Editing Crich (section)

=== Crich Mineral Railway ===
In 1840 [[George Stephenson]], in building the [[North Midland Railway]], discovered deposits of coal at [[Clay Cross]] and formed what later became the [[Clay Cross Company]]. He realised that burning lime would provide a use for the coal slack that would otherwise go to waste. He leased Cliff Quarry and built limekilns at Bullbridge. In 1841, he built the '''Crich Mineral Railway''' to connect the quarry to the limekilns at [[Ambergate railway station|Ambergate station]]. This included a {{convert|550|yard}} long, self-acting [[cable railway|incline]] known as "The Steep", with a maximum gradient of 1 in 5.<ref>{{cite web |title=Site record MDR7576 - Route of Crich Mineral Railway, Crich and Ripley |url=https://her.derbyshire.gov.uk/Monument/MDR7576 |publisher=Derby County Council}}</ref>

The railway was probably the first [[metre gauge railway]] in the world.<ref>{{cite book |first=John |last=Marshall |title=The Guinness Book of Rail Facts and Feats |publisher=Guinness Superlatives |date=1979 |page=29}}</ref>