In September 2025, Britain's rail industry and rail preservation movement will mark the 200th anniversary of the opening of what is generally regarded as the first successful commercial railway, the Stockton & Darlington Railway:

There's already a well-done website, something that was not an option for Rail 150 in 1975 or Rainhill 150 (the Liverpool & Manchester's steam loco trials) in 1980:

https://railway200.co.uk/

Major UK heritage railways are getting in on the action, starting with a massive "whistle-off" to mark the beginning of the anniversary year in Dec. 31/Jan. 1st; various other railways worldwide are getting in on this as well, including operations in South Africa, Holland, and Sierra Leone:

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3vrp0qxy62o

M<ore events are slated throughout the year, from special museum exhibits to lectures to local festivals to simply tying the annual railway gala to the bicentennial. Thus far there has not been announcement of a single mass event (or "calvacade") of the likes of the Rail and Rainhill 150 events, but one might be forthcoming.

Now, there can, and always will be, heated discussion as to the true "first successful railroad" in the USA/North America, but general agreement falls on the Baltimore & Ohio as the first commercial intercity rail operation, and that is generally regarded as opening in 1827.

We have heard rumblings of planning by the B&O Railroad Museum, which of course claims a lot of the bragging rights, with the site of the "first railroad station" on their property and arguably the most historic collection of artifacts and rolling stock dating back to (almost) the "beginning," including the First Stone.

But what about getting the entire industry--modern freight/passenger and heritage rail--involved? American rail enthusiasts are notoriously provincial and xenophobic, seldom willing to recognize anything that won't roll through their home town, let alone overseas. But that doesn't have to be the case for the railroad industry's PR efforts, the HeritageRail Alliance and its members, etc. Even a trolley museum should consider it worth their while to put up one banner or small exhibit marking the bicentennial of railroading in North America.

So, what's next September looking like for you guys? And maybe 2027?

The Rainhill trials were a competition run from the 6 to 14 October 1829, so the 150th was 1979.

We were both off. The three-day 'Grand Cavalcade' of locomotives and rolling stock that took place on the original site of the 'Locomotives Trials' of 1829 was held over the Bank Holiday Weekend of 24, 25 and 26 May 1980:

https://www.rainhilltrials.org/lm-150---1980.html

The programme for the Darlington & Shildon area isn't actually very inspiring if you want to see real trains though.....
https://sdr200.co.uk/programme

It seems that the 'Grand Cavalcade' was not held on the anniversary of the actual trials, which Anthony Burton, in his book 'The Rainhill Story,' says began on 10/6/1829.

For whatever reason, the Cavalcade took place in May 1980, which makes sense as I stayed with a family in Manchester in July 1980, who had recently attended the event.

Yes, the 1980 celebration date was fudged considerably to fit the Bank Holiday Weekend, akin to Memorial Day for us Yanks, to potentially attract a greater attendance (it worked).

Now what about 2027 here?

Well, first we must decide if the B&O charter (1827) or entry into operation (1830) is more worthy of a celebration.

In 1977 the Chessie System observed the former with the Chessie Steam Special and other events.

I'm looking forward to RR's AFT II (or is it AFT III?) in 2026.

A couple of other things are also worthy of 'recognition':

We had at least one version of "Rainhill trials" in the late 1820s or early 1830s (remember Novelty and that Phineas Davis piece of watchwork?) That deserves recognition as it is when we made the firm step to leave the pufferbilly/Stourbridge Lion sort of "motive power" for local railroads and build real railway locomotives.

If I recall correctly, the first real LONG-DISTANCE railroad in the world, as opposed to local transport between relatively close trading communities, was in South Carolina circa 1831-1832. That deserves distinctive recognition over here whether we celebrate the British accomplishments or not.

For all you cultural relativists: there's fun to be had twitting the cunks by remembering Goldsworthy Gurney, the canal interests, Railway Mania... and the red-flag law. Not all steam progress was as 'forward' as the English often try to make it out to be. /s ;-}

Don't hate, oh great one, but a Owosso-style Train Festival would hit the spot...

The process seems to be starting.

Supposedly the B&O Museum is hosting a meeting with the Baltimore Chapter NRHS in February "to discuss preliminary plans for the 200th Anniversary and how we as a Chapter may help and be involved."

https://www.facebook.com/bluebellrailwa ... 9mH7Tq9zdl
"Bluebell Railway
Yesterday
Get ready for an unforgettable celebration of steam at Giants of Steam 2025! This incredible event will shine a spotlight on the new chapter of railway preservation, highlighting impressive new-build steam locomotives.
The Bluebell Railway is delighted to announce that 60163 Tornado, 6880 Betton Grange and 2999 Lady of Legend will be our guest locomotives for this year’s gala, running alongside our very own newly built locomotive, 32424 Beachy Head. We must thank the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, The Betton Grange Society & The Great Western Society- Didcot, for allowing these engines to take part in our gala in October.
This event is aiming to be the biggest gathering of newly built standard gauge steam locomotives so far in preservation. An event not to be missed!
Giants of Steam 2025 marks an important event on the calendar not only for The Bluebell Railway but also for Railway 200, a celebration of 200 years of railway history. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to witness these awe-inspiring locomotives in action, celebrating the past, present, and future of steam.
Further information, timetables and tickets will be issued in due course. Don’t forget to mark the date in your diaries for the new date of OCTOBER 17-19 2025
Make sure you sign up for our weekly newsletter and keep an eye on our social media for any further updates on this exciting gala."

Whatever you do, don't try and copy the absoloute shambles that purchasing tickets for the "Greatest Gathering" (to be held at the Alstom Rail Works in Derby in early August) turned out to be here on Friday.
10,000 tickets available for each of the three days and basically the ticketing system - run by one of the rail magazine publishers in the UK - couldn't cope and sales had to be suspended by the end of the day. I tried several times and the hastily introduced queuing system never got below a 50 min wait time on the various occasions I tried!
Seemed more like trying to get a ticket for something like a Taylor Swift concert than a fairly "normal" rail open day.
We await with baited breath the revised online ticketing arrangements, supposedly coming later next week...........

More on the above:

https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews ... s-servers/

If only an American event could be THIS popular.