Platelayers in Carlisle

Platelayers in Carlisle

Railway maintenance being undertaken by a team of platelayers.

Photograph of platelayers in Carlisle, 1899. Platelayers were employed to inspect and maintain the track, including all its component parts such as rails, sleepers and bolts. Duties included greasing points and generally watching for wear and tear. When sections of track required complete replacement, larger teams of platelayers worked together, as in this image, but it was usual for each platelayer to be assigned to each mile or two miles of track, with a platelayers' hut as a shelter and working base. In this photograph the lack of any safety equipment is particularly striking.

Anonymous photographer

Cumbria Image Bank http://www.cumbriaimagebank.org.uk/

Lancaster University

1899

Reproduced by courtesy of Cumbria Image Bank, who retain all rights over this image. No further reproduction is permitted without written permission of Cumbria Image Bank.

Further reading on platelayers' huts in Cumbria:http://www.foscl.org.uk/scrca/structure-type-definition/platelayers-hut

Nineteenth century

Photograph