1870 in rail transport
Encyclopedia
January events
- January 20 - The Elizabeth City and Norfolk Railroad, which later became the original Norfolk Southern RailroadNorfolk Southern Railway (former)The Norfolk Southern Railway was the final name of a railroad running from Norfolk, Virginia southwest and west to Charlotte, North Carolina. It was acquired by the Southern Railway in 1974, which was merged with the Norfolk and Western Railway in 1990 to form the current entity of the Norfolk...
, is chartered to build a railroad line between Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk, VirginiaNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, and Elizabeth City, North CarolinaElizabeth City, North CarolinaElizabeth City is a city in Pasquotank County and Camden County in the State of North Carolina. With a population of 18,683 at the 2010 census, Elizabeth City is the county seat of Pasquotank County....
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February events
- February 24 - Delaware and Hudson Canal Company leases the Albany and Susquehanna RailroadAlbany and Susquehanna RailroadThe Albany and Susquehanna Railroad was a railroad running from Albany to Binghamton, operating 1851 to 1870-History:Construction began on April 19, 1851 from Albany to Schoharie Junction, New York, a distance of 35 miles . This phase was completed in 1863...
, which extended from AlbanyAlbany, New YorkAlbany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
to Binghamton, New YorkBinghamton, New YorkBinghamton is a city in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. It is near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers...
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March events
- March 7 - Great Indian Peninsular RailwayGreat Indian Peninsular RailwayThe Great Indian Peninsula Railway was a predecessor of the Indian Central Railway, whose headquarters was at the Boree Bunder in Bombay . The Great Indian Peninsula Railway was incorporated on August 1, 1849 by an act of the British Parliament. It had a share capital of 50,000 pounds...
completes link between ItarsiItarsiItarsi is a city in Madhya Pradesh sn central India. Itarsi is located in Hoshangabad District, south of the city of Hoshangabad. Itarsi is a commercial hub for agricultural goods, and is also famous for its railway junction. The Bori Wildlife Sanctuary and Tawa Dam are nearby...
and Jabalpur where it connects with the East Indian Railway, completing the rail connection from Bombay to Calcutta. - March 24 - 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....
signs a 999-year lease of the Erie and Pittsburgh RailroadErie and Pittsburgh RailroadThe Erie and Pittsburgh Railroad was a railroad based in Erie, Pennsylvania incorporated on 1 April 1858. Operations began in March 1860. It operated jointly with Buffalo and State Line Railroad from an indeterminate date until 28 February 1870, in connection with the latter's commitment, along...
. - March 28 - Construction on the Kansas Pacific RailwayKansas Pacific RailwayThe Kansas Pacific Railway was a historic railroad company that operated in the western United States in the late 19th century. It was a federally chartered railroad, backed with government land grants. It operated many of the first long-distance lines in the state of Kansas in the 1870s,...
reaches Kit Carson, ColoradoKit Carson, ColoradoThe historic Town of Kit Carson is a Statutory Town in Cheyenne County, Colorado, United States. The population was 253 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Kit Carson is located at ....
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June events
- June - The Denver Pacific RailwayDenver Pacific RailwayThe Denver Pacific Railway was a historic railroad that operated in the western United States during the late 19th century.Formed in 1867 in the Colorado Territory, the company operated lines in Colorado and present-day southeastern Wyoming in the 1870s until merging with the Kansas Pacific and...
completes construction of its mainline between Denver, ColoradoDenver, 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 Cheyenne, WyomingCheyenne, WyomingCheyenne is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Laramie County. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Laramie County. The population is 59,466 at the 2010 census. Cheyenne is the...
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July events
- July 24 - The first railroad carRolling stockRolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
to travel the entire distance from the PacificPacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
to the AtlanticAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
coast of the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
arrives in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
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August events
- August - Construction crews on the Kansas PacificKansas Pacific RailwayThe Kansas Pacific Railway was a historic railroad company that operated in the western United States in the late 19th century. It was a federally chartered railroad, backed with government land grants. It operated many of the first long-distance lines in the state of Kansas in the 1870s,...
working eastward 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...
and westward from Kansas CityKansas City, KansasKansas City is the third-largest city in the state of Kansas and is the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the third largest city in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The city is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the "Unified...
meet at Strasburg, ColoradoStrasburg, ColoradoStrasburg is a census-designated place in Adams and Arapahoe counties in the U.S. state of Colorado. The population was 1,402 at the 2000 census. The Strasburg Post Office has the ZIP Code 80136....
. - August - The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, building westward from TopekaTopeka, KansasTopeka |Kansa]]: Tó Pee Kuh) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is situated along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was...
, reaches Emporia, KansasEmporia, KansasEmporia is a city in and the county seat of Lyon County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 24,916. Emporia lies between Topeka and Wichita at the intersection of U.S. Route 50 with Interstates 335 and 35 on the Kansas Turnpike...
. - August 2 - The TexasTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
legislature approves the Missouri-Kansas-Texas RailroadMissouri-Kansas-Texas RailroadThe Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad was incorporated May 23, 1870. In its earliest days the MKT was commonly referred to as "the K-T", which was its stock exchange symbol; this common designation soon evolved into "the Katy"....
(MKT) charter, which was originally granted by KansasKansasKansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, allowing the MKT to build into the state. - August 15 - Construction on the Kansas Pacific Railroad, building westward from KansasKansasKansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, reaches Denver, ColoradoDenver, 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...
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September events
- Russian emperor Alexander IIAlexander II of Russia
Alexander II , also known as Alexander the Liberator was the Emperor of the Russian Empire from 3 March 1855 until his assassination in 1881...
inaugurates through services between Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
and Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
(Finnish Railways
VR Group
VR or VR Group is a state-owned railway company in Finland. Formerly known as Suomen Valtion Rautatiet until 1922 and Valtionrautatiet / Statsjärnvägarna until 1995...
).
- September 12 - Completion of the Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad from 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...
to Sebago LakeSebago LakeSebago Lake is the deepest and second largest lake in the U.S. state of Maine. The lake is deep at its deepest point, with a mean depth of , covers about in surface area, has a length of and a shoreline length of . The surface is around above sea level, so the deep bottom is below the present...
causes abandonment of the parallel Cumberland and Oxford CanalCumberland and Oxford CanalThe Cumberland and Oxford Canal was opened in 1832 to connect the largest lakes of southern Maine with the seaport of Portland, Maine. The canal followed the Presumpscot River from Sebago Lake through the towns of Standish, Windham, Gorham, and Westbrook. The Canal diverged from the river at...
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- September 24 - Ginery TwichellGinery TwichellGinery Twichell was president of the Boston and Worcester Railroad in the 1860s, the Republican Representative for Massachusetts for three consecutive terms and the sixth president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.He was born on in Athol, Massachusetts. Some references list his actual...
succeeds Henry KeyesHenry KeyesHenry Keyes was a prominent politician and railroad executive from Vermont. He was a state senator and was a candidate for governor of Vermont three times. He also served as president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.In 1825 he moved to Newbury, Vermont, where he preferred to stay as...
as president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe RailwayAtchison, Topeka and Santa Fe RailwayThe Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...
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December events
- December 12 - The Stairfoot rail accidentStairfoot rail accidentThe Stairfoot rail accident was a railway accident that took place at Stairfoot, South Yorkshire, England.On 12 September 1870 in Barnsley top yard a rake of 10 goods wagons was standing on a gradient of 1 in 119. A single between the spokes of a wheel was holding them. When two gas tank wagons...
in England kills 15 people - December 26 - The Hatfield rail crash (1870)Hatfield rail crash (1870)On a frosty Boxing day in 1870 the driver of the 16:25 from London King's Cross to Peterborough noticed an 'uneasy oscillation' as he passed over Marshmoor level crossing, 2 miles south of Hatfield station. He peered back and discovered he had lost his train and pulled up. He reversed back,...
in England kills 8.
Unknown date events
- 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....
and Central Pacific RailroadCentral Pacific RailroadThe Central Pacific Railroad is the former name of the railroad network built between California and Utah, USA that formed part of the "First Transcontinental Railroad" in North America. It is now part of the Union Pacific Railroad. Many 19th century national proposals to build a transcontinental...
operations are merged under the Southern Pacific name.
July births
- July 29 - Henry FowlerHenry Fowler (engineer)Sir Henry Fowler, KBE was a Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Midland Railway and subsequently the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.- Biography :...
, Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Midland RailwayMidland RailwayThe Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
1909–1923 and of the London, Midland and Scottish RailwayLondon, Midland and Scottish RailwayThe London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
1925–1931 (d. 1938).
December deaths
- December - Byron KilbournByron KilbournByron Kilbourn was an American surveyor, railroad executive, and politician who was an important figure in the founding of Milwaukee, Wisconsin....
, president of Milwaukee and Mississippi Railroad 1849-1852 (b. 1801). - December 8 - Thomas BrasseyThomas BrasseyThomas Brassey was an English civil engineering contractor and manufacturer of building materials who was responsible for building much of the world's railways in the 19th century. By 1847, he had built about one-third of the railways in Britain, and by time of his death in 1870 he had built one...
, EnglishEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
railway contractor who supervised the construction of more than 6500 miles ( km) of track around the world (b. 1805).
Unknown date deaths
- George S. GriggsGeorge S. GriggsGeorge S. Griggs was a pioneer master mechanic in the earliest days of railroading in the United States.Griggs, like other mechanics of his age, learned the art of machining at Locks and Canals Machine Shop...
, pioneering master mechanic of AmericanUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
steam locomotives (b. 1805).