History of World Rail

World Railway History

The idea of wagons being pulled along by a powered source is virtually untraceable. There are pictures of various forms of 'trains' over the centuries, dating back to BC. Even the ancient Egyptian chariot could be called a fore-runner of the modern Railway Train. As with almost everything in man's history, inventions and ideas are not new, and the very thought of pulling a wheeled carriage is basic, but how to do it successfully? That has been almost six thousand years coming.

It was around 600 BC that the Greeks used cut tracks in limestone paths to pull wagons by horse, the tracks keeping the wagon in the way it is meant to be heading. Later pictures of wooden tracks are among the various means of 'railway' as early as the 1300's. But it was in the early 1800's when steam engines and steel rails were introduced and a rail line system first started to appear across the continents of the world.

The new railways, used simply to transport goods and passengers in Europe, helped forge the new British settlements in America, Australia and South Africa. It helped open up vast areas of Russia and Siberia as well as make travel to exotic new places in Asia for the European visitor.

Signicicant Dates in World Rail History

For more information on the history of rail please visit the following websites:-

Wikipedia - History of Rail Transport

Model by Jonathan Walton Jonboy Radio

NOTE: All links are to English versions of the websites. Most are in local languages. If links are broken (as websites often change their templates) simply go to the home page listed and search for the country of interest.

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