Passengers Gallery

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

Paddington Station, c1940

A group of nurses wave off a train load of evacuees during World War 2. The mass evacuation of children from cities and towns, known as Operation Pied Piper, began in 1939. Thousands of children were sent from London to safer locations in the countryside. The majority had returned by 1944

© STEAM Museum of the GWR

Evacuation, Evacuees, London, Nurses, Operation Pied Piper, Paddington, Station, War, World War 2, Ww2

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