List of constituents of the Great Western Railway

Great Western Railway

Coat-of-arms of the Great Western Railway, incorporating the shields, crests and mottoes of the cities of London (left) and Bristol (right)
History
1835	Act of Incorporation
1838	First train ran
1869–92	7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm) changed to 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
1903	Start of road motor services
1904	City of Truro sets speed record
1948	Nationalised
Constituent companies See full list of constituents of the GWR
1854	Shrewsbury and Birmingham Ry Shrewsbury and Chester Railway
1862	South Wales Railway
1863	West Midland Railway
1876	Bristol and Exeter Railway South Devon Railway
1889	Cornwall Railway
1922	Rhymney Railway Taff Vale Railway Cambrian Railways
1923	Midland & S W Junction Railway
Successor organisation
1948	Western Region of British Railways
Key locations
Headquarters	Paddington station, London
Workshops	Swindon Wolverhampton
Major stations	Birmingham Snow Hill Bristol Temple Meads Cardiff General London Paddington Reading General
Route mileage Mileage shown as at end of year stated.
1841	171 miles (275 km)
1863	1,106 miles (1,780 km)
1876	2,023 miles (3,256 km)
1899	2,504 miles (4,030 km)
1921	2,900 miles (4,700 km)
1924	3,797 miles (6,111 km)

The Great Western Railway (GWR) was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1835 and nationalised on 1 January 1948. During this time it amalgamated with, or purchased outright, many other railway companies. These are listed here in two groups. The early amalgamations (mostly between 1843 and 1900) often involved railway companies that were already being financially supported by the GWR. The Railways Act 1921 brought many new companies into the fold including many successful Welsh lines.

Key:

The following companies were absorbed into the Great Western Railway as a result of the Railways Act 1921; however they were incorporated into the new larger business on the different dates shown.