Talk on railways in WW1

A talk on railways in WW1 by Jeremy Nicholls was given on Thursday 17th September to the History Society.

As expected there were several visitors attracted by the topic – railways are always a favourite and Jeremy gave us a comprehensive but easy to follow trip through time and space.

Memorable photos included Crewe built armoured trains and the Crewe tractor which could swap from road to rail and be used to pull trucks.

The ladies had to adapt their clothing to the tasks of Station Mistress or engine cleaner and some fashionable outfits resulted.

At the start of the war there were 178 separate companies which although directed by Government ran their own routes and had their own rolling stock. In 1923 they were amalgamated to give just 4 companies. Luckily there was surplus capacity of railtrack, and routes which were less popular in peacetime proved extremely useful when large numbers of men, horses, and supplies had to be moved.

Terrific feats were achieved, 689 extra trains in a fortnight to get the British Expeditionary Force over to France, a train converted to an ambulance train in 19 days. Volunteers 'manned' (although they were women) the free buffets on the stations for servicemen and were kept very busy in Crewe.

Some of the Crewe sheds were used to make munitions, employing many local women. Many local men joined up from the railway employ and lost their lives in the conflict.

We look forward to any more talks on rail themes that Jeremy can come up with.

Our next talk features Wistaston which has recently formed a history Society. This will be on Thursday October 15th, all welcome.

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