02 August 2016
|
Location of the Tower Subway in 1895
On 2 August 1870 the Tower Subway opened in London
On 2 August 1870, the world's first underground tube railway, Tower Subway, is opened in London. The subway is a circular tunnel beneath the River Thames, situated between Tower Hill and Vine Lane. The tunnel was dug through London clay using a wrought iron shield patented by Peter W Barlow and a narrow gauge railway was laid inside. When it opened in August 1870, it could carry passengers in a wooden carriage pulled by cable, but this proved to be too costly and the tunnel was converted for pedestrians, who paid a 1/2d fee to cross under the river on foot. One million Londoners a year used the subway until it closed to the public in 1898, following the opening four years earlier of Tower Bridge, which was free to cross. The tunnel still exists today and is used to carry water mains.
The same construction methods were used to build the tunnels in 1890 for the City and South London Railway, London’s first ‘Tube’ transport.
Do you have London ancestors? Check out the fabulous (and free!) The Proceedings of the Old Bailey, 1674-1913 at https://www.oldbaileyonline.org and its related website London Lives. Old Bailey Online is a searchable database of the largest body of texts detailing the lives of non-elite people ever published, containing 197,745 criminal trials held at London's central criminal court. You’ll find great Getting Started guides and helpful videos and tutorials to help you begin searching.
Get advice on the best ways to trace your ancestors with Family Tree! Every issue is packed with expert advice, reader stories, photo-dating tips, fascinating family history articles and the crucial answers to your genealogy questions! Find our latest issue at www.family-tree.co.uk/store/latest-issue