The earliest event in the Island of Sodor's history recorded goes far back to around 1070, where Sodor saw its first king: King Godred. Godred lived in Ulfstead Castle and helped fight off invaders to Sodor. Life under Godred's reign was considered to be a Golden Age. One day, in around 1087, his crown was stolen, and while the thieves were later caught, the crown was considered forever lost.
Fast forward to about 1510, a pirate, named Captain Calles, sailed towards Sodor, and attacked and sank merchant ships for their treasures. When the merchants chased him to get the treasure back, Calles hid and abandoned his ship in a cavern in the West of Sodor. He buried his treasure somewhere nearby, and drew a map so he'd always know where it was. One day, however, the map blew overboard, and he spent the rest of his days searching for his treasure, with no success.
In 1806, the first ever railway on the Island of Sodor was formed. It was a horse worked line from the harbour at Balladwail to a copper mine in the foothills at Ward Fell, called "The Railroad". Sometime later, slate would be discovered in the hills and also be mined. Between the points was an inn called Glennock, which was used as a staging point for the horses.
In 1823, it was decided that the line would receive some changes for it to be steam powered. After a few failed attempts to build a steam engine that works, Stephen was built in 1829 by Robert Stephenson, and proved to be a success. He could pull 4 wagons of copper or slate at one time and due to how fast he was, he gained the nickname "The Rocket".
In 1850, a new railway, called the Sodor and Mainland Railway, was proposed. The idea was that it would link Barrow-in-Furness with Suddery. 3 years later, the Sudrian Government passed an act to build the railway. Stephen helped to construct the line, but everyone knew he wouldn't be able to run his line and the new one at the same time. In 1861, 3 box tank engines were purchased from the Nielson and Company works in Glasgow, Scotland to run the railway. Their names were Clive, Neil, and Matthew.
In 1863, while surveying the Railroad, James Spooner rediscovered the long forgotten lake and ancient hollow of Skarloey. It was decided to rip up the Railroad, in favor of a new railway that would provide goods and passenger services. The new railway would be called the Skarloey Railway. Because the Railroad was ripped apart, Stephen was sent to work on the S&M.
In 1865, the S&M extended the line from Rolf's Castle to the fishing port of Kirk Ronan, hoping to start a steamer service from Kirk Ronan to Dublin Island, but the project failed.
Later that year, a set of the most up to date coaches at the time were ordered from Brown, Marshalls and Co for the Skarloey Railway. Their names were Agnes, Ruth, Lucy, Jemima, and Beatrice. 2 locomotives were also ordered from Fletcher, Jennings & Co in Whitehaven, England, named Skarloey and Rheneas. They were built alongside Talyllyn and Dolgoch of the Talyllyn Railway in Wales.
Skarloey was the first engine delivered to Kirk Ronan by ship. Neil helped unload and deliver him to Crovan's Gate. When he was delivered, he was ordered by the SR's manager, Mr. Mack, to pull the trucks that rolled down the hill by gravity back up the line. Skarloey was upset, because he wanted to pull coaches, so he blew smoke at him and the workers. After several failed attempts to make Skarloey move, Mr. Mack decided to cover him up with a tarpaulin until he stopped being a "Crosspatch".
After learning his lesson, Skarloey helped finish the line with Mr. Bobbie, who helped build him, Rheneas, Talyllyn, and Dolgoch at Whitehaven. In Septmeber, Rheneas arrived on the railway and he had more maturity than Skarloey. One day, Skarloey was set to take the Directors around the railway. All was going well and Mr. Mack decided to ride on Skarloey's footplate for the return journey. However, when Skarloey started to bounce, Mr. Mack closed the regulator too quickly, which caused him to bounce even more. The coaches surged into Skarloey so hard, thinking he was playing tricks, that Mr. Mack lost his balance and fell into one of the nearby bushes. He called Skarloey a "Bucking Bronco" and sat in Beatrice for the rest of the journey. The Directors told Skarloey to stay in the shed, while Rheneas took the Inspectors train the following day. That evening, Mr. Mack apologized to Skarloey for what happened. The Inspector was pleased with Rheneas, and told the Directors what needed to be improved. He went to see Skarloey and after the Directors explained to him what happened, the Inspector explained that Skarloey just needed another pair of wheels.
2 years later, Skarloey returned to Whitehaven to be rebuilt with a cab and new trailing wheels. Mr. Mack explained that cabs were the latest thing, and the coaches said he looked handsome, both of which got to Skarloey's head. He started boasting to Rheneas, which caused a rift between them both, with Skarloey calling Rheneas a "stick in the mud". Their fued was settled after Rheneas rescued Skarloey from a mud slide, where both engines laughed at the realization that Skarloey was the real stick in the mud. Shortly afterwards, Rheneas was sent to Whitehaven to receive his cab and trailing wheels.
In 1866, Samuel Waterton discovered mineral water in a mine around the Great Waterton area. Knowing how popular mineral water would make the area, he decided to build a line going there. The following year, the line got the name "The Great Waterton Railway". The line was to connect near the Ballahoo Tunnel, and they came to an agreement with the S&M for rights to run to Vicarstown and Barrow in Furness, once the railway was connected to the Mainland. In 1868, an 0-6-0 tank engine, named Sonny, arrived on Sodor to help construct the Great Waterton Line. In 1871, the line was open, and the area would go on to expand into a town.
In 1870, wanting to generate excitement about one day connecting the Island of Sodor to the Mainland, the S&M decided to show the public the engine that run the express services. Meanwhile, at Doncaster Works, Patrick Sterling was working on his new design for a locomotive: A 4-2-2 Stirling Single. The S&M purchased one, that was named Emily, and placed her in a special shed for the public to see.
The S&M was soon on the verge of bankruptcy, and their promise to build the line to Peel Godred was being questioned. The people of Peel Godred assumed that they would have to build the line themselves, and they proposed a line southward, because it would be the simplest and cheapest route to build it. However, they decided against it, due to an inevitable connection junction with the S&M that direction.
6 miles to the West, mine owners at Cas-ny-Hawin had combined with others in the Arle Valley to build a tramway to the port of Arlesburgh. The Peel Godred Committee approached the mining companies about extending the tramway to the mines of Peel Godred. Following a bunch of meetings with John Arnold Norramby, the first Duke of Sodor, at Ulfstead Castle, and the mine companies agreeing with the advantages of extending to Peel Godred, the Mid Sodor Railway Company was formed in 1872. The Tramway was relaid to Board of Trade passenger-carrying standards and opened in 1874 with 4 stations: Arlesdale, Marthwaite, Ffarquhar Road, and Arlesburgh. A road coach was used to link Peel Godred and Marthwaite, while pending the completion of the mountain section.
Meanwhile, another railway was being built, running from Wellsworth to the wharf at Suddery, called the Wellsworth and Suddery Railway. It was run by 4 0-6-0 saddle tank engines.
One night, in August 1878, a huge storm swept across the Island, and had damaged an old wooden bridge on the Skarloey Railway. The next day, Skarloey was puffing towards the bridge, not knowing of the damage. When he saw the broken beam, it was too late. He dangled dangerously over the edge in horror. Rheneas came to his rescue just in time, but Skarloey was very shaken up by the accident. He refused to cross the bridge, leaving Rheneas to do Skarloey's work as well as his own. A few days later, Skarloey finally got over his fear, when Rheneas decided to pretend to break down halfway across the bridge, so Skarloey would come to rescue him.
With the Mountain Road's construction complete, the Mid Sodor Railway officially opened in October 1880. They hoped for a June opening, following the Board of Trade Inspection, but the Inspector refused to allow it. Both spooners, father and son, the latter of whom surveyed the outlook of the line during the railways construction, while his father was looking after the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railway, pointed out that the clearances were more generous for the MSR than those passed on the Ffestiniog Railway. In late September, the Inspector made another visit to the railway, and reluctantly passed the inspection, with the condition that the safety precautions enforced on the FR would also apply to the MSR. All carriage doors would be locked between Arlesdale and Ulfstead Road. The opening train was pulled by MSR No.1, Duke.
In 1883, the MSR purchased its 2nd engine, named John, a saddle tank engine who was built in 1878 at the Hughes' Loco and Tramway Engine Works. He was built with a lamp that hung on his funnel, making it easier for him to see while pulling night trains. Some would say his lamp was magical, and he gained the nickname "Proteus" from it.
In 1885, on the Western side of Sodor, the Knapford and Elsbridge Light Railway was opened. The line was established, because the Ulfstead Mining Company became interested in minerals at the high ground in the south-east of Toryreck. Due to surrounding fenlands prior to the railways opening, the section of the River Els from Elsbirdge to Knapford was hazardous, making the minerals unable to be be extracted. In 1883, the company called on the A.W Dry & Co, a firm who had helped overcome drainage problems in East Anglia. They built embankments across the flats north and south of the river, with tidal gates installed. On the south side of the river, the water would flow into a pool, and be drained everyday at low tide. The line began at the wharf at Elsbridge, and curved east to mines at Toryreck, and swung round on top of the embankments in a wide curve, bypassing the remaining fenland to reach the harbour at Knapford. The line used a fleet of vertical boiler engines, called the Coffee Pots.
Back on the MSR, the work at the mines started to heavily increase, so a tender engine who looked just like Duke, named Bertram, was purchased to help with the extra workload.
In 1892, a brake coach, named Dexter, was built and purchased to be used as a Dining Coach for the Great Waterton Railway.
