Lithograph, Travelling on the Manchester Railway, plates III and IV

Travelling on the Manchester Railway, 1831: Plate III, A train of waggons with goods etc etc, and Plate IV, A train of carriages with cattle. Colour lithograph, copyrighted by M B Cotsworth, printed and published by Raphael Tuck & Sons, 1894.

This 1894 lithograph depicts two trains of carriages on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway in 1831. The upper train is pulled by the steam locomotive Liverpool (built 1831), while the lower train is pulled by Fury (built 1831). When the Liverpool and Manchester Railway opened in 1830 it was the first steam-powered inter-city railway in the world, running for 50km between the two cities. The railway’s chief engineer was George Stephenson (1781-1848).

As shown by this print, the railway transported not only passengers but also livestock and goods. Before 1830, moving goods between Manchester and Liverpool meant either a slow trip by canal or a dangerous one by road. Once the railway opened, businesses could now transport things quickly and safely between the two cities.

The publication of this print 64 years after the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway demonstrates the continued cultural interest in the early railway. The print continues a tradition which began in 1830 of illustrating the railway in commemorative objects such as prints, mugs, bowls, and medals.