G.E.R. Loco dept. Norwich

[Atlantic 3279]

The National Archive at Kew appears to have (some?) records for staff of the Great Eastern, apparently including the Loco, Carriage and Wagon dept. These have not been digitised by the NA so it is impossible to tell what information they might contain without paying a visit, which may of course reveal only that the information I seek is not there - unless by chance somebody reading this already holds a copy of the records and is willing to assist.

By delving into on-line records of Freemen of Norwich I may have located some of my ancestors, namely an Edward Carr King (possibly my Great Grandfather) and a Henry King who may have been Edward's brother. A very long time ago I was told that my Great Grandfather had worked for the G.E.R. at Norwich, although I did not know if that was reliable information. It turns out that the records of the two freemen describe both as engine fitters, Edward in 1870 and Henry in 1861, but that doesn't prove that they worked for the G.E.R.

If anybody can provide any help in this matter I shall be very grateful.

[65447]

If you have not already done so I recommend submitting this enquiry to the GER Society, whose members have extracted records from TNA and also there are some who enjoy researching newspaper archives and other sources. This web page explains how to go about it: https://www.gersociety.org.uk/index.php ... /genealogy

Good Luck in your search...

[Atlantic 3279]

Thanks Mike, the GERS was certainly in my mind as a possible line of enquiry.

[hectordavie]

I was doing some research into the history of 4 Ashby Street, in Norwich, to the east of the former Victoria Station coal yard. Edward Carr King moved in there in the 1890s after previously living a little further out on the Newmarket Road, with his wife and family (6 sons and 2 daughters, and two more died in infancy!). He always described himself in the census returns as a railway engine fitter. In 1911, his son Richard was apprenticed in the same trade. The census returns do not specify the GER, but from the address, this seems the most likely. He was there until the second world war, after his retirement,

[65447]

hectordavie,

That is the most likely explanation, but don't forget that the Midland & Great Northern Joint also had a presence in Norwich at City Station. Although most work was undertaken at Melton Constable, it's possible that some staff were stationed (forgive the pun) at City to deal with the odd failure or emergency.