Thursday 29th October 7pm at St Mary’s Church, Ross on Wye
Ticket £8 (£3 off the book at the event)
Join local historian and author Heather Hurley for a n illustrated talk on railways in Herefordshire and the southern Marches.
A richly detailed and illustrated account of the railways formed between 1845 and 1900 across Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Monmouthshire, Brecknockshire and Radnorshire.
Unpicking the often haphazard network of the early railways, this book traces the lines and infrastructure, the stations, bridges and tunnels, the investors, engineers and navvies, and the charismatic steam locomotives that criss-crossed the region up until the 1960s – from the companies’ incorporation in the nineteenth century to what can be seen of the railways now.
The book is the result of extensive fieldwork and research into the archives of the 18 railway companies that sought to establish lines in the region, drawing on Acts of Parliament, toll tables, company minutes and accounts, plans and maps, newspapers, journals and walking tours of the lines themselves. The book is illustrated with more than 350 illustrations, including contemporary and historical photographs, prints, maps and documents.
Although individual railways have been well recorded in many publications, this is believed to be the first covering the early railways of this part of the country in a single volume. It provides a fascinating and richly-illustrated overview of the region’s historical railway network.
Heather Hurley lives in Herefordshire and has a keen interest in local history. She has written a number of books, including The Story of Ross, Landscape Origins of the Wye Valley, The Green Lanes of Herefordshire and Herefordshire’s River Trade – Craft & Cargo on the Wye & Lugg.
A joint event for Rossiter Books and The Friends of St Mary’s Ross on Wye.