Birthplace of the Underground

Birthplace of the London Underground - Paddington Station.

Location: Paddington Station, W1H

Description: Paddington station was one of the great rail portals into London, receiving the trains that ran on Isambard Kingdom Brunel's Great Western Railway (GWR), from Cardiff and other towns to the west of London.

It was therefore a natural birth place for the London Underground railway. The first section of the Underground was opened on 10th January 1863, running from Paddington eastward to Farringdon. In the following year, this was extended toward the south-west, beyond Paddington through Westbourne Park to Hammersmith (opening 13th June 1864), and a new branch built southwards to Kensington (opening 1st July 1984). By 1868, a second branch took it up north-west in the direction of Wembley as far as Swiss Cottage (opening 13th April 1868), and a third branch went south to South Kensington (opening 24th December 1868)....and the rest they say is history.

Tours: Top 10 London Underground Sights

Themes: Transport Transport Theme