On August 4th, 1883 local inventor Magnus Volk presented the people of Brighton with his latest creation – an electric railway. It operated over a quarter of a mile of line extending from a site on the seashore opposite the Aquarium to the Chain Pier.

‘If one went in the Kemp Town direction, what better than a ride on Volks Electric Railway. [Magnus Volk] was the first man to have electricity in his house in Brighton. He tried to sell the idea to Brighton Corporation, but they were not at all interested.’

‘The Volks Railway train used to cross over this crowded beach, going over our heads because the beach was then lower. Sometimes my brother used to throw stones up and try to hit the wheels of the train. I used to worry in case one of these pebbles hit the train and made it topple over onto us sitting underneath – of course it never did.’

In 1896 Volk built the unusual Brighton and Rottingdean Seashore Electric Railway. Officially called the Pioneer, but known as Daddy Long-Legs, it ran along a track in the surf from Banjo Groyne to Rottingdean. However, due to problems with the construction of lengthened groynes to the east of Paston Place this closed in 1901 and Volk’s original electric railway was extended to Black Rock. Some of the concrete sleepers that the Daddy Long-legs ran on can still be viewed on the beach at low tide.

Continue East to the Madeira Drive Lift at Concorde 2.