Redundant in 1854 – back in 2026!
A company to build a railway from London to Birmingham was formed during 1823, and in January the following year it asked engineer Sir John Rennie the Younger, the builder of London Bridge, to survey a route.
In a report dated April 1, 1826, he recommended a London terminus at Islington, alongside the Regent’s Canal, with a route running through Rickmansworth, Watford, Hemel Hempstead, Quainton, Brackley, Southam, and passing two miles from Coventry.
In 1829, two further routes were proposed, one via Oxford and Banbury, and the other, by Francis Giles via Coventry. Separate companies were formed to build each, but quickly seeing there was no point in competing against each other, let alone profit from such rivalry, they amalgamated on September 11, 1830.
The Coventry route backers had already sought the advice of Liverpool & Manchester Railway engineer and rocket