- By Greg
- In Rail, Community, Social Value
AW RAIL – ASHFORD PEOPLES LIBRARY
Ashford Peoples Library Project
There has been a long association with Ashford and the rail industry over the decades which has seen hundreds of people come and go within the industry. Now you can share your memories with an ongoing project to capture the uniqueness of Ashford and the long history associated within the railways.
Whilst generations of Ashfordians have been employed within the industry, the influence of the railway ran far beyond the confines of stations, lines and workshops, running deep into the town’s social and sporting life. While the practicalities of railway and workshop operation impacted lives beyond direct employment.
To a lesser extent, with HS1, Eurostar, together with the Hitachi maintenance facility, it continues today. Therefore, while the town’s reliance upon the railway industry has reduced, its ongoing legacy is held within the reminiscences and experiences unique to the town and time in which they took place. Indeed, oral history is now credited as being the means by which contemporary community and industrial history can be better understood, a vital and irreplaceable resource for future generations.
The idea for the whole project is very simple, to preserve people’s railway-related experiences, but one which has been pertinent to Ashford’s history for some time.
Inspired by the research undertaken by Suzi Hopkins for the theatrical production, “All Change for Ashford” and the Ashford180 celebrations, the Ashford People’s Library project aims to collect people’s railway-related memories. Having had a railway station since 1842, the site of both railway workshops and village, Ashford has a rich and varied railway history.
The enthusiasm for the idea has seen a growing stream of contributors come forward and has already revealed aspects of local history previously unknown, proving just how important the project is. It also highlighted the need for this project to extend beyond the confines of the Ashford180 event, therefore the Ashford People’s Library project has been extended into, a free, publicly accessible, curated archive.
Ideally, this will be in the form of a searchable website. In the meantime, we are keen for people to continue to contact us with their contributions while we make as much of the collection as possible accessible at Ashford Museum.
You can be part of this project by emailing: peopleslibrary@ashfordmuseum.org.uk
Or contacting The Ashford People’s Library via their website: www.ashfordmuseum.org.uk
You can of course visit them in person at:
Ashford Museum,
Church Yard,
Ashford,
Kent TN23 1QG
We certainly hope that in the 2025 which celebrates 200 years of Britain’s railways that as many people come forward to share memories, share stories,share photos and provide unique insights into Ashford and the railways history within Kent. AW Rail are delighted to sponsor this project and look forward to seeing it develop over the coming months and years and provide a unique insight into how the railway has developed on our doorstep.
AW Rail Services have been delivering rail projects for several years right across the Rail & Construction sector.
Our extensive rail experience of over 120 years, combining decades of hands-on knowledge, providing building enhancements and maintenance solutions, improving infrastructure for passengers and operators, delivering major projects, and fulfilling long-term maintenance contracts really sets us apart.
Our services are varied from structural maintenance on tunnels, bridges, foot crossings, signal gantries, to station refurbishment, platform enhancements, civils works on and around the track, the mechanism management of lineside vegetation and further afield, painting of all types of structures and lastly but perhaps most importantly the provision of rail labour, not only supporting the projects we carry out for our projects but for the provision of labour to other clients.
