Bradshaw's Guide Brunel's Railways The Minor Lines

Tracing Brunel's broad gauge railway on the many branch lines. Bradshaw describes the journey, and the towns and cities encountered.

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In addition to his high-profile railway lines, Isambard Kingdom Brunel was engineer to a number of minor and branch lines including those from Slough to Windsor, Didcot to Oxford and from there via the OWWW - generally known as the 'Old Worse & Worse' - across to Moreton, Evesham, Pershore and up through Worcester to Wolverhampton, the Gloucester to Cheltenham line, as well as the railways to Ross and Hereford, plus additional lines in Wiltshire, Somerset and South Wales. 'Seldom has the gigantic intellect of man been employed upon a work of greater utility.' Punch, in praise of Bradshaw's publications Bradshaw's guide was published in 1863, very shortly after these lines had been completed. It gives the reader a unique insight into the world of the Victorian railways and goes beyond the engineering aspects to record the sights to be seen in the towns and cities encountered along the way. Brunel expert John Christopher presents Bradshaw's original text accompanied by contemporary images and many new colour photographs of the same journey today.