Which Railway?

[Megan Roberts]

One of my gt. gt. grandfathers, James Smith, worked on the railway that ran through mid-Wales from (?)Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth, then north to Caernarvon, the problem is I don't know which one, and am hoping that someone might be able to help me pin point it.

James was born about 1836 in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, and married Mary Jones in1860 in Tetbury, Gloucestershire. Mary was from "Llandysilio" in Shropshire/mid Wales.

In 1863, when their son Edward James was born, they were living in "Llandrinio", Montgomeryshire.

In 1864 when their son Caleb was born they were living in "Morfaborth (Aberystwyth), Cardiganshire, and James was a railway train guard.

In 1866 when their daughter Agnes was born, they were living in Abererch (Criccieth / Pwhelli), and James was a railway guard.

In 1871 (Census) they were living in Penygroes (village south of Caernarvon), and James was a railway labourer.

They remained in Penygroes until their deaths in 1913. My grandmother, (daughter of Agnes), always said that her grandfather (James) was on the footplate of the first train into Penygroes.

So can any tell me which railway company he worked for?

[pennydog]

This might interest you http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/p/penygroes/index.shtml

[Peter Goodey]

can any tell me which railway company he worked for?

Why not try Wikipedia with "station" or "railway station" after the name of the place?

For example it says that Penygroes Station was part of the Carnarvonshire Railway.

Then for the location of records, try the National Register of Archives

[Megan Roberts]

That's a fantastic resource - thank you.

The reference to the disused line now being a by-pass (which is correct), but in doing so the construction cut the houses by the station off from the rest of the village. So more like a "Cut-off" than by-pass!

[euryalus]

The line from Whitchurch to Oswestry and thence to the Welsh coast was the Cambrian Railways main line.