Parliament in 1849. It had two sections: from London Road Station to Knott Mill and the second from there to Altrincham. Brogdens had the contract for the second section. Samuel Brooks persuaded the company to build what we now know as Brooklands station, providing a guarantee of receipts for the first three years. He owned the land there and expected the station to help with its development. Marsland Road (the A6144) crosses the railway at this point before reaching Washway Road (A56). Just at the junction of these two roads are Brogden Grove and Brogden Terrace, with Victorian terrace houses on them. It is likely that Brooks sold or leased this land to Brogden at a favourable rate and Brogden built these houses on it. In turn the houses helped to justify the station and launch Brooklands as a place to live. Nearby Brogden built Raglan House, Raglan Road to be their new home. In short, an alliance between Brooks and Brogden. Brogden was joined in his business by his four eldest sons: John, Alexander, Henry and James as they reached the age of majority. His youngest son, George was never involved as he was too young. Work in Cumbria Ulverston and Lancaster Railway In the late 1840s the Brogdens became interested in iron ore mining in the Furness area of North Lancashire (now Cumbria). In 1846 John senior became a shareholder of the Furness Railway. They took ore-mining territory at Stainton in the estate of the Earl of Burlington and were developing mines there by December 1850. In 1850 the second largest haematite ore deposit in British history was discovered by Schneider and Co. at Park, on the Duddon shore in Furness. By 1855, in addition to Stainton, Brogdens had mines at Adgarley and Bolton Heads. Mining capacity was growing fast. This ore was sent to market via the Furness Railway and then by ship. George Stephenson had planned a West Coast main Line to cross the mouth of Morecambe Bay and this would have linked Furness with the developing national rail network. However this plan was shelved in 1843. The Lancaster and Carlisle Railway Act was passed on 6 June 1844, establishing this as the route for the main line. Instead of Furness becoming part of the national rail strategy, it was now a backwater. It could only be connected to the main network by local efforts and