ANTWERP, BELGIUM—The York Press reports that a wooden railway wagon made in England was discovered at the wall of a nineteenth-century fortress by members of the Urban Archaeology department of the City of Antwerp. The storage wagon was made approximately 100 years ago by the company London and North Eastern Railway (LNER), which operated between 1923 and 1948, when it was nationalized. “It’s a mystery as to how the carriage came to be in Antwerp, and unfortunately there’s very little left of the relic as it disintegrated while being excavated,” said archaeologist Femke Martens. Inscriptions on the wagon included “FURNITURE REMOVAL TO HOUSE,” and “Enquire at any station.” The wagon also bore codes identifying its size, use, and company name. Researchers have determined that the wagon was the first model of its type, and was briefly used by LNER around 1930. To read about excavations that uncovered traces of nineteenth-century England's Great Western Railway, go to "A Tale of Two Railroads."
