The Wollaton Wagonway of 1604 - A Waggonway Research Circle guide. Why is the Wollaton Wagonway significant? It is generally regarded as the first embryonic, overland, railway to have been built in England. As no earlier example is known elsewhere it is also recognised as the World’s first overland railway. Significantly it is also proven by surviving documentation although that documentation does not contain full build details. “alonge the passage now laide with railes, and with suche or the lyke Carriages as are now in use for the purpose”. The above quote is from Sir Percival Willoughby’s lease to Huntingdon Beaumont dated 1 October 1604. Sir Percival was Lord of the Manor of Wollaton and Huntingdon Beaumont was his business partner and the lessee of the Strelley coal pits. What is known with certainty about the Wollaton Wagonway is set out below. 1 - The overland, railed, route was approximately two miles long. 2 - The rails, made of wood, ran from Strelley to Wollaton. 3 - The wagonway was built to carry coal from the Strelley Pits to a distribution point near Wollaton Lane (now Wollaton Road). A considerable % of the coal was also taken onwards from there by road to Trent Bridge and then on downstream by barge. 4 - The vehicles used to carry the coal on the rails were referred to as wagons or carriages. 5 - The wagons or carriages were drawn by horses. 6 - The Wagonway was built between October 1603 and October 1604. 7 - The Wagonway was built by Huntingdon Beaumont. 8 - The Wagonway cost approximately £166* to build, however, it is not clear exactly what that included. 9 - The cost of the Wagonway was shared 50:50 between Huntingdon Beaumont and Sir Percival Willoughby. 10 - The Wagonway is understood to have been used successfully for a number of years, until at least 1615. However records of a specific closure date have not survived. The success of the Wollaton Wagonway lead to Huntingdon Beaumont building other wagonways for his other mining leases in Northumberland. A continuous evolution of railways can be traced back to the Wollaton Wagonway
