The January Railway 200 Fridays post is now live! Read it here.
2025 marks the 200th anniversary of the modern railway. A British innovation that’s continued its journey across the globe. Through a year-long series of activities and events, Railway 200 will explore how rail shaped Britain and the world. And, as today’s railway modernises and gears up for growth, Railway 200 will also look to the future, encouraging more people to take the train and inviting the next generation of pioneering talent to join the railway and become the history-makers of tomorrow.
To help tell the Railway 200 story, four main themes will be explored:
- Skills & Education
- Innovation, Technology & Environment
- Heritage, Culture & Tourism
- Celebrating Railway People
This will be part of a national campaign highlighting rail’s remarkable past, its essential role today, and its ever-growing importance to a sustainable future. Everyone can get involved and you can find out more at railway200.co.uk
Railway 200 Fridays - Celebrating links between Rail and Maritime Heritage
Throughout its history, the railway has been intrinsically linked to Britain’s maritime and inland waterways sector. Trains and vessels worked together in an interlinked fashion to transport goods and people, with their synergy evident to this day in modern container ports. Rail companies often had a waterborne arm to extend their reach from a tourism perspective and trains were used to transport vessels from their build site to their service location. The links between rail and maritime heritage remain present, with joint actions and activities by different organizations in the sectors.
To celebrate Railway 200, National Historic Ships UK will publish a series of online posts highlighting different stories and aspects that portray the intrinsic connections between Britain’s maritime and railway heritage. These will come out throughout the year on the last Friday of the month, and daily between 22 and 28 September 2025, the week of the 200th Anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway.
We’ll look to cover many aspects of this connection. Do you have any stories to tell us that combine Rail and Maritime Heritage? Reach out at info@nationalhistoricships.org.uk! This also applies to current connections, such as skills exchanges or related projects, including days out or discounted tickets for rail passengers.
