“Of all my books, my favorite is the one I received last Christmas. There is no tome like the present.”
World's first passenger railwayIn 1807, the world's first railway passenger service began in Wales on the Oystermouth Railway (later known as the Swansea and Mumbles Railway). It had been built in 1804, originally to transport coal, iron-ore and limestone from Oystermouth to the seaport of Swansea. The rails were “L” shaped tramplates mounted on rough stone blocks. At first, passengers travelled in a four-wheeled horse-drawn “dandy.” Use of steam engines began in 1877. By 1898, the line had been extended to Mumbles. Double-decker electric cars powered by overhead cables were used from 2 Mar 1929. The line was closed on 5 Jan 1960, and dismantled.« |
