This talk will showcase the Portsmouth Area Railway Pasts project – a collaboration which has found out more about the working, family and community lives of railway staff in the south-east Hampshire area. We’ll introduce railways in the area, how the project came about, some of the people we’ve researched, and offer some thoughts on working collaboratively. Reflecting the nature of the project, our talk will be given as a collaboration between three of the group involved. You can find out more about the project, supported by the University of Portsmouth Centre for Excellence in Heritage Innovation, at: https://www.railwayaccidents.port.ac.uk/portsmouth-area-railway-pasts/

Speakers: 

Dr Mike Esbester: Mike Esbester is Senior Lecturer in History at the University of Portsmouth and co-leads the Railway Work, Life & Death project (www.railwayaccidents.port.ac.uk), from which the Portsmouth Area Railway Pasts project developed.

Alan Roblin: Alan Roblin worked in Hampshire in the marine industry until retirement. With a huge interest in local history, he is heavily involved with the Portsmouth Royal Dockyard Historic Trust as researcher and librarian.

Neil Spurgeon: Neil Spurgeon spent 30 years in the Royal Navy, before working in Further and Higher Education. He is Chairman of the Havant Local History Group which meets informally each month at The Spring Arts and Heritage Centre to investigate local history and through which research projects such as Portsmouth Area Railway Pasts are investigated.

Details and booking: https://hampshirearchivestrust.co.uk/events/finding-hampshires-railway-workers