1874 in rail transport
Encyclopedia
January events
- January 27 - The Bo'ness Junction rail crashBo'ness Junction rail crashBo'ness Junction rail crash was a railway accident that took place at Bo'ness Junction in Falkirk.The junction lies on the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway between Falkirk and Linlithgow where the line to Bo'ness joined from the north near Manuel station....
in FalkirkFalkirkFalkirk is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies in the Forth Valley, almost midway between the two most populous cities of Scotland; north-west of Edinburgh and north-east of Glasgow....
, Scotland kills 16 people.
May events
- May 1 - Construction begins on the Seattle and Walla Walla RailroadSeattle and Walla Walla RailroadThe Seattle and Walla Walla Railroad was the first railroad in Seattle, Washington...
, the first railroad to be built in Seattle, Washington, United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. - May 5 - The Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn RailroadBoston, Revere Beach and Lynn RailroadThe Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad is a historic railroad that operated in Massachusetts.It was constructed as an 8.8-mile gauge narrow gauge passenger-carrying railroad to serve the Boston area....
is chartered in MassachusettsMassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. - May 18 - Construction begins on the Denver, South Park and Pacific RailroadDenver, South Park and Pacific RailroadThe Denver, South Park, and Pacific Railroad was a historic narrow gauge railway that operated in Colorado in the western United States in the late 19th century. The railroad opened up the first rail routes to a large section of the central Colorado mining district in the decades of the mineral boom...
.
June events
- June 20 – The Denver, South Park and Pacific RailroadDenver, South Park and Pacific RailroadThe Denver, South Park, and Pacific Railroad was a historic narrow gauge railway that operated in Colorado in the western United States in the late 19th century. The railroad opened up the first rail routes to a large section of the central Colorado mining district in the decades of the mineral boom...
, building from DenverDenver, ColoradoThe City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, reaches Morrison, ColoradoMorrison, ColoradoThe historic Town of Morrison is a Home Rule Municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The population was 430 at the 2000 census...
. - June 25 – The Budapest Cog-wheel RailwayBudapest Cog-wheel RailwayThe Budapest Cog-wheel Railway, officially called Tram line number 60, is a rack railway running in Budapest, Hungary.- History :Since 1868 a horse tramway ran on schedule from the Lánchíd to Zugliget set in operation by the Budai Közúti Vaspálya Társaság...
opens for regular service.
July events
- July - Hugh J. JewettHugh J. JewettHugh Judge Jewett was an American railroader and politician. He served as United States Representative from Ohio's 12th congressional district in the 43rd United States Congress....
succeeds Peter H. Watson as president of the Erie RailroadErie RailroadThe Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, originally connecting New York City with Lake Erie...
. - July 3 - The first revenue trains on the Denver, South Park and Pacific RailroadDenver, South Park and Pacific RailroadThe Denver, South Park, and Pacific Railroad was a historic narrow gauge railway that operated in Colorado in the western United States in the late 19th century. The railroad opened up the first rail routes to a large section of the central Colorado mining district in the decades of the mineral boom...
operate between DenverDenver, ColoradoThe City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
and Morrison, ColoradoMorrison, ColoradoThe historic Town of Morrison is a Home Rule Municipality in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The population was 430 at the 2000 census...
. - July 28 - The Sutherland and Caithness RailwaySutherland and Caithness RailwayThe Sutherland and Caithness Railway was a railway worked by, and later absorbed by the Highland Railway running through Sutherland and Caithness, Scotland. Caithness and Sutherland are former counties, and former districts of the Highland region.- History :...
is opened through to WickWick, HighlandWick is an estuary town and a royal burgh in the north of the Highland council area of Scotland. Historically, it is one of two burghs within the county of Caithness, of which Wick was the county town. The town straddles the River Wick and extends along both sides of Wick Bay...
and ThursoThurso-Facilities:Offices of the Highland Council are located in the town, as is the main campus of North Highland College, formerly Thurso College. This is one of several partner colleges which constitute the UHI Millennium Institute, and offers several certificate, diploma and degree courses from...
, completing the Highland RailwayHighland RailwayThe Highland Railway was one of the smaller British railways before the Railways Act 1921; it operated north of Perth railway station in Scotland and served the farthest north of Britain...
system to the far north of ScotlandScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
September events
- September 10 - NorwichNorwichNorwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
(NorfolkNorfolkNorfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
), 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...
: 25 people were killed when a communication error caused a mail train and an express passenger train to meet in a head-on collision on a single-line section. The accident led directly to the introduction of automatic control systems to manage traffic on single-track railways. - September 14 - A franchise for the extension of the Spring and Sixth Street Railroad to the Southern Pacific RailroadSouthern Pacific RailroadThe Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
's Old River Station, in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, is approved. - September 23 - East Broad TopEast Broad Top RailroadThe East Broad Top Railroad and Coal Company is a for-profit heritage railroad headquartered in Rockhill Furnace, Pennsylvania, north of Interstate 76 and south of U.S. Route 22, the William Penn Highway. The railroad operates excursion trains on a seasonal schedule.-History:The East Broad Top...
narrow gauge railroad in PennsylvaniaPennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
operates its first revenue trains.
October events
- October 23 - The first trains operate on the Monterey and Salinas Valley Railroad, making it the first narrow gauge railroad to operate in CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. - October 26 - Grand Trunk RailwayGrand Trunk RailwayThe Grand Trunk Railway was a railway system which operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, as well as the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The railway was operated from headquarters in Montreal, Quebec; however, corporate...
converts all 546 miles (878.7 km) of its trackRail tracksThe track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers and ballast , plus the underlying subgrade...
east of MontrealMontrealMontreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
to Portland, MainePortland, MainePortland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
from 5 ft 6 in (1676 mm) Portland gauge to standard gaugeStandard gaugeThe standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
.
November events
- November 7 - The Miami Valley Narrow Gauge Railway, the predecessor of the Miami Valley Railway, is incorporated.
- November 8 - Tracks of the Southern Pacific RailroadSouthern Pacific RailroadThe Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
reach Bakersfield, CaliforniaBakersfield, CaliforniaBakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....
; work begins on the route that would eventually become the Tehachapi LoopTehachapi LoopThe Tehachapi Loop is a long 'spiral', or helix, on The Union Pacific Railroad through Tehachapi Pass, in south central California. The railroad line connects Bakersfield in the San Joaquin Valley to Mojave in the Antelope Valley. The loop takes its name from the circuitous route it takes, in...
.
Unknown date events
- The Milwaukee and Mississippi Railroad, an early predecessor of the Milwaukee Road, changes its official name to Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul.
- Dr. Livingston Stone of the US Fish Commission (which later became the United States Fish and Wildlife ServiceUnited States Fish and Wildlife ServiceThe United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...
) "chaperoned" a shipment of 35,000 shadShadThe shads or river herrings comprise the genus Alosa, fish related to herring in the family Clupeidae. They are distinct from others in that family by having a deeper body and spawning in rivers. The several species frequent different areas on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea....
fry to stock the Sacramento RiverSacramento RiverThe Sacramento River is an important watercourse of Northern and Central California in the United States. The largest river in California, it rises on the eastern slopes of the Klamath Mountains, and after a journey south of over , empties into Suisun Bay, an arm of the San Francisco Bay, and...
in CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in the first such delivery by rail aboard a fish car.
May deaths
- May 27 - John Edgar ThomsonJohn Edgar ThomsonJohn Edgar Thomson was an American civil engineer and industrialist. Thomson was an entrepreneur best known for his leadership of the Pennsylvania Railroad from 1852 until his death 1874, making it the largest business enterprise in the world and a world-class model for technological and...
, president of the Pennsylvania RailroadPennsylvania RailroadThe Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
1852–1874 (b. 1808).
June deaths
- June 20 - John RugglesJohn RugglesJohn Ruggles was an American politician from the U.S. state of Maine. He served in several important state legislative and judicial positions before serving in the U.S. Senate....
, who was awarded for improved driving wheelDriving wheelOn a steam locomotive, a driving wheel is a powered wheel which is driven by the locomotive's pistons...
s (b. 1789).
Unknown date deaths
- Joseph Harrison, Jr., partner in the AmericanUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
steam locomotiveSteam locomotiveA steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
manufacturing firm of Eastwick and Harrison (b. 1810).