West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway was the first line to create a corridor from the south and east towards Westminster and led to the development of London Victoria railway station. To coincide with the reopening of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham Hill on 10 June 1854, the LB&SCR opened a short spur line linking a new Crystal Palace station to Sydenham station on the Brighton main line from London Bridge. The WELCPR was an independent company that aimed to create an additional line from Wandsworth to the LB&SCR station at Crystal Palace and thence to Norwood Junction, whence it would have running powers over the
History of London One of the most famous events of 19th-century London was the Great Exhibition of 1851. Held at The Crystal Palace, the fair attracted 6 million visitors from across the world and displayed Britain at the height of its Imperial dominance. As the capital of a massive empire, London became a magnet for immigrants from the colonies and poorer parts of Europe. A large Irish population settled in the city during the Victorian period, with many of the newcomers refugees from the Great Famine (1845–1849). At one point, Catholic Irish made up about 20% of London's population; they typically lived in