Swindon Works Gallery

Australian officers and sailors on a visit to Swindon Works,1945

Officers and sailors from H.M.A.S Australia on a visit to Swindon Works on July 13th 1945 whilst their ship was docked at Plymouth awaiting repairs. Their ship was heavily involved in the war effort throughout South East Asia until she was forced to withdraw for repairs in early 1945. She arrived at Plymouth on July 2nd 1945 for a major refit and remained there until December of that year. With up to 6 months in port while their ship was undergoing repair the group of Australian soldiers, pictured here continuing their tour around Swindon Works, presumably had plenty of time to tour sites of interest around Britain. The impressive building in the background of this image is the Pattern Store which housed the GWR's thousands of component patterns

Brake Third coach No. 3307 converted into a mobile cleansing unit, 1941

The fear of gas attack was of paramount concern during World War II, as demonstrated by the mass issuing of gas masks prior to the outbreak of war in 1939. One of the responsibilities of the ARP services was to lead the decontamination and cleansing process in the event of such an attack. Mobile cleansing units were made available to the ARP service to clean people who had been exposed to gas attack, and in July 1941 the GWR converted Brake Third coach No. 3307 into an ARP Cleansing Unit for this purpose. The van was equipped with an air lock leading to an undressing room, showers, and further along the vehicle, a dressing room stocked with fresh clothing. As can be seen in this photograph, the windows were completely blacked out and they were also made to be blast proof. This was one of 47 such units converted by the major railway companies, which were stationed at strategic locations for immediate dispatch to any station or rail depot where they were needed

Women war workers making ammunition shells in 24F Shop, 1943.

Women war workers making ammunition shells in 24F Shop, 1943.
These women have been tasked with the pressing on of copper bands and insertion of base plates for 25-pounder quick firing, high explosive, streamline shells. They are using a specialist Aldous- Campbell Ltd high pressure machine which fits both copper band and base plate securely in position. The lady to the right of the machine is holding a shell in position and a notice board (just out of shot) states that two presses, one of eight seconds and another of five seconds, are required in the machine to seal the shell