This is the final blog in a short series examining the reuse of railway infrastructure as part of the Railway 200 celebrations. It looks at the various places that researchers can find more information about the past lives of railways and their impact on the people and areas that they served.
Over 200 years, railways have changed how we lived, what we ate, where we worked and how we relaxed. The buildings, infrastructure and trains are often closely linked to personal memories. Research into railways can take many forms, from an interest in a particular type of train, a specific line or locality, or how working or travelling on trains changed your family history.
My journey to railway research
I have always been fascinated by railways. I was one of the few people in my class at school brought up in a house without a car and I am one of the first generation to have grown up post Beeching. My only experience of steam has been on heritage lines which were an important part of my childhood. My personal history of everyday travel was mainly third rail electric services in the South East and on Merseyrail, moving to Pacers, Intercity 125s and Pendolinos. I worked in companies that provided computerised ticket machines and digitised information systems in stations and travelled in an evolving privatised network.
My approach to academic railway research came from a lifelong personal interest in the former branch line in Seaton, Devon and its transformation into a heritage tramway. My doctoral research project is about revisiting archives to understand the impact of the railway on social and cultural change in Seaton by using sociolinguistic techniques to examine the use of language and signage in archives and the current day environment.
Choosing a research question
For this series of blogs, I decided to focus on how closure and repurposing of closed lines created new opportunities for services and the social impact of these changes. Having lived on Merseyside for nearly 40 years, and having had a lifelong involvement with Seaton Tramway as a visitor and volunteer, I chose three stories of renewal and reinvention that held personal interest, the creation of Merseyrail Electrics, the evolution of freight traffic on Merseyside, and finally the closure of Seaton Branch Line and the arrival of Seaton Tramway.
Where to find Railway History
Railway research continues to evolve. The last 60 years have seen the creation of heritage lines, as well as an increasing interest in the social and cultural impact of railways and the reuse and repurposing of infrastructure. Access to online archives, social media interest groups, as well as increased sharing of images and memories mean that new stories about the importance of railways in changing the shape of everyday life continue to emerge, providing new resources for researchers. My research has extended beyond traditional railway sources to find images and stories of personal experience of rail travel and has included:
National Railway Museum itself has a wide range of sources—I’ve used the National Archive of Railway Oral History (NAROH), photos, books held in the Search Engine, posters, maps and Staff Magazines. The best place to start for advice on how to plan a research visit, access online catalogues and obtain other advice is on our website.
National Archives has papers relating to the original acts enabling the creation of railways, the process of closure and reopening as heritage lines. You can find their catalogues, collections and research guides on their website.
Local council records can contain information about the social impact of the railway. Historic records are often held at local records offices. For my research the South West Heritage Trust at Exeter held many records on Seaton and were fantastic in helping me get the best out of my visits. Access to catalogues, research guides and online resources are available at Devon archives and local studies. Search for the records office that covers your area of interest.
BFI films—railways are featured in documentaries and feature films. My favourites include Terminus, a day in the life of Waterloo station in the 1960s. Railways on Film is a great starting place to explore the collection, and many films can be watched for free.
Pathé films—newsreels often include railway stories.
BBC iPlayer archive for documentaries and history programmes. The Way We Lived section covers home life, technology, transport and travel in the 20th Century.
The Imperial War Museum have a collection of railway documentaries, photographs relating to wartime, including a collection from the Southern Railway. They also hold diaries and personal histories that include rail journeys. They have information on collections and research facilities and their catalogue.
Local and national newspapers, held on their own sites and in the British Newspaper Archive.
Heritage Railway’s own museums and archives, which are often run by volunteers, often contain interesting documents and artefacts. Some material maybe held online. The best place to start is each railway’s website.
Local History, Family History and Transport Interest Groups have a wide range of images, films and stories. These can be held on websites, social media groups and YouTube. Try searching by location, station name or railway region or company.
Local Museums. Sometimes run by volunteers, their websites will generally have some information about what is held and when they are open, as well as contact details.
Walking disused railways to examine traces of the past. Try searching ‘walking old railway lines’ and the line that you are interested in. There are also some brilliant videos of walks available online.
My wider research project has used other sources, and these have influenced these blogs. If you are interested in research your railway history the following links may help:
Second World War memories projects held by the BBC, local archives and community groups often contain information about railways. BBC – WW2 People’s War contains an archive of 47,000 stories and 15,000 images collected between June 2003 and January 2006.
Women’s Voluntary Service Second World War Monthly Narrative Reports are available online from the Royal Voluntary Service. These sometimes contain stories about managing evacuation and wartime activity by train. They can be found at Royal Voluntary Service website. Search by area.
Other archives, for example the James Valentine Photographic Collection held by the University of St. Andrews, have some great images of railways.
Museums and archives usually have contact details if you need help with your research and guides about how to plan a research visit.
Collecting Today’s Memories to Create Tomorrow’s History
Museums, archives and heritage lines face considerable challenges in choosing what to preserve from 200 years of history. Whilst new space at Locomotion at Shildon and continual redevelopment at York create opportunities for new displays, there is not enough capacity at the NRM to preserve every train, document and poster. Trains, infrastructure and records continually become available but require space and conservation. The Railway Heritage Advisory Board provide guidance on what should be preserved to allow future generations to understand today’s railways in the same way that having an original Bradshaw and a Q train from the Second World War supports today’s researchers. They work with other museums and heritage railways to identify and preserve significant assets as they are decommissioned.
What is the Railway Heritage Designation Advisory Board? – National Railway Museum blog
The NRM is already working to collect records relating to privatisation that represent the changing landscape of railway companies and delivery of services over the last 30 years.
Future challenges will come in preservation and display of digital systems, information boards, voice announcements, timetables and records which form part of today’s railway environment.
Digitisation is also playing an increasing part in sharing our railway history. The NRM, other museums and archives, heritage lines and interest groups are digitising their records and sharing them online, making collections accessible to researchers. As these projects evolve, some catalogues, such as the National Archives, have started to index collections held elsewhere to point researchers at other useful sources.
Where Next?
I recently found myself thinking about my 2-year-old granddaughter who recently made her first train trip with me and wondered what her railway history and interests will be like. Will it be through use of trains in everyday life, at heritage railways and museums or through online resources? Will AI help connect our crowdsourced archives or lead people down rabbit holes? How will future railway researchers verify these sources? Should there be more coordination to achieve progress and help small volunteer organisations? What risks do organisations face in managing digital archives—today a lost server could be as serious as a fire in a museum.
Railway 200 has thrown a focus on the last 200 years of railway history, what do you think that we should be doing to preserve more recent railway history and make it accessible? What do we all need to do to prepare for Railway 250?
Reading list
- Bradley. The Railways: Nation, Network and People. (Profile Books, 2015)
- Brown. The Railway Preservation Revolution. (Pen & Sword Transport, 2017)
- Horton. The Beeching Legacy, Volume One, The West Country. (Silver Link Publishing, 2010)
- Jay & D. Voice. Next Stop Seaton! (Adam Gordon, 2003)
- Jones. Beeching. 60 Years Since The Axeman. (Mortons Media Group, 2023)
- Maggs. The Seaton Branch and Seaton Tramway. (The Oakwood Press, 1992)
- Shannon. British Railway Infrastructure Since 1970. An Historical Overview. (Pen & Sword Transport, 2019)
- Welbourne. Lost Lines Liverpool and the Mersey. (Ian Allen, 2008)