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Swindon is the place where some of the best steam locomotives in the world were built. So it is no surprise that the town is home to Steam, a museum that tells the story of the men and women who built, operated and travelled on the Great Western Railway – “God’s Wonderful Railway”.
The success of early lines such as the Stockton and Darlington Railway and the Liverpool and Manchester Railway played an important part in persuading the business community in Bristol that a rail link to London was essential if it was to remain an important centre for trade and industry. In 1833 a committee was formed and a young engineer called Isambard Kingdom Brunel was appointed to design the line. Some of his drawings and surveying equipment can be seen in the museum.
Parliament approved his scheme in 1835 and work started almost immediately on constructing the 112-mile line. The railway was built largely by sheer physical effort and stories from the hardworking and underpaid navvies can be heard as you travel through the museum.
The decision to site the Great Western Railway’s workshops at Swindon was made in 1841 when the board authorised construction of “an establishment commensurate with the wants of the company”.
Brunel and locomotive superintendent Daniel Gooch had visited the town in 1840 and had cho-sen a site at the junction of the branch line to Cheltenham and the Great Western main line to Bristol.
The museum building was originally one of a series of machine shops situated around the works, where metal components were shaped and turned to the correct size by lathes, drills, grinders, planters or slotters. The machine shop display features belt-driven machines that have been restored. The oldest, a bevel gear cutter, dates back to 1887.
The works were opened in January 1843, and only offered repair and maintenance facilities in the early years. But by 1846 the works had turned out their first engine – the Great Western. The facility expanded further in 1868 when the carriage and wagon works opened.
The locomotives on display at the museum provide a good cross-section of the company’s power and the variety of engines produced at the works. Rolling stock on display includes Queen Victoria’s Royal Saloon, a buffet car from 1934, a Mink wagon, a Toad brake van, a shunting wagon, and a restored coal wagon.
After the nationalisation of the railways in 1948 there was a gradual decline in the works’ for-tunes, marked by the building of the last steam engine for British Railways in 1960. Three years later a large part of the carriage works closed. The end came in 1986 when British Rail Engineering finally closed the works after 143 years of operation.
From the end of the Victorian era people were increasingly able to afford to take holidays or day trips by rail, and GWR responded by promoting itself as “the Holiday Line”. No other rail company matched the quality or output of Great Western’s publicity material and many examples can be seen in the museum.
The museum hosts many special events throughout the year, from exhibitions to the annual Swindon Railway Festival.
For more details, see: http://www.steam-museum.org.uk
Look and learn – five things to see
1. The Works: Wander around recreated areas of the famous Swindon railway works and hear from real GWR workers of the time through dramatic archive film.
2. Finished product: Get up close and personal to legendary GWR locomotives including Caerphilly Castle, King George V, City of Truro and Ditcheat Manor.
3. Building the railway: The museum is brought to life with stories of the exploits of GWR engineers Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Daniel Gooch.
4. Operating the railway: Have a go on the steam train driving simulator and test your skills as a signalman in the interactive Uffington signal box.
5. Gift shop and restaurant: Purchase some refreshments and browse a wide selection of souvenirs, gifts, books, postcards, and railway-themed beers.