1836
South Devon Main-Line Survey Completed
Brunel surveys a railway route between Exeter and Plymouth that later becomes the South Devon Railway.
Historical place archive
Browse historical events and people recorded at Devon in Great Britain. The records below are rendered directly from the World History Database into this page's initial HTML.
Brunel surveys a railway route between Exeter and Plymouth that later becomes the South Devon Railway.
Earlier survey work by Brunel helps shape plans for extending broad-gauge railway communication from Exeter toward Plymouth.
Brunel recommends atmospheric propulsion for the South Devon Railway, expecting savings and greater freedom in gradients and curves.
Parliament authorises the South Devon Railway, enabling Brunel's route from Exeter toward Plymouth to proceed.
Contracts are placed for stationary engines and equipment needed to operate Brunel's atmospheric railway system.
Brunel and Jacob Samuda take part in an early test journey that exposes weaknesses in pumps and traction pipes.
An atmospheric-powered train hauls eleven goods wagons on the South Devon Railway during experimental running.
The relatively level Exeter-to-Newton section uses fifteen-inch traction pipes to propel atmospheric trains.
Brunel plans larger traction pipes for the steeper section beyond Newton where greater pulling force is required.
All scheduled trains between Exeter and Newton temporarily operate using Brunel's atmospheric traction system.
The atmospheric railway closes after persistent leakage and high maintenance costs make it impractical.
Persistent leakage, unreliable equipment and high operating costs lead to abandonment of atmospheric traction on the South Devon Railway.
Provenance
These entries are generated from stored World History Database records whose country and place fields match Great Britain and Devon. Names, dates, event labels and descriptions are reviewed and normalised as the database develops. Historical place names may not match modern administrative boundaries.
This database is a research index. For formal scholarly citation, verify individual claims against appropriate primary, archival, academic or specialist sources.