2-798-943 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Sir Robert Peel entering Tamworth, 1845. British Prime Minister Robert Peel arrives for a ceremony marking the start of construction on the Trent Valley line between Rugby and Stafford. 'The proposed line, which will be fifty-two miles in length, is to run from the Rugby Station of the London and Birmingham Railway to Stone, in Staffordshire; and a glance at the map of the country will show its importance with a view to direct communication between London and the manufacturing districts. The narrow gauge is intended to be adopted, and the undertaking is expected to he finished in about eighteen months. The engineers are Mr. R. Stephenson, jun., Mr. Bidder, and Mr. T.L. Gooch.' From "Illustrated London News", 1845, Vol VII.