Museum of Scottish Railways Archive

The Museum of Scottish Railways is Scotland’s principal railway museum, located at the northern terminus of the Bo’ness and Kinneil Railway with a purpose to preserve the
story of Scotland’s railways, their people and places, their past and present, and their progress into the future.

Collins Gentleman’s diary, 1962. Contains loose inserts. Belonged to John (Jock) McKay. Records operational information on duties, routes, personnel, yards visited, engines and accidents/incidents. Details the discovery of gelignite in coal at Law Junction (see also correspondence relating to incident BONSR 2024.0937). Covers Central and Western Scotland, North East of England and Carlisle.

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“Wednesday 13th June // 7.30 am 8.45 viaduct – Rob Roy 44673 (12A) 30 = 40 Class ‘E’. A grand engine clear rd to summit banking from Beattock Carstairs at 10.40. Delayed from Law Jc arrived 12.15. Drove from Beattock. A free running free steamer made short work of the banks. “Murdy” a grand fireman. Noted 48447 G2.080 on hopper train at viaduct. Engine from 8F shed. 55234 at Beattock”

“Friday 15th June // 7.30am 8.45 Rob Roy 45112 (12A) 35 on a long heavy mixed train. Shunted at Quintinshill for 9.14 local. Clear road from Thurso to Carstairs. Stopped for water at Lockerbie. Drove from Beattock. A bit dour for steam. Heavy on water but expertly fired by Driver from Beattock and had no trouble on the bank. Noted G.2 0-8-0 on hopper train Rob Roy 12.45 Kingmoor. 46247 beautifully cleaned magnificent red in the morning sun.”

McKay’s meticulous and detailed diaries, spanning 2 decades, reveal his experiences as he progressed through the grades under the guidance of a variety of more experienced enginemen. Written in miniscule, elegant handwriting, the 1962 diary is a particular rich source of information about the social and industrial practices of the railway family and the visceral joys and frustrations of the job. The selected extracts capture the colour and diversity of life on the lines in the period and documents the names, professional rituals, and oral traditions of a cohesive group of working class men who were his railway family and who have otherwise disappeared from the official record. Between the pages, they come to life as mentors, friends and help us to centre wages grade experiences within official narratives.

Beattock Bank, on the mainline from Glasgow to Carlisle is a storied place and the stuff of railway folklore. The oral tradition on the railway was strong at this time. As a young fireman, McKay would have heard stories from old hand drivers of this notoriously steep and difficult climb, and been excited and worried about tackling it. His admiration of the unnamed driver who expertly negotiates the bruising 10 mile climb is in evidence here.

Here, and at several points during his time as Murdoch Gardiner’s mate, John notes that he has been given the opportunity to drive for part or all of the trip. Firemen learned to operate steam engines through social practices of observation, interaction, hands-on experience, and mutual instruction, with skills passed on from, and developed over time under the supervision of, a more experienced mate. We get a sense of the warm relationship between McKay and Gardiner. A driver was under no obligation to provide training, though some saw it as a duty. Young firemen would be paired with the same driver for 6 month periods. Those who built positive relationships with their mates would be likely to progress more quickly and would have a more rewarding experience. John became a “grand fireman” in his own right after watching and trying the techniques he admired in Murdoch. His mentees at the BKR recall that “he could get coal to turn in the air, like Beckham taking a free kick”.

A later entry dated Thursday 6 September records a violent collision at Buchanan Street station in which Murdoch Gardiner lost his life. ” I have lost a wonderful mate” records McKay. Here, the social bonds and the depth of respect and friendship that was forged through shared practice in the often dangerous environment of the footplate are further hinted at.

b/w Velox print, ‘Walkden’, July 1955 (copyright John McKay)

Oral history of Gavin Johnson, running mate of McKay’s since 1993 (copyright SRMCT)

Driver Johnson is a professional mainline driver and a regular volunteer on the Bo’ness and Kinneil railway. He began training with McKay at the age of 16 and is dedicated to passing down the knowledge learned from him to younger generations. He gives us a personal insight into McKay as a man and a mentor and talks about how his own practice has evolved through teaching new cleaners and fireman. He also reflects upon the value of stories to the railway family and the rituals and habits that foster a sense of community between the generations on heritage railways.

Ash rabbit stew 2009 (copyright Philip Lockett)

Enginemen on steam locomotives cooked hot food using the locomotive as a source of heat. A fireman’s breakfast consisted of food like eggs, bacon, and sausages cooked directly on the surface of a coal shovel. More complicated meals like roast meats would be wrapped in foil and placed in the smokebox where hot air from the fire, travelling through the tubes, acts like an oven. This video shows footplate crew at Bo’ness cooking a traditional stew inspired by the wildlife along the BKR line.

Up the line with No.1 2019 (copyright Ailsa Miller)

A new generation of footplate crew demonstrating ways of working passed down to them directly or indirectly from Driver McKay which cannot be found enshrined in the rule book. Johnson recalls “Jock could get an engine to do things other drivers couldn’t. He could attach carriages together and you wouldn’t notice. He could stop without the lurch. That finesse is what it means to be a professional engineman It’s our duty to pass on what Jock taught us”.

Find out more about the Museum of Scottish Railways Archive.