Tatham area railways 1845-1914 |
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Railway PeopleThe 1861-1901 census data for Arkholme, Hornby, Farleton, Wray, Tatham and Wennington (and Melling from 1871) show that between 15 and 33 men living in these areas were employed by the railway. The data is summarised below; click here for a full list.
A consistent picture of their occupations is not possible because of changing job titles but three categories are apparent: station staff (station master, clerk, porter, points man / signalman and labourer), track maintenance staff (platelayer / ganger/ repairer and labourer) and a few train staff (guard, engine cleaner and engine driver (assuming it is railway engines). On the old NWR line, the track category lived mainly in the crossing cottages. As these crossings were for infrequent agricultural access, for which a toll was charged, their wives presumably operated them. In at least one case, there is uncertainty about a person’s employment, e.g. in 1871 John Bee was railway platelayer living at "Wray Station", whereas in 1861 he was recorded at the same address as an agricultural labourer and, in 1851, as a labourer at an unknown address. However, in the evidence given at the inquest after the Wennington accident inquest in 1881 (see below), he claimed to have 30 years service as a platelayer, so he is included in the above data for the first two censuses. The 1901 census shows "Wray station" occupied by platelayer John Sanderson (40), his wife Matilda (40) and children Ann (13), Alexander (11) and William (8). They are shown there in a surviving photograph. In 1851, the large total, mainly comprised of track labourers, reflects the late stages of the line’s construction, including line doubling. Half of these were lodging with families in Hornby and Wennington, being part of the itinerant railway construction labour force. In keeping with this, their birth places were widely distributed, from Devon to Scotland and Ireland. Another boost in numbers came with the opening of the branch to Carnforth in 1867. Many of the operational staff were also recruited countrywide, with about half being single men lodging with local families, and the other half married men with families living in their own dwellings. |
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