A Railwayman's Journey
Denny Ellis
The factual story of Denny Ellis’ career of a railwayman spanning 45 years.
It details each position he held from that of a Probationary Junior Porter to a Superintendent. The social impact of shiftwork, of the working of excess overtime in the 1950’s and 1960’s, of the effect of alcohol in the workplace and the part of wives and children.
A Railwayman's Journey is the factual story of Denny Ellis' career of a railwayman spanning 43 years. It details each position he held from that of a Probationary Junior Porter to a Superintendent. Each position held is described from his perspective at 'the coalface' as he performed the duties assigned to each. An interesting facet is that the story is written entirely from memory after he retired.
The social impact of shiftwork, of the working of excess overtime in the 1950s and 1960s, of the effects of alcohol in the workplace and of the part played by wives and children are threaded through the story.
On a personal note, his family feature strongly, especially his daughter, Cathy, who suffered a brain tumour at two years of age and died 27 years later a quadriplegic. The strains of dealing with a continual need for surgery, the the constant care required by her mother, the financial implications involved and the realisation that surgery had left its mark in the form of slight intellectual disability all had to be dealt with during her lifetime.
ISBN 0-9757870-0-4