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Group of rail workers stop for a photograph
Unknown, 1947, Photograph
Group of rail workers stop for a photograph
Group of rail workers stop for a photograph
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About this image
Related
Location
Category
Library Item
Item no
37694
Title
Group of rail workers stop for a photograph during digging out the Waverley Line from heavy snow
Description
John Robertson (Jock) is standing at the front of the group, 5th from left. He worked as a railway maintenance worker.
Artist / maker
Unknown
Date
1947
Size
9.0 x 12.7 cm
Type
Photograph
This photograph was taken in the severe winter of 1947, when the snow covering the tracks of the Waverley Line had to be dug out manually. The men were roped together for safety but in spite of the cold they were in everyday working clothes and some were bare-headed and without gloves!
The Waverley Line was run by the North British Railway from Edinburgh to Carlisle until it was closed in 1969 after the Beeching Report. A long campaign resulted in the re-opening of part of the route.
The Borders Railway
links Edinburgh to the Borders town of Tweedbank and was opened on 9th September by Her Majesty the Queen. At over 30 miles it is the longest track to be laid in over a hundred years.
Exhibitions with this item
Borders Railway - Winter 1947
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Agriculture and fisheries
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Spades
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Accessories
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Caps
Clothing and dress
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Garments
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Workwear
Natural phenomena
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Weather
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Snow
People
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Transportation
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Railway workers
Places
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Scotland
>
Borders
Transport
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Infrastructure
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Railway
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