MANCHESTER, England — When the procession of locomotives and railway cars pulled into Liverpool Road railway station on Sept. 15, 1830, it capped a day that was equally celebrated and tragic.
The journey marked the official opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, the world’s first inter-city passenger railway. However, the day was marked by the death of William Huskisson, a former cabinet minister and Member of Parliament for Liverpool.
Liverpool Road was the first of many railway stations in the city. Store Street, which was later expanded and renamed Manchester Piccadilly, opened in 1842. Manchester Victoria station opened on Jan. 1, 1844.
Passenger services at Liverpool Road ended on May 4, 1844, and goods services ended at the station in 1975. The station was severed from the national rail network with the completion of the Ordsall Chord rail link, a Network Rail project to connect Piccadilly and Victoria stations.
The Science and Industry Museum today owns and maintains Liverpool Road railway station.