GEORGE TOWN, July 9 -- A 7.4m-long steel trolley track bearing the words "Barrow Steel" and the date "1895" has been uncovered during sidewalk works near Fort Cornwallis, facing the seafront here.

Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who visited the site today, said the tracks were believed to have been used by trolley carts to transport goods, rations and ammunition.

According to a map showing the original alignment of the tracks, they ran across the Esplanade field, circled the fort, and linked the Esplanade's barracks and storage depots with Penang's port facilities along the eastern shoreline.

Chow said it is believed the trolleys were used to move goods to ships at the pier.

"This is an unexpected find, so after discovering this,...