Exhibition marks L&C anniversary

The 175th anniversary of the opening of the Lancaster & Carlisle Railway (now part of the West Coast Main Line) has been belatedly marked by an exhibition.

Despite the rugged terrain, it took just 30 months to build the 69-mile line over Shap, which came into use on December 15 1846.

Credit for the project goes to local landowner Edward Hasell, the L&C’s first chairman. The Cumbrian Railways Association is staging a free photographic exhibition at his home (Dalemain Mansion, near Penrith) until August 31.