A new booklet has been published by Wakefield Historical Publications: ‘Discovering Wakefield’s Early Railways’ by Anthony Dawson FSAScot
Written to coincide with national Railway200 celebrations, this concise booklet (22pp) explores the first century or so of Wakefield’s railways, from horse-drawn waggonways of the eighteenth century, to the first steam-hauled mainline trains of the 1840s. It highlights some crucial Wakefield ‘firsts’ in the evolution of the railway as we know it today: Wakefield was home to the first public railway, and the earliest known railway tunnel and viaduct. West Yorkshire as a whole saw the first Railway Act of Parliament (1758) and the first commercial use of steam locomotives in 1812.
To order: Wakefield Historical Publications
