With the opening of the London and Birmingham Railway in 1837, the first inter-city railroad to London, the capital was connected to the industrial heartlands of England, with the railway supporting the fast growing metropolis in the rapid movement of goods. A passenger terminus was established at Euston, served initially by the Winding Vaults, steam-powered rope traction from Camden. Robert Stephenson's role was central to the building of the Chalk Farm Railway Lands (CFRL) and to their surviving infrastructure and he is celebrated in this account. The goods terminus was located at Camden Town on the Regent's Canal, which provided an essential connection with the London Docks and hence to trade with the rest of the world. Camden Station was a pioneer in promoting goods interchange between rail, road and canal networks. Geographically CFRL comprise a central body with a head and a tail. The tail is the incline from Camden to Euston; the head the cutting from the Regent's Park Road Bridge to the Primrose Hill Tunnel. The body is an area bounded by Chalk Farm Road, Regent's Park Road, Gloucester Avenue and the Regent's Canal. This area housed the goods yard, locomotive sheds, warehouses, stables and other infrastructure, as well as associated rolling stock, attracting industry and commerce to the area.
Historically, the book charts the growth during the 19th century, the competition for trade, the later consolidation, the weakness between the wars, the high age of steam, and the subsequent decline under pressure from road transport. It examines the operations of a goods depot, the essential support role played by the horse, and how activities in the Railway Lands affected the neighbourhood. From being transported along the main line railway between Primrose Hill Tunnel and Euston, the story deviates into the many sidings at Camden Goods Station and branches onto the North London Railway to connect with the Docks. The journey is one through both time and space and explores a number of side tracks.
W & A Gilbey, the wine and spirits merchant, occupied a vital part of this railway infrastructure for almost 100 years and was a major employer in Camden. The story of Gilbey's Camden operations, intimately connected with CFRL, is told for the first time.
The emphasis in this account is on the infrastructure created, rather than on tractive power or rolling stock. Simon Bradley expresses it admirably (The Railways, 2016):
"For those that have been initiated, a unique allure resides in the fabric and architecture of the railways, rather than in the trains themselves."
After the demise of steam, the CFRL area endured years of uncertainty. In the new millennium it has become an immense construction site where a world of glass, steel and concrete is rising above the rich historical features that represent arguably the most important railway heritage complex in the country. The last chapters of the book unite this new development with an appreciation and celebration of our industrial heritage. They look to the future and revealing to the public what is currently largely hidden underground and hence unappreciated. While the area remains extraordinarily rich in historical features it is not always easy to tease out the threads that link past and present. For those who will live, work or pass through this unfolding panorama or those interested in transport, railways or local history the book provides these threads, showing through an extensive and unique collection of images how these features have evolved.
