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Significant Events in the History of the Great Western Railway
| 1833 | 21 Jan | First meeting of the Bristol committee that was to launch the Great Western Railway |
| 7 Mar | Isambard Kingdom Brunel appointed as resident engineer | |
| 30 July | Bristol Committee's first public meeting | |
| 19 Aug | The title of the 'Great Western Railway' adopted at a meeting of the London and Bristol Committees | |
| 1834 | 25 July | First Great Western Railway Bill rejected by the House of Lords |
| 1835 | 31 Aug | Great Western Railway Act received by Royal Assent |
| 29 Oct | Broad Gauge adopted by GWR Board | |
| 1837 | 3 July | Act passed for the use of Paddington as London terminus |
| 18 Aug | Daniel Gooch appointed Superintendent of Locomotive Engines | |
| 1838 | 15 Jan | First steaming of North Star |
| 4 June | Great Western line opened between Paddington and Maidenhead | |
| 1839 | April | First section of electric telegraph opened as far as Hanwell |
| 1 July | Section of line from Maidenhead to Twyford opened | |
| 1840 | 30 Mar | Section of line from Twyford to Reading opened |
| 1 June | Section of line from Reading to Steventon opened | |
| 20 July | Section of line from Steventon to Faringdon Road opened | |
| 31 Aug | Section of line from Bristol to Bath opened | |
| 6 Oct | Decision made to build the Great Western Locomotive Works at Swindon | |
| 25 Oct | GWR's first recorded accident , at Faringdon Road engine shed | |
| 17 Dec | Section of line from Faringdon Road to Wootton Basset opened | |
| The year was also noted for the building of the first Royal carriage and for the adoption of disc and crossbar signals | ||
| 1841 | 31 May | Section of line opened from Wootton Basset to Chippenham |
| 30 June | GWR line from London to Bristol open with the completion of the section from Chippenham to Bath | |
| 1842 | 13 June | First railway journey by a British reigning monarch with Queen Victoria travelling from Slough to Paddington |
| 29 Sept | First excursion train from Bristol to London | |
| 1843 | 2 Jan | Swindon Locomotive Works brought into regular use |
| 1844 | 10 May | Acquisition of the Cheltenham & Great Western Union Railway, the first acquisition by the company |
| 12 June | Branch line from Didcot Junction to Oxford opened | |
| 1845 | 16 Jan | Agreement between the GWR and the LSWR over 'territory rights' |
| 12 May | Section from Kemble to Standish opened giving access to Gloucester via the B & G | |
| 16 Dec | Locomotive trials between broad and narrow gauges begun | |
| 1846 | February | First Swindon produced locomotive appeared, Premier |
| 18 Aug | Gauge Regulation Act passed | |
| The year was also noted for the introduction of cloakrooms and cardboard tickets. | ||
| 1847 | 23 Oct | New station at St. James Square, Cheltenham opened |
| 21 Dec | Section of line from Reading to Hungerford opened | |
| 1848 | 1 Nov | Section of line from Southcote Junction to Basingstoke opened |
| 18 Dec | Section of line line from Newton Abbot to Torre opened | |
| 1849 | 8 Oct | Branch line to Windsor opened |
| 1850 | 2 Sept | Section of line from Oxford (Millstream Junc) to Banbury opened |
| 7 Oct | Section of line from Westbury to Frome opened | |
| The year was also noted with the introduction of an absolute block system through Box Tunnel. | ||
| 1851 | 1 July | GWR acquire the Kennet & Avon Canal |
| 9 Sept | Section of line from Westbury to Warminster opened | |
| 19 Sept | The GWR lease the line from Grange Court to Gloucester from the G&DFR | |
| 1852 | The year was noted for the completion of the mixed-gauge route to Birmingham and the final section of electric telegraph completed between London and Bristol. | |
| 1853 | The year was noted for the commencement of passenger traffic on the Ludlow to Hereford section. | |
| 1854 | 16 Jan | The departure side of the rebuilt Paddington station opened with the arrival side following on the 29 May |
| 29 May | Section of line from Gloucester to Standish opened to allow the Midland Railway access to Bristol | |
| 9 June | The Grand Royal Hotel at Paddington opened | |
| 1855 | 1 June | Section of line from Grange Court to Hereford opened and Charles Spagoletti appointed Telegraph Superintendent |
| 1856 | 2 Feb | First Great Western goods trains arrive at Birkenhead followed by the first passenger trains on 1 May |
| 30 June | Section of line from Warminster to Salisbury opened | |
| 1 Sept | Section of line from Frome to Yeovil opened | |
| 1857 | 20 Jan | Extension of line from Frome to Weymouth opened together with the introduction of a steamer service to the Channel Islands |
| 2 Feb | Section of line from Trowbridge to Bathampton opened | |
| 1 Sept | Branch line from Henley - in - Arden opened | |
| 1858 | 4 Nov | First slip coach introduced at Slough |
| 1859 | 18 July | Brentford branch opened to goods traffic |
| 25 July | Section of line from Henwick to Malvern Link opened | |
| 15 Sept | Isambard Kingdom Brunel dies | |
| The year was also noted for the establishment of the Reading Signal Works | ||
| 1861 | 14 Aug | First narrow gauge train pulls into Paddington |
| 1862 | A number of branch lines opened through the year including Severn Valley, Devizes and Kington | |
| 1863 | 10 Jan | Metropolitan line opened and worked by the GWR |
| 30 July | Section of line from Tenby to Pembroke opened; extended to Pembroke Docks 8 August 1864 | |
| 1 Aug | Great Western, West Midland and South Wales Railways amalgamated | |
| 8 Sept | Section of line opened from Bristol to New Passage opened | |
| 1866 | 4 Sept | Section of line from Tenby to Whiland opened |
| Nov | Section of broad gauge line from Truro to Penzance added followed by the first broad gauge through trains from Paddington to Penzance from 1 March 1867 | |
| 1867 | The Great Western begins building more of its own rolling stock at Worcester | |
| 1869 | Conversion of broad gauge to narrow gauge begins between Grange Court and Hereford and the Oxford to Wolverhampton line converted to entirely narrow gauge | |
| 1871 | A period of station rebuilding and the adding of extra lines | |
| 1872 | 1 Feb | Great Western take over the steamer services from Milford Haven |
| 11 May | The last broad gauge train runs in South Wales | |
| 1874 | March | Work begins on the Severn Tunnel |
| 17 Sept | New link between Pontypool and Newport opened | |
| The year also witnesses three bad accidents at West Drayton, Merthyr and Shipton, the conversion to narrow gauge lines south of Bristol and the start of line quadrupling between Paddington and Taplow. | ||
| 1875 | The vacuum brake employed on passenger rolling stock | |
| 1876 | 1 Jan | The Great Western absorb the Bristol & Exeter Railway |
| 1 Feb | The Great Western absorb the South Devon, Cornwall and West Cornwall Railways | |
| May | Narrow gauge line added as far as Plymouth | |
| 1877 | 1 Jan | New sidings at Acton linked to Acton Wells Junction |
| 1 June | Last broad gauge branch line opened, to St. Ives | |
| The first sleeper saloon appears, a six-wheel, four-berth vehicle | ||
| 1879 | Broad gauge conversions extended from Weston-super-Mare and Yeovil. After three years of trials, a form of automatic vacuum brake comes into regular use | |
| 1880 | Electric lighting installed at Paddington | |
| 1882 | The first train toilets are brought into service and gas began to replace oil for carriage lighting. 3rd class accommodation on all but certain expresses | |
| 1884 | 1 Mar | Weston-super-Mare loop opened |
| 1886 | 9 Jan | Trial coal train works through the Severn Tunnel with Bristol to Cardiff passenger services beginning 1 December |
| Oil boxes begin to replace grease boxes on carriages | ||
| 1887 | 27 May | Bodmin branch opens |
| 1888 | Nov | First appearance of the Great Western Railway Magazine |
| 1889 | August | The Great Western take over the working of the Channel Island steamers |
| 1890 | June | Commencement of the 'Cornishman' train service from Paddington to Penzance |
| 11 Nov | Serious train accident at Norton Fitzwarren | |
| 1891 | 9 Mar | A great blizzard affects all lines in the West of England |
| The year also saw the introduction of the electric train staff | ||
| 1892 | 7 Mar | The Paddington to Birkenhead service includes corridor trains with full lavatory facilities |
| 20 May | The last broad gauge leave Paddington and Penzance at 10.15 am with the conversion of the last remaining broad gauge line following on the 21 and 22 May | |
| The first type of communication cord, fitted outside of the carriage, is introduced. The cord was transferred to the inside of the coach from 1900 | ||
| 1893 | Steam heating of carriages was introduced and work started on the doubling of the section from Plymouth to Penwithers Junction | |
| 1894 | Extending from Penwithers Junction, doubling of the section of line to Penzance began. This work was finally completed in 1930 | |
| 1895 | 1 Oct | First trains from Paddington to Penzance discontinue the refreshment stop at Swindon |
| 1896 | May | Introduction of dining cars on the Paddington to Plymouth and Cardiff routes |
| 1899 | 16 June | Serious accident at Slough |
| The year also saw the introduction of non-stop services between Paddington to Exeter and Paddington to Birmingham | ||
| 1900 | 1 Oct | Section of line from Stert to Westbury opened to passenger traffic as part of the new line to the West of England |
| 1902 | George Jackson Churchward replaced William Dean as Locomotive Carriage and Wagon Superintendant | |
| 1903 | 10 Mar | First non-stop run between Paddington and Plymouth via Bristol with the 130 ton Royal Special |
| 17 Aug | First Great Western motor bus service from Helston to The Lizard | |
| 12 Oct | First railmotor service from Sonehouse to Chelford | |
| The year was also noted for the introduction of Vacuum brakes on goods wagons and the popularity of dining facilities for 3rd class passengers | ||
| 1904 | 9 May | Record breaking Plymouth to Paddington run in 227 minutes shared by 3065 Duke of Connaught |
| 1 July | The world's longest non-stop run from Paddington to Plymouth named as the Cornish Riviera Express introduced | |
| 1 Aug | The first section of line from Honeybourne to Cheltenham opened. This line was completed in August 1906 | |
| The year was also noted for the introduction of an experimental fast freight service from Acton to Bristol and for the Exminster water troughs brought into use | ||
| 1906 | 1 Jan | First use of Automatic Train Control on the Henley branch line |
| 17 Mar | Old Oak Common locomotive depot opened | |
| 2 July | Opening of Curry Rivell to Cogload cut-off for passenger traffic, goods having used the cut-off since the 11 June | |
| 30 Aug | A new link to Ireland created with the opening of Fishguard Harbour | |
| 1907 | Aug | The Great Western introduce semi-automatic signals linked with track circuits between Goring and Pangbourne |
| 1908 | 1 July | New Wolverhampton to Bristol route via Honeybourne opened |
| The year also saw the extension of ATC between Slough and Reading | ||
| 1910 | 9 May | Stoke Gifford to Avonmouth route opened |
| 1 July | Ashendon Junction to Anyho Junction route opens for passenger traffic (goods traffic used the line from 4 April) | |
| 1 Oct | 2nd class abolished | |
| 1913 | Work starts on extending Paddington station and the 'Safety First' movement begins | |
| 1914 | 5 Aug | With the outbreak of World War One, the government take control of the railways |
| 1919 | 1 Feb | Introduction of the eight-day week |
| 26 Sept | National railway strike that lasts until the 5 Oct | |
| 1921 | 19 Aug | Railways Act given Royal Assent, dividing the country's railways into four groups |
| Most rail services returned to their pre-war speeds and an Aberdeen to Penzance service was introduced | ||
| 1922 | 1 Jan | The first stage of grouping begins with the absorption of Barry, Cambrian, Cardiff, Rhymney, Taff Vale and Alexandra Docks & Railways into the Great Western |
| 1923 | 1 Jan | The second stage of grouping absorbs the Gwendraeth Valleys, South Wales Mineral, Welshpool & Llanfair and Liskeard & Looe Railways into the Great Western |
| 1 Jan | First use of electric motors operating points and signals, at Beaconsfield West | |
| 1 July | Third and final stage of grouping brings the Midland & South Western Junction Railway under GWR control | |
| 1924 | April | Visit of King George V and Queen Mary at Swindon Works |
| The year also saw the first car-carrying trains use the Severn Tunnel | ||
| 1926 | 3 May | All railways affected by the General Strike that lasts until 14 May |
| 1927 | Aug | 'King' class no. 6000 King George V visits the USA for the Baltimore & Ohio centenary |
| 1929 | 6 July | Sir Felix Pole resigns as General Manager |
| 1930 | Major extension of Automatic Train Control authorized from an existing 372 track miles to a total of 2,130 miles, together with the need to fit the equipment to 2,500 locomotives | |
| 1931 | Cogload flyover brought into use together with the quadrupling of the Cogload to Taunton main line | |
| 1932 | World start to stop speed record set by 'Castle' class number 5006 Tregenna Castle on the Cheltenham Flyer service. Quadrupling extended from Taunton to Norton Fitzwarren | |
| 1933 | March | The avoiding lines at Westbury and Frome open |
| April | Great Western introduces an air service from Cardiff to Torbay and Plymouth using an Imperial Airways Westland Wessex | |
| 1934 | The year bring the introduction of experimental AEC diesel railcar on the Paddington to Didcot service followed by an express railcar service from Birmingham to Cardiff | |
| 1935 | The centenary of the Great Western sees celebrations in Bristol (31 August) and London (30 October). Meanwhile the 'Bristolian' service is introduced in September | |
| 1939 | With the outbreak of another World War, the country's railways again return to government control | |
| 1940 | June | GWR ships assist in the evacuation of Dunkirk, with St. Helier making no fewer than seven round trips |
| 4 Nov | A serious rail crash at Norton Fitzwarren kills 27 and injures another 56. The locomotive involved, 'King' class number 6007 King William III, is scrapped | |
| 1942 | Quadrupling continues with the Gloucester to Cheltenham line upgraded | |
| 1946 | The year brings experiments into different fuels - the first oil-fired GWR locomotive appears, and trials begin on the use of gas-turbine propulsion | |
| 1947 | The Transport Act is given Royal Assent for the nationalisation of Britain's railways. The year also brought a special demonstration of Great Western's ATC system | |
| 1948 | 1 Jan | Enactment date for the Transport Act 1947 |
| 5 Mar | Final Board meeting of the Great Western Railway Company | |
Copyright © by John Daniel 2013.