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North Eastern Railway In The First World War By Rob Langham
The North Eastern Railway In The First World War By Rob Langham
Softcover 188 Pages Copyright 2013, 2015
Contents
1Acknowledgements6
2.Introduction7
OutbreakII
The Bombardment of Whitby, Scarboroughand the Hartlepools2.8
3191537
4The Shildon to Newport Electrification64
5191671
6191786
71918 and Beyond1o6
8Remembering119
9On War Service12.3
10Women in North Eastern Railway Service137
IIThe North Eastern Railway Battalion -17th (Pioneer)
Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers146
12.The Darlington National Projectile Factory167
13War Manufacture173
14Wells-Hood's War178
Bibliographyi86
Introduction
The North Eastern Railway was formed in 1854 when four railways were merged together - the York, Newcastle & Berwick Railway, the York & North Midland Railway, the Leeds Northern Railway and the Malton & Driffield Railway. Other railways were also absorbed over the years, including the world's first public railway, the Stockton & Darlington Railway. By 1914 the railway's system stretched from east Yorkshire in the south to the Scottish border in the north, the Pennines forming the western border, with running powers and some lines running outside the main system area. As well as the railways there were also a number of ports owned by the railway, and also motor bus, charabanc and parcels van services. The east coast main line running from London King's Cross to Edinburgh ran through the North Eastern Railway's network and operated jointly by the North British Railway, Great Northern Railway and North Eastern Railway. As well as passenger services, coal traffic was heavy on the system, especially from the Durham and Northumberland coalfields - from the mines, the coal would usually be hauled to the docks on the east coast from where it was transported by ship. The coal and mineral traffic on the North Eastern Railway was larger than on any other railway in the United Kingdom.
When war broke out, the railway had had its most successful year in 1913, and 1914 was also looking to match or top the previous year's success. The war was to bring great change - 18,339 men were released for service with the armed forces, 34 per cent of the staff, and of those 2,2.36 were to die on active service. This left a huge gap in the workforce, partly filled by women. Industry in the north east was to go under huge expansion which meant increased traffic both supplying the raw materials to the factories and then delivering the finished products - forty-eight factories were enlarged and thirteen new ones built, four shipbuilding yards were enlarged and a further seven started, and three new quarries were also opened. This was countered by a large reduction in traffic to the ports on the North Eastern Railway's system, especially those owned by the railway, owing to German submarine warfare in the North Sea - this meant that the traffic had to be sent by rail instead for the entire journey, rather than a short journey to the docks. Coal traffic for the Royal Navy for example now went from South Wales through to Scotland for onward delivery to the base at Scapa Flow via the entire North Eastern Railway system, nearly two million tons of coal being carried in total until 31 December 1918 for the Admiralty. Troop trains were now a common sight, especially with large military camps set up at Catterick and Ripon. In total, until 31 December 1918, nearly twelve million servicemen boarded trains on the North Eastern Railway, 24,172. special trains were run, 134,2.08 horses were carried, 9,48o vehicles, and in total 5,52.4,989 tons of goods traffic was carried on behalf of the Government - only including traffic that either originated or terminated on the North Eastern Railway system and not including that which travelled on the system but started and terminated elsewhere.
As well as men, horses and dogs of the North Eastern Railway also served in the armed forces - as did various equipment of the railway: locomotives, motor vehicles, wagons and the rails themselves. The railway came under attack from the Germans by both sea and air, manufactured large quantities of military equipment including artillery shells (as well as running a new munitions factory built on North Eastern Railway land). The North Eastern Railway was the only British railway to have its own Battalion: the 17th Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers, and the reserve 3 znd Battalion, were formed entirely of North Eastern Railway men, and although originally an infantry Battalion had their role changed to that of a Pioneer Battalion before they went to the front, and later in the war were heavily engaged on railway work for which they were of course well suited. I hope this book is a fitting tribute to all those of the North Eastern Railway during the First World War - those who went to war, those who stayed, and those who joined the railway during the war. Most of the information comes from the 'North Eastern Railway Magazine', first published in 1911 and continued to be published monthly until the North Eastern Railway ceased to be on i January 192.3 as part of the Grouping of most of the British railway companies, and which provides a superb account of the happenings of a railway, a superb research tool for anyone wishing to study this period or look for information on a relative who served in the railway. Hopefully I have not missed out anything too important, and would like to invite contributions from anyone who has further information on the North Eastern Railway in the First World War for possible inclusion in a future edition.
Rob Langham, 2013
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