Mud on My Shoes : Laurie Trowbridge's Memories

It was in 1982 that, at the age of fifty-eight ... my railway career came to an end after forty-two years' service. I had seen many changes over the years ... it was not always easy to see the old traditions pass.Laurie Trowbridge's story begins at fabled Wolfhall Manor near Savernake Forest, where his father worked, and takes him through military training to the Coldstream Guards and duty as a 'redcap' in the Middle East at the end of World War II. His long career with Great Western Railway then British Railways took him first to a Booking Office then to the legal side and on to Welfare. Here, interactive skills, a measure of sympathy and a large dose of common sense helped him take railway staff and widows through the difficult upheavals of the Beeching years. His family life, though ultimately full of happiness, had its disappointments and upheavals too.Laurie's 'retirement' turned out to be a golden time of new working opportunities, family celebrations, a major move to Cornwall and the fellowship of a friendly community. Here is a life that encompasses nearly ninety years of enormous transformations in the make-up of our nation. Laurie's role in all this has been faithfully and entertainingly recorded in these pages.Born in Wiltshire in 1924, Laurie spent most of his early years as a country boy, before following a railway career in the West Country which lasted over forty-two years. Happily married to Barbara for over sixty years, he is quite content to be spending his twilight years in Cornwall.