| 30 Sep 1816 | Archibald Sturrock born at Park Street, Dundee, 5th son of John Sturrock, banker and linen merchant |
| 24 Jun 1820 | Patrick Stirling born at Kilmarnock, son of Revd. Robert Stirling, co-owner of Dundee Foundry with his brother James |
| 3 May 1844 | London & York Railway. Prospectus deposited |
| 16 Apr 1845 | East Lincolnshire Railway published their proposals |
| 26 Jun 1846 | Great Northern Railway Act 1846 received Royal Assent |
| 26 Jun 1846 | East Lincolnshire Railway founded, though leased to the Great Northern Railway from the start |
| Aug 1847 | GNR 2-2-2 No. 1 left Manchester (3/8), No. 2 left Manchester (9/8), both at work on East Lincolnshire Railway (by 13/8) |
| 17 Sep 1847 | East Lincolnshire Railway, first train ran from Louth to Grimsby , 14 miles in 20 minutes, for the benefit of the Directors |
| 29 Oct 1847 | GNR 2-2-2 Nos. 3 and 4 left Manchester for Lincoln on GNR |
| 25 Feb 1848 | Agreement reached to build proper facilities at Boston and remove equipment from Lincoln. The first act of Edward Bury, the new GNR Locomotive Engineer |
| 1 Mar 1848 | East Lincolnshire Railway. Louth – Grimsby opened |
| 1 Mar 1848 | Great Grimsby & Sheffield Junction Railway. Grimsby- New Holland opened |
| 6 Jun 1848 | GNR. Doncaster – Askern Junction opened |
| 1 Oct 1848 | East Lincolnshire Railway. Firsby – Boston opened |
| 17 Oct 1848 | GNR. Lincoln – Boston – Werrington Junction opened |
| 9 Apr 1849 | Lincoln & Gainsborough Railway. Fully opened. (Later GN & GE Joint) |
| 16 Jul 1849 | Sheffield & Lincolnshire Junction Railway. Gainsborough – Retford – Sheffield opened |
| 4 Sep 1849 | GNR. Retford – Doncaster opened |
| Sep 1849 | GNR. Trains running Doncaster to Leeds via Knottingley |
| 7 Aug 1850 | GNR. London Maiden Lane – Peterborough opened |
| 16 Sep 1851 | Henry Alfred Ivatt born at Wentworth, near Ely, son of Revd Alfred William Ivatt, curate of Wentworth, later Rector of Coveney, by Matilda formerly Moseley |
| 15 Jul 1852 | GNR. Peterborough – Retford opened for goods traffic |
| 1 Aug 1852 | GNR. Peterborough – Retford opened for passenger traffic |
| 14 Oct 1852 | King’s Cross Station replaced Maiden Lane |
| Apr 1855 | Nottingham & Grantham Railway taken over by GNR |
| Jul 1863 | Leeds, Bradford & Halifax Junction Railway taken over by GNR |
| Aug 1865 | West Yorkshire Railway taken over by GNR |
| Feb 1866 | West Riding & Grimsby Railway (a joint MSLR and GNR venture). Carcroft – Wakefield opened, providing a shorter route from Doncaster to Leeds (GNR never reached Leeds other than by running powers, or joint operation) |
| Oct 1866 | Stirling took over from Sturrock as Locomotive Superintendent |
| Dec 1866 | Sturrock retired from GNR |
| 23 Feb 1867 | Sturrock’s last locomotive, 2-4-0 No. 269, left Works |
| 1 Jan 1872 | Stamford & Essendine Railway taken over by GNR |
| 19 Jun 1876 | Herbert Nigel Gresley born at Edinburgh, 4th son of Revd. Nigel Gresley, Rector of Seal, Leicestershire, by Joanna Beatrice formerly Wilson |
| Oct 1881 | Stafford & Uttoxeter Railway taken over by GNR |
| 11 Nov 1895 | Patrick Stirling died |
| Mar 1896 | Henry Alfred Ivatt took office at Doncaster |
| Sep 1899 | First Stirling locomotive withdrawn, 4-2-2 No. 60 |
| 1905 | GNR. Herbert Nigel Gresley took over as Carriage & Wagon Superintendent |
| Oct 1909 | Last Sturrock locomotive in capital stock, Class J3 0-6-0 No. 451, transferred to Duplicate Stock |
| May 1910 | Last Sturrock engine, No. 451A, withdrawn from Duplicate Stock |
| 1 Oct 1911 | GNR. Herbert Nigel Gresley took over as Locomotive Engineer |
| 2 Dec 1911 | Henry Alfred Ivatt retired |
| Dec 1917 | First Ivatt locomotives taken out of service. All his Classes A4, A5 4-2-2s and all subsequently withdrawn July 1918 |
| 1 Jan 1923 | LNER. Herbert Nigel Gresley became LNER’s first Chief Mechanical Engineer |
| 25 Oct 1923 | Henry Alfred Ivatt died at his home at Haywards Heath, Sussex |
| Oct 1933 | Last Stirling domeless locomotive withdrawn, Class J18 (J57) 0-6-0ST No. 144 (144A, LNER 3144A), though latterly carrying an Ivatt domeless boiler |
| Feb 1937 | First Gresley rebuild (of an Ivatt locomotive) withdrawn, Class K2 (Q3) 0-8-0 No. 420 (LNER 3420) |
| 5 Apr 1941 | Sir Nigel Gresley died at his home at Watton-at-Stone, Herts |
| July 1945 | First Gresley locomotives withdrawn, LNER Class P1 2-8-2 Nos. 2393/94 |
| Sep 1945 | Gresley’s first Class A1 4-6-2 No. 1470 (LNER 4470) GREAT NORTHERN rebuilt by Edward Thompson |
| May 1947 | First Gresley GNR locomotive withdrawn, Class O1 (O3) 2-8-0 No. 474 (LNER 3474, 3492) |
| 1 Jan 1948 | British Railways formed. LNER divided between Eastern, North Eastern and London Midland Regions |
| May 1948 | First withdrawal of a Doncaster-built Gresley locomotive, Class O2 (O2) No. 461 (LNER 3461, 3921) |
| Oct 1957 | Last Stirling locomotive withdrawn, Class J14/J13 (J53/J52) 0-6-0ST No. 966 (LNER 3966, 8768, BR 68768) |
| June 1962 | Last Ivatt locomotives withdrawn, Class J22 (J6) 0-6-0s Nos. 554 (LNER 3554, 4203, BR 64203), 577 (LNER 3577, 4226, BR 64226), 638 (LNER 3638, 4277, BR 64277) |
| Dec 1964 | Last GNR locomotive in running stock, Class A3 4-6-2 No. 60106 FLYING FOX withdrawn (formerly GNR No. 1475) |
| Sep 1965 | Last four GNR locomotives in Departmental service, Class J50 0-6-0Ts Dep. Nos. 10-13 withdrawn (formerly GNR Nos. 212/15/18/29) |
