Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Harris

2008-04-12T18:09:03Z

Kugro:

'''Harris''' is the southern part of the single [[island]] of [[Lewis]] and Harris in the [[Western Isles]] of [[Scotland]]. It is linked by ferry to the island of [[North Uist]] and to [[Uig]] on the [[Isle of Skye]]. It has given its name to the rugged woven woolen cloth known as 'Harris Tweed', the term ''tweed'' being a corruption of ''tweel'' (twill) and nothing to do with the [[River Tweed]] in south-eastern Scotland.

[[Category:Islands]]
[[Category:Scotland]]

Harris

2008-04-12T18:06:22Z

Kugro: New page: '''Harris''' is the southern part of the single island of Lewis and Harris in the Western Isles of Scotland. It is linked by ferry to the island of North Uist and to [[...

Pope Paul VI

2008-04-12T17:54:17Z

Kugro:

Pope '''Paul VI''' (1897-1978) reigned as Pope from 1963 to 1978; he succeeded [[Pope John XXIII]] and was succeeded by [[Pope John Paul I]]. He was born Giovanni Montini in the village of Concesio, Lombardy, in northern [[Italy]], and was ordained priest in 1920. Having achieved high office in the [[Vatican]] bureaucracy, Montini was made Archbishop of [[Milan]] in 1954 and a [[Cardinal]] in 1958.

As Pope, he completed the work of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II) started by the liberalising Pope John XXIII, but has generally been regarded as a conservative figure. He is perhaps best remembered as author of the [[encyclical]] [[Humanae Vitae]], restating the opposition of the [[Roman Catholic]] Church to [[birth control]].

[[Category:Popes]]

Pope Paul VI

2008-04-12T17:51:11Z

Kugro: New page: Pope '''Paul VI''' (1897-1978) reigned as Pope from 1963 to 1978; he succeeded Pope John XXIII and was succeeded by Pope John Paul I. He was born Giovanni Montini in the village of...

Stockton and Darlington Railway

2008-04-12T17:41:59Z

Kugro: cat

The '''Stockton and Darlington Railway''', opened in north-east [[England]] in 1825, was the first public railway in the world to employ steam locomotive haulage, and is thus claimed to be the first modern railway. However, it drew on technology developed in the north-east for colliery railways; and the line's engineer, [[George Stephenson]], had worked on colliery lines (including the 8 mile long Hetton Railway of 1822).

The S&DR ran from the coal mining area near [[Bishop Auckland]] in the south-west of [[County Durham]], through [[Darlington]], and on to ''staiths'' (wooden structures from which coal was loaded on to ships) on the [[River Tees]] at [[Stockton on Tees|Stockton]]; in 1830 the line was extended to [[Middlesbrough]], downriver from Stockton, where a new coal port grew up which within two decades was to become a major iron producing centre.

The line initially operated a mix of traction methods, including steam locomotion and haulage (of goods and passengers) by horses; but rapidly switched to locomotive-only operation. This switch was assisted by the reliability of the engines built by Stephenson and by Timothy Hackworth, an engineer born, like Stephenson, in the [[Tyneside]] mining village of Wylam, who was placed in charge of the S&DR engineering workshops at [[Shildon]].

The S&DR was taken over by the [[North Eastern Railway]] in 1863.

[[Category:Rail transport]]

Railroad

2008-04-12T17:41:10Z

Kugro: /* History */

{{merge from|railroads}}

A '''railway''' (US: '''railroad''') is a form of [[transport]] in which vehicles, usually coupled together in groups, travel on [[railway track|rails]] along fixed routes.

[[Image:Csx_railroad.jpg|thumb|300px|A CSX freight train]]

== History ==

There is no known date for the 'invention' of railways. Engravings of medieval [[Germany|German]] miners dragging [[coal]]-bearing sleds along rudimentary [[wood]]en rails have been found, and the use of wooden rails to guide coal wagons at [[colliery|collieries]] in the [[English Midlands]] is known from the late sixteenth century. In the early seventeenth century the entrepreneur Huntingdon Beaumont built wooden railways to serve collieries at Wollaton, [[Nottinghamshire]] (1604) and from 1605 he constructed railways in the important coal-mining district of [[Tyneside]] in north-east [[England]], although that venture ruined him financially. In these early railways, waggons were pulled along wooden rails by [[horse]]s or humans; the main purpose was to move coal (or mineral ores) from [[mine]]s to navigable [[waterway]]s.

Because wooden rails wore away quickly, they were replaced by wooden rails with [[iron]] plates attached, and later by rails of iron. Cast iron track began to be used in the eighteenth century, although the brittle nature of cast iron meant that such railways could not carry very heavy loads. This consideration also acted against the use of [[steam engine]]s for motive power. The first steam railway [[locomotive]] was designed by [[Richard Trevithick]] (1771-1833), a mining [[engineer]] from [[Cornwall]], who in 1804 built a locomotive for the Penydarren iron works in south [[Wales]]. This proved too heavy for the iron tracks and was converted to a [[stationary engine]]. A similar locomotive built by Trevithick for Wylam Colliery in [[Northumberland]] also proved too heavy to be of practical use.

The owner of Wylam Colliery, Christopher Blackett, employed William Hedley (1779-1843) as his colliery manager. Hedley was interested in [[technology|technological]] change and, aided by another colliery engineer, Timothy Hackworth, he built three steam locomotives between 1813 and 1815. These worked successfully until 1828-29, when they were replaced by two more innovative locomotives, including the famous ''[[Puffing Billy]]''. Wylam was a true nursery of railway talent. Hedley and Hackworth were very important railway pioneers, and the village was also the birthplace of [[George Stephenson]] (1781-1848).

George Stephenson is justly called 'the father of the railways'. Although he neither invented railways nor steam locomotion, he made huge improvements to the technology of the latter and was a pioneer in the field of civil engineering for large railway projects. An illiterate miner's son, born in a cottage next to the Wylam colliery railway (as a child, his first job was keeping the line clear of stray animals), he learned to read as a young adult at night classes, obtained a post as engineer at Killingworth Colliery, Northumberland, and there built a number of improved locomotives. He designed the Hetton Railway in [[County Durham]] in the early 1820s, at that time the longest railway line in the world, linking a colliery to loading staiths (short piers for pouring coal from wagons on to waiting ships) on the River Wear, and then was appointed engineer to the [[Stockton and Darlington Railway]]. The S&DR, which opened in 1825, was the world's first public steam-operated railway, linking the coalfields of SW [[County Durham]] to the [[River Tees]] at [[Stockton on Tees]]. This was not purely a colliery line, but allowed other freight, and even passengers, to be carried. Initially it used both locomotive and horse-drawn trains, though later was converted to steam haulage only.

Stephenson's most famous achievement was the Liverpool & Manchester Railway, opened in 1830 and linking two of the fastest-growing cities of [[Industrial Revolution]] [[England]]. Although this crossed largely flat terrain, the route involved considerable engineering difficulties, including the crossing of the Chat Moss marshland west of [[Manchester]]. Stephenson spent much time, money and effort pouring earth and stone into the marsh to create a firm footing for the railway, without success. He decided instead to build the line upon hurdles of brushwood floating on the bog. The line is still in use.

The opening of the Liverpool & Manchester Railway marked the opening of the 'Railway Age' in Britain and the world. Within three decades most of the major cities in Britain were linked by rail, and railway networks had begun to spread acoss the deveoped nations of the world.

== Gauges ==

The ''gauge'' of a railway is the distance between the inside edges of the top of the rails.
[[Train]]s built to operate on a railway of a given gauge are unable to operate on railways of a different gauge (unless special provision is made to allow this).

The history of railways is replete with railways being built to a variety of gauges, which has led to numerous problems including limiting the viability of individual railways.

A gauge of four feet eight and a half inches (1435 [[mm]]) is generally known as ''standard gauge'', and is widely used around the world. Gauges smaller than this are referred to as ''narrow gauge'' and larger gauges are referred to as ''broad gauge''.<ref>[http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/narrowgauge?view=uk narrow gauge] and at [http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/broadgauge?view=uk broad gauge] at AskOxford.com</ref>

Narrow-gauge lines are usually cheaper to construct and have often been used for short industrial lines, connecting branch lines, and places where it would not be economic to construct a more substantial line.
However, some narrow gauge lines, such as those of [[Queensland]] and [[South Africa]], are built to the same standards as standard gauge lines and perform just like standard-gauge lines.

== Trains ==
{{main|Train}}
[[Image:Gallitzin_rr.jpg|thumb|260px|Train emerging from the famous tunnels in Gallitzin, Pennsylvania. This photo illustrates how a good deal of railway freight is hauled these days -- in intramodal shipping containers]]

The vehicles that operate on railways are known as ''[[train]]s'', and usually comprise one or more [[locomotive]]s hauling a number of vehicles.

== Further reading ==
* [http://parovoz.com/spravka/gauges-en.php Railroad Gauge Width], a comprehensive list of railway gauges and countries where they are and were used.
* Armstrong, John H. ''The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does''. 4th edition, 1998, Simmons-Boardman Books. ISBN 0-911382-04-6
* Jack Simmons & Gordon Biddle (eds), ''The Oxford Companion to British Railway History'' (Oxford 1997)

== Notes ==
<references />

[[category:Rail transport]]

Railroad

2008-04-12T17:40:45Z

Kugro:

{{merge from|railroads}}

A '''railway''' (US: '''railroad''') is a form of [[transport]] in which vehicles, usually coupled together in groups, travel on [[railway track|rails]] along fixed routes.

[[Image:Csx_railroad.jpg|thumb|300px|A CSX freight train]]

== History ==

There is no known date for the 'invention' of railways. Engravings of medieval [[Germany|German]] miners dragging [[coal]]-bearing sleds along rudimentary [[wood]]en rails have been found, and the use of wooden rails to guide coal wagons at [[colliery|collieries]] in the [[English Midlands]] is known from the late sixteenth century. In the early seventeenth century the entrepreneur Huntingdon Beaumont built wooden railways to serve collieries at Wollaton, [[Nottinghamshire]] (1604) and from 1605 he constructed railways in the important coal-mining district of [[Tyneside]] in north-east [[England]], although that venture ruined him financially. In these early railways, waggons were pulled along wooden rails by [[horse]]s or humans; the main purpose was to move coal (or mineral ores) from [[mine]]s to navigable [[waterway]]s.

Because wooden rails wore away quickly, they were replaced by wooden rails with [[iron]] plates attached, and later by rails of iron. Cast iron track began to be used in the eighteenth century, although the brittle nature of cast iron meant that such railways could not carry very heavy loads. This consideration also acted against the use of [[steam engine]]s for motive power. The first steam railway [[locomotive]] was designed by [[Richard Trevithick]] (1771-1833), a mining [[engineer]] from [[Cornwall]], who in 1804 built a locomotive for the Penydarren iron works in south [[Wales]]. This proved too heavy for the iron tracks and was converted to a [[stationary engine]]. A similar locomotive built by Trevithick for Wylam Colliery in [[Northumberland]] also proved too heavy to be of practical use.

The owner of Wylam Colliery, Christopher Blackett, employed William Hedley (1779-1843) as his colliery manager. Hedley was interested in [[technology|technological]] change and, aided by another colliery engineer, Timothy Hackworth, he built three steam locomotives between 1813 and 1815. These worked successfully until 1828-29, when they were replaced by two more innovative locomotives, including the famous ''[[Puffing Billy]]''. Wylam was a true nursery of railway talent. Hedley and Hackworth were very important railway pioneers, and the village was also the birthplace of [[George Stephenson]] (1781-1848).

George Stephenson is justly called 'the father of the railways'. Although he neither invented railways nor steam locomotion, he made huge improvements to the technology of the latter and was a pioneer in the field of civil engineering for large railway projects. An illiterate miner's son, born in a cottage next to the Wylam colliery railway (as a child, his first job was keeping the line clear of stray animals), he learned to read as a young adult at night classes, obtained a post as engineer at Killingworth Colliery, Northumberland, and there built a number of improved locomotives. He designed the Hetton Railway in [[County Durham]] in the early 1820s, at that time the longest railway line in the world, linking a colliery to loading staiths (short piers for pouring coal from wagons on to waiting ships) on the River Wear, and then was appointed engineer to the [[Stockton & Darlington Railway]]. The S&DR, which opened in 1825, was the world's first public steam-operated railway, linking the coalfields of SW [[County Durham]] to the [[River Tees]] at [[Stockton on Tees]]. This was not purely a colliery line, but allowed other freight, and even passengers, to be carried. Initially it used both locomotive and horse-drawn trains, though later was converted to steam haulage only.

Stephenson's most famous achievement was the Liverpool & Manchester Railway, opened in 1830 and linking two of the fastest-growing cities of [[Industrial Revolution]] [[England]]. Although this crossed largely flat terrain, the route involved considerable engineering difficulties, including the crossing of the Chat Moss marshland west of [[Manchester]]. Stephenson spent much time, money and effort pouring earth and stone into the marsh to create a firm footing for the railway, without success. He decided instead to build the line upon hurdles of brushwood floating on the bog. The line is still in use.

The opening of the Liverpool & Manchester Railway marked the opening of the 'Railway Age' in Britain and the world. Within three decades most of the major cities in Britain were linked by rail, and railway networks had begun to spread acoss the deveoped nations of the world.

== Gauges ==

The ''gauge'' of a railway is the distance between the inside edges of the top of the rails.
[[Train]]s built to operate on a railway of a given gauge are unable to operate on railways of a different gauge (unless special provision is made to allow this).

The history of railways is replete with railways being built to a variety of gauges, which has led to numerous problems including limiting the viability of individual railways.

A gauge of four feet eight and a half inches (1435 [[mm]]) is generally known as ''standard gauge'', and is widely used around the world. Gauges smaller than this are referred to as ''narrow gauge'' and larger gauges are referred to as ''broad gauge''.<ref>[http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/narrowgauge?view=uk narrow gauge] and at [http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/broadgauge?view=uk broad gauge] at AskOxford.com</ref>

Narrow-gauge lines are usually cheaper to construct and have often been used for short industrial lines, connecting branch lines, and places where it would not be economic to construct a more substantial line.
However, some narrow gauge lines, such as those of [[Queensland]] and [[South Africa]], are built to the same standards as standard gauge lines and perform just like standard-gauge lines.

== Trains ==
{{main|Train}}
[[Image:Gallitzin_rr.jpg|thumb|260px|Train emerging from the famous tunnels in Gallitzin, Pennsylvania. This photo illustrates how a good deal of railway freight is hauled these days -- in intramodal shipping containers]]

The vehicles that operate on railways are known as ''[[train]]s'', and usually comprise one or more [[locomotive]]s hauling a number of vehicles.

== Further reading ==
* [http://parovoz.com/spravka/gauges-en.php Railroad Gauge Width], a comprehensive list of railway gauges and countries where they are and were used.
* Armstrong, John H. ''The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does''. 4th edition, 1998, Simmons-Boardman Books. ISBN 0-911382-04-6
* Jack Simmons & Gordon Biddle (eds), ''The Oxford Companion to British Railway History'' (Oxford 1997)

== Notes ==
<references />

[[category:Rail transport]]

Stockton and Darlington Railway

2008-04-12T17:39:12Z

Kugro:

Stockton and Darlington Railway

2008-04-12T17:38:45Z

Kugro: New page: The '''Stockton and Darlington Railway''', opened in north-east England in 1825, was the first public railway in the world to employ steam locomotive haulage, and is thus claimed to be...

The '''Stockton and Darlington Railway''', opened in north-east [[England]] in 1825, was the first public railway in the world to employ steam locomotive haulage, and is thus claimed to be the first modern railway. However, it drew on technology developed in the north-east for colliery railways; and the line's engineer, [[George Stephenson]], had worked on colliery lines (including the 8 mile long Hetton Railway of 1822).

The S&DR ran from the coal mining area near [[Bishop Auckland]] in the south-west of [[County Durham]], through [[Darlington]], and on to ''staiths'' (wooden structures from which coal was loaded on to ships) on the [[River Tees]] at [[Stockton]]; in 1830 the line was extended to [[Middlesbrough]], downriver from Stockton, where a new coal port grew up which within two decades was to become a major iron producing centre.

The line initially operated a mix of traction methods, including steam locomotion and haulage (of goods and passengers) by horses; but rapidly switched to locomotive-only operation. This switch was assisted by the reliability of the engines built by Stephenson and by Timothy Hackworth, an engineer born, like Stephenson, in the [[Tyneside]] mining village of Wylam, who was placed in charge of the S&DR engineering workshops at [[Shildon]].

The S&DR was taken over by the [[North Eastern Railway]] in 1863.