A ride on a steam train is a popular family outing. More than 100 heritage railways cater for that demand, capturing the spirit of nostalgia while preserving the engines and equipment of past days of rail travel. Their interests even extend to the modern era of 1960s-70s diesels. Those heritage railways themselves have a long pedigree, back to 1951, when a group of enthusiasts saved the Talyllyn Railway in mid-Wales from closure. They ran this railway as volunteers, out of their love of the little trains and a desire to keep it going. Their example was followed by many more preservation societies who preserved and restored branch lines, country lines and industrial lines for our enjoyment now. Six decades have passed, and we are now beginning to realise what an impressive history the heritage railway movement has. This book traces that history, from the humble beginnings the hopes and ambitions of the pioneers on the different railway projects. There were times of failure and frustration, as some fell by the wayside, but others have made it through times of adversity to become the major heritage businesses of today.

Jonathan Brown is a rural and business historian, and is now Hon Fellow at the Museum of English Rural Life, University of Reading, where he has worked in various capacities for a number of years. He has written extensively, producing Tracing Your Rural Ancestors for Pen & Sword in 2011. He has also written Steam on the Farm (2008) and histories of the engineering firms, Allens of Oxford and Barrett, Exall & Andrewes of Reading Iron Works (the latter in conjunction with Roy Green). His father introduced him to the early preserved railways in the 1950s, and he has followed their progress ever since, a member of a number of the preservation societies at different times.