[2][3][4][5] Dubbed the "Premier Line", the LNWR's main line connected four of the largest cities in England; London, Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool, and, through cooperation with their Scottish partners, the Caledonian Railway also connected Scotland's largest cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh.

[6] The company initially had a network of approximately 350 miles (560 km),[6] connecting London with Birmingham, Crewe, Chester, Liverpool and Manchester.

[13] On 1 February 1859, the company launched the limited mail service, which was only allowed to take three passenger coaches, one each for Glasgow, Edinburgh and Perth.

The Postmaster General was always willing to allow a fourth coach, provided the increased weight did not cause time to be lost in running.

At the core of the LNWR system was the main line network connecting London Euston with the major cities of Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester, and (through co-operation with the Caledonian Railway) Edinburgh and Glasgow.

[17] The LNWR also had the Huddersfield Line connecting Liverpool and Manchester with Leeds, and secondary routes extending to Nottingham, Derby, Peterborough and South Wales.

[18] At its peak just before World War I, it ran a route mileage of more than 1,500 miles (2,400 km), and employed 111,000 people.

[clarification needed] The electricity was generated at the LNWR's power station in Stonebridge Park and a depot built at Croxley Green.

Nationalisation followed in 1948, with the English and Welsh lines of the LMS becoming the London Midland Region of British Railways.

Other LNWR lines survive as part of commuter networks around major cities such as Birmingham and Manchester.

The LNWR's main engineering works were at Crewe (locomotives), Wolverton (carriages) and Earlestown (wagons).

The LNWR also operated a joint service with the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway from Fleetwood to Belfast and Derry.