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Henry Robinson Palmer and Early British Monorails

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Henry Robinson Palmer (1793-1844) was a British engineer who designed the first monorail system and also invented corrugated iron!

Born in 1793 in Hackney, he was the son of the Revd Samuel Palmer, a nonconformist minister, and his wife, Elizabeth, née Walker. [1] He was baptised in Tooting [2] and was educated at the academy run by his father and between 1811 and 1816 was an apprentice at 1811-16 Apprenticed to Bryan Donkin and Co.

When he finished his apprenticeship, Palmer was taken on by Thomas Telford, working for him for 10 years and involved with a variety of road/canal surveys and associated designs. In 1818, Palmer was one of three young engineers key to the founding of the Institution of Civil Engineers and on 23rd May 1820, he formally became a member of the Institution. [3]

Elijah Golloway recorded Palmer’s ideas for a Suspension Railway in the image above which is dated 1822. It seems as though Galloway’s book, History of the Steam Engine, From Its First Invention to the Present Time: Illustrated by Numerous Engravings From Original Drawings, Made Expressly for This Work, was not published until 1828 by B. Steill. [4][5]

On 22nd November 1821, Palmer patented his proposed monorail system. [6][19: p57]

In 1823, Palmer wrote his short book, Description of a Railway on a new Principle, (J. Taylor, 1823) about his monorail ideas. [7]

The illustrations immediately below come from a copy of that book which is held by the Science Museum. [7]

Palmer was unaware of the experimental work being undertaken in Russia at around the same time. The work of Ivan Kirillovich Elmanov is covered here. [26]

These images are taken from H.R. Palmer; ‘Description of a Railway on a New Principle’
and are released by the Science Museum under a Creative Commons Licence (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) [7]

In his book, Palmer refers to examples of railways already constructed. It is clear that he is talking of railways which operate on more traditional principles. He tabulates those to which he is referring in a table which is reproduced below: the Llanelly Tramroad; the Surrey Tramroad; the Penrhyn Slate Quarries, edge rail road; the Cheltenham Tram Road; a branch of the Cheltenham Tram Road; Edge Rail Roads near Newcastle-upon-Tyne. These he compares with his own proposed railway which was built in Deptford Dockyard in London in 1824. [6]

Table showing the resistance form the rails of various railways in use in the early 19th century. [8: p29]

History only seems to record two of Palmer’s monorails in the UK. The first was constructed at Deptford as we have already noted. The second was built at Cheshunt and opened about 3 months prior to the Stockton & Darlington Railway (in June 1825) and was described, that month, in The Times newspaper. [9] Although his ideas were attempted in at least one other place. The railway built in what is now Hungary in 1827 (15th August). It was a fleeting experiment about which more details can be found here. [10]

Palmer is recorded as having given evidence, in 1825, in favour of navigation interest and against the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. [4] He was appointed resident engineer to the London Docks in 1826, where, for 9 years, he designed and executed the Eastern Dock, with the associated warehousing, entrance locks, bridges, and other works. While undertaking this role, in 1828, he inventedthe “Corrugation and Galvanisation” of sheet iron. [11]

Regarding Palmer’s invention of corrugated iron, Dr. Pedro Guedes wrote that “Palmer exploited the unique properties of metal, creating a lightweight, rigid cladding material, capable of spanning considerable distances without any other supports, helping to make lightweight iron buildings and roofs possible. Palmer’s invention completely broke with precedent and tapped into another level of thinking. The sinusoidal corrugations that Palmer imagined as the means to impart strength to his sheets of wrought iron have continued virtually unchanged for close on two centuries.” [11]

In 1831, he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society, publishing two papers on the movement of shingle in Philosophical Transactions, 1831 and 1834. In 1833, he took out patents for improvements in the construction of arches and roofs. [12] In 1835, he moved to Westminster and worked as a consulting engineer and was involved in numerous surveys for projected railways, and the design and construction of several docks and harbours, including those at Port Talbot, Ipswich, Penzance, and Neath. He carried out the original surveys for the South Eastern Railway, assisted by P. W. Barlow, and would have executed the scheme but ill health intervened. His original surveys for a Kentish railway dated from the time he was associated with Telford.

He died on 12th September 1844. [13]

C. von Oeynhaussen & H. von Dechen inspected both of Palmer’s monorails during their visit to the UK in 1826 and 1827 and comment on both. First they describe the principles involved: “To facilitate laying out a railway with reduced friction, and to make it independent of the small unevennesses of the ground, Mr Palmer has proposed and built a kind of railway which consists of a single bar, and the wagons have only one wheel on each axle. The track is erected on posts or columns at a suitable height above the ground, and the load hangs so far below the wheels that the wagon frame cannot overturn. [16] This railway has the disadvantage that its construction is not solid, or it becomes very expensive; that it can compensate only for very small unevenness of the ground; that the motive power can operate only with an inclined pull; and that special precautions must be taken for unloading and loading the wagons. Therefore, the scheme has not come into general use. Excepting the two now to be mentioned, no railways of this kind appear to have been built in England.” [14: p75-76]

Palmer’s Deptford Railway

C. von Oeynhaussen & H. von Dechen describe this railway: “This railway leads from the Thames across the yard of the Victualling Office up to the warehouse, and serves to transport provisions out of the warehouse to the ships, or the reverse. The railway consists of cast-iron columns which project from 3 to 5 ft out of the ground; these are provided with fork-shaped seats at the top and are spaced 10 ft apart. Planks 9 in. high and 3 in. thick rest in the forks on double wooden wedges, so that they can be set at the correct level very easily. On the upper edge of these planks, wrought-iron bars are spiked, which are 3½ in. wide, somewhat convex, and in. thick in the middle. The ends of these bars are not square, but cut in a broken line, and rest, not directly on the plank, but on a small iron plate let into the wood.” [14: p76]

“The line is nearly horizontal, and has a fall of only about 20 minutes of angle to the river. … The wagons which run on this line have three wheels of 18 in. diameter, one behind the other; they have two flanges and the groove is shaped to fit the rail. These wheels are fixed to a wrought-iron frame which consists of three stirrups going over the wheels with connecting pieces below. The stirrups reach 2 or 3 ft below the railway, and are provided on both sides with an inclined platform, on which are placed the casks to be conveyed. For loading the wagons, there are two sloping frames at the same height as the wagon platforms, and between which the wagon has just room to pass. A wagon is loaded with 10 casks which weigh about 4½ cwt each, therefore totalling 45 cwt. The wagon can be taken at 5 cwt, so that the whole weight comes to 50 cwt, which can be moved up the line easily by four men.” [14: p76]

The Cheshunt Railway – The first passenger carrying monorail

Cheshunt had a railway three months before the Stockton and Darlington line was opened. It was a horse-drawn monorail, built by Henry Robinson Palmer, who had previously built one in Deptford Dockyard, the first in the UK. The Cheshunt Railway, his second venture, was opened on 26th June 1825, running from Mr Gibbs’ Brick Pit (to the west of Gews Corner), to a wharf on the River Lea, not far from the site of the current Cheshunt Station. Its original purpose was to haul bricks, but it was also utilised for carrying passengers. For such a short distance, it must have been principally a novelty; regardless of this, it was the first passenger monorail in the world. [15]

The design was an overhead track from which carriages were suspended, drawn by a single horse. The line crossed the main road by a section hinged like a gate, enabling it to be moved off the road. No sign of the monorail has survived, but its legacy gives Cheshunt a vital, if little-known, position in the history of railways. [15]

C. von Oeynhaussen & H. von Dechen describe the railway: “From the lime and brick kilns at Cheshunt, in Hertfordshire, about 20 miles north of London, which lie on a main road, a Palmer railway leads to the Lee Canal in the flat and level Lee valley. The railway has a fall of 5 to 10 minutes of angle towards the canal; it is mile Engl. (580 fathoms Pruss.) long and serves to transport lime and bricks. The line rests on wooden posts which project on average 34 ft out of the ground; towards the limekiln, however, the bottom of the line is in a cutting in the ground, so that the posts stand in a kind of dry trench, the base of which is 9 ft wide. The wooden posts stand 10 ft apart, are 4 in. thick, and 7 in. wide; the top is fork-shaped 3 in. wide and cut 16 in. deep. In the bottom of this fork lies a block 12 to 15 in. long, in different heights, which is supported by a pair of inserted angle-pieces 14 in. high and 2 in. thick. Two wedges 2 ft long rest on this block with their inclined faces lying against one another, so that a horizontal support is always afforded to the plank which lies thereon. The planks are 101 in. high and 3 in. thick; they are 30 ft long and always meet in the middle of a post. Iron bolts with screws go through the post to hold together its fork-shaped end. There are oblong holes in the planks through which these bolts pass, so that the underlying wedges can be adjusted when necessary. On top of the planks a wrought-iron convex rail is laid, 4 in. wide, 1 in. thick at the edges, and in. thick in the middle. [14: p76]

C. von Oeynhaussen & H. von Dechen continue: “The rails are 20 ft long with their ends cut obliquely, and they are fixed by no more than two or three spikes of in. diameter with their heads countersunk in the rails. The rails have some spare holes which are used when one or other of the spikes breaks. Some posts are made of three parts fixed together. The pieces are 6 in. wide; the middle piece is 3 in. thick, the side pieces are 21 in. thick, and they are bound together by three screw-bolts; the wedges lie upon screwed-in blocks which are 1 ft long at the top. Although these planks are very thick, they have become bent at some places because of the great distance between the posts and are propped up by pillars set under them subsequently.” [14: p77]

“There is a siding on the railway in the vicinity of the canal. Here the line is made double for a length of about 30 ft, and between the double piece and the single track there is a strong door 10 ft wide which is hinged to the single rail and may be fastened to either of the two tracks. The railway lies on the upper edge of the door. Directly over the hinge is a small turning piece of rail by which the severe angle which the door makes with the main railway is reduced. This railway passes over an ordinary road by a similar door.” [14: p77]

“The wagons on this railway have only two cast-iron wheels, 26 in. diameter, with two flanges; they are 51 in. wide including the flanges, which are in. thick and project 11 in. They have six spokes and a nave 6 in. long and 2 in. wide. The wheel turns with a hollow cast-iron axle 2 in. thick and 12 in. long, which lies in round brass bushes at both ends; these have an inside diameter of 11 in., an outside diameter of 2 in., and are 3 in. long inside. They are fitted to seats on the wrought-iron stirrups which form the main frame of the wagon. Through the hollow cast-iron axle and the brass bushes is a wrought-iron axial bar 26 in. long, and 1 in. thick, the ends of which are fastened to the stirrup. This makes a firmer connection with the wagon frame. The two wheel centres are 46 in. apart. The platforms on which the wagon bodies are placed are 40 in. below the axle centres and are 17 in. apart. There is one wagon body on each side of the wagon, and each holds 20 cu. ft. One such body is laden with 20 cwt of lime or bricks, and therefore a wagon takes 40 cwt. One horse draws two such wagons or 80 cwt, exclusive of the bodies and the wagon.” [14: p77]

“On a disused standing wagon, there is a special arrangement for reducing the friction of the wheels on the axles, which is neither properly devised according to theory nor well carried out practically. The brass bushes wherein the cast-iron axle turns have a circular-segment-shaped slot, in. wide, cut in the upper part, and in this notch rests a 4 in. high iron friction wheel, on which the whole load of the wagon bears, while the brass bush is not entirely held fast in the wagon frame.” [14: p77]

The Cheshunt Railway is also featured in the Register of Arts and Sciences No. 47, 2nd July, 1825, [17] where the illustration below appears, along with a detailed description of the opening of the railway.

The Cheshunt Railway. [17: p353]

The article is reproduced in full below at Appendix A.

C.F. Dendy Marshall also refers to Palmer (and his monorails) in his history of railways to 1830. He notes that “Palmer was prominent in connexion with the London and Brighton schemes, and was [a] principal founder of the Institution of Civil Engineers. He wrote a paper in the Journal of the Franklin Institute in 1828, advocating the use of sails on railways. An illustration is given [below] of his railway with that method of propulsion, from Hebert’s Practical Treatise on Rail Roads (1837). [19] Two short lines were made on Palmer’s principle, on which horses were used: one at the Victualling Yard, Deptford; and one from some lime-kilns and tile-works near Cheshunt to the Lea Canal. The best account of these lines is given by von Oeynhausen and von Dechen, in ‘Ueber Schienen Wage in England, 1826-27.” [18: p171]

Marshall was writing in 1935, over 30 years before the Newcomen translation of von Oeynhausen and von Dechen’s German text was published, so he took the trouble to provide his own translation of their words in full. [18: p171-173] He also points his readers to an article in the Mechanics Magazine of 6th August 1825 which concluded: “One carriage, which has been constructed for the purpose of trying the application of the plan to the conveyance of passengers, differs from the others. Its boxes partake partly of the shape of a gig, and partly that of a balloon-car; in each are two cushioned seats vis-à-vis, with a little dickey behind, the whole carriage being covered with an awning.” [18: p173-174]

Palmer’s Idea for sail propulsion on his patented monorail. [18: p171][19: p62] At times we may feel a sense of ridicule at proposals which were coming to the fore in the early days of railways, but we need to remember that railways were the most up-to-date, advanced technology of the day and that progress would not have been made if a whole range of ideas were being put forward and tried.

Hebert discusses Palmer’s ideas in his book, Practical Treatise on Rail Roads (1837): “Mr. Palmer’s railway consists of only one, which is elevated upon pillars, and carried in a straight line across the country, however undulating and rugged, over hills, valleys, brooks, and rivers, the pillars being longer or shorter, to suit the height of the rail above the surface of the ground, so as to preserve the line of the rail always straight, whether the plane be horizontal or inclined. The waggons, or receptacles for the goods, travel in pairs, one of a pair being suspended on one side of the rail, and the other on the opposite side, like panniers from the back of a horse. By this arrangement only two wheels are employed, instead of eight, to convey a pair of waggons; these two wheels are placed one before the other on the rail, and the axle-trees upon which they revolve are made of sufficient length and strength to form extended arms of support, to which are suspended the waggons.” [19:p57]

Hebert provides an illustration of the line in use. And the principles by which various obstacles were overcome. In the image below, “on the left is seen a jointed rail, or gate, that crosses the road over which the carriages have just passed, and the gate swung back, to leave the road open; the horse and man having just forded, the train of carriages is proceeding in its course, and following another train, part of which is seen on the right, crossing a rail bridge, simply constructed for that purpose.” [19:p59]

An Illustration of Palmer’s Suspension Railway. [19: p59]

“Provision is made for trains of carriages that are proceeding in opposite directions, by means of ‘sidings’ or passing places. With respect to loading, if both receptacles be not loaded at the same time, that which is loaded first must be supported until the second is full. Where there is a permanent loading place, the carriage is brought over a step or block; but when it is loaded promiscuously, it is provided with a support connected to it, which is turned up when not in use. From the small height of the carriage, the loading of those articles usually done by hand becomes less laborious. The unloading may be done in various ways, according to the substance to be discharged, the receptacles being made to open either at the bottom, the ends, or the sides. In some cases, it may be desirable to suspend them by their ends, when, turning on their own centres, they are easily discharged sideways.” [19:p59]

“Among the advantages contemplated by the patentee of this railway, may be mentioned that of enabling the engineer, in most cases, to construct a railway on that plane which is most effectual, and where the shape of the country would occasion too great an expenditure on former plans – that of being maintained a perfectly straight line, and in the facility with which it may always be adjusted; in being unencumbered with extraneous substances lying upon it; in receiving no interruption from snow, as the little that may lodge on the rail is cleared off by merely fixing a brush before the first carriage in the train; in the facility with which the loads may be transferred from the railway on to the carriages, by merely unhooking the receptacles, without displacing the goods, or from other carriages to the railway, by the reverse operation; in the preservation of the articles conveyed from being fractured, owing to the more uniform gliding motion of the carriages; in occupying less land than any other railway; in requiring no levelling or road-making; in adapting itself to all situations, as it may be constructed on the side of any public road, on the waste and irregular margins, on the beach or shingles of the sea-shore, indeed, where no other road can be made; in the original cost being much less, and the impediments and great expense occasioned by repairs in the ordinary mode, being by this method almost avoided.” [19: p59-60]

Hebert goes on to talk of the line built in Cheshunt in 1825. In that case, “The posts which support the rails are about ten feet apart, and vary in their height from two to five feet, according to the undulations of the surface, and so as to preserve a continuous horizontal line to the rail. The posts were made of sound pieces of old oak, ship timber, and in a, the slot or cleft at the upper ends of the posts, are fixed deal planks twelve inches by three, set in edgeways, and covering with a thin bar of iron, about four inches wide, flat on its under side, and very slightly rounded on its upper side; the true plane of the rail being regulated or preserved by the action of counter-wedges between the bottom of the mortices, and that of the planks. By this rail, on the level, one horse seemed to be capable of drawing at the usual pace about fourteen tons, including the carriages.” [19: p60]

Hebert quotes Tredgold, who commented: “We expect that this single railroad will be found far superior to any other for the conveyance of the mails and those light carriages of which speed is the principal object; because we are satisfied that a road for such carriages must be raised so as to be free from interruptions and crossings of an ordinary railway.” [19: p60][20]

Hebert notes a particular problem with Palmer’s design: “It has generally been considered a defect in Mr Palmer’s arrangement, that in order to make turns in the road, it is necessary that a portion of the rail should be made to turn with the carriages upon it. This defect, Mr. T. Chapman, of Royal Row, Lambeth, proposed to remedy, by so constructing the carriage, as to enable it to turn itself upon a fixed suspension rail, whether curved or straight, or from one angle to another. Fig. 1 … exhibits an end view of the carriage, and Fig. 2 a side view of the same, partly in section. … aa is the rail, bb two wheels on the rail; these carry the turning plates cc, each having four friction-rollers: ee, upper plates; ff, the vertical axis of the wheel-frames or turn-plates cc; they pass through the plates d and e, from which the boxes gg are suspended, by the lateral arms hh and ii. Now as the wheels and frames b c can turn freely on their axis ff, they each require four guiding rollers jjjj to keep them in a right line with the rail, and to cause them to turn as the rail turns. These carriages should not be further asunder than is absolutely necessary for the required curve of the rail. The bottom of the carriage has a joint at one third of its length, and is held up at this by the hooks kk; by removing these, the contents may be let out: the fixed portion of the bottom is made sloping, so that it may be readily emptied.” [19: p60-61]

Hebert now turns to consideration of the force of the wind: “About thirteen years ago it occurred to [him], that the force of the wind might be beneficially employed as an auxiliary power for propulsion on railways; and considering that the suspension principle, which had just then been promulgated by Mr. Palmer, was better adapted to that object than any other, he wrote a short paper on the subject, which was inserted in the eighth number of the Register of Arts, for January, 1824, under the signature of “L. H.” The plan also embraced a proposition for enabling boats from the sea, a river, or canal, to pass out of the water, at once upon the rail, and thereon be propelled precisely in the same manner as the receptacles provided by the inventor are, and from which they scarcely need to differ in shape. Both of these propositions have been treated with abundance of ridicule, by persons who were either incapable or indisposed to reason. But one of them having, according to the newspapers, been recently carried into actual practice at Sunderland, and under less favourable circumstances, (i.e. on the common ground rail) the writer need not dilate upon its feasibility. And as respects the other propositions, he will only observe, that believing it to contain the germ of something that may hereafter prove of public benefit, he hesitates not to place it before the judgment of the reader. The following are extracts from the paper alluded to. ‘The inhabitants of small islands, and of the sea-coast gene-rally, subsist chiefly upon fish; and as they are remarkable for robust constitutions, it follows that their food must be strengthening and wholesome. I propose, therefore, a railway, on Palmer’s principle, from London to the nearest seaport town or fishing-place, that shall give to the inhabitants of this city the advantages of a plentiful supply of the cheap and wholesome food enjoyed by those in maritime situations. In the drawing which accompanies this [see the sail propulsion drawing above], the scene sketched is entirely imaginary, and intended, first to represent a railway leading to a sea-port, with the carriages being propelled, according to the modes projected by Mr. Palmer; the first train of carriages being drawn along the rail by a locomotive steam-engine, the second, more in the perspective, is supposed to be drawn by a horse. Brighton is perhaps the most eligible situation for such an undertaking. By a railroad from that place, the London market might be supplied with a prodigious quantity of fish within three or four hours after their being taken from the sea, at the mart trifling expense of carriage; and if the wind were to be employed as an auxiliary propelling force, which I propose, the rapidity with which the fish might generally be brought lo our markets would give us all the advantage of a sea-port town in the purchase of it If the Hollanders have found it practicable (as is well known) to sail over land in four-wheeled carriages, how much more practicable and advantageous would it be to bring into use the admirable facilities furnished by Mr. Palmer in his new suspension railway, in which the resistance to the motion of the carriages is reduced to one-twentieth part; or in other words, wherein the facilities are twenty times greater. As objections will of course he raised, on the score of the variableness of the wind, I must repeat, that I only propose it. as an auxiliary power. It would rarely happen that the wind would not he favourable in going or returning; and it is well known that S.W. winds prevail more than any other in our quarter, which would be favourable for the principal traffic; that is to London. In the absence of a steam-engine, a horse should always be in attendance; so that when employed in drawing a train of carriages, if a favourable breeze should spring up, the sails might be spread, and the horse be-put into one of the receptacles, where, over his bag of corn, he might regale and invigorate himself for fresh exertions, should the wind fall off.” [19; p61-62]

Hebert goes on, even more fancifully in my view, to explain how Palmer’s design can be adapted to one of Hebert’s own ideas of overcoming the need for transshipment between canals and railways, and perhaps to overcome the need for locks altogether as lengths of canal could be linked by Palmer’s monorail, provided the canal vessels were designed to suit. So, Hebert says: “The railway I propose Is to be constructed as usual, elevated upon pillars, and not to terminate on arrival at the look gates B, but to pass over it, and terminate at the other end, just within the second gates A, and be supported upon pillars from the floor of the lock, the same as on dry ground. In [drawing](which is a plan) the double train of vessels are supposed to have all entered the lock, half on one side of the rail, and half on the other, and they are hooked on to the axle-trees of the wheels which are already upon the rail for that purpose. The gates next to the river or canal are then closed, and all being fast, the water is let out of the lock by a sluice at D. till it falls below the bottom of the outer gates; at which time the vessels are all suspended on their axles in the air. The gates being next opened, and the wind fair, they sail across the valley or are propelled by other means provided by the patentee.” [19: p62-63]

Hebert’s proposed transfer lock – canal to Palmer’s monorail. [19: p63]

Further Immediate Developments

As early as 1826, the German railway pioneer Friedrich Harkort had a demonstration line of Palmer’s system built at his steel factory in Elberfeld (today part of Wuppertal), but objections prevented the construction of a public railway. [22]

Soon after, the first Hungarian railway line was completed on 15th August 1827, and led from Pest to Kőbánya. It was a monorail built on the principles outlined by Palmer. [23][24]

That Hungarian scheme is described here. [25]

References

  1. Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Records.
  2. Parish records.
  3. https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/1820_Institution_of_Civil_Engineers:_New_Members, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  4. https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Henry_Robinson_Palmer, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  5. https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/History_of_the_Steam_Engine_from_Its_Ear.html?id=5yOk_AeOFTMC&redir_esc=y, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  6. https://www.urban-transport-magazine.com/en/monorails-on-the-rise, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  7. https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co474278/description-of-a-railway-on-a-new-principle, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  8. H.R. Palmer; Description of a Railway on a New Principle: With Observations on Those Hitherto Constructed and a Table Shewing the Comparative Amount of Resistance on Several Now in Use; J. Taylor, London, 1823. [NB: a second edition was published by J. Taylor in 1824]
  9. The Times; Monday 27th June 1825.
  10. https://rogerfarnworth.com/2025/02/07/a-first-short-lived-horse-powered-railway-in-hungary.
  11. https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/data/UQ_225741/n01_Thesis_text_Guedes.pdf?Expires=1739979301&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJKNBJ4MJBJNC6NLQ&Signature=Mta6J-AfDmIox2Cyn9W0thOJLfTU~R9QiqLT8VT89xVPRJgExbS1S4QfcUKrb6UlMbRmQMlQia08caTuBVwGTTKWPfuHEw6uOtvyS4iXAAasj4oOU-UnDKHCJaFRy7vXuI~GVvFmYSTbsUlZYjZTJ0aNnXX9GMN91PPH54y3dqOwpOEQwMxrYNiqlUvLIzSs40wveXwq3Hwlr~Cc7JSz1dvO6B8Xp~H4JM2PCvroy8IvgFCZqxjuwHnYEUXj7fY-INLhfV-Jqf6jTiGa48vSr-VHKQPy9xaupA0dsyXbFU711pyxy76s0kSvdXD9gW8oFX19LtveL9ohve2r3YAJSQ__, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  12. The Leicester Chronicle, or Commercial and Agricultural Advertiser; Saturday, 15th February 1834.
  13. The Ipswich Journal, Saturday, 14th September 1844.
  14. C. von Oeynhaussen & H. von Dechen; Railways in England 1826 and 1827; translated by E.A. Forward and edited by C. E. Lee & K. R. Gilbert; Heffer &b Sons Ltd, Cambridge, for the Newcomen Society, 1971.
  15. Nicholas Blatchley; Cheshunt Railway, 1825; via https://www.hertsmemories.org.uk/content/herts-history/topics/transport/railways/cheshunt_railway_1825, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  16. This refers to a device patented by Henry Robinson Palmer (1795-1844) on 22nd November 1821 (Patent No. 4618). The line in the Royal Victualling Yard, Deptford, appears to have been brought into use in the latter part of 1824. The Cheshunt line was opened with considerable ceremony on 25th June 1825.
  17. Register of Arts and Sciences No. 47, 2nd July 1825; via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Register_of_the_arts_and_sciences._Volume_2,_1825._(IA_s1id13655130).pdf, accessed on 18th February 2025.
  18. C.F. Dendy Marshall; A History of British Railways Down to the Year 1830; Oxford, 1938.
  19. Luke Hebert; Practical Treatise on Rail Roads and Locomotive Engines; Thomas Kelly, London, 1837.
  20. Thomas Tredgold; A Practical Treatise on Rail-roads and Carriages; J. Taylor, London, 1825.
  21. The Railway Magazine; H. R. Palmer, A Forgotten Railway Pioneer; Volume 99 March 1953, p658ff.
  22. https://www.urban-transport-magazine.com/en/monorails-on-the-rise, accessed on 19th February 2025.
  23. https://pestbuda.hu/en/cikk/20220812_the_first_hungarian_railway_was_built_195_years_ago_the_special_structure_delivered_construction_materials_from_kobanya, accessed on 6th February 2025.
  24. https://pestbuda.hu/en/cikk/20230322_the_downfall_of_the_first_hungarian_railway, accessed on 6th February 2025.
  25. https://rogerfarnworth.com/2025/02/07/a-first-short-lived-horse-powered-railway-in-hungary.
  26. https://rogerfarnworth.com/2025/02/19/early-monorail-proposals-in-russia.

Appendix A – The Opening of the Patent Suspension Railway at Cheshunt, Herts

The Register of Arts and Sciences No. 47, 2nd July, 1825

We had the gratification on Saturday last of witnessing a practical demonstration of the advantages of Mr. Palmer’s new Suspension Railway, the nature and construction of which having been fully described in the 7th and 8th numbers of this Work, to those articles we refer our readers, as connected with our present account.

A line of railway on these beautiful principles having been erected at Cheshunt, in Hertfordshire, by Mr. Gibbs of that place, the same was opened for public inspection on the above-mentioned day, when a numerous and highly-respectable company of persons attended by invitation to witness the operation of the carriages, and partake of a rural entertainment provided for the occasion. The weather proved fine during the forenoon, but the rain which after-wards occasionally descended in showers, would have been felt very inconveniently by the numerous fair visitors, had they not been provided with large booths, in which were erected ranges of elevated seats, commanding a view of the entire piece of rail-road, besides affording a fine prospect of the surrounding country, which is beautifully picturesque. Near to these was stationed a band of music, which played a variety of national airs; and the flags of England, France, America, and other nations, waving their colours in different parts of the beautiful meadows, gave a delightful effect to the scene, independently of the highly interesting business of the day.

The chief object of the proprietor of this undertaking is the conveyance of bricks across the Marsh to the River Lea for shipment, and the carriages have consequently receptacles adapted to that peculiar purpose. But on the present occasion each receptacle was fitted up with temporary seats, for the conveyance of the persons in the manner represented in the engraving; each receptacle being likewise loaded with a quantity of bricks as ballast, which were stowed away under the seats, making, perhaps, a total weight to each receptacle of one ton; and there being two receptacles to a carriage (one suspended on each side of the rail) will make the whole weight about fourteen tons. The first carriage shewn in the train * had the receptacles expressly made for passengers, and were elegantly constructed in the barouche style, the passengers sitting opposite to each other. The whole of this immense train was drawn by a single horse by means of a towing rope attached to the first carriage, and with so little exertion apparently, that it was evident the strength of a good average horse would be sufficient to draw double the weight operated upon. The rail was proved to be upon a level plane by the animal drawing the load with equal facility, in either direction. The posts which support the rail are about ten feet apart, and vary in their height from two to five feet according to the undulations of the ground, so as to preserve the horizontal line of the rail. Under the rail, and between a cleft of each of the posts are placed reverse wedges, which admits of a facile and almost instantaneous adjustment of the plane, in the nicest manner. [a] The posts are made of that almost ever-lasting stuff, sound old ship timber, and securely fixed in the ground in a peculiar manner; the rail is constructed with 3-inch planks, 12 inches wide, which are placed edgeways between the clefts of the pillars. The upper surface of the rail is covered with a bar of iron four inches wide and about a quarter of an inch thick, and a little con-vexed on the upper side, to suit the occasionally inclined position of the wheels, and to prevent (as we suppose) a too extended contact of their surfaces.

Our object in giving another sketch of this truly excellent invention has been, chiefly to shew its admirable application for the conveyance of persons as well as goods. The vehicles glide so smoothly over the surface of the country, as to be compared only to the floating of boats in the stream of a river; and it is evident that no mode of travelling can possibly be less free from danger.

The simplicity and effectiveness of this new railway was the subject of general admiration; among the spectators we noticed several engineers of eminence, who, very honourably to themselves, awarded their meed of praise, so justly due to the inventor, for the erection of (unquestionably) the best rail-way hitherto constructed. [b] The uses and advantages are indeed so obvious to every observer, that it is impossible not to believe that it will become of general adoption in all situations suited to a work of the kind.

Notes

  1. This simple method of adjustment is one of very considerable importance in every point of view. In the common railroads, when the surface has become irregular by the sinking of particular parts, the rails must be taken up of necessity, and a complete re-bedding of their foundations made, which is of course attended with considerable expense and inconvenience. By Mr. Palmer’s plan a tap or two with a hammer sets the whole straight.
  2. Even Mr. Vallance, who may be regarded as unfriendly to railways generally, very candidly says in his pamphlet on the subject, “By the effects produced on different railroads, it is proved, that a power which will raise one pound perpendicularly, will move above 100 lbs. horizontally at the same rate; and on a railway of Mr. H. R. Palmer’s invention, it may at any time be seen, that the same power will produce the same effect on above 300 lbs!”

The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway: ‘The Second Public Railway Opened in England’?? – The Railway Magazine, October 1907

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C.R. Henry of the South-Eastern & Chatham Railway wrote about this line being the second public railway opened in England in an article in the October 1907 edition of The Railway Magazine. [1] Reading that article prompted this look at the line which was referred to locally as the ‘Crab and Winkle Line‘.

There are a number of claimants to the title ‘first railway in Britain’, including the Middleton Railway, the Swansea and Mumbles Railway and the Surrey Iron Railway amongst others. Samuel Lewis in his ‘A Topographical Dictionary of England’ in 1848, called the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway the first railway in the South of England. [2][3]

The Crab and Winkle Line Trust says that in 1830, the “Canterbury and Whitstable Railway was at the cutting edge of technology. Known affectionately as the ‘Crab and Winkle Line’ from the seafood for which Whitstable was famous, it was the third railway line ever to be built. However, it was the first in the world to take passengers regularly and the first railway to issue season tickets. The first railway season tickets were issued at Canterbury in 1834 to take people to the beach at Whitstable over the summer season. This fact is now recorded on a plaque at Canterbury West railway station. Whitstable was also home to the world’s oldest passenger railway bridge.” [17]

Henry explains that in 1822, “the possibility of making Canterbury a virtual seaport was engaging much thought and attention on the part of the inhabitants of that ancient city. Canterbury is situated on the banks of a small river called the Stour, having an outlet into the sea near Sandwich, and this river was a very important waterway in Roman and Saxon times, but by the date above-mentioned, it had fallen into a state almost approaching complete dereliction, being quite unnavigable for ships of any appreciable size. The resuscitation and improvement of this waterway was considered to be the only solution of the problem of making Canterbury a seaport, and as a result of a very strong and influential agitation by the citizens a scheme of revival was announced by a number of commercial men who had formed themselves into a company for the purpose. The scheme comprised many improvements to the river, such as widenings, new cuts, etc., with the provision of a suitable harbour at Sandwich, the estimated cost of the whole being about £45,700. It was submitted to Parliament in the session of 1824, but the Bill was rejected by a motion brought forward by the Commissioners of Sewers, who complained that the works had been hurriedly surveyed and greatly under-estimated. Nothing daunted, however, fresh surveys and estimates were prepared and presented to Parliament in the following year. This second Bill was successful, and when the news that it had passed the third reading in the Upper Chamber was made known in Canterbury, the event occasioned much jubilation amongst the inhabitants, who, according to local records, turned out with bands of music and paraded the streets exhibiting banners displaying such words as ‘Success to the Stour Navigation’.” [1: p305-306]

It is worth noting that it was as early as 1514 that an Act of Parliament promoted navigation on the River Stour. There remains “a Right of Navigation on the river from Canterbury to the sea.  After two weirs above Fordwich, the river becomes tidal.” [4]

C.R. Henry continues:

“While the city was so enraptured with its waterway scheme, influences of a quieter nature were steadily at work with a view to making Canterbury a virtual seaport by constructing a railway from thence to Whitstable. One day in April 1823, a gentleman – the late Mr. William James – called on an inhabitant of Canterbury to whom he had been recommended, to consult with him on the subject of a railway. It was arranged between these two gentlemen that a few persons who it was thought might be favourable to the project should be requested to meet the next day: several were applied to, but the scheme appeared so chimerical that few attended. At the meeting the gentleman stated he had professionally taken a cursory view of the country, and he thought a railway might be constructed from the copperas houses at Whitstable (these houses used to exist on the eastern side of the present harbour) to St. Dunstan’s, Canterbury. This line, he observed, was not so direct as might be the most desirable, but there would not be any deep cutting, and the railway would be formed on a regular ascending and descend. ing inclined plane. He also urged that by the construction of a harbour at Whitstable in conjunction with the projected railway, the problem of making Canterbury an inland seaport would be effectually solved, and that the railway offered undoubted advantages over any waterway scheme in point of reliability and rapidity of conveyance, as well as being only half the length of the proposed navigation.

The railway scheme met with scant support at first, but by 1824 a few private and commercial gentlemen had been found who were willing to form themselves into a company for the prosecution of the project, and they elected to consult Mr. George Stephenson as to the feasibility of their idea. The projector of the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway, as already said, was the late William James, well-known for the part he took in the Liverpool and Manchester Railway and other lines, and it was no doubt through his influence that it was decided to consult Stephenson, with whom he was very friendly at the time. George Stephenson, however, was too occupied with larger undertakings in the North to give the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway much of his personal attention, so he deputed his assistant, Mr. John Dixon to survey the line.

George Stephenson advised that the railway be made to pass over the ground situate between the [present] tunnel through Tyler Hill and St. Thomas’s Hill onwards through the village of Blean, then to Whitstable, terminating at precisely the same spot as it now does [in 1907], this route being an almost level one, and not necessitating many heavy earthworks. But the proprietors did not behold this route with favour: they wished for the novelty of a tunnel, so a tunnel Stephenson made for them, thereby altering the whole line of railway he first proposed, and causing it to traverse some very undulating and steep country. A survey of the new route was made, which was to the right of the original one, and plans, sections and estimates were duly deposited with Parliament for the Session of 1825.

The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway Bill was not assailed with great opposition, the only body really opposing it being the Whitstable Road Turnpike Trust, who, however, were compromised by the insertion of a clause in the Bill to the effect that ‘should the project be carried into execution, the Company, when formed, will indemnify the Trust to the full amount which they may suffer by traffic being diverted, and that for 20 years’. The Act received Royal Assent on 10th June 1825.” [1: p306-307]

So it was, that work on the railway and harbour went ahead and the improvements to the Stour Navigation were left in abeyance, and the then insignificant village of Whitstable became one of the first places to have a railway.

The Company was formed with a nominal capital of £31,000 divided into £50 shares. Joseph Locke was appointed ‘resident engineer’ and a host of experienced workers (navvies) were brought down from the North of England to work on the line.

This map shows the full length of the line from Canterbury north to Whitstable. It is taken from the February 1951 edition of The Railway Magazine, © Public Domain. [19: p126]
The southern terminus of the line in Canterbury was on North Lane. It is shown here, just to the right of centre of this extract from the 6″ Ordnance Survey of 1872/1873, published in 1877. The line North to Whitstable leaves the map extract at the centre-top of the image. The more modern lines of the South Eastern & Chatham Railway diagonally bisect the image, running bottom-left to top-right, with the South Eastern’s Station towards the bottom-left of the extract. Passenger services ran from the South Eastern’s station around the chord onto the Canterbury and Whitstable line. [6]
A similar area of Canterbury as it appears on the ESRI satellite imagery provided by the NLS (National Library of Scotland) in the 21st century.  The location of the modern railway station should aid in relating this image to the map extract immediately above. Its Goods shed also can be picked out, but little else remains. The area has been significantly developed since Victorian times. [7]

North of the railway corridor the route of the old railway, shown in pale orange, runs North-northwest. It crosses Hanover Place twice and runs ups the West side of Beverly Meadow. The route is tree-lined as far as Beaconsfield Road. A footpath runs immediately alongside to the route. That footpath appears as a grey line on the satellite imagery adjacent to this text.

North of Beaconsfield Road the line of the old railway has been built over – private dwellings face out onto the road. North of the rear fences of these properties a tree-line path follows fairly closely the line of the old railway between two modern housing estates as far as the playing fields associated with The Archbishop’s School. [15]

C.R. Henry continues:

“The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway was laid out with gradients almost unique in their steepness, necessitating the major portion of the line being worked by stationary engines. At Canterbury the terminus was situated in North Lane, whence the railway rises in a perfectly straight line on gradients ranging between 1 in 41 and 1 in 56, to the summit of Tyler Hill, a distance of 3,300 yards.

On this section is the Tyler Hill tunnel which the proprietors were so anxious to have. This peculiar little tunnel may be termed the principal engineering feature of the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway: it is half a mile long, and was constructed in four different sections, each of varying gauge. The working face evidently started at the Whitstable side of Tyler Hill, since as it advances towards Canterbury each section becomes larger than the preceding one. The first three sections are the usual egg shape, but the final section, i.e., at the Canterbury or south end, has perpendicular instead of bow walls, and is the largest of the four. In the very early days the Canterbury end of the tunnel was closed at nighttime by wicket gates, and the rides upon which the gates hung are still to be seen in the brickwork. The bore of the tunnel is unusually small  specially constructed rolling stock having to be used for the present day passenger service over the line.” [1: p309]

The South Portal of Tyler Hill Tunnel, © H.A. Ballance, Public Domain. [19: p127]
The first railway tunnel in the world!? Tyler Hill Tunnel seen from its northern portal. Depending on your definition of a ‘railway’ there may well be earlier claimants to the crown of the first railway tunnel. For example, Haie Hill Tunnel in the Forest of Dean which was built for a tramroad (a form of railway) which was “authorised by a Parliamentary Act in 1809, [the] 1,083-yard Haie Hill Tunnel, engineered by John Hodgkinson, was the world’s longest when it opened [in 1810],” at least 15 years prior to the construction of Tyler Hill Tunnel Note that the claim for the Hair Hill Tunnel was that it was the ‘longest’ rather than the ‘first’, so others could make claim the status of the first railway tunnel. [1: p308][5]
Tyler Hill Tunnel: the line from Canterbury can be seen entering this map extract the bottom of the image towards the right. The southern portal of the tunnel is just a short distance above the bottom of the extract. The tunnel runs North-northwest under Giles’ Lane towards the North portal (shown in the image above) which sat to the Northeast of Brotherhood Wood. [8]

Tyler Hill Tunnel runs underneath the Canterbury Campus of the University of Kent. Its South Portal was adjacent to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s School at the bottom-right of the adjacent satellite image. [15]

Giles Lane appears on both the early OS map extract and this satellite imagery. [8][15]

The North portal of the tunnel is highlighted by a lilac flag on the adjacent satellite image. [15]

Two photographs below show North Portal as it is in the 21st century. It is fenced and gated for safety and security purposes. The first shows the spalling brickwork of the tunnel ring, and the boarding-off of the entrance provided with an access gate. for maintenance purposes. Both were shared on Google Maps.

Tyler Hill Tunnel North Portal, (c) Enigma “Enigma” Hyena. (August 2021)
Tyler Hill Tunnel North Portal, (c) Enigma “Enigma” Hyena. (August 2021)
The route of the old railway is clearly visible as a straight line in the middle of a wooded strip of land running North-northwest from the North Portal of Tyler Hill Tunnel. [Google Maps, December 2024]
Looking North toward the site of the stationary engines from Tyler Wood Road. [Google Streetview, October 2022]

Henry continues his description of the line:

“At the top of the steep bank from Canterbury there stood two 25 h.p. stationary engines for winding the trains up the incline. From where the first engine house stood the line is straight and practically level for the next mile to Clowes Wood summit, where there were two fixed engines of the same type and h.p. as those at the previous stage. The line then descends at 1 in 28 and 1 in 31 for the next mile to a place called Bogshole, so named owing to the once spongy condition of the ground in the vicinity, which was a constant source of trouble during the early days of the railway, as whenever wet weather set in the track invariably subsided with sometimes consequent cessations of traffic for a whole day, and even longer. At Bogshole commences the South Street level, which continues for a mile to the top of Church Street bank, whence the line again falls for half a mile at 1 in 57, the remaining half mile to Whitstable being almost at level.” [1: p310]

This extract from the 6″ OS mapping shows the location of the first two 25 horsepower engines mentioned by Henry. These engines sat at the head of the incline rising from the South. There would have been a passing loop at this location. [9]
The route of the old railway is just as easily made out on the North side of Tyler Hill Road. The slight bend in the alignment of the old railway route just to the North of the road was the location of the first two stationary engines mentioned by Henry. [Google Maps, December 2024]
On this next extract from Google Maps satellite imagery the route of the old railway is marked by the field boundary running North-northwest as it approaches wooded land to the top-left of the image. As Henry notes, this length of the line, North of the location of the stationary engines, is almost straight. [Google Maps, December 2024]
This extract from the 6″ Ordnance Survey shows the location of the second pair of stationary steam engines (at Clowes Wood) mentioned by Henry. There was a passing loop at this location as well. It sat at the top of a steep incline running North down towards Whitstable. [10]
The more northerly stationary engines are marked on Google Maps by the grey flag noted as a ‘Winding Pond’. North of the location of the engines the downward incline was on the straight line marked by the access track shown on this image. [Google Maps, December 2024]
Looking South from a point to the South of the second location of the stationary incline engines, © Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
Looking North towards those stationary engines from the same location as the last photograph, © Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
Looking South from a point to the North of the stationary engines’ location back towards the engines, © Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
Looking North from the same location, © Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
The house at Clowes Wood provided for the Engineman in charge of the engines. The site of the winding apparatus is indicated by the white cross. [1: p310]
Clowes Wood Engine House and passing loop. [1: p311]
The straight line of the incline continued beyond the point where the access track turned to the North-northeast. Its route is not clearly marked on this extract from Google Maps’ satellite imagery. For ease in following the route, the next image and all subsequent satellite images will be taken from railmaponline.com. [Google Maps, December 2024]

The two extracts from railmaponline.com’s satellite imagery above show the route of the old line as it runs down across the line of the modern A299 (at the top of the first image and at the bottom of the second image). In each case, if you cannot see the full image, double-click on it to enlarge it. For the majority of this length the old railway line followed a straight course. [15]

Looking South from the A299 along the route of the old railway, nothing remains to show that this was once the location of the old railway. [Google Streetview, August 2024]
Looking North from the A299 along the line of the old railway – there is nothing to see. [Google Streetview, August 2024]
At the bottom of the incline the old railway curved a little to the Northwest and met South Street tangentially. A level-crossing took the line across what is now Millstrood Road. [11]
The length of the line shown on the OS Map extract above is the bottom half of the old line as it appears on this modern satellite image from railmaponline.com. [15]

The old railway route continues North and after passing through the rear gardens of houses on South Street runs, for a short distance immediately adjacent to South Street.

Close to the junction between Millstrood Road and South Street, the old railway ran approximately on the building line behind the low hedge. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
Its route runs across the mouth of what is now Millstrood Road and follows the footpath ahead. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
The route of the old railway is now a dedicated footpath from here through the Whitstable suburbs. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
Looking North along the route of the old railway from ‘The Halt’. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
Looking North under the bridge carrying the modern Thanet Way (A2990) over the line of the old railway, © Tom Banbury [Google Streetview, 2016]
The next significant locations on and around the old line were: All Saints’ Church and Vicarage; a bridge over Old Bridge Road/The Bridge Approach and the main line along the North coast of Kent to the East of the modern Whitstable Railway Station. [12]
This extract from railmaponline.com’s satellite imagery shows a broader area than the map extract above but includes the location of the bridge over road and railway to the East of Whitstable Railway Station. [15]

Henry comments:

“Just below the top of Church Street bank is situated the only public road bridge on the railway. This is a narrow brick arch spanning Church Street, and stands today in its original form, notwithstanding the several but fruitless efforts of the local traction engine drivers to affect its displacement with their ponderous machines.” [1: p310]

The bridge to which Henry refers is long-gone in the 21st century. We can still, however, follow much of the route of the old railway.

Looking South along the Crab and Winkle Way which follows the line of the old railway, © Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
Looking North from the same location,© Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
Looking South again from a point a few hundred metres North of the last location on the Crab and Winkle Way, © Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
Looking North once again, from the same location as the photograph above, © Tom Banbury. [Google Streetview, 2016]
The remaining abutment of the bridge which carried the old railway over the railway along the North coast of Kent, just to the East of the present Whitstable Railway Station. [Google Streetview, August 2024]
The bridge abutments (visible either side of the road) from the structure which carried the line over Tynham Road remain in position in the 21st century. The road was lowered to pass under the old line. This photograph is taken facing East along Tynham Road. [Google Streetview, August 2024]
Now in the suburbs of Whitney the old line curved to the West. [15]
The South end of the cul-de-sac called The Sidings, looking South along the line of the old railway. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
Again at the South end of The Sidings, this time looking North. The Sidings is built over the line of the old railway. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
Looking Northeast from Westgate Terrace, the carpark is built over the line of the old railway. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
At one time, there was a railway Station on Harbour Street close to the Harbour in Whitstable. [13]
The railway at Whitstable Harbour in 1846.  Note that this image is drawn with the North point facing to the bottom of the image as is illustrated by the next image. [1: p309]
Whitstable Harbour in 1938. Note the location of the Station, © Public Domain. [2]
The Harbour railways, superimposed by railmaponline.com on modern satellite imagery. [15]
Looking East from Harbour Street, the line of the old railway curves into the shot through the single story cream building near the centre of the image. That building is built over the station site. [Google Streetview, October 2022]
The daily goods train for Canterbury passing the second Whitstable Harbour Station in the mid-20th century in the hands of an ‘R1’ Class 0-6-0T, © D. Crook, Public Domain. [19: p125]
The site of the Harbour Station in a neglected state in the 1960s. [16]
Just beyond the most recent station buildings, across  Harbour Street, sat the original station, seen here on the left, © Public Domain. [19: p106]
The view from the line alongside the oldest station building into the harbour sidings at Whitstable, © Public Domain. [17]
A reverse view looking towards the original railway station building, © Public Domain. [20]

Henry continues his account:

“Before the completion of these works, … the company had twice to recourse to Parliament for additional capital powers, having exceeded those already granted with the railway in a half-finished state. The first was in 1827, when it was stated that the works authorised in 1825 had made good progress, but for their successful completion a further sum of money to the tune of £19,000 would be required, and for which they now asked. This Act also empowered the company to become carriers of passengers and goods, their original intention being to only levy tolls on all wagons and carriages passing over their line, the railway company providing the tractive power. The Act received royal assent on 2nd April 1827, but the larger portion of it was repealed by another in following year, the directors having found that the £19,000 previously authorised would prove inadequate for their purpose; so in 1828 they again went to Parliament for powers to raise £40,000 in lien thereof, and also petitioned for powers to lease the undertaking should they so desire, for a term not exceeding 14 years. These powers were conceded, and the Act received Royal Assent in May 1828. … The capital of the company aggregated £71,000 before the opening of the railway took place, which sum was further increased by a subsequent Act. … By May 1829, the works were nearing completion [and] … the question of permanent way and the gauge to which it was to be laid, had to be [considered.] …  The Stephenson gauge of 4 ft. 8 1/2 in, was adopted. The permanent way …  was laid with Birkenshaw’s patent wrought-iron fish-bellied rails and castings, of which George Stephenson highly approved. These rails were rolled in lengths of 15 ft. and weighed 28lb to the yard.  The castings were spiked to oak sleepers placed at intervals of 3 ft., and the sheeves upon which the winding ropes of the stationary engines ran were situated in the centre of the track fixed to the sleepers at intervals of 6 ft.” [1: p310-311]

Henry continues:

With “all earthworks completed, engine houses, engines and stationary engines erected, permanent way laid, and everything generally ready to be brought into use, excepting the harbour, which was not completed for a year or two later, the Company announced the formal opening of the railway for 3rd May 1830.” [1: p311]

Of that day in 1830, the Kent Herald wrote:

“The day being remarkably fine, the whole City seemed to have poured forth its population, and company from the surrounding country continuing to augment the throng. By eleven o’clock, the time appointed for the procession to start, the assemblage of spectators was immense. The fields on each side of the line of road being crowded by well-dressed people of all ages, presented one of the most lively scenes we have witnessed for some time. The arrangements were so judiciously made, that by a quarter past eleven the procession was set in motion, the signal for starting having been given by telegraph. The bells of the Cathedral rang merrily at intervals during the day, and flags were displayed on the public buildings and railway. The following is the order of the procession:

1. Carriage with the directors of the Railway Company wearing white rosettes.

2. A coach with the Aldermen and other Members of the Canterbury Corporation.

3. A carriage with ladies.

4. A carriage with a band of music.

5. Carriages with ladies.

6 to 20. Carriages containing the Proprietors of the Railway, their friends, etc., in all amounting to near three hundred.

The procession was drawn forward in two divisions until it arrived at the first engine station, in which manner also it entered Whitstable, preceded by the locomotive engine. The various carriages contained nearly 300 persons, consisting of the principal gentry, citizens, and inhabitants of Canterbury and its neighbourhood. At Whitstable an excellent lunch was provided for the company by the Directors at the Cumberland Arms.” [14]

The inaugural train sets off from Canterbury and approaches Tyler Hill Tunnel South Portal. [1: p305]
The return journey with the inaugural train leaving Whitstable and heading South for Canterbury.  [1: p312]
‘Invicta’ – the first engine used on the Canterbury’s and Whitstable Railway standing in 1950 on a plinth in Dane Jon Park, Canterbury. [19: p107]

The Kent Herald continues:

“On returning, the procession was joined at the Engine Station, and the whole went forward into Canterbury together.

The motion of the carriages is particularly easy and agreeable, and at first starting the quiet power with which the vast mass was set in motion dispelled every fear in the passengers. The entrance into the Tunnel was very impressive – the total darkness, the accelerated speed, the rumbling of the car,  the loud cheering of the whole party echoing through the vault, combined to form a situation almost terrific – certainly novel and striking. Perfect confidence in the safety of the whole apparatus

The Crab and Winkle Line Trust tells us that the locomotive that pulled that first passenger train on the line was ‘Invicta’. They go on to say that the ‘Crab and Winkle Line’ became:

“the ‘first regular steam passenger railway in the world’ as stated in the Guinness Book of Records. …  The ‘Invicta’ was based on Stephenson’s more famous ‘Rocket’ which came into service four months later on the Liverpool to Manchester line. Unfortunately with just 12 horse power the ‘Invicta’ could not cope with the gradients and was only used [regularly] on the section of line between Bogshole and South Street. The rest of the line was hauled by cables using steam driven static winding engines at the Winding Pond in Clowes Wood and the Halt on Tyler Hill Road. The Winding Pond also supplied water to the engines. … By 1836 the ‘Invicta’ was replaced and a third winding engine was built at South Street. The line was a pioneer in railway engineering using embankments, cuttings, level crossings, bridges and an 836 yard (764 metre) tunnel through the high ground at Tyler Hill. The railway was worked with old engines and ancient carriages always blackened by soot from the journey through the tunnel. It was said that goods trains tended to slow down for their crews to check pheasant traps in the woods and to pick mushrooms in the fields.”

“Journey times in the 1830s were approximately 40 minutes, but by 1846 with improvements to both the line and the locomotive, the trip took just 20 minutes. This is a very respectable time especially when compared with today’s often congested roads. … In 1839, the ‘Invicta’ was offered for sale as the three stationary engines were found to be adequate for working the whole line. The one enquiry came to nothing and the locomotive was put under cover. In 1846, The South Eastern Railway reached Canterbury and acquired the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway in 1845. The branch was relaid with heavier rail and locomotives replaced the stationary engines. For many years the ‘Invicta’ was displayed by the city wall and Riding Gate in Canterbury. The ‘Invicta’ is now displayed in the Canterbury museum.” [17]

A later article about the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway, written by D. Crook, was carried by The Railway Magazine in February 1951. [19]

Crook says that the Canterbury & Whitstable was “the first railway in England to convey ordinary passengers in steam-hauled trains. … In 1832, Whitstable Harbour was opened and … a steamer later ran … between Whitstable and London. During the 1840s, the South Eastern Railway took an interest in the Canterbury & Whitstable line. The S.E.R. leased it in 1844, commenced working it in 1846, and eventually bought it outright in 1853. From 6th April 1846, it was worked throughout its length by locomotive traction, when a junction was made at Canterbury with the South Eastern line from Ashford to Margate.” [19: p125] It was at this time that the stationary engines became surplus to requirements.

“The financial receipts improved steadily and throughout the remainder of the nineteenth century the line was prosperous. In 1860, the London, Chatham & Dover Railway reached Whitstable, and shortly afterwards was extended to Margate. The South Eastern Railway opposed the construction of this line and, of course, there was no connection between the two railways at Whitstable. Early in the [20th] century intermediate halts were built at South Street, and Tyler Hill, both serving scattered communities between Whitstable and Canterbury, and a new station was provided at Whitstable Harbour, on a site just outside the harbour. In 1913, the South Eastern & Chatham Railway, into which the L.C.D.R. and S.E.R. had merged, built the present Whitstable & Tankerton Station on the main line. The Canterbury & Whitstable Railway crossed over this line just beyond the end of the platforms, and a halt was built on the bridge at the point of crossing. Steps connected the two stations and special facilities, such as cheap day tickets between Herne Bay and Canterbury via Whitstable, were commenced. After the first world war, local bus competition became intensive and the inevitable decline followed. In 1930, it was decided to close the line to passengers and the last passenger train ran on 31st December of that year. This decision must have brought the Southern Railway more relief than regret, for, in consequence of the one tunnel (Tyler Hill) on the route, clearances are very limited, and only selected engines and special coaching stock can work over it. From 1931 onwards the line has been used regularly for goods traffic, and today [in 1950], with total closure a possibility in the near future, it provides a wealth of interest.” [19: p125-126]

In 1950, Crook took his own journey along the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway which began at “Canterbury West Station, the bay platform from which the Whitstable trains ran [was] now disused. The railway [curved] sharply towards Whitstable, and immediately [left the main] line. The single track [climbed] up through the outskirts of Canterbury, and [entered] the first railway tunnel to be built in the world.” [19: p126]

We need to pause for a moment to note that Tyler Hill’s claim was actually to being the first tunnel which passenger services passed through. (Haie Hill Tunnel in the Forest of Dean was an earlier structure but was only used for goods services.)

Tyler Hill Tunnel restricted the dimensions of locomotives and rolling-stock on the line. Nothing wider than 9ft. 3in. or higher than 11ft. could work through the tunnel which was nearly half a mile in length. The gradient through the tunnel (1 in 50) continued North of the tunnel for a total length of two miles.

Crook mentions passing Tyler Hill level crossing  but noted that there was no sign of the passenger halt which once stood there. He continues: “Entering woodland country, the line … begins to drop sharply towards Whitstable. The gradients on the descent have been widely quoted as 1 in 31 and 1 in 28, but [Crook notes] the gradient boards [he saw] show them as 1 in 32 and 1 in 30. In any case, they are among the steepest to be found on a British railway. At the foot of this bank, the woods are left behind and another level stretch follows: it was at this point that Invicta used to be coupled on to the trains. The line then approaches South Street Halt, of which the platform has been removed and the waiting room only remains. The level crossing gates there, and similarly at Tyler Hill, are operated by the resident of a nearby house, the train indicating its approach by prolonged whistling. Nearing the outskirts of Whitstable, the line passes under an imposing road bridge built in 1935 by the Kent Kent County Council and carrying the A299 road which takes the bulk of the road traffic to the Kent coast. … The final steep drop into Whitstable is at 1 in 57 and 1 in 50. A road is crossed on a picturesque brick arch, which is still in its original condition, although it is undoubtedly awkward for road traffic because of its narrowness and oblique position. Immediately beyond this bridge is a much more modern one carrying the railway over the main Victoria-Ramsgate line at a point (as mentioned earlier) just clear of the main line Whitstable Station. Not a trace remains of Tankerton Halt.” [19: p126-127]

South Street Halt looking North, with the level-crossing gates beyond. Note that the platform of the Halt had been removed but the waiting shelter remained, © D. Crook, Public Domain. [19: p128]
The picturesque brick arch referred to by Crook as still being in its original condition, although undoubtedly awkward for road traffic because of its narrowness and oblique position. This bridge also gets a mention in Henry’s account as the only public road bridge on the railway. This is a narrow brick arch spanning Church Street, and stands today in its original form, notwithstanding the several but fruitless efforts of the local traction engine drivers to affect its displacement with their ponderous machines, © D. Crook, Public Domain. [1: p310][19: p106 & p127]

“By 1914, the railway was running regular services for day-trippers and Tankerton was becoming a thriving tourist destination, with tea shacks and beach huts springing up along the coast. 1914 also saw the outbreak of WW1 and the Crab and Winkle Railway was passed into the hands of the Government for the next 5 years. Passenger services were halted and the railway and harbour were used to transport much needed resources to the Western Front. These included livestock, horses, ammunition and trench building equipment.” [18] After the war, the return of passenger services did not result in the same level of patronage as before the war.

Crook continues his 1950s commentary: “Half a mile on lies the harbour, from the railway viewpoint, a pathetic sight. Both stations are still standing, the original inside the harbour gates, and the later one just outside and separated from the harbour by the main road through Whitstable. Level-crossing gates are provided there. The original station is completely derelict, and the later station, now closed for over 20 years, from the outside at least, is little better. This building has been leased for various purposes, and at present is the headquarters of the local sea cadets. Devoid of paint, and with the platform surface overgrown with weeds, it makes a very sad commentary on the march of time. The small signal box which stood there has been completely removed. A loop is provided for the engine to work round its train and this is the only section of double track along the whole six miles. The harbour itself is as pathetic as the derelict stations, with a profusion of sidings which could hold without difficulty 70 to 80 trucks. Thus the handful of trucks, rarely more than 15, lying in one or two of the sidings, serve only to remind of a past prosperity now not enjoyed. Small coastal steamers and barges carrying mostly grain and stone use the harbour, which suffers badly from the disadvantage of being tidal.” [19: p127]

It is worth commenting that Whitstable has seen a renaissance in the late 20th- and early 21st- centuries. It is a pleasant place to wander and has seen a real recovery in its economy.

Crook continues his 1950s commentary: “There are now no signals along the track but the telegraph wires appear intact, though off their poles in some places. A modern touch is provided by standard Southern Railway cast-concrete gradient signs and mile posts. The latter give the route miles to London via Canterbury East and Ashford, and, as a point of interest, by this route London is [76.25] miles from Whitstable compared with 59 miles by the Victoria-Ramsgate main line. … Originally two goods trains each day were needed to keep abreast of the traffic, but now one is ample. It takes half-an-hour to arrive from Canterbury, there is an hour’s leisurely shunting in the harbour, and the return to Canterbury is made at about 1 p.m. There is no train on Sundays. Goods carried mostly are confined to coal into Whitstable and grain into Ashford. At one time coal from the Kent mines was exported from Whitstable, but now the coal which comes this way is entirely for local use and is not a product off the local coalfields alone, but mostly from the Midlands. In the other direction, grain is unloaded at Whitstable from class “R1” six-coupled freight tanks which are in accord with the historical traditions of the line, for no fewer than three Chief Mechanical Engineers have shared in producing the version seen today. Originally known as Class ‘R’, they were built between 1888 and 1898 by the South Eastern Railway and were among the last engines to appear from Ashford under the Stirling regime, 25 being built in all. On the formation of the S.E.C.R.. some of the class were modified by Wainwright and classified R1, a total of 23 ‘Rs’ and ‘R1s’ survived to be included in the Southern Railway stock list. Nine of these subsequently were further modified to enable them to work over the Canterbury & Whitstable line and succeeded some of Cudworth’s engines. At the end of 1950, all the ‘Rs’ and all but 10 of the ‘R1s’ had been scrapped. The surviving ‘R1s’ which can work this route are Nos. 31010, (now 61 years old). 31069, 31147, 31339, and these engines all make regular appearances.” [19: p127-128]

Because of the gradients on the line, working rules stipulated that trains had to be limited to 300 tons (18 loaded trucks) from Canterbury to Whitstable, and 200 tons in the other direction, but by the early 1950s loads rarely approached these figures. “Modifications were necessary to reduce the height of the ‘Rs’ and ‘Ris’ so that they could negotiate the tunnel on the branch, these alterations included the fitting of a short stove pipe chimney, a smaller dome, and pop safety valves. The ‘R1’ rostered for duty on the Canterbury and Whitstable line spends the rest of its day as yard pilot in the sidings at Canterbury West. It is coaled and watered there, and returns to Ashford only at weekends.” [19: p128]

One of the Class ‘R1’ 0-6-0T locomotives, modified to meet the restricted loading gauge on the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway. [19: p107]
Two of the R1 locomotives in their modified condition sitting at Ashford Locomotive Depot – Ex-SER Stirling class R1 Nos. 1069 (built 6/1898) and 1147 (built 11/1890) had been cut down to operate on the restrictive Canterbury & Whitstable line, but were engaged here in shunting ex-Works engines in 1946; both were withdrawn in 8/58, © Ben Brooksbank and licenced for use here under a Creative Commons Licence (CC BY-SA 2.0). [21]

The reduced headroom in the tunnel also meant that while most open type wooden and steel trucks were permitted over the route, no closed wagons were. “For the grain traffic, special 12-ton tarpaulin hopper wagons were used. These [had] fixed side flaps and [were] all inscribed with the legend ‘When empty return to Whitstable Harbour’. Special brake vans [were] used also. Because of weight restrictions, the ‘R1s'[were] not allowed over all the harbour sidings, and trucks there [were] horse drawn or man-handled.” [19: p128]

Crook concludes his article with some comments which were topical at the time of writing: “In recent years there has been strong agitation for the railway to be re-opened for passengers, but these efforts have been unsuccessful. It had been suggested that, as Canterbury is to be a local centre for the Festival of Britain, and the line has such an historical background, a passenger service should be reinstated for a trial period during the coming summer, but this was considered impracticable. … Perhaps specially-built diesel railcars would provide a satisfactory solution. On the other hand however strong the case for re-opening, it must be admitted that the need for special rolling stock constitutes a serious difficulty.” [19: p128]

“The line was in use for over 120 years. Passengers were carried until 1931 after which the line was used for goods only. The line finally closed on the 1st of December 1952, but was re-opened for several weeks in 1953 after the great floods cut the main coastal line on the 31st of January. The line was offered for sale in the late 1950s and large sections of the line were sold to private landowners. … The world’s oldest railway bridge in Whitstable was knocked down in 1971 to make way for cars. Thirty metres of the tunnel collapsed in 1974 and by 1997 the whole route was disused built on, or overgrown, almost entirely forgotten…” [17]

Two short notes about the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway:

A. A Canterbury and Whitstable Echo (The Railway Magazine, June 1959)

“Indignation  has been expressed by residents in Whitstable at a recent substantial increase in the local rates, and the Urban District Council has been criticised for purchasing the harbour last year from the British Transport Com-mission for £12,500. This purchase accounts for 5d. of the 4s. 4d. increase in the rates. Whitstable Harbour was the first in the world to be owned by a railway company; it was among the works authorised by the Canterbury & Whitstable Act of incorporation of June 10, 1825. The railway was closed completely in December, 1952, and has been dismantled. In present circumstances, it probably is but cold comfort for the disgruntled residents to stress the historical interest of the harbour, quite apart from its commercial value. For them the fact remains that the purchase by the local authority of this adjunct to the pioneer railway in Kent has resulted in an increase in their rates.” [22]

B. Whitstable Harbour (The Railway Magazine, September 1959)

“Sir, Your editorial note in the June issue is of considerable interest to railway historians, for in addition to the fact that Whitstable Harbour was the first in the world to be owned by a railway company, it was also via this harbour that one of the earliest combined railway and steamboat bookings was introduced … In 1836, a local steam packet company agreed with the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway for the issue of tickets between Canterbury and London, and advertised that the ship William the Fourth, with Captain Thomas Minter, would leave Whitstable at 12 o’clock every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and that the connecting train from Canterbury would leave that station at 11 o’clock. The journey from London would be made on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The advertised single fares (including the railway journey) from Canterbury to London were in chief cabin 6s., children 4s.; and in fore cabin 5s., children 3s. 6d. The advertisement was headed with a small picture of the steam packet and the words, ‘Steam to London from Whitstable and Canterbury to Dyers Hall Steam Packet Wharf near London Bridge‘.” [23]

NB: There is at least a question mark to the assertion that Whitstable Harbour was the first in the world to be owned by a railway company. We know that Port Darlington was opened in December 1830. Whitstable harbour was built in 1832 to serve the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway which opened earlier. [24]

References

  1. C.R. Henry; The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway: The Second Public Railway Opened in England; in The Railway Magazine, London, October 1907, p305-313.
  2. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canterbury_and_Whitstable_Railway, accessed on 3rd November 2024.
  3. Samuel Lewis; ‘Whitley – Whittering’. A Topographical Dictionary of England;  Institute of Historical Research, 1848
  4. https://waterways.org.uk/waterways/discover-the-waterways/kentish-stour, accessed on 8th November 2024.
  5. http://www.forgottenrelics.org/tunnels/haie-hill-tunnel, accessed on 8th November 2024.
  6. https://maps.nls.uk/view/102343570, accessed on 9th November 2024.
  7. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16.4&lat=51.28569&lon=1.07653&layers=257&b=ESRIWorld&o=100, accessed on 9th November 2024.
  8. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15.9&lat=51.29739&lon=1.07007&layers=257&b=ESRIWorld&o=100, accessed on 9th November 2024.
  9. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15.8&lat=51.30970&lon=1.06424&layers=257&b=ESRIWorld&o=100, accessed on 9th November 2024.
  10. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15.8&lat=51.32336&lon=1.04957&layers=257&b=ESRIWorld&o=100, accessed on 9th November 2024.
  11. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15.8&lat=51.34712&lon=1.04568&layers=257&b=ESRIWorld&o=100, accessed on 9th November 2024.
  12. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15.8&lat=51.35763&lon=1.03637&layers=257&b=ESRIWorld&o=100, accessed on 9th November 2024.
  13. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15.8&lat=51.36336&lon=1.02749&layers=257&b=ESRIWorld&o=100, accessed on 8th November 2024.
  14. The Kent Herald of 6th May 1830.
  15. https://railmaponline.com/UKIEMap.php, accessed on 23rd December 2024.
  16. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitstable_Harbour_railway_station, accessed on 24th December 2024.
  17. https://crabandwinkle.org/past, accessed on 25th December 2024.
  18. https://www.whitstable.co.uk/the-whitstable-crab-and-winkle-way, accessed on 27th December 2024.
  19. D. Crook; The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway in 1950; in The Railway Magazine, London, February 1951, p106-107 & 125-128.
  20. https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Whitstable_Harbour_Railway_Station_001.jpg, accessed on 30th December 2024.
  21. https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2654059, accessed on 30th December 2024.
  22. Editorial; The Railway Magazine, London, June 1959, p370.
  23. Reginald B. Fellows; Letters to the Editor: Whitstable Harbour; in The Railway Magazine, London, September 1959, p649.
  24. https://www.canterbury.co.uk/whitstable-harbour/our-history, accessed on 25th August 2025.