L&SWR Rule Book - 1912

On the 9th August 1912, the Board of the London and South Western Railway approved this new rule book. By the looks of it, this was simply an updated version of the company's 1904 rule book. Additionally this, in its turn, was a predecessor to the company's 1921 rule book. In fact, the three books are so alike that without the dates on the front it would be hard to determine which was which. Contrast this with rule books from 1864 and 1884, and it is clear to see that this similarity indicates that by the early 20th century the procedures within the industry had become very ingrained. As such, the rule book, the most fundamental element of the railwayman's life, is highly representative of the stage that the railways were at in their development.

L&SWR Gradient manual - 1887

Gradient manuals of this type were issued to all engine drivers on the L&SWR. This one from 1887 is presumably the last (or first) type that was issued as the inside cover, shown below, are written the men that used it. First there was engineman J. Meaton who was based at Northam and was presented it in 1887. However, it was eventually passed to A. Plummer, presumably a driver at Nine Elms, in April 1930. This indicates that this document was used for over 40 years by these men, but also that a replacement was not issued either by the London and South Western Railway, or its successor, the Southern Railway. This was despite many more lines being opened. It is, therefore, quite possible that these men were main line drivers, as if they were driving on any of the new lines that were constructed after 1887 (all branch, light or secondary lines), the companies would have be required to issue a new gradient manual.

British Railways Promotional Pamphlet - The Feltham Yard - 1950s

I'm not entirely sure why this leaflet was produced, however I have seen a number of them through the years giving information on a range of British Railways facilities. This one is on the Feltham Marshalling Yard which was finished by the London and South Western Railway in 1921. While there is no date on it, from the propensity of small wagons and the steam locomotive pictured on the rear cover, I can only assume that it was issued in the 1950s. This little leaflet gives a range of details regarding the yard, such as its size, it operation and the number of train departures and arrivals. For more information on the Feltham Marshalling Yard, please have a look at my latest Blog post on the main 'Turnip Rail' website HERE.

Southern Railway Magazine - 1925

The Southern Railway Magazine (SRM), the staff magazine of the Southern Railway (SR), was essentially a later version of the first railway company staff magazine, the South Western Gazette (SWG), that was independently published for the London and South Western Railway's staff from 1881. This became the South Western Magazine (SWM) in 1916 and it is this title that is shown on the top of the SRM's cover above. On the grouping, the magazine was from thereon published with all of the SR's staff in mind, the other constituent companies not having established their own staff magazines before 1922. This said, it still maintained for many years a bias towards events taking place in the old L&SWR territories.

Where it differed from it's forerunner, the SWG and for two years the SWM, was that the SRM was owned by the company as the SWM had been taken over by the L&SWR management in 1918. This meant that SRM's content was far more in line with the needs of the management to inform and instruct the workforce, whereas its forerunners were much less inclined to explicitly project any of management's views.

L&SWR - Election of a Director Notice for Shareholders - 1875

This is probably one of the most useful Documents for my PhD. I know it doesn't look like much, but it shows part of the process of election L&SWR directors engaged in before they actually became directors. From the literature, the general feeling about railway company boards in the 19th century was that they were self-perpetuating. So, for example, when a board member died or retired, the remaining directors would choose a replacement from those who applied for the vacancy. Yet, for the appointment to be completed prospective directors had to be confirmed by a meeting of the shareholders. As the documents shows, the new directors therefore had to engage in a degree of canvassing. Therefore, the subject of the above circular above, Arthur E. Guest, clearly was detailing his positive attributes for the shareholders to increase his chances of election.

Guest was confirmed as a board member and served as a L&SWR director until 1898. He, therefore, became one of the company's longest serving directors. He was born in 1841 and had been educated at Harrow and Trinity College Cambridge. Aside from his membership of the L&SWR board he was also a member of the board of the Taff Vale Railway company.

L&SWR instructions to Engineering Staff - 1896 (From Other Turnip Rail Site)

This is another rule book for L&SWR staff that in a sense shows the division between the different departments within the company. While the main company Rule Book was issued to all staff, the one shown was an extra one supplied to the staff in the Engineering Department. This was issued in 1896, however a more wide-ranging one was issued in 1902 that also covered regulations regarding the maintenance and operation of signals. What they both evidence is the fact that the Engineering department required extra rules and regulations pertinent to their own operations. On the other hand, the Traffic and Running Departments had their own 'Appendix to the working timetable' which detailed their own 'extra' rules and regulations. Thus, the departments by the late 1890s had grown apart to become organisations in their own right. Thus this example and the 1902 instruction book were formulated in isolation by the department chiefs, as a comprehensive common rule book could not be formulated for all departments. I have shown all the pages here so please click on them to take a better look.

British Railways - Traffic and General Staff Paybill - 1957

This is actually a composite picture of two scans. Hence the discrepancy in the image at its bottom. It details the pay arrangements of three individuals based at Mirfield Station which was was located in the North Eastern Region of BR, it being built originally by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. The document shows the individual's rates of pay, their hours, grades and their overtime in January 1957. On the sheet is Mr L. Clegg, who was a grade 4 clerk earning £482 per annum. However, on a later paybill I have from October 1958, it shows that Clegg was raised to £521, but remained a Grade 4 clerk. This indicates that within grades their were scales of pay.