1919 in rail transport
Encyclopedia
March events
- March 5 – Rebuilt Helsinki Central railway stationHelsinki Central railway stationHelsinki Central railway station is a widely recognised landmark in central Helsinki, Finland, and the focal point of public transport in the Greater Helsinki area. The station is used by approximately 200,000 passengers per day, making it Finland's most-visited building...
officially opened (architect: Eliel SaarinenEliel SaarinenGottlieb Eliel Saarinen was a Finnish architect who became famous for his art nouveau buildings in the early years of the 20th century....
).
April events
- April 12 – Ryutaro Nomura succeeds Simbei Kunisawa for a second term as president of South Manchuria RailwaySouth Manchuria RailwayThe , and operated within China in the Japanese-controlled South Manchuria Railway Zone. The railway itself ran from Lüshun Port at the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula to Harbin, where it connected to the Chinese Eastern Railway.-History:...
.
May events
- May 28 – Official inauguration of electrified suburban railways in MelbourneRailways in MelbourneThe Melbourne rail network is operated by Metro Trains Melbourne under franchise from the Government of Victoria. The network is based on a commuter rail model centred on the Melbourne Central Business District and Flinders Street Station, rather than a rapid transit model, with a focus on...
, 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...
, with first train from Flinders Street stationFlinders Street StationFlinders Street Station is the central railway station of the suburban railway network of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is on the corner of Flinders and Swanston Streets next to the Yarra River in the heart of the city, stretching from Swanston Street to Queen Street and covering two city...
to Sandringham and Essendon.
September events
- September 27–October 6 – Railway workers in 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...
stage a strikeStrike actionStrike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
, called by the National Union of RailwaymenNational Union of RailwaymenThe National Union of Railwaymen was a trade union of railway workers in the United Kingdom. It an industrial union founded in 1913 by the merger of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants , the United Pointsmen and Signalmen's Society and the General Railway Workers' Union .The NUR...
.
November events
- November 15 – The golden spikeGolden spikeThe "Golden Spike" is the ceremonial final spike driven by Leland Stanford to join the rails of the First Transcontinental Railroad across the United States connecting the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads on May 10, 1869, at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory...
is driven and construction of the San Diego and Arizona RailwaySan Diego and Arizona RailwayThe San Diego and Arizona Railway was a short line American railroad founded by "sugar heir," developer, and entrepreneur John D. Spreckels, and dubbed "The Impossible Railroad" by many engineers of its day due to the immense logistical challenges involved...
is completed at a cost of $United States dollarThe United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
18 million.
December events
- December 1
- The first passenger train of the San Diego & Arizona Railway "arrives" in San DiegoSan 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...
from El Centro, CaliforniaEl Centro, CaliforniaEl Centro is a city in and county seat of Imperial County, the largest city in the Imperial Valley and the east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the core urban area and principal city of the El Centro metropolitan area which encompasses all of Imperial County. El Centro is also...
, for the official line opening ceremony. - The Canadian Railway War Board is reorganized as the Railway Association of CanadaRailway Association of CanadaThe Railway Association of Canada was originally founded in 1917 as the Canadian Railway War Board in order to coordinate railway activities during World War I. The first meeting of the organization was held on October 23, 1917, and the name was changed to Railway Association of Canada in 1919. ...
.
- The first passenger train of the San Diego & Arizona Railway "arrives" in San Diego
- December 3 – The Quebec BridgeQuebec Bridgeright|thumb|Lifting the centre span in place was considered to be a major engineering achievement. Photo caption from [[Popular Mechanics]] Magazine, December 1917...
, operated by Canadian National RailwayCanadian National RailwayThe Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
s, opens to rail traffic after almost two decades of construction. It is 987 metres (3,238.2 ft) long, incorporating the longest cantilever bridgeCantilever bridgeA cantilever bridge is a bridge built using cantilevers, structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end. For small footbridges, the cantilevers may be simple beams; however, large cantilever bridges designed to handle road or rail traffic use trusses built from...
span in the world at 549 metres (1,801.2 ft).
Unknown date events
- Ralph BuddRalph BuddRalph Budd was an American railroad executive.-Early life:One of six children of John and Mary Budd, Ralph was born on a farm near Waterloo, Iowa on August 20, 1879...
becomes president of the Great Northern Railway and becomes the youngest (40) president of any AmericanUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
railroad to date. - The Federal Trade CommissionFederal Trade CommissionThe Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...
orders Armour & Co. to sell its produce-hauling subsidiary, Fruit Growers ExpressFruit Growers ExpressFruit Growers Express was a railroad refrigerator car leasing company that began as a produce-hauling subsidiary of Armour and Company's private refrigerator car line. Its customers complained they were overcharged. In 1919 the Federal Trade Commission ordered the company's sale for anti-trust...
(FGE), for anti-trust reasons. - Jewett Car CompanyJewett Car CompanyThe Jewett Car Company was an early 20th century American industrial company that manufactured street cars.The company was founded in 1893 in Jewett, Ohio, where its first factory was located. In 1904, the company relocated from Jewett to a site along South Williams Street in Newark, Ohio, but...
, a Newark, OhioNewark, OhioIn addition, the remains of a road leading south from the Octagon have been documented and explored. It was first surveyed in the 19th century, when its walls were more apparent. Called the Great Hopewell Road, it may extend to the Hopewell complex at Chillicothe, Ohio...
, producer of interurban cars and trolleys, closes after 25 years in production.
April deaths
- April 24 - Zhan TianyouZhan TianyouJeme Tien Yow was a distinguished Chinese railroad engineer. Educated in the United States of America, he was the chief engineer responsible for construction of the Imperial Peking-Kalgan Railway , the first railway constructed in China without foreign assistance.-Biography:Jeme was born in...
, Chief Engineer responsible for construction of the Imperial Peking-Kalgan RailwayJingbao railwayThe Beijing-Baotou Railway or Jingbao Railway is a 833 km railway from Beijing to Baotou, Inner Mongolia in China. It is a very important route in northwestern China....
, the first railway constructed in ChinaPeople's Republic of ChinaChina , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
without foreign assistance (b. 1861).
August deaths
- August 3 - Samuel W. FordyceSamuel W. FordyceSamuel Wesley "Colonel" Fordyce was a prominent railroad executive of the American South. He served on several Boards of Directors and as President of a few railroads. Fordyce was also the receiver for several railroads when they declared bankruptcy.- References :* Fordyce, Jim , ...
, president of St. Louis, Arkansas and Texas Railway 1886-1889, St. Louis Southwestern RailwaySt. Louis Southwestern RailwayThe St. Louis Southwestern Railway , known by its nickname of "The Cotton Belt Route" or simply Cotton Belt, was organized on January 15, 1891, although it had its origins in a series of short lines founded in Tyler, Texas, in 1870 that connected northeastern Texas to Arkansas and southeastern...
1890-1898, Kansas City Southern RailwayKansas City Southern RailwayThe Kansas City Southern Railway , owned by Kansas City Southern Industries, is the smallest and second-oldest Class I railroad company still in operation. KCS was founded in 1887 and is currently operating in a region consisting of ten central U.S. states...
1900 (b. 1840). - August 11 - Andrew CarnegieAndrew CarnegieAndrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
, 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...
magnate and owner of Pittsburgh Locomotive and Car WorksPittsburgh Locomotive and Car WorksThe Pittsburgh Locomotive and Car Works was a railroad equipment manufacturing company founded by Andrew Carnegie and T.N. Miller in 1865. It was located in Allegheny, Pennsylvania.It repaired an early locomotive known as Bausman's Rhinoceros in April 1867....
(b. 1835).
October deaths
- October 10 - Anatole MalletAnatole MalletJules T. Anatole Mallet was a Swiss mechanical engineer, who was the inventor of the first successful compound system for a railway steam locomotive, patented in 1874....
, inventor of the Mallet locomotiveMallet locomotiveThe Mallet Locomotive is a type of articulated locomotive, invented by a Swiss engineer named Anatole Mallet ....
type (b. 1837).