GW Railway Porter

[Penninah]

Hello! all,

Can anyone tell me if there is anyway over the internet of finding out about someone who worked for Great Western Railways??
Or do i have to go to Kew?
Thank you!!
 

[Geoff of Devon]

Do you have a name or date?
See the site below, especially the Miscellaneous section concerning Family Research:
http://www.greatwesternrailway.com/

The National Railway Museum:
http://www.nrm.org.uk/html/home_pb/menu.asp
Their online book collection should be ready summer 2005 - so you might just have to wait a little while!
They do hold: Railway House Journals are another potential source of personal information, many of which are held in the NRM Library and which are summarised below: Great Western Railway 1887 - 1947
 
An alternative to Kew is STEAM the dedicated GWR museum (with archive) at Swindon:
http://www.steam-museum.org.uk/heritage/steam/steam-archiveintroduction.htm

Also try ringing or writing to:
Great Western Railway Museum
The Old Railway Station
Off Old Station Way
Coleford
Gloucestershire
GR16 7LD
Tel: +44 (0) 1594 - 833569
Fax: +44 (0) 1594 - 832032

Good hunting,
Geoff.

[cfmshrops]

hi there,
Myt GGG Grandfather also worked for GWR. I tried National Archives and they do hold a record relating to staff of the GWR but no guarantee that our ancestors will be in it. Shall we all get together for a copy??
 

[Penninah]

Hi there!
When and where di he work for gwr?
And what did they tell you at Kew??

 

[cfmshrops]

Hiya,
He worked as a Railway Guard in Shrewsbury.
I can't find the source of information at the minute. But, this might help you in the meantime. If you go to the National Archives site and "in search" type in Railway Staff Records, there is a number of sources that come up and also a Leaflet on Researching Rail Workers. And if your ancestor worked for the GWR they hold several volumes of records.
The other one I found could have been on AtoA I will get back when I find it - I really should keep better records!
C

[Penninah]

Hi!

Mine was a lowly porter at Paddington Station!
i'll check out the archives site, i imagine it would be a case of actually going to Kew to see the records!!

 

[Hackstaple]

Mine was a "Railway Servant". Apparently that was all staff except footplate staff. He joined exactly in 1900 and was probably at Symond's Yat station in Gloucestershire. A close rellie says she saw a photo of him taken about 1910 and he was a policeman but perhaps the uniform fooled her. I have never found anywhere an accessible record of him. I know Suttontrust had a CD but it seemed to have only railway staff who worked on Mars [if you know what I mean].