The next anniversary: 150 years of passenger services on the Settle & Carlisle
After last year’s celebrations, 200 years since opening of the Stockton & Darlington and 150 years after the Settle and Carlisle opened for goods, another major anniversary is only a few months away. The Midland Railway’s passenger services over the S&C commenced on 1 May 1876, marking the completion of the company’s independent route to […]
Seasonal greetings to all our website visitors
As we near the end of the first year of the Society’s new website, this note is just to thank you for visiting us, and for your interest in the Society, the Study Centre and the Midland Railway itself. Following on from this year’s Railway 200 celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the Stockton & […]
Heritage Railway Winter and Christmas Events
With Christmas coming, and winter already with us, many of our friends at former Midland heritage railways are already offering special services, and even if you prefer to see the the lines in their original condition, perhaps you have children or grandchildren who would appreciate the added attractions. Back in March the new Society website […]
Favourite UK railway artwork
As its contribution to this year’s Railway 200 celebrations, Art UK organised a global competition to find the public’s favourite UK railway artwork; the results, including images of the winner and other shorted-listed paintings, can be found on the Art UK website: https://artuk.org/discover/stories/train-landscape-by-eric-ravilious-wins-global-vote-to-find-the-publics-favourite-uk-railway-artwork/search/2025–keyword:railway-200–referrer:global-search/page/2 Although the Midland was not the subject of the winning painting, a […]
Midland family & local history
The Midland Railway Society exists to promote interest in all aspects of the railway, not only the history of the lines, locomotives, carriages and wagons, stations and infrastructure, but the people at all levels who built and operated them, from engineers and labourers, porters and engine cleaners to Station Masters or the Company’s Directors. Perhaps […]
Introduction to signalling around Leeds – Joint Zoom Members’ Meeting with KWVR on Monday, 12 May 2025, 7.30 pm
Extending our cooperation with Keighley & Worth Valley Railway, our Spring members’ meeting via Zoom on Monday, 12 May 2025 at 7.30 pm will be a talk by Richard Pulleyn, member of both organisations, on “An Introduction to Signalling Around Leeds”. Richard can draw on experience as railway signalman, on the former Midland main line […]
Keighley Station Renovation and Reopening
The Keighley & Worth Valley have just announced the reopening of Keighley Station, a Grade 2 Listed Building, following completion of a major renovation project, led by Network Rail, its main contractor and KWVR, who carried out its own programme of work on the heritage side of the station. Further financial support came from the […]
Heritage Railway Spring Services
With spring approaching, train services will soon be running on most heritage railways, and spring galas with special timetables, visiting locos and other attractions may also be of interest (but please check with the line concerned before your visit, details below are as at the date of this post): The Avon Valley Railway at Bitton, […]
Embsay & Bolton Abbey restoring former Midland Railway carriages
This former Midland line in Yorkshire, operating part of the Skipton-Ilkley route, has a new project to restore two corridor coaches numbers, 238 and 241, from the very end of the Midland era in 1922. Further details of the Embsay & Bolton Abbey Steam Railway, their operating days and times, and of this and other […]
Marketing news
One of the Society’s new marketing measures aims to develop our partnerships with like-minded organisations, such as heritage railways operating former Midland lines, so don’t be surprised if you see posts under “News and Events” which publicise their more important events or their Midland-related projects. You’ll probably have read about the opening of the restored […]