Old Swindon-built locomotive destined for restoration

Wiltshire County Council and Swindon Borough Council, who run the Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office, have just taken delivery of the final collection of records from the celebrated railway, created by engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel.

Brunel made second place in the BBC's poll to find the public's choice for the Greatest Briton of all time.

Great Briton: Isambard Kingdom Brunel

The archive, which contains thousands of documents, includes staff and pension records, as well as engineering papers and plans of buildings and tracks.

The final set of records has arrived in Wiltshire from the British Rail Records Centre at Paddington in London.

The Great Western Railway was the only British railway to survive intact from its opening in 1841 right up until the nationalisation of the rail network after the Second World War.

Steve Hobbs, archivist

Some of the records held at the Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office date back to the mid-19th century.

Wiltshire County Council archivist, Steve Hobbs, said: "We are thrilled to be able to complete our archive of the Great Western Railway, which is still revered by railway enthusiasts.

"Swindon was at the heart of the railway industry in the West for nearly 150 years and the company was very important economically to Wiltshire."

The Great Western Railway logo

He added: "We are working to make the whole collection available to the public. Only a small part of the archive is currently listed and it will take several years to catalogue all the material.

"However, when the process is completed, the archive will prove very useful to anyone with an interest in the history of the Great Western Railway."

A catalogue of some of the records is already available on the Internet at www.a2a.pro.gov.uk