Act for creating the railway from Kingston-upon-Hull to Selby.
Until 1840 the railway line from Leeds terminated at Selby. Prior to the railway’s construction, the only way to access Kingston upon Hull for most people was by sea, using the rivers Trent or Ouse or over land by traveling via Mail-Coach. When the Leeds-Selby line was opened, the next line to open beyond Selby was the Kingston Upon Hull line.
The Kingston upon Hull line was 30 ¾ miles long and entered into use in July 1840.The superstructure of the Selby Railway swing bridge cost ₤6,000 and was manufactured by Butterley Iron Company. It remained in use until the opening of a second bridge in February 1891. The railway line opened in July 1840 and carried both passengers and goods directly to Hull from Leeds, and reverse, which resulted in the loss of much trade from Selby’s riverside railway wharves.
The first train to utilize the line left from Hull and took about two hours to arrive in Selby. Its return trip took only one hour and five minutes. In 1850, a new dock was constructed which extended 20 acres, and Queen Victoria visited Kingston upon Hull in 1854.
A public notice announcing the opening of the Hull and Selby or Hull and Leeds railway.
A drawn diagram of a “Grays” engine, built by Mr.’s Fenton, Murry and Jackson, all of Leeds.
The first station at Hull was opened on July 1, 1840.
Photos from Selby: The Industrial Past – Roland Chilvers.
- Date
- 1840
- Ref no
- R2G/Rail/048
- Level
- Item
- Archive
- Selby : Abbot Staith
- Extent
- Eight photos
- Theme
- Railway
- Decade
- 1840