This page is one of a series introducing railway staff who worked on the south coast of England before 1939. They’ve been researched as part of the ‘Portsmouth Area Railway Pasts’ project – which you can read more about here, including accessing details of the other railway workers featured.
Research was undertaken from November 2024-July 2025, by a small group of volunteers from the Havant Local History Group, working with the University of Portsmouth’s History team. The work was funded by the University of Portsmouth’s Centre of Excellence for Heritage Innovation.
The workers featured were selected from staff who appear in the Railway Work, Life & Death project database of accidents to pre-1939 British and Irish railway workers.
*** This page is under development – the full life story will be updated as soon as possible.
We’ve had railway police since the earliest days of the railway – they used to be in charge of signalling and keeping trains safe and moving. Over time their policing role was separated out from the signalling role.
George Hother joined the London & South Western Railway at Portsmouth Town (now known as Portsmouth & Southsea) station in 1895, as a porter. By 1911 he was a railway policeman, responsible for patrolling goods yards and preventing theft.
On 5 March 1932 he got his right foot trapped in track at Portsmouth and Southsea. It was hit by a train; his lower leg was later amputated, but he survived.
*** Further details of George’s life will be added as soon as possible.