Passengers Gallery

Quick Lunch and Snack Bar at Paddington Station, 1936

An interior view of Paddington station showing a busy snack bar, which probably opened soon after the modernisation of the station in the 1930s. The GWR roundel logo adorns the top of the doorway while a number of stylishly dressed passengers are sitting around the bar on stools enjoying a range of food and drink

© STEAM Museum of the GWR

Soldiers and Sailors Buffet at Paddington Station, 1919

A shot capturing the last servicemen to be offered refreshments at the Soldiers and Sailors Free Buffet at Paddington Station on 28th June 1919. The forces canteen opened in April 1915 to offer sustenance to the servicemen who passed through Paddington during the war years. It was staffed day and night by a dedicated group of more than 80 female volunteers who, during the four years that the Buffet was open, served refreshments to more than 3 million men. The soldier sitting in the corner seat was himself a Great Western man, possibly on his journey home from active duty

© STEAM Museum of the GWR

Evacuees waiting outside the departure platform at Paddington in 1939

One of the very first war time roles that the GWR was engaged in was the evacuation of children from cities to the relative safety of the countryside. Even before war was declared, plans were drawn up for evacuation so the GWR and the other major railway companies were prepared and on standby to put these plans into action. On August 31st 1939, the day before Germany invaded Poland, the order to begin the evacuation was given. The very next day the mass movement of children began and continued until September 4th. The GWR was responsible for the majority of the children moved from North and East London and while most of the evacuation trains departed from Ealing Broadway, this image shows groups of children being off-loaded from a double decker bus outside the Departure Platform at Paddington Station during the four days of evacuation in September 1939

© STEAM Museum of the GWR