"Whilst Passing over or Standing on Buffers During Shunting" - British Railway Accident Rates in the 1880s

Sadly, railway accidents were common occurrences in the Victorian railway, and both passengers and employees could not fail to be aware of the scale of the loss of life and limb in the period. Indeed, the July 1888 the South Western Gazette, the London and South Western Railway’s staff magazine, published details on all the accidents that occurred on Britain’s Railways between 1880 and 1887. Thus, this gave a useful snapshot of the state of railway safety for both employees and passengers in the period.

The first table that the Gazette presented was a list of those individuals killed or injured in accidents on trains between 1880 and 1887 (above). This showed that over the course of the 1880s that the number of accidents dropped and in 1880 51 individuals had been killed, whereas in 1887 the total was 25. However, the Gazette commented that the 25 passengers who lost their lives in 1887 did so in one accident at Penistone on the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway, and had not been for this event ‘some 800 millions of passengers without the loss of a single life.’ More significantly, the number of injuries declined, which is more indicative of changes of railway safety. While in 1880 1,023 individuals had been injured, by 1887 the total was 647.

The decline in train accidents can be attributed to improvements in railway safety. No major safety legislation was introduced in the 1880s, but two technologies were gradually spreading through the British railway network.

The first was the block system of train control.  Originally trains were allowed to proceed along lines only after and interval of time. This meant that if a train got delayed, the one behind would be given permission to proceed after a set duration, which would put both at risk. However, in the 1870s and 1880s this was gradually replaced by block systems. This was where the track was divided up into sections, and a train following another was not allowed to enter the ‘block’ section in front until any preceding train had left it. Most train movements in and out of block sections were controlled by individual signal boxes connected by telegraphs. While the technical details of the block system, which is still in use today, are unimportant, its gradual introduction in this period by railway companies dramatically improved safety.[1]

Secondly, continuous brakes on locomotives and passenger vehicles became more widespread. The principal of continuous brakes was that when the driver applied the brake on the locomotive, the wheels of the coaches did the same. While legislation on this was not in place until 1889, after the Armagh Accident, many companies began to fit three competing brake systems to their rolling stock from the early 1880s. The detail of which systems were adopted by which companies is unimportant. However, two systems used a vacuum maintained by the train, and another, the Westinghouse system, was an air brake.[2] Therefore, this improved the reliability of braking systems generally, as now whole trains could be brought to a halt. Indeed, this explains the drop in injuries, as now in the when a train applied a brake sharply, carriages did not smash into each other as easily.

Despite improvements in accident rates on trains, there was seemingly no improvement in the number of other accidents that occurred elsewhere. The table above shows that between 1885 and 1887 the number of people killed on railways in total increased. The numbers injured decreased, however, this was only because of the decline in injuries to people on trains.

Interestingly, the article also gave the most common causes of injury (left) in 1887. The most number of injuries, 355 in total, were attributed to ‘other accidents during shunting operations, not included in the preceding’ (the preceding being: ‘while moving vehicles by capstans, turntables props &c. during shunting – 187 accidents.’) The second most common form of accident occurred ‘whilst coupling and uncoupling vehicles,’ 232 happening in this manner. Fatalities predominantly occurred in shunting operations. The most number of deaths, 99 in total, were when individuals were ‘working on the permanent way, sidings &c.’ Following this, 93 individuals were killed ‘whilst walking, crossing, or standing on the line on duty.’ Thus, it was people actually working on the line itself that most frequently were killed.

What individuals were doing when they were killed or injured was reflected in the types of employee were involved in accidents the most (right). As expected, those individuals who were involved with coupling together trains were injured the most, and 337 Brakesmen and Goods Guards, 309 Porters and 292 shunters, were so. Furthermore, it is unsurprising that the individuals who were killed the most were platelayers who maintained the line, and 106 died, presumably through being knocked down by a train.

Overall, this small study has revealed that while the railway was an increasingly safe place for those travelling by train, whether they were passengers or railway workers, for those who were actually employed by the railways the risk involved did not diminish. This would challenge any idea that in this period railway work became safer for employees, when only a small proportion benefited from the safety devices that were introduced.

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[1] Farrington, John, ‘Block Working’, in Simmons, Jack and Biddle, Gordon (eds.), The Oxford Companion to British Railway History, (Oxford, 1997), p.34

[2] Weaver, Rodney, ‘Brakes’, Simmons and Biddle (eds.), The Oxford Companion to British Railway History, p.41

All other information from: South Western Gazette, July 1888, p.11

Football Amongst Railway Workers on the GCR (1905-06, 06-07 seasons)

Sports were one of things that socially drew together late 19^th and early 20^th century railway workers. However, in the late 19^th century cricket was the sport of choice for many individuals, as testified by the vast swathes of cricket scores found from 1881 onwards in the London and South Western Railway’s Staff Magazine, the South Western Gazette.[1] By comparison, football was still in its infancy, and while there were a great many large clubs in existence in by the early 20^th century,[2] the formation of teams at grassroots level was still prolific. With highly inter-connected organisations, cooperative working and a sense of loyalty to railway Companies, it isn’t surprising that railway workers began to form teams and leagues of their own. Thus, this Blog post is about football amongst Great Central Railway employees.

Cricket was seemingly the sport of choice for many employees of the Great Central Railway (GCR) in 1905, and the first edition of the company’s staff magazine, the Great Central Railway Journal, detailed the matches that the Nottingham, Sheffield and Leicester Great Central cricket clubs played. Interestingly, many of these matches were against teams from other railway companies, revealing that inter-railway rivalry spread beyond just the speed of trains, the quality of the service or the shine of railway worker’s buttons. In May 1905 the Nottingham Club lost by 120 runs to 76 against the Nottingham Locomotive Department of the Midland Railway. However, they won against the Great Northern Railway’s Nottingham clerks by 82 runs to 45. The Leicester GCR team beat some London and North Western Railway men by 66 runs to 23. Furthermore, in addition to the inter-company games, the GCR cricket clubs also played teams from surrounding villages and groups.[3]

Yet, since the late 19^th century, football had become a far more popular sport and the April 1906 edition of the Journal gave reports of Football matches that were occurring amongst GCR railwaymen. The team from Ardwick Station beat their colleagues from Openshaw, 3-0. The Doncaster District Superintendent’s Office (DSO) team beat Liverpool DSO staff members by four goals to none. Lastly, Blyton Station staff stunned the Sheffield Bridgehouses Goods Accounts Clerks by inflicting on them a 13-0 defeat.[4] This was unsurprising though, as the Blyton team was beaten only once in the 1905-06 season.[5] With footballing activity at a high level, it is interesting to note that the May 1906 edition of the GCRJ stated that there were not only teams amongst the GCR staff, but there were clubs also.[6]Indeed, a later correspondent cited that teams and clubs were established at Doncaster DSO, Hexthorpe, Mexborough, Wombwell, Stairfoot and Barnsley Goods Depot.[7] As a community of footballers, their undoubted crowning achievement of the 1905-06 season was that a united GCR team won the Hampstead and District League West London Charity Cup.[8]

In the May 1906 edition of the GCJ there was a description of the Doncaster DSO’s team that gave details of the nature of a GCR football team. It seems that its formation was a reflection of the community spirit that existed amongst the men. The team was formed because of ‘a desire on the part of some of the members of the office to meet in friendly games with the staff in the other district offices of the company.’ While the article didn’t specify a date of formation, it suggested that the team, while new, was one of the more established clubs. Growing from a small start it had become ‘a team capable of meeting many of the amateur teams in the district.’ Its star players were the Captain, Mr Storer, and the Vice-Captain, Mr Fennell, two players who were ‘capable of leading the team onto victory.’[9]

Amongst all the GCR teams the Blyton Station team stood out as being a well-established (and not to mention formidable),[10] as they were already partaking in a local league.[11] Thus, in the April 1906 edition of the GCRJ a Mr A.E. Bales, of the company’s Carriage and Wagon Workshops at Gorton, had a letter published suggesting that a company league be started. On the basis of the Blyton example he posited that ‘a league could be formed composed of employees from the GCR system.’ He suggested establishing more than one league, to be arranged in divisions, as well as a cup competition for the whole of the system. He felt that the cost would low and welcomed suggestions from ‘admirers of the winter pastime.’[12] This, therefore, would move the activities of footballers in the company to a more advanced phase of organisational development.

Many of the views were positive. E. Kimmery of the Blyton team offered his support and the use of a ground for teams that did not have their own.[13] He was supported by ‘W.A’[14] and a ‘would be football team’ from an unknown location, who suggested that it was ‘about time something was being definitely decided upon.’ They hoped that a league could be formed by the start of the next season.[15] ‘J.S.S.,’ ‘A.K.D.’ and ‘H.O.’ from Liverpool supported the idea, but raised the point that because of the size of the GCR the distances some teams would have to travel to play matches would be impractical. As an alternative they suggested two or more leagues in the districts, with occasional test matches being played between teams that constituted of the best players from both. They also suggested a central organisation to coordinate the leagues which would be based at Sheffield.[16] Subsequently, Kimmery took it upon himself to marshal the organisation of the league, writing to twenty-two stations about the proposals.[17]

Unfortunately, Kimmery reported in the November issue of the GCRJ that of the twenty two stations that he had written to, only four had replied. Subsequently, the idea was ‘to rest for the present time.’ However, he was willing to fix up friendly matches for Blyton with any GCR team.[18] Blyton in the 1906-07 season continued to be on top form, beating Chapeltown 5-1 on November 18^th and the Hull Kingston Street team 11-0 on December 8^th.[19]

Unfortunately, my research hasn’t taken me far enough to establish whether a football league was eventually formed in the 1907-08 season or beyond. However, it is hoped that this will be discovered soon. What this case study suggests is that football by the early twentieth was an increasingly popular pastime and that communities were arranging more than just individual matches. Cricket had dominated as the sport of choice in the 1900s. However, presumably because of the increased free time that railway employees had due to legislation that limited their working hours, football, a sport that was far more accessible and shorter in duration, quickly became popular amongst them.

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[1] The National Archives [TNA], ZPER 11/5, The South Western Gazette, June 1885, p.8

[2] TNA, ZPER 16/2, Great Eastern Railway Magazine, March 1912, p.73-74

[3] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, July 1906, p.7

[4] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, April 1906, p.240

[5] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, January 1907, p.185

[6] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, May 1906, p.275

[7] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, July 1906, p.23

[8] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, March 1907, p.238

[9]TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, May 1906, p.268

[10] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, April 1906, p.247

[11] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, May 1906, p.275

[12] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, May 1906, p.275

[13] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, May 1906, p.275

[14] TNA, ZPER 18/1, The Great Central Railway Journal, June 1906, p.298

[15] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, July 1906, p.23

[16] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, August 1906, p.54

[17] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, November 1906, p.134

[18] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, November 1906, p.134

[19] TNA, ZPER 18/2, The Great Central Railway Journal, February 1907, p.234

When Railway Workers' Write Poetry

Unfortunately, I am deep into a chapter that is due in on Monday, or thereabouts. As such, I have not had the time to write any blog posts and so I thought I’d post some poems that I have found in Railway Company Staff Magazines. While I have many poems from the London and South Western Railway’s (L&SWR) staff magazine, The South Western Gazette, I have also started to photograph staff magazines that originated within other railway companies before 1923. It seems to me that while they loved to include poetry, poetic submissions were also used by editors to fill space. This said, the South Western Gazette did actually have a ‘poet’s corner’ for many years.

Many came from external sources, however, a good proportion were written by railway employees and I’m sure that the poems could tell us a lot about attitudes to work on different railways, railway workers’ concerns in different parts of the country and the lives they led. However, for now, just enjoy them (even if some of them are not great). I’ll start with a poem by J.J. Hatch, a clerk on the L&SWR, who was so prolific that he eventually had a book of his work published. This was from the April 1st edition of the South Western Gazette.

A Lost Friend

As meeting in the eventide,
A man, his journey well nigh done,
Whose face towards the setting sun
Is bright and seems half glorified.

So met I him when life was late,
His life, and loved him from the first;
My soul hath ever been athirst
For kindly hearts with which to mate;

And his was warm with gentle thought
And fruitage of congenial speech,
And so our spirits, each to each,
Were drawn, by mutual impulse taught:

He pass’d into the silent night,
And left me standing all alone,
The sunset hue of eve had gone,
And earth was darken’d to my sight.

Poems with a railway theme were actually quite rare. However, this one from the Great Central Railway Journal of April 1906 certainly bucks the trend. It is simply called ‘A Railway Romance’ and was about a deaf man called Wilkinson who had his hearing restored by being run into by a train. There was no stated author.

A Railway Romance

Wilkinson was strolling slowly,
Pensively upon the railway:
The express was fact approaching
Just behind him, but he lit a
Cigarette and hummed a ballad:
He was deaf, and so he could not
Hear th’ approaching locomotive,
Raging, panting locomotive,
Panting close upon his footsteps:
Or the driver gently whisp’ring
Lisping to the evening zephyrs,
“Wilkinson, you Crimson idiot,
“Crimson, suicidal idiot
“Can’t you hear the crimson engine
“Panting o’er the purple railroad?
“Will you-?” But his words were idle,
(Wilkinson could not have heard a
Cannon let off close beside him);
But the passengers could hear them.-
So the engine rushed upon him,
Rushed at full four miles and hour
(It was a suburban railway),
Smote him with the dreadful buffers
Right upon the ear, when-wonder-
His complaint was cured completely.
Wilkinson regained his hearing.
But when he hears the driver
Comment on the situation,
Mention his opinion of him,
Fully his opinion of him,
Then he wished devoutly that he
Never had regained his hearing.

The Great Western Railway Magazine and Temperance Union Recorder was started by the company’s temperance union in 1888. Because of its origin its content reflected the fact that the readers were expected to engage in good habits. Thus, the poems were often of a religious, clean living or pious nature. This one, from January 1889, was simply called ‘Gone!’ and was ascribed to an unnamed employee who worked at Paddington Station.

Gone!

Hark! Hark! The bell in the old church tower yonder,
It echoes, dirge-like in the midnight clear;
It bids the soul upon this thought to ponder,-
The Dying Year!

The Dying Year! The “Hand” will soon be “vanished;”
The Dying Year! The “Voice” will soon be “still;”
The Dying Year! The form will soon be banished
Behind Life’s hill.

And as the bell in toll grows slower, deeper,
A Form comes gliding on,
Murmuring, as watchers o’er the pallid sleeper,
The sad word, “Gone!”

Anon, a merry peal of bells are ringing,
The New Tear grasps a rope,
And in the air and angel choir is singing
The joyous song of “Hope.”

The Great Eastern Railway Magazine was started in 1911 by the Great Eastern Railway. Interestingly, a number of poems in the early editions were actually about the magazine itself and events that took place early in its existence. This one, from the first edition in January 1911, certainly shows one individual was optimistic about the magazine’s future. Attributed to ‘A.L.G,’ it is called ‘The G.E.R.M.’

The G.E.R.M.

Pray have you the space for one to make
A trifling observation?
Our Magazine already bears
A shortened appellation-
But one we might adopted without
The slightest hesitation-
“The Germ”!
For germs are good as well as bad,
And often quite benevolent,
Converting all to good that is
In any way malevolent.
(If thou be such, then let us pray
To see thee ever prevalent,
O Germ!)
May be ‘twill prove a germ of life
Of the most intense vividity:
A germ so precious as to be
Sought after with cupidity-
Of such content that all who taste
Will swallow with avidity
The Germ!

Well, for now I think I will stop there. I have many more for when I am having a busy period in my PhD, and I am sure the number I will find will increase.

Did the Great Central Railway Indoctrinate Children?

Probably the weirdest thing I have come across in any railway company staff magazine was ‘Auntie Agnes,’ who wrote for the staff magazine of the Great Central Railway, the Great Central Railway Journal (GCRJ). This wasn’t an agony aunt column for railway workers, nor was it an article on gardening tips. Rather, her column was for railway employees’ children and, to my knowledge, was an anomaly amongst the pages of railway company staff magazines more generally.

The GCRJ started in June 1905, and was, in some sense, child of the London and South Western Railway’s (L&SWR) own staff magazine the South Western Gazette (SWG). Both had been created by Sam Fay, who had been an L&SWR Clerk in 1881, when he had started the former, but by 1905 was General Manager of the GCR, taking the staff magazine concept with him.[1] Yet, while the SWG was set up for the benefit of the L&SWR’s ‘Widows and Orphans Fund,’ there was seemingly no similar justification for setting up the GCR.[2]

By 1905, staff magazines were no longer simply being published by the employees, for the employees, as the SWG and Great Western Railway Magazine had been. Amongst all the sports, entertainment and staff news, staff magazines were used by railway company managers to inform their employees of their priorities and agendas, and to educate them. This clearly evident in the first issue of the GCRJ, where there were articles under the headings of ‘Control of Engine Working,’ ‘The Washington Railway Congress,’ ‘Death of an Old G.C. employee,’ ‘Locomotive Notes’ and ‘American Methods of Railway Inspection.'[3] Yet, the ‘Auntie Agnes’ articles also show that the world of the railway worker was not something that ended when he clocked off. Rather, his family were ‘railway families,’ and the home and workplace were intrinsically bound up together. However, it is surprising that while the kournal had something for the children of railway workers, there was nothing for their wives.

The first edition of the GCRJ carried under the heading ‘Children’s Page,’ the first letter from Auntie Agnes. In the corner was the note, ‘for three months we will try the experiment of a children’s page, and if appreciated will make it a permanent feature.’ Yet, its continuation throughout the first year, indicates that it was deemed a success.

In the first letter to the children, Aunt Agnes, whose real identity is unknown, asked that the children tell her about themselves. Information was requested on their ‘pets, what you like to do best of all, your favourite games, how you spend your holidays or anything you think will be of interest to other little boys or girls.’ They might, as a result, have their letter printed, space permitted. All letters were to be sent to ‘Auntie Agnes, c/o the Editor, Great Central Railway Journal, Central Station Leicester.’ There had already been one letter though, and the first contribution (shown), was from a girl by the name of ‘bubs’ who was aged 5.

Agnes finished her column by talking about how they must have enjoyed Whitsuntide and were looking forward to the upcoming holidays.[4]

However, Agnes did not miss the opportunity for a little promotion of the railway company. In the July edition one of her new ‘nephews,’ as she called them, had won a scholarship and was about to go on holiday to Yorkshire. ‘Of course,’ she said, ‘he will travel by our railway, the GCR, which you all know is the quickest and best in the North.'[5] It strikes me that that this statement chimed very well with the overall educational nature of the journal.

In later entries Aunt Agnes described the letters that she had received, and in the July edition she was inundated with stories of the children’s holidays[6] In August, she received poems from one girl who had taken them from a new book she had received called Alice in Motorland. This book was apparently much like Alice in Wonderland. From September onwards, Aunt Agnes also described parts of her trip to America and Canada.[7] She wrote a number of letters described her train journey from Boston to California[8]and what she did while she was there[9] She also answered many questions from her ‘nieces and nephews’ as to what the United States was like[10] True to form, she also never missed an opportunity to compare North American railways with the Great Central, consistently referring to the latter as ‘our railway.’ Indeed, at the current time I have not got images of the GCRJ beyond June 1906, and it is unknown as to when Aunt Agnes returned.

So what can we make of the ‘Children’s Page’ (admittedly with limited information). I will speculate that the ‘Children’s Page’ was possibly established by the GCR’s management in an attempt to indoctrinate its employees’ children. It is known in the period that being the child of a railway worker guaranteed employment with the railway company. Therefore, isn’t it plausible, given the constant references to 'our railway,' that the GCRJ was trying to breed loyalty to the company amongst their future servants? I admit that I may be on shaky ground here without more evidence. However, this explanation would tie up nicely with the educational nature of the GCRJ more generally. Whatever the answer, the ‘Children’s Page’ shows that the railway company’s management was, at very least, trying to reach into their employee’s homes to blur the lines between that space and the workplace.

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[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Fay

[2] The National Archives [TNA], ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, June 1905

[3] The National Archives [TNA], ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, June 1905

[4] TNA, ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, June 1905, p.15

[5] The National Archives [TNA], ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, July 1905, p.38

[6] TNA, ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, July 1905, p.38

[7] TNA, ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, August 1905, p.58

[8] TNA, ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, September 1905, p.78

[9] TNA, ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, February 1906, p.196

[10] TNA, ZPER 18/1, Great Central Railway Journal, March 1906, p.216

A few thoughts on the Railway Company Staff Magazine

As I am sure that some of you will no doubt be aware, one of my great interests that I cannot satisfy within the remit of my PhD is the railway company staff magazine. In short, it just doesn't fit into my thesis. I can merrily quote from London and South Western Railway's staff magazine, the South Western Gazette and I have cited many details from it that that go towards any points I am making with regard to the management of the company. However, this isn't actually a study of the magazine itself. The only work that I have done on the SWG was for an article I wrote for the Historical Model Railway Society's Journal on the establishment and the first five years of the publication. But more needs to be done.
What is important to note about company staff magazines (from any industry) is that they do simply convey a chronological version of events within the company. Rather, these publications are usually written, managed, edited and produced by one group of employees within the company. Thus, in my article on the SWG and another by Mike Esbester on the Great Western Railway Magazine (GWRM) in the 1920s, we have both determined that these publications were produced by the Railway Clerks of the companies. Thus, the magazines reflected the views of these groups of individuals.

Subsequently, both magazines aligned themselves with management's goals, as clerks were the only individuals in the industry that realistically had a chance of rising that high in the organisation. This was far more blatant in the developed GWRM, which was trying to promote the GWR management's 'safety campaign.' Yet, in the case of the SWG this was more subtle, for example the editors placed the financial success of the company on page one. In addition, both magazines did not allow any criticism of the company's performance. Thus, in Mike's words, the staff that wrote and edited both magazines were 'socialised in the clerical-managerial context,' and this was expressed through the pages of the magazine.

More work needs to be done in this field, but it is interesting to think how past staff magazines may have the ability to tell the historian what railway company employees were thinking...