Talyllyn Railway was opened in 1866 on a two foot three inch gauge and it was steam operated from the beginning. The railway runs seven and a quarter miles between Tywyn and Nant Gwernol, near Abergynolwyn, from where a series of horse-worked tramways served Bryn Eglwys slate quarries.
When the quarry closed in 1947 a skeleton service was maintained and in 1950 the world's first railway preservation society (the Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society) was formed with the intention of restoring the line to working order. The railway is currently fully operational for tourist use. See:http://www.talyllyn.co.uk