Midland Railway

This article is about the historical British railway company. For the heritage railway on one of its former routes, see Midland Railway – Butterley. For other uses, see Midland Railway (disambiguation).

Midland Railway
The Midland Grand Hotel at St Pancras station, the London terminus of the Midland Railway in June 2012
Overview
HeadquartersDerby
LocaleEngland and Wales
Dates of operation10 May 1844–31 December 1922
PredecessorMidland Counties Rly, North Midland Rly, Birmingham and Derby Junction Rly
SuccessorLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length2,170 miles 22 chains (3,492.7 km) (1919)[1][note 1]
Track length6,625 miles 48 chains (10,662.9 km) (1919)[1][note 1]

The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844.[2] The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It amalgamated with several other railways to create the London, Midland and Scottish Railway at grouping in 1923.[3]

The Midland had a large network of lines emanating from Derby, stretching to London St Pancras, Manchester, Carlisle, Birmingham, and Bristol. It expanded as much through acquisitions as by building its own lines. It also operated ships from Heysham in Lancashire to Douglas and Belfast. A large amount of the Midland's infrastructure remains in use and visible, such as the Midland Main Line and the Settle–Carlisle line, and some of its railway hotels still bear the name Midland Hotel.

  1. ^ a b The Railway Year Book for 1920. London: The Railway Publishing Company Limited. 1920. p. 209.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Barnes was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Whitehouse, Patrick; Thomas, David St John (2002). LMS 150 : The London Midland & Scottish Railway A century and a half of progress. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN 0-7153-1378-9.


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