Selected article
|
Tower Subway is a tunnel that runs under the River Thames that was first used as one of the first underground railways in London. The tunnel is located between Tower Hill on the north bank and Vine Street, off Tooley Street on the South Bank. The line was operated over a short distance using a stationary car and single carriage, and a cable system. The whole system gained parliamentary approval in 1868 but at first no contractor was willing to build it due the difficulties experienced during the construction of the Thames Tunnel. This was overcome when James Henry Greathead tendered for construction and the tunnel was built by Peter W. Barlow between 1869–1870 using a cylindrical tunnelling shield they designed.
The Tower Subway was eventually superseded by Tower Bridge which was built a few hundred yards downriver in 1894. In 1898, the Subway was closed and was then used by the London Hydraulic Power Company for hydraulic tubes and water mains. It survived a World War II bomb blast which resulted in at point of impact the radius reduced to 1.2m and was found to still be in excellent condition. Nowadays the tunnel is used for mains and telecommunication cables. (Full article...)
All selected articles
|
Selected biography
|
Charles Pearson (4 October 1793 – 14 September 1862) was a solicitor to the City of London, a reforming campaigner and briefly a Member of Parliament for Lambeth constituency. He was involved in many campaigns and reformations including overturning the ban on Jews from being stockbrokers. He also fully supported universal suffrage and electoral reform to balance the sizes of parliamentary constituencies.
Recognising the growth in the outer suburbs of London and inner city congestion, he proposed the construction of an underground railway through the Fleet valley to Farringdon. His first proposal was that of an atmospheric railway, which was ridiculed, but he continued to campaign throughout the 1840s and 1850s. Various other schemes included a rejected plan for a central railway station to be shared by multiple railway companies. In 1854, a private bill for the Metropolitan Railway between Paddington and Farringdon received assent. Although not a director or shareholder, Pearson's publishing of a pamphlet and continued support eventually convinced the City of London to support for the project.
Pearson died of dropsy on 14 September 1862 at his home at West Hill, Wandsworth, and so was not alive to see the opening of the Metropolitan Railway on 10 January 1863. Pearson had refused the offer of a reward from the railway company, but, shortly after the railway's opening, his widow was granted an annuity of £250 per year. (Full article...)
All Selected biographies
|
Did you know...
|
More Did you know...
|
Related portals
|
|
|
Selected pictures
|
-
Image 1Hornsey Lane Bridge, Archway, more commonly known as "Suicide Bridge".
-
Image 2The multi-level junction between the M23 and M25 motorways near Merstham in Surrey. The M23 passes over the M25 with bridges carrying interchange slip roads for the two motorways in between.
-
-
-
-
Image 6Day (left) and Night (right) sculptures by Sir Jacob Epstein on the London Underground's headquarters at 55 Broadway.
-
-
Image 8The original Hampton Court Bridge in 1753, the first of four on the site.
-
Image 9Vauxhall Bridge across the River Thames opened in 1906 and features sculptures by F. W. Pomeroy.
-
Image 10Escalators at Westminster Underground station descend between beams and columns of the station box to reach the deep-level Jubilee line platforms.
-
Image 11The western departures concourse of King's Cross railway station.
-
Image 12London Underground A60 Stock (left) and 1938 Stock (right) trains showing the difference in the sizes of the two types of rolling stock operated on the system. A60 stock trains operated on the surface and sub-surface sections of the Metropolitan line from 1961 to 2012 and 1938 Stock operated on various deep level tube lines from 1938 to 1988.
-
Image 13Central London Railway poster, published in 1905.
-
Image 14Hammersmith Bridge, opened in 1887, crosses the River Thames in west London.
-
Image 15Arguably the best-preserved disused station building in London, this is the former Alexandra Palace station on the GNR Highgate branch (closed in 1954). It is now in use as a community centre (CUFOS).
-
-
Image 17"Boris Bikes" from the Santander Cycles hire scheme waiting for use at a docking station in Victoria.
-
-
Image 19Original stations on the Metropolitan Railway from The Illustrated London News, 27 December 1862.
-
Image 20View of Old London Bridge, circa 1632 by Claude de Jongh.
-
Image 21Preserved AEC Routemaster coaches in London Transport Green Line livery.
-
Image 22Helicopter landing at London Heliport, a jetty constructed in the River Thames in Battersea.
-
-
-
Image 25A tram of the London United Tramways at Boston Road, Hanwell, circa 1910.
-
Image 26Rail, road and river traffic, seen from the London Eye.
-
Image 27London General Omnibus Company B-type bus B340 built in 1911 by AEC. One of a number of London buses purchased by the British military during World War I, this vehicle was operated on the Western Front.
-
Image 28Archer statue by Eric Aumonier at East Finchley Underground station.
-
Image 29Albert Bridge, opened in 1873, crosses the River Thames between Chelsea and Battersea.
-
-
Image 31The south façade of King's Cross railway station London terminus of the East Coast Main Line.
-
Image 3255 Broadway, headquarters of the UERL and its successors, is a Grade I listed building in Westminster designed by Charles Holden.
-
-
Image 34Sailing ships at West India Docks on the Isle of Dogs in 1810. The docks opened in 1802 and closed in 1980 and have since been redeveloped as the Canary Wharf development.
-
Image 35Southern approach to the Rotherhithe Tunnel that runs under the River Thames in east London between Rotherhithe and Limehouse.
-
Image 36Early style tube roundel in mosaic at Maida Vale Underground station.
-
-
Image 38London Underground Battery-electric locomotive L16 designed to operate over tracks where the traction current is turned off for maintenance work.
-
Image 39Qantas Boeing 747-400 about to land at Heathrow Airport, seen beyond the roofs of Myrtle Avenue, Hounslow.
-
-
Image 41Tram 2548 calls at Arena tram stop. This is one of the trams on the Tramlink network centred on Croydon in south London.
-
Image 42TX4 London Taxi at Heathrow Airport.
-
Image 43Ruislip Lido Railway's 12-inch (300 mm) gauge locomotive "Mad Bess" hauling a passenger train.
-
Image 44Woolwich Ferry boats "John Burns" and "James Newman" on the River Thames, 2012.
-
Image 45Clapham Common Underground station north and south-bound platforms on the Northern line.
-
Image 46The New Routemaster built by Wrightbus has three entrances, two staircases and is designed to be reminiscent of the Routemaster.
-
-
Image 48The newly constructed junction of the Westway ( A40) and the West Cross Route ( A3220) at White City, circa 1970. Continuation of the West Cross Route northwards under the roundabout was cancelled leaving two short unused stubs for the slip roads that would have been provided for traffic joining or leaving the northern section.
-
Image 49The Circle routes of Victorian London, comprising the Inner Circle, Middle Circle, Outer Circle and Super Outer Circle.
All Selected pictures
|
In the news
|
Archive
|
Anniversaries
|
- 21 September
- There are no anniversaries today
|
|