Author: Stanley C. Jenkins

The area defined as the ‘North Oxfordshire Cotswolds’ extends from Wychwood Forest in the south to the Gloucestershire and Northamptonshire borders in the north. Although a typical Cotswold area, …

Oxford originated in the tenth century, as one of the fortified ‘burghs’ built during the Viking wars. The Domesday Book reveals that the first suburbs had appeared beyond the city wall by 1086. The …

The Witney Railway was opened from Yarnton Junction to Witney in 1861. The railway was single track throughout, with intermediate stations at Eynsham and South Leigh. In 1873, the East …

The Oxford, Worcester & Wolverhampton Railway originated during the ‘Railway Mania’ years of the mid-1840s, when ambitious landowners and industrialists conceived the idea of a main line link between …

Although, in pre-Grouping days, Oxfordshire was primarily Great Western territory, the county was also served by the Buckinghamshire branch of the London & North Western Railway, which was in many …

Incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1835 and completed just six years later, the Great Western Railway was a stupendous technical achievement. Extending for 118 miles from London to Bristol, this …

Oxfordshire has been involved with warfare throughout its history, ranging from Dark Age conflicts and the Viking Wars of the ninth and tenth centuries, to the cataclysmic conflicts of the twentieth …

The city of Oxford has a long and prosperous history. First mentioned by name in 912 as one of the ‘burghs’ or fortified places that King Alfred and his descendants had constructed to protect Wessex …

The railway came to Oxfordshire during the 1840s, the core of the present-day local railway network being completed by 1853. Other lines were subsequently constructed and, despite some branch line …

Witney grew up as the result of deliberate planning on the part of successive Bishops of Winchester, a spacious, wedge-shaped market area being laid out parallel to the river Windrush. The whole area …

As authorised in 1835, the Great Western Railway extended from London to Bristol, but from the very earliest days, ambitious promoters were planning a whole series of extensions to destinations such …

The Cornwall Railway was authorised on 3 August 1846 with the aim of constructing a broad gauge rail link between Plymouth, Truro and Falmouth. After many vicissitudes, the railway was ceremonially …

Situated in Wiltshire on the banks of the River Kennett, the picturesque market town of Marlborough is a place of considerable antiquity, with a history dating back to prehistoric times. Marlborough …

The South Wales Railway was promoted in the 1840s with the aim of completing a rail link between England, Wales and Ireland. As such, the proposed railway was seen as ‘a great national undertaking to …

The ‘North & West Route’, which, in recent years, has become known as the ‘Welsh Marches Line’, extends from Newport to Chester. Historically, this 137-mile route is an amalgam of three distinct …

Formed in 1864 by the amalgamation of the Oswestry & Newtown, Newtown & Machynlleth, Llanidloes & Newtown and several other railway companies, Cambrian Railways was the largest independent railway in …

LEEDS to CARLISLE – The line from Leeds to Carlisle furnished the Midland Railway with an independent route to Scotland, in opposition to the rival London & North Western line. The railway extends …

The obvious success of the Liverpool & Manchester Railway demonstrated that steam railways were a safe, fast and efficient form of transport, and by the end of the 1830s ambitious entrepreneurs were …

The Manchester & Leeds Railway was sanctioned by Parliament in 1836 as a railway commencing at Manchester and terminating at Normanton, from where trains would reach Leeds via the North Midland …

The Chester & Holyhead Railway was incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1844, and the promoters were thereby empowered to build an 85-mile line along the North Wales coast, the engineer for the …

Bicester History Tour is a unique insight into the illustrious history of this famous Oxfordshire town, its well-known streets and famous places, and explains what they meant to local people …

Authorised on 8 May 1833, the London & Birmingham Railway was one of Britain’s first great trunk lines. Engineered by Robert Stephenson (1803-1859), the L&BR line was regarded at the time of its …

Approved in May 1833 at the same time as the London & Birmingham Railway, the Grand Junction Railway was intended to act as a link between the London & Birmingham and the Liverpool & Manchester …

Oxford History Tour is a unique insight into the illustrious history of this venerable old university city. Local author Stanley C. Jenkins guides us around the streets and alleyways, parks and …

Witney History Tour is a unique insight into the illustrious history of this Oxfordshire town, its well-known streets and famous places, and explains what they meant to local people throughout the …

This illustrated history portrays one of England’s finest cities. It provides a nostalgic look at Oxford’s past and highlights the special character of some of its most important historic sites. The …

The city of Oxford has a long and prosperous history. First mentioned by name in the early tenth century as one of the burhs, or fortified places, that King Alfred and his descendants had constructed …

Today service industries predominate in Chester such as tourism, retail, public administration and financial services. This was not always the case, given the city’s location on the River Dee and its …

The Midland main line from London St Pancras to the north of England is one of Britain’s most important trunk routes. With its various loops and branches, this major artery of communication links …