The Subterranean Railway (47 page)

Traffic chaos on the streets was the stimulus for the creation of the Underground. This print by Gustave Doré also shows the unsightly bridge, built to connect the Metropolitan with the railways of south London, which wrecked the view of St Paul’s Cathedral.

The Victorians dreamt up many schemes for urban railways, but most were hopelessly unrealistic, like the ‘Great Victorian Way’ (above) by Sir Joseph Paxton which was intended to link the main line stations, as the Circle line would eventually do. Some far-fetched schemes, such as the pneumatic railway at Crystal Palace (below left), were actually built.

Charles Pearson (1793–1862), without whose vision the Underground may never have existed.

The ‘cut and cover’ method of building was incredibly disruptive to anything in its path. Here Parliament Square, with the Houses of Parliament in the background, is being excavated for the building of the District line. Today, the grass of the green in the middle of the square is part of a thin covering over the tunnel.

Early stations, such as Notting Hill Gate, which opened in 1868, were light and airy compared to many of their successors.

Sir Edward Watkin (1819–1901),
left
, and James Staats Forbes (1823–1904),
right
, were bitter rivals when they ran, respectively, the Metropolitan and the District railways.

The London system was the only underground in the world to use steam trains as the principal form of traction. Here a Circle line train approaches Aldgate.

The underground railways made use of every possible space in their stations to advertise their services.

These first-class passengers on their comfortable, upholstered benches are being advised that their next station is Victoria.

A gas-lit Earls Court station before electrification. Its appearance is otherwise little different from today, apart from the stairwells that now lead down to the Piccadilly line. Earl’s Court was also, later, the site of the system’s first escalator.