Showing Record 1 of 1

Site ID :- GTL03629
Key Words :- Thames Tunnel Railway Brunel
Linked Sites :-
GTL00036,Thames Tunnel Pump House

Address :- Railway Avenue, Rotherhithe, London, Greater London
Grid Reference :- TQ 35252 79877
Grid Co-ordinates :- Easting 535252 m, Northing 179877 m
Lat & Long (WGS84) :- 51.501654 , -0.052777
View Historic Mapping
Site Location :- Under the Thames between Rotherhithe and Wapping
Viewing Site :- London Overground train, East London Line between Wapping and Rotherhithe
Parish or Township :-
Administrative Area :- Southwark
Pre 1974 County :- Greater London Council
Site Status :- Listed - Grade II*
Site Condition :- Operational site, in use for original purpose
Historic England List No - 1242119,
Site Era :-Industrial Revolution 1750-1850 to Modern Post 1950
Site Dates :- 1843 -
Visit By :- -

Contributor :- GLIAS Database - 2 June 2018
Contributors Society :- Greater London Industrial Archaeology Society
Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © GLIAS Database

Record Status :- Incomplete
Reviewed By :- -

Description and History

The Thames Tunnel, which runs from Rotherhithe to Wapping, was the world's first substantial underwater tunnel. Its construction, which took from 1825 to 1843, was a heroic effort on the part of Sir Marc Brunel. It was the first use of a tunnelling shield. It is a single bore tunnel carrying two roadways of 1200 ft length. Originally designed for horse traffic but the approach roads were never completed and only foot passengers used the tunnel from its opening in 1843 until 1865, when it was sold to the East London Railway. In 1869 it re-opened as a north-south link in the railway which is now the East London Branch of the Metropolitan line. Between 1995 and 1997 the tunnel was refurnished and the original brick arches were lined with concrete and a new track bed laid. A few arches at the south end of the tunnel are preserved in their original state.

Further Reading and References

No references provided

Previous Comments:-

|Andrew Turner|23 November 2018|no longer 'East London Branch of the Metropolitan Line' but 'East London Line'. (though I agree it is part of the met/dist/ell/jubilee 'stable'. - Charles Norrie
Listed II*. SEE ALSO: Alan M. Muir Wood, 1994, The Thames Tunnel 1825 - 43: where shield tunnelling began. Proceedings Institution Civil Engineers 102(3), 130 - 139; SEE ALSO: Denis Smith, 2001, Civil engineering heritage: London and the Thames Valley (pages 17 - 19) HEW 177 The tunnel is now Listed II [Paul W. SOWAN 23/05/2003] - Paul Sowan - Robert Mason - 12 July 2022

Note:- these comments have NOT been REVIEWED