's waterfront....
, is founded from the assets of the bankrupt Kingston Locomotive Works. - Missouri Car and Foundry Company, later to become part of American Car and Foundry, is founded in St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
.
March births
- March 2 - Frederick Methvan WhyteFrederick Methvan WhyteFrederick Methvan Whyte was a mechanical engineer of Dutch background who worked for the New York Central in the United States. He is most widely known as the person who developed Whyte notation to describe the different wheel arrangements of steam locomotives in 1900.In some railroad literature,...
, mechanical engineer for the New York Central RailroadNew York Central RailroadThe New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
, creator of Whyte notationWhyte notationThe Whyte notation for classifying steam locomotives by wheel arrangement was devised by Frederick Methvan Whyte and came into use in the early twentieth century encouraged by an editorial in American Engineer and Railroad Journal...
for the classification of steam locomotiveSteam locomotiveA steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s (d. 1941).
October births
- October 9 - George HughesGeorge Hughes (engineer)George Hughes was a locomotive engineer, and Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway and the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.-L&YR:...
, Chief Mechanical Engineer for the Lancashire and Yorkshire RailwayLancashire and Yorkshire RailwayThe Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways...
1904–1922, 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...
1922–1923 and the London, Midland and Scottish RailwayLondon, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
1925–1931 (d. 1945).
Unknown date deaths
- William T. James, AmericanUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
inventor of the link motion and spark arresterSpark arresterA spark arrestor is any device which prevents the emission of flammable debris from combustion sources, such as internal combustion engines, fireplaces, and wood burning stoves. Spark arrestors play a critical role in the prevention of wildland fire and ignition of explosive atmospheres...
(b. 1786).