The Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway (GNP&BR) was a railway company that constructed the deep-level underground railway that is now the core central section of London's
Piccadilly line. The GNP&BR, formed in 1902 through a merger of two older companies, was a subsidiary of the
Underground Electric Railways Company of London (UERL). A number of different routes were planned, but most were rejected by Parliament. When it opened in 1906, the GNP&BR's line served 22 stations (
Russell Square pictured) and ran for 14.17 kilometres (8.80 mi) between its western terminus at
Hammersmith and its northern terminus at
Finsbury Park. A short branch connected
Holborn to the
Strand. Most of the route was in a pair of tunnels, with 1.1 kilometres (0.68 mi) at the western end above ground. Within a year of opening it became apparent to the management and investors that the estimated passenger numbers for the GNP&BR and the other UERL lines were over-optimistic. Despite improved integration and cooperation with the other tube railways, the GNP&BR struggled financially, and in 1933 it and the rest of the UERL were taken into
public ownership. (
Full article...)
320 – Pappus of Alexandria, one of the last great
Greek mathematicians of antiquity, observed an eclipse that allowed historians to calculate the approximate dates of his life.
1967 – The Soviet space probe Venera 4(pictured) performed direct analysis of the environment of
Venus and became the first spacecraft to land on another planet, although it stopped working before that.
This Wikipedia is written in
English. Started in 2001 (2001), it currently contains
4,353,067 articles.
Many other Wikipedias are available; some of the largest are listed below.