Incident at Wimbledon Station May 1927 - where can I find out more

[roythebus]

W&C duties were 16 trips each way in the 1980s. I can't see it would be possible or necessary to do more than that number in earlier times, passenger numbers wouldn't justify it, hence the single car operation for many years.

 

It would seem he was a fireman at Nine Elms and maybe as a chance to better himself went as a motorman at Waterloo to work on the new electric trains. I would suggest that he would have been a cleaner/passed cleaner and fireman for maybe 10 years before getting his motorman'a job. Progression in those days was slow, but WW1 shortened that for many. 

 

Maybe the 70A website would throw up more information on this gentleman?

 

[Porkscratching]

As well as the date anomaly, the citation on the watch seems to imply an incident with one person rather than a crash with multiple casualties perhaps?

 

Wimbledon station seems to have been a rather dangerous place to be in 1927 anyway !

Edited August 19, 2019 by Porkscratching

[Caledonian]

Not much help with the incident but this turned up on a genealogy site:

 

George Edwin J Cobley, 1883 - 1963

George Edwin J Cobley was born in 1883, to William Joseph Cobley and Francis Cobley (born Sims).

William was born in January 1853, in Greenwich, Kent, England.

Francis was born in 1853, in Greenwich, Kent.

George had 8 siblings: William Henry Cobley, Gertrude Amelia Pettitor (born Cobley) and 6 other siblings.

George married Gertrude Constance Cobley (born Odell) 1904, at age 20.

Gertrude was born on December 24 1880, in East Preston, Arun District, West Sussex, England, United Kingdom.

They had 2 children: Reginald George W Cobley and one other child.

 

 

George passed away in 1963, at age 79.

[Simon D.]

Wimbledon station is still a dangerous place - there was a fatality last week~:

https://www.wimbledonguardian.co.uk/news/17839066.railway-horror---man-electrocuted-train-tracks---onlookers-claiming-trying-get-off-line/.

 

There have been a number of incidents in the last few years, leading to fences blocking platform access to the fast lines.

[Simon D.]

Another thought.  Try this:

 

https://libraries.merton.gov.uk/client/en_GB/merton/?rm=HERITAGE+AND+L0|||1|||0|||true

[Stentor]

10 minutes ago, Simon D. said:

Another thought.  Try this:

 

https://libraries.merton.gov.uk/client/en_GB/merton/?rm=HERITAGE+AND+L0|||1|||0|||true

 

Hi Simon,

Thanks, this was where I went and I can thoroughly recommend them, the archivist was really helpful and genuinely interested in the story. Their railway information was very good but it couldn’t help with my question. 

 

//Simon

[K14]

 

On 18/08/2019 at 17:51, Porkscratching said:

Interesting..not sure how much an engraved silver watch would cost then, quite expensive by today's standards I'd think, so quite a substantial prize for an ordinary working chap.

Also a bit more effort would be required in obtaining it and getting the engraving done, than a simple cash award..

 

22 hours ago, JimC said:

What you need I think is an archive of contemporary magazines and look for advertisments. I did have a quick hunt but the only thing I had to hand was an Australian newspaoer, and I only found a couple I wasn't confident were comparable, but one was about £3, the other about £6, but gold.

 

Back cover of the GWR Magazine, February 1931:—

 

 

Of note is that Winegartens were in Bishopsgate (a fair trot from Paddington), so may well have supplied other railway companies.

Also of note is the stamp and badly written address (with incorrect postcode). No wrapping of any kind, just put in the post with every expectation of it surviving the journey. 1d for the magazine & the same for postage – a good read for tuppence.

 

Did the Southern have a Company magazine? If they did, there could well be a mention of the award & some background to the incident.

 

Pete S.

 

 

[roythebus]

Winegartens used to advertise in Rail News, LT News and the ASLEF paper until fairly recent times. I don't know if they're still going.

[PatB]

Slightly left field suggestion, but L.B.S.C (aka Curly Lawrence), writing in the Model Engineer magazine always took a keen interest in the railway happenings in the area, being a former employee himself, and often sprinkled his articles with comment on current matters. If you can find someone with a set of 1927 issues, it might be worth skimming L.B.S.C's columns to see if he mentions anything.

 

As for seemingly lackadaisical postal arrangements, my grandfather once made a pair of copper exhaust pipes for his V-twin Matchless and sent them off to an outfit called The Diamondhard Plating Co for chroming. They returned via the railway parcel service (not sure of the date so it could have been the LNER or BR), arriving at Crook station as a pair of bare pipes, tied together with hairy string and with the address label attached. It was a tribute to the quality of their chroming that the finish remained pristine.

[JimC]

6 hours ago, PatB said:

. It was a tribute to the quality of their chroming that the finish remained pristine.

In the 30s Uffa Fox, the boat builder and yacht designer, used to send his exceedingly expensive and delicate (and very pretty) dinghies uncrated. It was his theory that a crate would be bashed about any old how, but the unprotected varnished wooden craft would be admired and handled with great care.  It has to be said that Mr Fox had a lot of unusual theories, such that tales are still told nearly 50 years after his death.

Edited August 20, 2019 by JimC

[Wickham Green]

12 hours ago, K14 said:

....... Did the Southern have a Company magazine? If they did, there could well be a mention of the award & some background to the incident. .......

 

 

Yes, there was a Southern Railway Magazine but I don't know whether copies survive for 1927 at York, Kew or elsewhere ...... not in the Library of the Southern Railway Group unfortunately. Details of significant incidents are to likely to have been given in the General Managers Reports to the Board too ..... again, survival/location unknown.

[Simon D.]

A bit more random googling:

 

National Archives (Kew) have rail periodicals, including the SR: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C241.  You may have to pay for some research by the looks of it.

 

The British Library newspaper library at Colindale, was closed in 2013, but they seem to have a big digital collection at the main site at Kings Cross:  https://www.bl.uk/collection-guides/newspapers.  The principal regional newspaper in South London has always been the S. London Press, but I'm not sure where their recent (C20th) archives are, but the BL should have some access.  Worth a Try.

 

Hope this helps

[roythebus]

Try looking through the ASLEF Journal for 1927, there ought to be copies of that in the British Library.

[JimC]

4 hours ago, Simon D. said:

National Archives (Kew) have rail periodicals, including the SR: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C241.  You may have to pay for some research by the looks of it.

 

Nope, you can turn up and look at pretty much anything for free.

I should think 

 

Reference:RAIL 651/1

Description: Black Book of cautions and commendations to enginemen would be an excellent place to start. 

https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C1928496

 

652/2 is "Over the Points." Quarterly magazine containing many interesting articles, facts and photographs concerning Southern Railway, but they haven't got a complete run.

Edited August 20, 2019 by JimC

[Stentor]

20 hours ago, Simon D. said:

 

The British Library newspaper library at Colindale, was closed in 2013, but they seem to have a big digital collection at the main site at Kings Cross:  https://www.bl.uk/collection-guides/newspapers.  The principal regional newspaper in South London has always been the S. London Press, but I'm not sure where their recent (C20th) archives are, but the BL should have some access.  Worth a Try.

 

Hope this helps

 

Thanks Simon,

Although I haven’t found any more about the Wimbledon incident this link has allowed me to find out that my wife’s great grandfather was working for the Midland Railway when he was killed in a carting accident in Bristol so thank you very much for that. 

 

//Simon