Railway town
Encyclopedia
A railway town is a settlement that originated or was greatly developed because of a railway station or junction
at its site.
In Victorian Britain, the spread of railways greatly affected the fate of many small towns. Peterborough
and Swindon
became successful due to their status as railway towns; in contrast towns such as Frome or Kendall remained small after being bypassed by main lines. Some entirely new towns grew up around railway works. Middlesbrough
was the first new town to be developed due to the railways, growing from a hamlet of 40 into an industrial port after the Stockton and Darlington Railway
was extended in 1830. Wolverton
was fields before 1838 and had a population of 1,500 by 1844. Other examples of early railway towns include Ashford, Darlington, Doncaster and Neasden.
Crewe
grew greatly after the Grand Junction Railway
Company moved there in 1843; the two rural towns that became Crewe had a population of 500 in 1841, and the population had reached more than 40,000 by 1900. The railway town of 'New Swindon' displaced the neighbouring pre-existing town after the Great Western Railway
moved there: a market town of 2,000 in 1840 became a railway town of 50,000 in 1905. Railways became major employers, with 6,000 people employed by them in Crewe in 1877, and 14,000 in Swindon in 1905. The growth of railway towns was often in the mould of the 'paternalistic employer' providing housing, schools, hospitals, churches and civic buildings for their workers, similar to Cadbury's Bournville
; there was a "very rigid and unimaginative control" of the workers by GWR in Swindon. Workforces were loyal and obedient: industrial action
in railway towns was rare because the workforce depended on the company. Railwaymen dominated local politics in railway towns, particularly Francis Webb
's 'Independent Railway Company Party' in Crewe and George Leeman
in York. The chief mechanical engineer of GWR, Daniel Gooch
, was MP of Swindon for twenty years. Crewe was a 'company town' for its first few decades as workers moved in their thousands from other parts of the country. Most social amenities and organisations were sponsored by the railway, but moves such as the establishment of a town council in 1877 slowly reduced company influence, and the railway company began to consider spending on town amenities as a municipal concern. Workers organised their own institutions such as clubs, trade unions, and co-operatives to gain independence from company control, and they became the basis for political opposition in railway towns. In western Canada, railway towns became associated with brothels and prostitution, and concerned railway companies started a series of YMCA
s in the late nineteenth century in response.
In Denmark, a related concept is the stationsby or "station town". Stationsbyer are rural towns that grew up around railways, but they were based on agricultural co-operatives and artisan communities rather than on railway industries.
Changchun
in China was built by the Japanese, then occupying Manchuria, as a 'model town' as part of Japan's imperialist modernisation. The first railway town at Changchun was begun by the Russians in 1898, but it excluded Chinese residents. A second major railway town was designed and built from 1905 by the South Manchuria Railway
, inspired by Russian railway towns such as Dalian
. It was based on a rectangular system that contrasted with the circular walled town of old Changchun, and grid patterns became the standard for Chinese railway towns. The SMR developed dozens of railway towns in north-east China from 1906-1936, such as at Harbin and Mukden.
Junction (rail)
A junction, in the context of rail transport, is a place at which two or more rail routes converge or diverge.This implies a physical connection between the tracks of the two routes , 'points' and signalling.one or two tracks each meet at a junction, a fairly simple layout of tracks suffices to...
at its site.
In Victorian Britain, the spread of railways greatly affected the fate of many small towns. Peterborough
Peterborough
Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
and Swindon
Swindon
Swindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
became successful due to their status as railway towns; in contrast towns such as Frome or Kendall remained small after being bypassed by main lines. Some entirely new towns grew up around railway works. Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough is a large town situated on the south bank of the River Tees in north east England, that sits within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire...
was the first new town to be developed due to the railways, growing from a hamlet of 40 into an industrial port after the Stockton and Darlington Railway
Stockton and Darlington Railway
The Stockton and Darlington Railway , which opened in 1825, was the world's first publicly subscribed passenger railway. It was 26 miles long, and was built in north-eastern England between Witton Park and Stockton-on-Tees via Darlington, and connected to several collieries near Shildon...
was extended in 1830. Wolverton
Wolverton
Wolverton is part of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England.Wolverton may also refer to:Places in England:*Wolverton, Dorset*Wolverton, Kent*Wolverton, Hampshire*Wolverton, Shropshire*Wolverton, WarwickshirePlaces in the United States:...
was fields before 1838 and had a population of 1,500 by 1844. Other examples of early railway towns include Ashford, Darlington, Doncaster and Neasden.
Crewe
Crewe
Crewe is a railway town within the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. According to the 2001 census the urban area had a population of 67,683...
grew greatly after the Grand Junction Railway
Grand Junction Railway
The Grand Junction Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom, which existed between 1833 and 1846 when it was merged into the London and North Western Railway...
Company moved there in 1843; the two rural towns that became Crewe had a population of 500 in 1841, and the population had reached more than 40,000 by 1900. The railway town of 'New Swindon' displaced the neighbouring pre-existing town after the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
moved there: a market town of 2,000 in 1840 became a railway town of 50,000 in 1905. Railways became major employers, with 6,000 people employed by them in Crewe in 1877, and 14,000 in Swindon in 1905. The growth of railway towns was often in the mould of the 'paternalistic employer' providing housing, schools, hospitals, churches and civic buildings for their workers, similar to Cadbury's Bournville
Bournville
Bournville is a model village on the south side of Birmingham, England, best known for its connections with the Cadbury family and chocolate – including a dark chocolate bar branded "Bournville". It is also a ward within the council constituency of Selly Oak and home to the Bournville Centre...
; there was a "very rigid and unimaginative control" of the workers by GWR in Swindon. Workforces were loyal and obedient: industrial action
Industrial action
Industrial action or job action refers collectively to any measure taken by trade unions or other organised labour meant to reduce productivity in a workplace. Quite often it is used and interpreted as a euphemism for strike, but the scope is much wider...
in railway towns was rare because the workforce depended on the company. Railwaymen dominated local politics in railway towns, particularly Francis Webb
Francis Webb (engineer)
Francis William Webb was a British engineer responsible for the design and manufacture of locomotives for the London and North Western Railway .- Biography :...
's 'Independent Railway Company Party' in Crewe and George Leeman
George Leeman
George Leeman was a lawyer, railwayman and a Liberal Member of Parliament for the City of York in the nineteenth century.-Legal practice:...
in York. The chief mechanical engineer of GWR, Daniel Gooch
Daniel Gooch
Sir Daniel Gooch, 1st Baronet was an English railway and transatlantic cable engineer and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1865 to 1885...
, was MP of Swindon for twenty years. Crewe was a 'company town' for its first few decades as workers moved in their thousands from other parts of the country. Most social amenities and organisations were sponsored by the railway, but moves such as the establishment of a town council in 1877 slowly reduced company influence, and the railway company began to consider spending on town amenities as a municipal concern. Workers organised their own institutions such as clubs, trade unions, and co-operatives to gain independence from company control, and they became the basis for political opposition in railway towns. In western Canada, railway towns became associated with brothels and prostitution, and concerned railway companies started a series of YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
s in the late nineteenth century in response.
In Denmark, a related concept is the stationsby or "station town". Stationsbyer are rural towns that grew up around railways, but they were based on agricultural co-operatives and artisan communities rather than on railway industries.
Changchun
Changchun
Changchun is the capital and largest city of Jilin province, located in the northeast of the People's Republic of China, in the center of the Songliao Plain. It is administered as a sub-provincial city with a population of 7,677,089 at the 2010 census under its jurisdiction, including counties and...
in China was built by the Japanese, then occupying Manchuria, as a 'model town' as part of Japan's imperialist modernisation. The first railway town at Changchun was begun by the Russians in 1898, but it excluded Chinese residents. A second major railway town was designed and built from 1905 by the South Manchuria Railway
South Manchuria Railway
The , and operated within China in the Japanese-controlled South Manchuria Railway Zone. The railway itself ran from Lüshun Port at the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula to Harbin, where it connected to the Chinese Eastern Railway.-History:...
, inspired by Russian railway towns such as Dalian
Russian Dalian
As portion of the Guandong Leased Territories , the city of Dalian came under the territorial control of Russia from 1898 until that country’s defeat in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905...
. It was based on a rectangular system that contrasted with the circular walled town of old Changchun, and grid patterns became the standard for Chinese railway towns. The SMR developed dozens of railway towns in north-east China from 1906-1936, such as at Harbin and Mukden.
See also
- Crossroads villageCrossroads villageCrossroads village is a term that refers to a settlement, primarily in U.S. American history, that was situated where two or more roads would intersect...
- Company townCompany townA company town is a town or city in which much or all real estate, buildings , utilities, hospitals, small businesses such as grocery stores and gas stations, and other necessities or luxuries of life within its borders are owned by a single company...
- List of railway towns