GWR : Great Western Railway

[brianb]

Hi Swindon

I dont think it is the same one, this is an a4 (landscape) booklet with a bronze coloured cover, as I said, published for the 150th aniversary etc.

It does mention the 1975 "open days" and has the 1974 works photo "of an historic group of Swindon management" (so it says), but strangely hasnt a date of publication.

Its an interesting book, with loads of topics covered in its 40 pages, the Swindon Monster was once called Raggy Powells horse, so he must have been a character !.

If you do not have this publication, I am sure the IHT would consider you as a safe keeper perhaps, let me know as I need to clear the office asap in advance of a move to new offices, hence old publications going to good homes like IHT and the Glamorgan Archieves.

[SwindonLibrary]

Well if there is any doubt we would love to have a copy - either a scan or an original. It would be a permanent part of our local studies collection.
Let me know what you decide. Thanks.

FAO Local Studies
Swindon Central Library,
Regent Circus,
Swindon,
Wiltshire
SN1 1QG

(01793) 463238
central.library@swindon.gov.uk

[brianb]

okey dokey

will scan the cover and email it through to you in a little while, if its not part of your collection I will post it off to you (IHT agreeing as they had first dibs).

Otherwise will scan the lot dinner time tomorrow and email through the full document.

Cheers, and as the others have said, its good that you have joined the forum, maybe others will follow.

Brian

[SwindonLibrary]

Thanks for your help in this. Much appreciated.

[sailorbaz]

Hi Swindon,
Thanks for your generous offer, Swindon Library.
I have been trying to find my mother's father, Mr. Deacon or Deakin, for some time. He came from Banbury, Oxfordshire originally and he didn't stay with my grandmother there for long, hence the lack of Christian name!
He had another family in Birmingham that she didn't know about.
He worked for the GWR at Snowhill around 1912-1914. The story in our family is that he was killed in WW1 but that may have been a smokescreen and he could have continued with the GWR.
Any help in tracing even a Christian name would be much appreciated.
By the way, I didn't attend the works open day in 1974. But I went on many works visits in the 1950's when they were repairing GWR locos and building BR 92000 class locos.
Regards
Barry

[mariner]

Just a note to let BG Forum members know that here at the Local Studies and Family History Collection, at Swindon Central Library, we have a full bound run of the GWR staff magazine (1891-1947), plus the British Rail Western Region magazine that followed it (1947-).

(We also have a complete run of The Railway Magazine from 1897)

They can be VERY good for obituaries, promotions, appointments, accidents and retirements within the company. Many entries feature photographs. While not comprehensive, we have often managed to find results. Please feel free to contact us directly or through this site.

--------------------------------------------------------
Remember that GWR staff records themselves are held in the National Archives, Kew.
Great Western Railway Company: Staff Records
Covering dates 1835-1962
Availability Subject to 30 year closure unless otherwise stated
---------------------------------------------------------


Best Wishes,
Swindon Libraries.

Hi
Did they run in S.Wales, if they did, did they get to Pembroke?
Don

[SwindonLibrary]

Hi
Did they run in S.Wales, if they did, did they get to Pembroke?
Don

Sorry Mariner/Don - I'm not sure what you mean.

[SwindonLibrary]

Hi Swindon,
Thanks for your generous offer, Swindon Library.
I have been trying to find my mother's father, Mr. Deacon or Deakin, for some time. He came from Banbury, Oxfordshire originally and he didn't stay with my grandmother there for long, hence the lack of Christian name!
He had another family in Birmingham that she didn't know about.
He worked for the GWR at Snowhill around 1912-1914. The story in our family is that he was killed in WW1 but that may have been a smokescreen and he could have continued with the GWR.
Any help in tracing even a Christian name would be much appreciated.
By the way, I didn't attend the works open day in 1974. But I went on many works visits in the 1950's when they were repairing GWR locos and building BR 92000 class locos.
Regards
Barry

Barry, just to check the obvious for a moment, is he named on your mother's birth certificate? This is by far your best bet for solid information.

Sadly, there will be MANY people on the railways with that surname, in that region, during that period so without either a date or retirement (or year of death if he did periosh in WWI) there is not much we can do. You can check the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website for Deacon/Deakin casualties and see where they came from but the key thing here, as always, is to ask "How will I know the right person if & when I find them?" and at the moment there is no confirming piece of information.

You could try searching the 1901 census for people born in Banbury with that surname (if he worked for the GWR in 1912 he almost certainly will be on the 1901 census, if not earlier ones too) but without even an approximate age or confirmation that he was born in Banbury you will struggle.

Is there any other relative that might be able to help?

[philmay]

Hi,
I am trying to find out information about the death of Jacob Dunn aged 21 years. In the 1901 census he is listed as a gwr drilling machinist. He died in july-sept 1902. Do you have any information?

[SwindonLibrary]

Well your first step - if not done so already - is to get the GRO details to order the death certificate. Was he still working for the GWR when he died, or had he retired?

I have checked the GRO Deaths for Q3 (Jul-Sep) 1902 and there is no Jacob Dunn listed on the fiche. Is it possible that you have the details wrong?

There is this one:

Name of deceased: Jacob Dunn
Year: 1900
Quarter: Apr-May-Jun
Age at Death: 30
District: Sunderland
Vol: 10a
Page: 384

But I don't have enough details to confirm if this is right.

Also, on the 1901 census via Ancestry I can find 5 Jacob Dunns (spelt that way) but none working on the railways.