Where did the first railroad begin?

Answer 1

This is a question that has been debated for years, as many people have many different ideas of when the term "railroad" should be accepted for a guided set of carriages on a dedicated right-of-way. The earliest form of "railroad" for which there is documentation has been found in Alsace dating to the late 1500's and within a mine. By 1700, guided carriages/wagons were in wide use within mines, and then also down to the docks outside the mine, often looking like a train and a "railroad". Most of these used the rails to guide the wheels, and not the other way around. Some people argue that this "plateway" was not a "railroad".

The next advancement was to use a cheaper method, putting flanges on the carriage wheels, and to travel on wooden planks covered with metal straps. Many considered that the first "railroad".

But, they didn't use rails, which were introduced until much later, and much more costly - so this still may not have been the first railroads.

All the early railroads were by other than steam locomotives (prisoners were used, horses, and even sails were tried).

If you consider the first railroad one that used a locomotive, the first steam train ran on a railway track between two towns in Wales in 1804.