Railway Maps of the British Isles (Golfa Press)

£39.95

Maps have played a central and essential part in the railway industry from its very beginning. As railways developed in the British Isles, as elsewhere, so railway maps evolved in purpose and characteristics. Identifying four different types of maps - the typographical, utilitarian, diagrammatic and the visual - this nine-chapter book describes their evolution and development.

Starting with a glimpse of early waggonways, it highlights their adaptation to serve different needs. Starting by informing a curious public as railways first emerged, they became practical tooks for railway professionals and commercial customers, particularly in the era of coal and heavy industry, then to advertise and publicise routes and services and finally to act as recorders of dramatic change in the past six decades or so.

Covering both Great Britain and Ireland, it is also an information source. It aims to cater not only to railway enthusiasts and those who appreciate maps ad cartographic forms and presentations, but also to railwayana collectors and dealers, archivists and specialists. Appendices accompany six of the nine chapters, composed of detailed lists of maps relevant to each chapter, with publication dates and appropriate commentary. 

Chapter List:

1. Setting the Scene
2. Informative: The Topographics
3. Meet the Topographics
4. The Professionals
5. The Industrialists
6. The Diagrammatics
7. Mapping the Tube: Beck's Initiative
8. The Commercials
9. The Recorders

Railway Maps of the British Isles provides comprehensive history of the development and use of railway maps, from the early railways through to the present day. Superbly illustrated throughout with railway maps. Hardback. 444 pages.