Sack containing overcoat, boots etc. without a label- 1912

Sometimes I am astounded by the amount of paper the railways in the past generated. This one such example of a little bit of paper generated in the period. It appears someone didn't label their sack correctly...

"friendly, almost family" - The London and South Western Railway and the 1911 strike

In August 1911 all the railway companies of Britain were subject to strike action, as employees demanded better pay and conditions. Yet, the staff of one company, the London and South Western Railway, did not go on strike (except for two individuals). Naturally, the press speculated why this was so. A letter to the Telegraph from a company employee showed that the reasons lay within the family culture that had been fostered within the company over many decades:

'When the writer first joined the company, he was struck by the friendly, almost family, interest which the directors displayed in the staff. At the time Hon Ralph Dutton was chairman and Mr Archibald Scott was general manager. The chairman was a splendid type of high-minded gentleman, and the manager was distinguished alike for his business ability and for his sterling character, and upright, unselfish disposition. It is not too much to say that these two men laid the true foundations of the service...We have out little troubles, and, like the average Englishman, we sometimes grumble, but a general strike would be regarded as little less than treason.

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[1] Faulkner J.N. And Williams R.A., The London and South Western Railway in the Twentieth Century, (Newton Abbott, 1988) p.189

[2] Letter to the Telegraph, reproduced in South Western Gazette, September 1911, p. 9

Examinations for New Railway Clerks - 1850s and 60s

By the 1860s if you wanted to be clerk on Britain's railways, and stand a chance of eventually joining the ranks of management, you had to undergo an examination to prove your abilities. However, different railway companies introduced examinations at different times. The first known company to introduce such testing was the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway, who, under the General Manager, Edward Watkin, introduced them in 1854 as part of his management training scheme. The test was designed to train youths who were 'superior by education or birth.'[1] A year later the London and North Western Railway also introduced exams under the guidance of Richard Moon, one of the company's directors.[2] Furthermore, by 1861 all those in line for a clerical situation on the Great Western Railway also had to undertake a short arithmetic test.[3] Lastly, in 1860 the London and South Western Railway introduced exams for new clerks in ‘writing, spelling, copying and common arithmetic.'[4] The precise content of these examinations is unknown. However, I'd love to see one at some point to find out.


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[1] Hodgkins, David, The Second Railway King: The Life and Times of Sir Edward Watkin, (Landybie, 2002), p.124
[2] Braine, Peter, The Railway Moon - A Man and his Railway: Sir Richard Moon and the L&NWR, (Taunton, 2010), p.99
[3] Unknown Author, The Hand-Book Guide to Railway Situations, (London, 1961), p.8 
[4] The National Archives, RAIL 411/4, Court of Directors Minute Book, Minute 1191, 2 February 1860

The Career of an Engine Driver, 1840-1891

In 1894 Strand Magazine carried an article about numerous engine drivers, asking questions regarding their careers and any accidents they had throughout them. One of the interviewees was John Dear, who served had served the London and South Western Railway for fifty-one years. His career, which was judged typical of LSWR drivers, was described as follows;

'John Dear, seventy-five years of age, said he began his career on the railway in 1837. After a short experience on the London and Birmingham Railway, he joined the South Western in 1840 as fireman, becoming a driver about 1842. He continued driving until about 1884, when he was made inspector for the Windsor station, having to look after the engines and men, which position he held until 1891, when - to use his own words - "in consequence of ill-health the directors kindly granted me a pension, as they do all their old servants."

Dear continued: " I ran a passenger train between Nine Elms (the London terminus at that time) to Southampton till the end of 1849. Then on the opening of the Windsor branch (in 1850), I shifted to Datchet; and when the line was completed I ran between London and Windsor."[1]

Indeed, Dear's staff record, which has him down as 'N' Dear, states that he joined the company in May 1840, was appointed Locomotive Foreman at Windsor on 23 January 1884 on 45 shillings per week, and was pensioned by the company's Engineering and Stores Committee on 1 March 1892.[2]

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[1] Story, Alfred, 'Engine Drivers and their Work', Strand Magazine, 8 (1894 -July) p.279
[2] The National Archives [TNA], RAIL 411/530, various locomotive and carriage and wagon depots, register No.5

"Attempts to defraud companies" - Evasion of Railway Fares - 1849

It seems that attempts to avoid paying for fares was present all through railway history, as this snippet from the Ipswich Journal  from 1849 shows:

"Attempts to defraud companies of fares appear to become more frequent. During the past week three cases have occurred. On the Chester and Birkenhead, John Fitzsimon was fined 10s and costs for attempting to avoid the fare at Beddington Station. A greengrocer, who tried to travel free, and made his escape from Liverpool to Wolverhampton, by the London and North Western, was fined 40s. or, in default of payment, 14 days' imprisonment; and a young man who jumped out of a train without a train before it stopped at Reigate, was fined in a penalty 20s. and 14s. costs by the local magistrates."

Taken from The Ipswich Journal, Saturday, February 3, 1849; Issue 5726.

Robberies at Nine Elms Locomotive Depot - 1871

On the 7 September 1871 the Locomotive Committee Minute Book of the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) recorded a crime:

Read report of Inspector Potter of 25th ulto as to Charles William a labourer at Nine Elms [Locomotive Works] having been detected in the robbery of some calico and some webbing belonging to the company, for which he has been sentenced by the magistrate to two months hard labour.
          Mr Beattie [the Locomotive Superintendent] to have 20/- to reward the person who gave information of the robbery and the Policeman to have 10/- reward.[1] 

Yet, this robbery was not the only one at Nine Elms in 1871, and only a month later the same committee book has the following entry:- 

Read report from inspector Potter of 21st ulto as to the robbery of some brass and white metal from the Locomotive Department at Nine Elms for which two men are to be tried at the next Newington sessions.[2]

Clearly, robbery at Nine Elms was a bit of a problem for Inspector Potter.

[1] The National Archives [TNA], RAIL 411/182, Locomotive Committee Minute Book, Minute 339, 7 September 1871
[2] TNA, RAIL 411/182, Locomotive Committee Minute Book, Minute 348, 5 October 1871

'Fined 20s., and 22s. costs, for fraudulently travelling'

In my work I am always finding cases where people failed in their attempts to avoid paying for their travel. After all, it is only when they got caught that cases were recorded. This is from the London and South Western Railway's staff magazine, The South Western Gazette, from July 1901 (p.11):

'At the Westminster Police Court, in the 9th ultimo, E.G. Richmond, of 94 High Street, Tooting, was fined 20s., and 22s. costs, for fraudulently travelling, and 20s. and 2s. costs for giving a false name and address, or in default for one month's imprisonment. On the 6th of April defendant arrived at Vauxhall by train and attempted to pass the barrier by saying he had given his ticket up on the platform. He afterwards admitted travelling from Clapham Junction without a ticket, gave a false name and address, and eventually said he had travelled from Wimbeldon. It was ascertained he lived at 61, Effra Road, Wimbeldon. To avoid police court proceedings he left that address, but was traced to Tooting.'

I'd love to know how they traced him there...

Early Images of the Waterloo and City Line - 1898

The London and South Western Railway, which terminated at Waterloo, had always dreamed of reaching the city since that station had been built in 1848. Therefore, when the Waterloo and City Railway was projected in 1892 the LSWR supported it heavily, even placing four of its directors on its board. The line opened on July 1898, and being the nation's second deep level tube it attracted much attention in the press. These pictures were found in an edition of The Graphic from 16 July 1898.

Staff at the New Basingstoke Station - 1905

Mr Prince - Station Master

In 1905 the London and South Western Railway opened their rebuilt and enlarged Basingstoke Station. This new station was a major step in the company's project of widening its main lines. Indeed, Basingstoke was a major interchange station, where the company's lines to Southampton and the West Country converged. Additionally, the Great Western Railway had its own station there, adding to the traffic. Thus, the newly rebuilt station had a large staff under the station master, Mr Prince, and the number of individuals in each position were listed by Railway Magazine in April 1905. Thus, the article gave a good idea how the staff of medium to large Edwardian stations were constituted. The numbers were as follows:

14 Clerks (goods and telegraph)
3 Station Inspectors
21 Shunters
3 Yard Foremen
9 Guards
3 Ticket Collectors
6 Parcel Porters
22 Signalmen
8 Porters and goods staff
41 Miscellaneous

Total: 130

"Terrible Collision at Hampton Wick" - Interview with the Signalman

On Monday 16 August 1888, a passenger train entering Hampton Wick Station on the London and South Western Railway was hit by a light engine that had been sent on the wrong line by the signalman. The accident caused the death of the driver, fireman and two passengers. The day after, the Pall Mall Gazette printed an interview with the signalman:

'A representative of the Pall Mall Gazette called on the pointsman, Thomas Parsons, this morning, in order to find out what explanation he had to give of the accident. he lives in a little cottage near the station. Parsons is a tall, burly man with a red beard and is about forty-one years of age. He stood with his wife and one or two children, and was evidently much affected at what had occurred.

"Can you given an explanation of your conduct in allowing the engine to run up to Hampton Wick on the wrong line?" asked our representative.
"I don't know as I can," replied the man despondently
"How long have you been a pointsman at Kingston Junction?"
"About seven years"
"And you have never had any accident before?"
"Never"
"How do you account for this then?"
"It was a mistake on my part."
"But how do you account for the mistake?"
"It was a very busy time. I thought the driver of the light engine was going to the engine-shed having done for the day. I therefore fixed the points for another train from Waterloo. But instead of the driver going to the engine shed he shouted up to me saying, "I have got to go to Twickenham." "All right," I replied, "Look sharp!" I quite forgot for the moment that the points were wring. Of course he ought to have noticed that he was up the down line, and should have stopped."
"Could you see if he was sober?"
"He was quite so far as I was able to see"
"And yourself?"
"I was perfectly sober, having had nothing to drink since Saturday night"
"And had you had enough sleep?"
"Plenty, I came to work at five o'clock in the afternoon, but did not know how long I should have to stop. I suppose it would be till two. The night or rather morning before I got home at one, and had nine hours' rest before coming to work again. I also had a little nap before five o'clock."
"Did you see the accident?"
"It was dark, and it occurred round the corner the other side of Hampton Wick Station. I heard the crash: indeed, I was listening for it. I knew the engine was on the wrong line; but I found out too late to stop her. Some railway men came down and told me of the accident, I had to stop in the box till 3.30. On eof my mates remained there to keep me company."

The Tale of Dare Devil Dick

In the 1870s and early 1880s the London and South Western Railway wasn't exactly known for the speed of its trains or their punctuality. Indeed, this made the company ripe for satire, Punch nicknaming the company's management the 'Wags of Waterloo.' This snippet from 1881 in the Sporting Times is a particular favourite:

‘The most humorous piece of writing in the world is to be seen on the South-Western Railway between Fulwell and Twickenham. It is on a board, and the quaint, incisive words are, “Speed not to exceed ten miles an hour.” Even people with urgent appointments, the keeping of which means life and death as they dodder up to town at the old Thames Valley speed of four and a half miles an hour, have to shriek with laughter when they read Archibald Scott’s great joke. People tell with bated breath how there was once and engine-driver, appropriately termed Dare Devil Dick, who got six miles an hour out of Thames Valley train, and was seen by a directors, and was sacked for furious driving, and was hired by the Midland and sacked for slowness, and now, having qualified on the S.W.R., is earning an honest livelihood by driving a hearse.’[1]

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 [1]  The Sporting Times, Saturday, 29 October 1881, p. 1

Britain's Most Profitable Railway? - The Salisbury and Yeovil Railway

In 1857 the London and South Western Railway (L&SWR) made probably one of the worst agreements a railway company ever did. The company had been given authorisation in 1854 to build a line between Yeovil and Exeter. However, another independent company, the Salisbury and Yeovil Railway (S&YR), had gained permission to open a line between Salisbury and Yeovil. Therefore, to be able to run trains to the West of England the L&SWR would need that company's lines. So, in July 1857 it agreed to lease the S&YR for twenty years from its opening throughout (1 June 1860), giving it 57.5% of the gross profits. After this time the L&SWR could purchase or lease the line for a set yearly payment based on the apportionment of receipts at the end of the agreement.[1]

Little did anyone know that the agreement would make the S&YR possibly the most profitable companies in the land. As the years passed, and without the S&YR having many overheads such as track or locomotive maintenance, its dividend slowly rose as the traffic grew, as follows:

The Opening of the Salisbury and Yeovil Railway - 1860

1861 - £4 7s 6d
1863 - £4 12s 6d
1865 - £5 5s 0d
1867 - £6 10s 0d
1869 - £6 5s 0d
1871 - £6 15s 0d

Indeed, this gradually worried the L&SWR's management, as it was paying increasingly large amounts of money to the S&YR. Thus, in 1872 it attempted to buy the company. This first bid, which offered the S&YR shareholders £150 of L&SWR shares for every £100 of S&YR, was rejected by the proprietors; The killer blow being a letter to them from another S&YR shareholder, Louis Henry Ruegg. He stated that with the L&SWR on the verge of opening new lines, the traffic passing over the S&YR, and the possible profits, were bound to increase still further. Indeed, the rejection of the L&SWR's offer was the smartest move the S&YR proprietors would make.

The S&YR's dividend continued to rise to £8 5s 10d in 1873, £9s 15s 0d in 1875 and 12 10s 0d in 1877. While dividends this high were commonly paid by some earlier railways, this was an astonishing return in the 1870s. Faced with having to purchase the S&YR at a very high price or leasing it for an massive yearly fee, the L&SWR resolved to buy the company again. The eventual sale cost the L&SWR dearly, and in early 1878 it exchanged each £100 S&YR share for £250 (5% preference) of its own.[2] Thus, right until its end, the S&YR's shareholders profited hugely from their company's relationship with the L&SWR.

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[1] Williams, R.A., The London and South Western Railway - Volume 1: The Formative Years (Newton Abbott, 1968), p.87-88
[2] Ruegg, Louis Henry Ruegg, (Sherborne, 1878), p.50-56

Hampton Court Station - Past (1912) and Present

The Station in 1912

I love Hampton Court Station - I must do, I live up the road from it. Opened in 1849, it was designed by William Tite in a style to match the royal palace it served. Nowadays though, I just wish someone would just do it up! No railway of the past would have allowed such wonderful architecture to fall into such disrepair.

The station a few years back.

"Begs to Acknowledge Receipt" - The Importance of the Railway Form

One of the hidden stories of the nineteenth century railway companies is their development of standard forms. Clearly, this isn't that much stimulating of a topic, and to my knowledge there is only one book that looks at how railway stationary was evolved, and even then it focusses on the American railroads.

But this is important area of British railway history that should not be ignored. If we consider that in the early years of the industry most railway company stationary constituted simply lined books and letters, the development through the decades of standard forms and record books tailored to individual departments' needs was a business innovation. Shown on the left is a form that was sent by the London and South Western Railway's Good's Manager's Office in 1901 to confirm that a letter had been received. The main feature to note is that within the standard, pre-formulated text there are spaces where the company's clerk could write the relevant details. Indeed, like many others the railways produced, this form meant that those sending out large numbers of receipts did not have to write out great tracts of text each time and, therefore, their use would have sped up business processes.

Steam on the Underground in 2012

Next year it will be 150 years since the opening of Britain's first underground railway, the Metropolitan Railway, which began operating on the 10 January 1863 between Paddington and Farringdon Street. Of course, given that electricity was in its infancy at the time the service was operated by steam trains. Therefore, for the anniversary there are [tentative] plans to operate a steam service on the line and you can read more about this at the excellent London Reconnections site.

But these days running steam trains anywhere on the railway network is not an easy task, and magnificent events have to prepared for. Thus, my joy was almost unbridled when the video above appeared on my Twitter feed last night. Using a London and South Western Railway Beattie 'Well' tank, a 'steam test' took place on the Metropolitan Line at 1 am on 26 February. The effects of steam on the modern Metropolitan stock were then tested by running two trains through it, yet, I can't imagine there were any problems. Well, I hope not, as I'm  now very excited about 2013's celebrations.

Introducing: Ross D. Mangles - A 1840s Railway Director

I won't bore you with all the details, but currently I am using my spare time to establish whether certain individuals in the 1840s sat on more than one railway company's board, and, therefore, created a link between the businesses. This isn't an easy task, and involves transcribing the names of all railway company directors in 1848 from a directory. It is an understatement to say it is time-consuming.

So far, one director has stood out - Ross D. Mangles. In my work I have come across some famous directors from the period, such as George Carr Glyn. But I had never heard of Mangles. This said, I am sure I have encountered a relative of his, Charles Mangles, one of the directors of the London and South Western Railway, the company on which I am doing my PhD. In 1848 Ross on the following companies' boards:


Aylesbury Railway
Buckinghamshire Railway
Dunstable, and London and Birmingham Railway
East and West Docks and Birmingham Junction
London and North Western Railway

Central to Mangles' directorships was his position on the board of the London and North Western Railway, Britain's largest and most influential company at this time. Indeed, all the other companies listed were much smaller, but had links with the L&NWR through feeding into its business in some way. Therefore, it is very likley that he was on their boards to influence their policy in the L&NWR's favour.

Ultimately, this why determining the links that were established between railway companies via their directorates is important. Viewing railway companies in the Victorian period in isolation is erroneous, as informal bonds with neighbouring ones influenced corporate policies, such as take-overs, mergers, operations and train services. Thus, while the boundary of one company may seemingly end at its railhead, its influence through its directors may go even further.

The Size of a Railway Company Boards

The number of directors that Victorian railway companies had varied from company to company. The factors determining the size of boards were dependent on a range of factors, including the intensity of the company's operations, the area it served and the external interests represented at board level. 

For example, the Great Western (GWR) and London and South Western Railways (L&SWR) had very different board sizes between the 1830s and 1915. In 1834 the GWR board had fifteen directors. However, the number fluctuated between sixteen and twenty-eight until 1878, when it stabilised at nineteen until 1922.[1] Yet, the L&SWR stabilised its smaller board size earlier in its history. It started with fifteen members in 1833, but consistently had twelve from 1860 onwards. Thus, the L&SWR had fewer men sit on its board up until 1915. Between 1834 and 1915 seventy-seven  men were L&SWR directors,[2] whereas for the GWR the total was 128.[3] Why the boards were different sizes is not entirely clear. However, it is suspected this was because the companies served different geographical areas, the GWR's being larger, and there were more vested interests involved in the GWR that had to be accommodated.

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[1] Channon, Geoffrey, Railways in Britain and the United States 1830-1940, p.165

[2] The National Archives [TNA], RAIL 1110/281, 283 and 284, London and South Western Railway Reports and Accounts 1831-1922

[3] Channon, Railways in Britain and the United States , p.180

"Motor Car will be shorty received" - An Interesting 'Urgent Train Message'

I have a number of these London and South Western Railway 'Urgent Train Messages' in my document collections. These originally were sent on trains between stations throughout the period. Those in my possession all originate from 1911 and 1912 and, as this was an era when telephones were common, the UTMs do not seem to convey anything of importance. The topics covered include unpaid charges for transported items, lost property and shipping arrangements. Probably the most interesting is one sent from Bishops Waltham to Eastleigh Station on 2 November 1911 concerning the shipment of a 'motor car' (shown). It reads:

"Motor Car will be shorty received at yours from London consigned F.S. Moss Esq, Eastleigh. Immediately it arrives will you please wire "Hales" Winters Hill, Bishops Waltham and deduct the charges. Ack."

I'm not sure about the words in red, so please feel fee to make suggestions.

A Royal Train Flyer - 1898

This timetable was issued at stations along the route of a train carrying Queen Victoria from Windsor to Portsmouth Harbour on 10 March 1898. Indeed, the purpose of these flyers was so that individuals living close to the line knew when the royal train was passing and turn out to see it.

A [Very] Short History of Shorthand on the Victorian Railway

Before the 1890s the most extra training railway clerks could undertake, above what was required for their posts, was in shorthand. On the Manchester Sheffield and & Lincolnshire Railway in 1854 the General Manager, Sir Edward Watkin, employed the brother of Isaac Pitman (the inventor of shorthand) to run classes for a small number of clerks.[1] Thereafter, its teaching was gradually adopted by other railways companies and became a standard skill for the vast majority of railways' clerical staff by the turn of the century. Indeed, in 1910 shorthand was mandatory skill for all new junior clerks on the London and North Western Railway.[3]  Yet, even at the end of the century some companies remained behind the times. As late as 1891 the London and South Western Railway's staff magazine, The South Western Gazette, was still imploring juniors to attend classes.[4] Indeed, to my knowledge the company never made it mandatory. 

I wrote a longer history of shorthand on the railway (that may need updating with new information) on my main Turnip Rail Blog in October 2010 here.

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[1] Hodgkins, David, The Second Railway King: The Life and Times of Sir Edward Watkin, (Landybie, 2002)
[2]Pitman, Isaac, The Phonographic Railway Phrase Book:  An adaptation of Phonography to the Requirements of Railway Business and Correspondence, (London, 1889), p.1
[3] Pratt, Edwin A., A History of Inland Communication and Transportation in England, (London,1912), p.42
[4] South Western Gazette, Nov 1891, p.3